Fearless Movie Song

[Mei Li Wu]

"Fearless" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift and the title track of her 2008 second studio album. Swift wrote the song with Liz Rose and Hillary Lindsey while promoting her 2006 self-titled debut album, and she produced it with Nathan Chapman. She placed it first on Fearless's track listing because she thought it encompassed the album's overarching theme; the song's lyrics are about a perfect first date despite its uncertainties. The production is country pop and pop rock and incorporates dynamic guitars. Big Machine Records released "Fearless" to US country radio as the album's fifth and final single on January 4, 2010.

"Fearless" has received critical acclaim. Alice Fisher of The Guardian praised "Fearless" for its "perceptive lyrics about universal truths that can be enjoyed at any age."[15] Jim Harrington of The San Jose Mercury News expressed a similar sentiment in a review of Swift's Fearless Tour: "Moms and daughters, as well as groups of teens and couples out for a date night, [can sing] along with equal gusto."[16] Jody Rosen of Rolling Stone chose the song as a highlight from Fearless, applauding its "loud, lean guitars and rousing choruses." Retrospectively, critics have remained favorable towards the imagery and passion of the lyrics. Nate Jones of Vulture ranked the song as her 25th best song (out of 173 ranked in total), highlighting that the emotion Swift invested into the lyrics "is matched in the way she tumbles from line to line into the chorus."[13] Rolling Stone's Rob Sheffield ranked it 29th, opining that Swift makes even some of her most common tropes feel fresh.[17] Jules Lefevre of Junkee ranked it as the third best song on Fearless, similarly praising the presence of Swift's most common imagery and describing the song as captivating.[7] In a review of Fearless (Taylor's Version), a reviewer for Clash Magazine retrospectively described "Fearless" as a "first kiss soundtrack".[18]

After its digital release, on the issue dated November 1, 2008, "Fearless" debuted and peaked at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 with sales of 162,000 digital downloads.[19] It made Swift the first female artist since Madonna in 1998 to have two top-10 debuts in one calendar year.[20]

Following its single release, the song re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 99 on the week ending February 20, 2010.[21] Its highest position on the chart while being released as a single was number 76 on the week ending April 10, 2010;[22] it ultimately spent 15 weeks on the Hot 100.[23] The song is one of 13 songs from Fearless charted within the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100, breaking the record for the most top 40 entries from a single album.[24] "Fearless" also peaked at number 10 on the Hot Country Songs chart and spent 19 weeks on the chart, making it Swift's tenth consecutive top 10 hit but also her lowest-charting single,[25] and 27 on the Country Digital Song Sales chart, where it spent 15 weeks.[26] The single was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for the sale of over 500,000 units on October 12, 2009, before its official release as a single on January 4, 2010,[27] therefore becoming the first single to be certified gold before being released as an official single.[10] "Fearless" was certified platinum by the RIAA on October 23, 2012,[27] and had sold a million copies in the United States by November 2017.[28]

On the week ending November 29, 2008, "Fearless" debuted and peaked at number 69 in Canada, spending a total of five weeks on the chart.[25] It eventually reached number 7 on the Canadian Country Airplay chart.[29] The song peaked at number 32 in Spain.[30]

Swift's first televised performance of "Fearless" was on November 10, 2008, on the Late Show with David Letterman.[32] She went on to perform the song on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and Clear Channel Communications's Stripped.[32][33] Swift performed the song on all venues of her first headlining concert tour, the Fearless Tour, which ran from April 23, 2009, to July 10, 2010. During each performance, Swift escorted a silver sparkly dress and black boots and played an acoustic guitar as floral patterns with a moving butterfly were projected on the stage.[34] Alice Fisher of The Observer attended the May 7, 2009 concert at Shepherd's Bush Empire in London and said that while Swift drifted off during the performance, it "clearly made perfect sense to the girls in the audience."[15]

Various performances from the Fearless Tour were used to comprise a music video for "Fearless", directed by Todd Cassetty. The video premiered on February 17, 2010, on CMT.[34] It begins when Swift tells her band before they step onstage, "You guys, this tour has been the best experience of my entire life." The video intermingles footage from the tour itself with fans excitedly showing off signs to Swift with behind-the-scenes footage of Swift and her band as they travel on the Fearless Tour. The video ends with Swift waving goodbye as she exits the stage.[40] Jocelyn Vena of MTV News interpreted it to be "Swift's love letter to her fans", as it showed an "inside view of what it's like to go on tour".[40] As of July 2021, the video has accumulated over 58.4 million views on YouTube.[41]

