Taylor Swift was a big winner from the world of country music on Wednesday night’s People’s Choice awards.

Swift took home Favorite Country Artist beating out stiff competition from Blake Shelton, Keith Urban, Lady Antebellum and Rascal Flatts. Her award was not televised and she was not in attendance.

Swift was beaten out by Katy Perry in the Favorite Female Artist category and again in the Favorite Tour Headliner category.

The surprise of the night came from Demi Lovato who beat out Beyoncé, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga and Rihanna for the Favorite Pop Artist Award.

The big upset came moments after Lovato performed her hit single, “Give Your Heart a Break.” She was the only nominee from the Favorite Pop Artist in attendance.

source:rttnews

Wearing a sunny yellow dress and pearls, Taylor Swift joined the Civil Wars on stage during their sold-out performance at the Ryman in Nashville to perform, for first time, their “Hunger Games” soundtrack song, “Safe & Sound.”

After some witty banter about the packed-to-capacity crowd and how she almost wore the band’s T-shirt on stage to perform with them, the trio launched into the ballad about trying to hold on to good in the face of lots and lots of terrible events (well that certainly does fit the themes of Suzanne Collins’s novel).

Post-performance, the twosome of the Civil Wars took to Twitter to thank the singer for hitting the stage with them. “An unforgettable night @TheRyman. Thanks to @taylorswift13 for debuting ‘Safe & Sound’ with us,” they gushed. “And thanks to all of YOU for being there.”

The T-Bone Burnett and Danny Elfman-curated soundtrack will also feature Arcade Fire, The Decemberists and even some vocals from its female lead, Jennifer Lawrence.

The film opens March 23, and if you haven’t heard (how’s life under that rock?), Oscar nominee Lawrence will be joined by heartthrob and Miley Cyrus beau Liam Hemsworth as well as Josh Hutcherson. If you missed the performance from Thursday night, Taylor is next tapped to take the stage at the Grammy Awards next month. No word on what song she’ll perform, but here’s hoping she breaks our heart one more time with this track.

source:mtv

Taylor has named her first fragrance “Wonderstruck,” drawing upon a lyric from one of her songs, “Enchanted.” The fragrance will be available in prestige department stores in October.

Swift partnered with the beauty company Elizabeth Arden to launch the fragrance, which she created with Olivier Gillotin of Givaudan. The scent is described in press materials as “a gourmand floral … a charming and sparkling surprise of vibrant fruits, kissed by a bouquet of soft petals and a touch of sweet indulgence.” There are hints of vanilla, peach, raspberry, freesia, sandalwood, honeysuckle, white hibiscus, golden amber and apple blossom.

The fragrance will be available as a perfume spray, rollerball, scented body lotion and scented bath gel.

“I share personal life experiences through my music, and my fragrance will allow me to share these experiences with my fans in a completely different and new way,” Swift told Women’s Wear Daily. “Falling in love is a moment every girl daydreams about, and Wonderstruck represents that magical feeling of promise and hope and intrigue. It was fascinating to learn that you could layer so many different scents to create a beautiful end result.”

Meanwhile, the Wonderstruck oval bottle is deep purple with iridescence and decorated with three gold charms — a birdcage, a dove and the Moravian star. The package will feature a patchwork style in homage to the fabrics Swift has collected on her travels, along with a gold-embossed “13,” Swift’s lucky number.

“Wearing perfume is such a unique way to create memories. Like songs, a scent can take you back and allow you to relive a moment in time,” Swift said.

“I wrote the lyric, ‘I’m wonderstruck, blushing all the way home,’ for the song ‘Enchanted’ about the first time you meet someone. A fragrance can help shape someone’s first impression and memory of you. It’s exciting to think that Wonderstruck will play a role in creating some of those memories.”

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Taylor Swift flies up the Social 50, rising 21-14 following buzz generated by the news of her latest single, “Sparks Fly.” Swift took to Facebook on July 5 to make the announcement. Currently, the song has 19,000 Facebook plays and 12,300 MySpace plays.

