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1989 (album)
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<p><i>1989</i> is the fifth studio album by the American singer-songwriter <a href="/facts/Taylor_Swift/gdDeCTku">Taylor Swift</a>. It was released on October 27, 2014, by <a href="/facts/Big_Machine_Records/dxSfgcux">Big Machine Records</a>. Titled after Swift's birth year as a symbolic rebirth, the album recalibrated her artistic identity from <a href="/facts/Country_music/UJM3Un98">country music</a> to <a href="/facts/Pop_music/kgshFE5B">pop</a>. </p><p>Swift produced <i>1989</i> with <a href="/facts/Max_Martin/kI3zT6MP">Max Martin</a>, <a href="/facts/Shellback_(record_producer)/ABj5Jnay">Shellback</a>, <a href="/facts/Jack_Antonoff/WqXRlE4r">Jack Antonoff</a>, <a href="/facts/Ryan_Tedder/UaFKLD9X">Ryan Tedder</a>, <a href="/facts/Nathan_Chapman_(record_producer)/FnyFxouk">Nathan Chapman</a>, and <a href="/facts/Imogen_Heap/kcPoev3d">Imogen Heap</a>. Its <a href="/facts/1980s_retro/dMWupGFJ">1980s-inspired</a> <a href="/facts/Synth-pop/ejVwqcNb">synth-pop</a> production incorporates dense <a href="/facts/Synthesizer/NrmdVrPa">synthesizers</a>, <a href="/facts/Programming_(music)/xWD7z2z0">programmed</a> <a href="/facts/Drum_machine/ltR2xFt3">drum machines</a>, and processed <a href="/facts/Electronic_music/zfGNfUvR">electronic</a> backing vocals, abandoning the <a href="/facts/Acoustic_music/DK2gYoTt">acoustic</a> arrangements that had characterized Swift's past albums. The songs chronicle the aftermath of a failed relationship with lyrics that expand on Swift's autobiographical details; they depict heartbreak, recovery, and self-discovery from lighthearted, wistful, and nostalgic perspectives. </p><p><i>1989</i> was promoted with <a href="/facts/The_1989_World_Tour/xzE83T2B">the 1989 World Tour</a>, the highest-grossing concert tour of 2015. Seven <a href="/facts/Single_(music)/xkeLPy2P">singles</a> supported the album, including the <a href="/facts/Billboard_Hot_100/gwKl8VL9"><i>Billboard</i> Hot 100</a> number-ones "<a href="/facts/Shake_It_Off/uk7MyC8A">Shake It Off</a>", "<a href="/facts/Blank_Space/gHTQ1oBa">Blank Space</a>", and "<a href="/facts/Bad_Blood_(Taylor_Swift_song)/Gu3A3QzT">Bad Blood</a>", and the top-ten entries "<a href="/facts/Style_(Taylor_Swift_song)/xnvjlxks">Style</a>" and "<a href="/facts/Wildest_Dreams/qf7A5kz9">Wildest Dreams</a>". In the United States, <i>1989</i> spent 11 weeks atop the <a href="/facts/Billboard_200/XtbnoFSM"><i>Billboard</i> 200</a> and was <a href="/facts/RIAA_certification/TWwUbkQP">certified</a> nine-times platinum. It is <a href="/facts/List_of_best-selling_albums_of_the_21st_century/nnemmkUd">one of the best-selling albums of the 21st century</a>, having sold 14 million copies worldwide, and received platinum <a href="/facts/List_of_music_recording_certifications/6CPQFNNn">certifications</a> in countries across Europe, the Americas, and Asia–Pacific. Swift and Big Machine withheld the album from free <a href="/facts/Music_streaming_service/x7gDWdEG">streaming services</a> for nearly three years, which prompted an industry discourse on the impact of streaming on <a href="/facts/Record_sales/X24XCBr7">record sales</a>. </p><p>Initial reviews of <i>1989</i> were generally positive, praising its production as <a href="/facts/Catchy/xpYVdyq0">catchy</a> and Swift's songwriting. However, some critics argued that the synth-pop production undermined Swift's singer-songwriter identity—a criticism that has been retrospectively regarded as <a href="/facts/Rockist/6lRQIcko">rockist</a>. <i>1989</i> won <a href="/facts/Grammy_Award_for_Album_of_the_Year/N7gTMqGf">Album of the Year</a> and <a href="/facts/Best_Pop_Vocal_Album/DEofaLlo">Best Pop Vocal Album</a> at the <a href="/facts/2016_Grammy_Awards/Y72cbgdv">2016 Grammy Awards</a>, and <i><a href="/facts/Rolling_Stone/HhCFoJ9F">Rolling Stone</a></i> listed it among their "<a href="/facts/Rolling_Stone%2527s_500_Greatest_Albums_of_All_Time/40CPshrf">500 Greatest Albums of All Time</a>" list. The album transformed Swift's status to a <a href="/facts/Pop_icon/t7e6xjAS">pop icon</a> and promoted <a href="/facts/Poptimism/6lRQIcko">poptimism</a>, and her heightened fame intensified media scrutiny on her public and private lives. Following a <a href="/facts/Taylor_Swift_masters_dispute/W0EF0EEg">2019 dispute regarding the ownership</a> of Swift's back catalog, she <a href="/facts/Re-recording_(music)/mVBWdcNm">re-recorded</a> the album as <i><a href="/facts/1989_(Taylor%2527s_Version)/EveGuv2A">1989 (Taylor's Version)</a></i>, released on October 27, 2023. The ownership of the album was sold back to Swift on May 30, 2025. </p>