"Fearless (Taylor's Version)" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. The re-recorded version of Swift's 2008 song "Fearless", it is the opening track of Swift's first re-recorded album of the same name, a re-recording of her 2008 album Fearless. Fearless (Taylor's Version) was released on April 9, 2021, through Republic Records. Swift wrote the song with Liz Rose and Hillary Lindsey and produced it with Christopher Rowe. "Fearless (Taylor's Version)" replicates the lyrics, production, and instrumentation of the original "Fearless".

In a review of Fearless (Taylor's Version), Hannah Mylrea of NME described the title track as brilliant, praising its "starry-eyed lyricism" and "stellar instrumental arrangements" that elicit memories of Swift's older music while simultaneously being much more refined in its production.[55] A reviewer for Clash magazine highlighted Swift's improved vocals and the crisper production while also pinpointing the nostalgia the song evokes.[18]

Music critics lauded the album's radio-friendly tunes and emotional engagement that appealed to not only teenagers but also a broad audience, although some deemed the production formulaic. The most-awarded country album of all time, Fearless won Album of the Year at both the Country Music Association Awards and the Academy of Country Music Awards in 2009, and it won Album of the Year and Best Country Album at the Grammy Awards in 2010. The album featured on Rolling Stone's 2022 list of the 100 Greatest Country Albums of All Time. Following the 2019 dispute regarding the ownership of Swift's back catalog, she released a re-recording, Fearless (Taylor's Version), on April 9, 2021.

Taylor Swift signed a publishing contract with Sony/ATV Tree Publishing in 2004 to become a songwriter;[1] at 14 years old, she became the youngest Sony/ATV signee in its history.[2] After signing a recording contract with Nashville-based Big Machine Records in 2005 to become a country music singer, Swift wrote songs with other Music Row songwriters and recorded her eponymous debut album with the producer Nathan Chapman for four months near the end of 2005.[3][4] Released on October 24, 2006, the album Taylor Swift was the longest-charting album on the US Billboard 200 of the 2000s decade, and established Swift as one of country music's rising stars.[5][6] Its third single, "Our Song", made Swift the youngest person to single-handedly write and sing a number-one song on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.[7] Her success was rare for a female teenage artist, as country music had been dominated by mostly middle-aged male musicians.[8][9]

Swift usually started writing by identifying a core emotion she wanted to convey through the melody on guitar. For other songs, she sometimes came up with the title first before writing the hook.[14] While some songs were inspired by Swift's personal relationships, she said that most songs were dramatized observations rather than real-life experiences: "I've gone through breakups and the core emotions behind them, but it doesn't take much to get that sort of emotion out in a song, luckily for me."[18] She explained that certain emotions on her songs such as frustration or heartbreak came easily without her actually going through emotional turmoil.[11] By July 2007, Swift had written as many as 75 songs.[14] She recorded the album within a few months after touring with George Strait.[19] Chapman, who produced Swift's debut, returned as producer,[20] and recording took place at studios in Tennessee, including six in Nashville and one in Franklin.[21]

During the recording sessions, Swift emphasized the authenticity of the songs' emotional sentiments over technical rigidity: "I think it's the writer in me that's a little more obsessed with the meaning of the song than the vocal technique."[22] By March 2008, Swift had recorded six songs, including one co-written by and featuring Caillat, "Breathe";[11][23] Swift had used Caillat's 2007 song "Bubbly" as a reference point during the recording sessions, because of its simple arrangements and honest sentiments.[20] Apart from newly penned songs, Swift recorded a few that she had written for her debut album, believing there were stories that deserved to be put out.[11] Swift made her debut as a record producer, co-producing all tracks with Chapman.[24] The standard edition consists of 13 tracks, which Swift had planned because she considered 13 her lucky number.[14][25] Of the 13 tracks, Swift wrote seven by herself; the remaining were co-written with Caillat, Rose, Rich, and Hillary Lindsey.[21] Recording took place within eight months[26] and finished in October 2008, when Swift completed the track "Forever & Always" just before Fearless was mastered and published.[22][27] The tracks "Change" and "Breathe" were recorded in December 2007.[28]

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