Taylor Swift is one of the most well known and talented artists today. With 10 very successful albums, she has 5 albums that stick out the most to me. Reputation, Lover, Red, Speak Now, and folklore are simply incredible and are the best pieces of work in the history of music.

Earning 2,400,000 US sales, Reputation has to be on the list of the best Taylor Swift albums. Reputation was the transition of Taylor Swift’s music, representing her change in attitude towards others’ negative opinions of her. The lyrics reflect power and strength, and the general aesthetic of the album stands out amongst the others. This album is most known for the song “Look What You Made Me Do” which instantly gained popularity the second it was released in 2017. The best song from this album has to be “Dress”. It is upbeat, catchy, and is the type of song to just scream to.

The pop album Lover, in my opinion, consists of some of the best bridges ever created. “The Archer”, “Cruel Summer”, and “Lover” are just a few of the examples of this. The bright pink and blue colors of the album cover reflect heavily onto the fun upbeat vibe of the songs. The song “False God” has to be the best from this album, and in my opinion, her best song ever. The jazzy type of vibe is just perfect. It makes me feel a sort of emotion I just can’t explain and I cried when I found out she played the song live and I wasn’t there to hear it. 

It is commonly argued that all Taylor Swift writes about is her ex boyfriends, but how could that be said when Lover exists? Of course, love is a common topic in her songs. However, she also sings about feminism and LGBTQ+ rights, spreading the support among listeners. 

Red (Taylor’s Version) was released in 2021, even better than her original Red album that was released in 2012. The mood of the album just creates comfort and is the perfect album to listen to during the fall. Along with the re-recorded album, fans were granted with the extraordinary creation of “All Too Well 10 Minute Version”, summarizing her experience of being in a toxic relationship. Along with many of her popular and iconic songs such as “22” and “I Knew You Were Trouble”, a few songs “From the Vault” were also released as a part of this album. These songs were written for Red, but were only released as a part of the re-recorded album. 

Taylor Swift took ownership of her outstanding album Speak Now in 2023, originally released as her second album in 2010. This album surrounds her great relationships, her not-so great relationships, her regrets, and growing up. Her songs vary and beat in genres, transitioning from upbeat songs like “Haunted” and “Better than Revenge” to slower songs like “Last Kiss”. However, they are all masterpieces and have some of the best lyrics ever written. I absolutely love all the songs and cannot choose just one as my favorite, but the songs I love the most are “Back to December”, “Dear John”, and “Enchanted”.

Released during the pandemic in 2020, Folklore became my number 1 favorite Taylor Swift album. The emotions, the lyrics, and Taylor Swift’s voice altogether just make the perfect songs. You may have heard the songs “cardigan” and “august”, which became popular on social media instantly. However, the songs that I believe deserve the most attention are “illicit affairs” and “my tears ricochet” which are both emotional and were the best songs to hear live. Listening to everyone screaming the lyrics and on the verge of crying was one of the highlights of the Eras Tour. Vangogh Tran, a freshman  here at Pitman High School, listened to folklore for the first time. 

He says, “I love how Taylor Swift is trying new things and has written more emotional songs. The song ‘this is me trying’ stood out the most to me and I felt a connection with the lyrics and emotions. I loved the lyric ‘And it’s hard to be at a party when I feel like an open wound’. The way Taylor Swift words her feelings is just so, like, intense..” 

Of course, everyone has different opinions and may be offended that I didn’t include an album on this list. I absolutely love all of Taylor Swift’s albums, but these ones are just phenomenal. This list will probably change in the future as Taylor Swift releases even more amazing albums.