One day later, news came that Swift would be postponing several tour dates, having come down with bronchitis. In turn, fans showed their support, leaving her 9,200 comments and 22,400 status Likes.

Her fanbase also grew across Facebook (a growth of 269,000 fans) and Twitter (73,000 new followers) — up 20% week-to-week. Elsewhere, Swift closed the tracking week with 6 million VEVO video plays.

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Taylor Swift predicted she would suffer “some sort of tragedy” just days before she fell sick and cancelled a series of summer (11) shows.

The Love Story hitmaker made the first cancellation of her career last week (02Jul11) when she scrapped a show in Kentucky on Saturday night (02Jul11) after she was struck down with bronchitis.

She had planned to resume her Speak Now tour with concerts in North Carolina and Georgia this weekend (08-10Jul11), but they were also axed on doctors’ orders.

It has now emerged Swift predicted something “really awful” would happen just days before she became ill.

The singer posted a blog on her website last Thursday (30Jun11) about a concert she played in Foxboro, Massachusetts the previous weekend (25-26Jun10), revealing she was convinced she would be struck by some bad luck because the gig went so well.

She writes, “The other night, we were playing our first of two shows at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts… It turned into an absolute downpour… To my surprise, the strangest thing happened. No one left. Instead, this ocean of people in front of us just started dancing even more, screaming even louder…I’ll never forget it…

“Sometimes I get scared that there’s got to be some balance to the way things work in the universe – like you pay for good days by then having bad days, you pay for joy with pain… Like if you have the most perfect week ever, watch out! It’s about to get really awful! Some sort of minor or major tragedy is bound to strike! I hope that’s not the way it all goes down. I really hope not. Because this has been a really beautiful summer so far.”

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Taylor wrote a new blog called ‘A Midsummer Night’s Blog’ on Taylor Connect. It is very interesting, and definitely a good read!

I’m writing you on a summer afternoon in Nashville. All the idealistic markers of a perfect day are presenting themselves right now in this moment. I mean, we’re talking chirping birds, blinding sunshine, a just-the-right-amount breeze.. There’s the distant sound of power washing from someone else’s deck and my feet are up on the patio table. I just ate a really awesome sandwich. Such a simple, good day. And so I just wanted to say hi.

I go back on the road tonight and this weekend we’ll play in Greensboro, Knoxville, and Louisville. And I guess I should just tell you up front that playing shows on this tour is the best time I’ve ever had onstage. The crowds we’ve been playing for have been so unbelievable.. The kind of crowds that jump up and down the entire show, making our view from the stage look like a giant ocean of dancing, jumping people. These are the kinds of crowds that sing the words louder and more passionately than I ever could’ve imagined. And to have a show that includes ballerinas and fireworks and entire scenery changes.. it’s thrilling for me. My band and I have already come away with memories to last a lifetime, and it’s not even halfway done yet! The other night, we were playing our first of two shows at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts. I’m all the way at the end of the stadium, playing “Fearless”, and I swear as soon as I sang the words “With you I’d dance in a storm in my best dress, fearless”… I felt a drop of rain hit me. Then there was another one, then there was another. And then it turned into an absolute downpour. Everyone is soaking wet. And at this point in the show, about halfway through our set, this fear came over me that everyone was going to leave the concert. I tried to push it way back into the back of my mind and just kept playing, and to my surprise, the strangest thing happened. No one left. Instead, this ocean of people in front of us just started dancing even more, screaming even louder… And that night I actually got to dance in a storm with them. In my best dress. I’ll never forget it.

Sometimes I get scared that there’s got to be some balance to the way things work in the universe– like you pay for good days by then having bad days, you pay for joy with pain.. Like if you have the most perfect week ever, watch out! It’s about to get really awful! Some sort of minor or major tragedy is bound to strike! I hope that’s not the way it all goes down. I really hope not. Because this has been a really beautiful summer so far. Lately, I’ve been writing a LOT. Like, all of a sudden, everything I’ve wanted to say, express, or just let out for the past several months has just recently become a song. I’m really excited about that. It’s a freeing feeling when all of a sudden one day, you’re able to verbalize exactly how you feel in a verse, chorus, verse, bridge, chorus pattern.

