CD Analysis: Taylor Swift

The second studio album by country singer, Taylor Swift was released in November 2008, and was the first album to sell over a million copies in 2009. The cover is very professional and neat, with only the artist as the main focus point, and this mid-shot makes the audience feel closer to her as there are no distractions. This version of the album also features a black background and silver metallic font, instead of the original cream and brown theme, so fans can establish the difference between the normal album cover and this special deluxe platinum edition. The font of her name seems handwritten as if she signed it with her autograph, which helps the fans feel that this album will help them understand her more. The chosen album name, titled after her fifth and final single from the CD, is deliberate as she wants to encourage her fans to take courage, as her target audience are teenagers who may be going through a lot of stress and problems. Reflecting her image, the cover shows her in an innocent angelic light; her long blonde hair and her costume, a cream dress expresses her girliness and elegance. Her pose is in mid-movement, which shows her fun and creative side which may be shown in this album, along with her lively personality. She is not wearing much makeup, nor are there any graphical enhances/features so her fans can appreciate her natural beauty, and feel there are no coverups or secrets, as if the album is all about her true self. However, she is only showing one side of her face which could imply that she has a hidden side to her persona, which she may or may not reveal in this album.

This double page, featured in the deluxe edition of Taylor Swift's album shows lyrics of her song, which are for the fans to sing along to her music, just as young audiences like to do. In the left page, she is dressed in a old fashioned ball gown, with castle pillars in the background. This image seems to be from her music video "Love Story" and it shows her as a princess waiting for her prince, just like a fairytale; this will appeal to the targeted audience, as the young audiences will be able to relate to this fantasy of being a fairytale character. The lyrics of the featured track, mentions being saved and swept off her feet and the chorus refers to "Romeo and Juliet"; an idolised romance amongst many teens. She occasionally references to these fantasies, such as the song she wrote for a movie, called "Today Was A Fairytale" and "White Horse", in which she used fairytale imagery to describe her ex-boyfriend as if he was a prince on a white horse. The sepia tone of this photo and the italic font makes the image look more authentic and suited to a "once upon a time" theme, and she is glancing out of the window waiting for her prince to appear. The right page is a photo montage of Taylor in her bedroom playing around with pillows, looking like she is having fun, wearing a white sleeping gown, to make the audience feel they are in a personal place with her, as if they are having a girly sleepover. The white costume has an angelic feel, which is referred to in the lyrics, and the pink scrawled font would be appealing to the audience, and adds to the montaged scrapbook effect.

The next photo spread features song lyrics being "You're Not Sorry" and "The Way I Loved You", which both are about heartbreak, a subject that many teens need support with and a common situation which they tend to find themselves in, and Taylor can be seen as a role model for them so they realise that they're not alone. The photo is centered as it's relevant to both tracks, and she is sitting on the bathroom floor crying, and holding her head in distress; which highlights her emotional state. This image was also used as the single's cover art, and the blue tint on the image gives off a colder feeling. "I'm sorry" is messily scrawled all over the bathtub and bathroom walls which may have relations to the expression "the writing's on the wall" which is an idiom that suggests a portent of doom or misfortune; this adds to her emotional instability. The sidebar colours, blue and purple, evoke sad and nostalgic feelings, a longing of the past and desire to return back to old memories. Her costume; jeggings and a vest, are casual wear for average teens, which make the targeted audience feel she is not an extravagant celebrity, but a normal teenager who underwent emotional stress, just like everyone else, so her fans can relate to her songs.

In this image, Taylor Swift is underwater and her legs are blurred within her dress which gives the immediate impression of a mermaid. Again, with evident references to fairytales, she impersonating a character who is known for it's femininity and serenity. The title of the song "Breathe" is important, as she is stressing on thefact she cannot breathe underwater, just as she cannot live without her love, but she has to be strong and learn how to; her pose seems like she is trying to rise above the water surface to take a breath and also reflects her curiosity . The colour blue sets a calming mood just as the song is very relaxing and has a slow and steady tempo speaking of her heartbreak.