Taylor Swift Admitted Her Parents Were ‘Embarrassed’ by Some of Her Early Ambition
Taylor Swift has wanted to make it as a singer since she was a child, something her parents knew well. The family did all they could to support Swift’s career, even moving states for her. According to Swift, though, there were some methods of support that her parents found embarrassing.
Taylor Swift said her parents were embarrassed by some of the ways they had to support her
Swift was so certain that she wanted to work in the music industry that her mom took her to Nashville to try to get a record deal.
“My mom waited in the car with my little brother while I knocked on doors up and down Music Row,” Taylor told Entertainment Weekly in 2008. “I would say, ‘Hi, I’m Taylor. I’m 11. I wanted a record deal — call me.'”
She tried to perform for a live audience whenever she could. She sang the national anthem at sporting events, entered karaoke contests, and sang in bars. Swift admitted her parents felt a little embarrassed while watching their daughter sing in bars.
“They were kind of embarrassed by it, I guess,” she told GAC. “This little girl singing in this smoky bar. But they knew how much it meant to me so they went along with it.”
Taylor Swift’s parents were still invested in her career
Ultimately, though, Swift said her family members have been her biggest supporters over the years.
“My dad, my mom, and my brother come up with some of the best ideas in my career,” Swift told Time. “I always joke that we’re a small family business.”
They were also devastated by any setbacks their daughter faced. When she lost her opening slot on a Kenny Chesney tour because she was underage (a beer company sponsored it), her mother was nearly inconsolable.
“She was weeping,” Swift said. “Her head was in her hands as if there had been a family emergency.”
Her mother spoke about their decision to move to Nashville
The Swift family moved to Nashville when the singer was a teenager. She had recently signed with Sony/ATV Publishing, and the move would help her career. Her parents told her it was just for a “change of scenery,” though.
“I never wanted to make that move about her ‘making it,”‘ her mother said. “Because what a horrible thing if it hadn’t happened, for her to carry that kind of guilt or pressure around.”
While they were moving for Swift’s career, they wanted her to still have a sense of normalcy in her life.
“And we moved far enough outside Nashville to where she didn’t have to be going to school with producers’ kids and label presidents’ kids and be reminded constantly that she was struggling to make it,” she said. “We’ve always told her that this is not about putting food on our table or making our dreams come true.”