Hey so… thank you so much for the Teen Choice Award nominations!! Six whole nominations! Thank you. I’ll be there this year and it will be my first time attending the TCA’s!!! Thank you!

I want to thank you for the happiness I’ve felt so far this summer. I’ve learned to never take happiness for granted. It’s the most precious, rare feeling. This summer, for me, it comes from you.. driving to the shows with “Speak Now” painted on your car windows or simply singing along when “Story of Us” comes on the radio. It comes from you, standing up in the last rows or the front ones, having taken the time to know every word I’ll sing that night… Oh, and it also comes from an entire stadium that not only stuck with me through the rain, but celebrated it. Mostly it’s from all the times you’ve made me feel like we’re in this together. I hope you have a wonderful July 4th weekend and I hope you have a bunch of simply wonderful days this summer.

Taylor

Due to health reasons, Taylor Swift has to cancel a concert at the Yum Center in Louisville. “Due to illness and under doctor’s orders, Taylor Swift has been forced to postpone tonight’s performance, and the show has been rescheduled,” an announcement on her official website reads. They didn’t elaborate on her illness.

This is the first time the country singer has to cancel a concert. She wrote her regret on Twitter, saying, “Louisville, I so sorry to have to postpone this show to Oct 11. This is my first time having to do this. I’m so, so sorry.” Her followers soon replied her with get-well wishes, creating a trending topic on the microblogging site.

The sold-out show was supposed to take place on Saturday, July 2 night. Swift will take a short break and her next stop is scheduled for July 8 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

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With millions of records sold and now eight No. 1 hit singles, Taylor Swift could also easily be labeled as the world’s most popular “cover girl.” She has been featured on magazine covers around the world.

Since her first magazine cover in 2008, Taylor has reached a level of stardom that most people can only dream of. She quickly made a name for herself through songwriting and music. Now her concerts sell out all over the world. Throughout the years she has branched out into other areas of the entertainment industry. She’s been on television shows like “CSI” and “Saturday Night Live,” and had a role in the film, “Valentines Day.” She is a spokesperson for CoverGirl and very active in philanthropy. It’s no wonder magazines want to picture her on the front cover.

Despite her success, she has been able to remain levelheaded unlike so many others who have reached her level of fame at a young age. She has kept her priorities straight through the entire process, which is why fans adore her all over the world. In looking back on the long list of magazine covers on which she’s been featured, you rarely find her picture on the front of a tabloid.

Taylor understands that she is a role model for younger girls and she doesn’t want to jeopardize that. Unlike so many other celebrities her age, she uses her fame and success to inspire others. She is always going out of her way to please her fans and doesn’t have to get in trouble in order to gain attention. The world could use more role models like her.

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The 2011 Teen Choice Awards will be appearing on August 7th, and Taylor was nominated 6 times! If your between the age of 13-19, be sure to vote at TeenChoiceAwards.com! Here are the categories that Taylor has been nominated in…

Music: Female Artist Adele Lady Gaga Katy Perry Rihanna Taylor Swift	Music: Female Country Artist Miranda Lambert Jennette McCurdy Kellie Pickler Taylor Swift Carrie Underwood
Music: Country Single “If I Die Young” – The Band Perry “Country Girl” – Luke Bryan “Just a Kiss” – Lady Antebellum “Honey Bee” – Blake Shelton “Mean” – Taylor Swift	Music: Break-Up Song “Rolling in the Deep” – Adele “Forget You” – Cee Lo Green “See No More” – Joe Jonas “Grenade” – Bruno Mars “Back to December” – Taylor Swift
Music: Love Song “Come Down with Love” – Allstar Weekend “Love You Like a Love Song” – Selena Gomez “Just the Way You Are” – Bruno Mars “Teenage Dream” – Katy Perry “Mine” – Taylor Swift	Red Carpet Fashion Icon: Female Lady Gaga Miley Cyrus Jennifer Lopez Taylor Swift Vanessa Hudgens