73 Questions With Taylor Swift | Vogue

Host: Taylor.
Taylor: Hey.
Host: Hi. Come in.
Taylor: Thank you.
Host: Thank you so much for fitting a 73-question interview into your busy schedule.
Taylor: Oh, it's all good.
Host: Alright, cool. Let's do this. So, what's keeping you busy these days?
Taylor: I'm just working out and getting ready for the Grammys.
Host: What's the most exciting thing in life right now?
Taylor: Grammys.
Host: What are you completely bored of in life right now?
Taylor: Clickbait.
Host: What is something that recently moved you?
Taylor: The movie The Martian.
Host: Okay. What do you have going on over here?
Taylor: This is a room where I write a lot of songs.
Host: Nice piano. How many guitars do you own?
Taylor: I lost track of that in probably 2007.
Host: What's the first song you learned to play on the guitar?
Taylor: "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer.
Host: What's the first thing you do when you get an idea for a song?
Taylor: I record a voice memo of myself singing it, or I write it down in my notes.
Host: What's your songwriting process?
Taylor: Lots of preparation. I write a lot of my ideas down before I get into the actual session.
Host: What song took you the least amount of time to write?
Taylor: "Blank Space," because I'd written a lot of the lines down already in the year preceding the session.
Host: Which one took you the longest?
Taylor: "All Too Well," because it's a really emotional song. I kept putting it down for months on end.
Host: So, is this the room where you keep all of your awards?
Taylor: No, they're kind of everywhere. Do you want to see the rest of the house?
Host: Yes.
Taylor: Amazing.
Host: Alright, let's do it. Who is your favorite teacher?
Taylor: My guitar player, Paul Sidoti, teaches me a lot on the road about piano and guitar.
Host: If you could teach one subject in school, what would it be?
Taylor: English.
Host: Okay, so you're a Scrabble player.
Taylor: Yeah, that's a word you might know. Check it out.
Host: Yep. Something tells me that's planned.
Taylor: Nope, that was spontaneous. I'm a very spontaneous person.
Host: What's your favorite beverage?
Taylor: Coffee. Would you like some?
Host: Let's see what you've got.
Taylor: I have espresso. I have regular coffee. I have different flavors. I have a VMA here. You can't really take that, I don't think.
Host: You definitely can't drink it.
Taylor: Nah, you could stir with it, though.
Host: Actually, I'll have a water.
Taylor: Okay.
Host: Thank you very much. What's your favorite cocktail?
Taylor: Vodka Diet Coke.
Host: What's your favorite food?
Taylor: I mean, if we're just saying what I wish I could eat every day if calories didn't count, it's chicken tenders.
Host: What would you order at a drive-through?
Taylor: Cheeseburger, fries, chocolate shake.
Host: What was the best birthday cake you've ever had?
Taylor: It was from Milk Bar. It was for my 25th birthday, and it was so good that even Jay-Z raved about it.
Host: Thank you very much. What was the last thing you baked?
Taylor: A gluten-free, dairy-free chocolate cake.
Host: What one thing do you need to have in your fridge at any given time?
Taylor: Hummus, weirdly.
Host: What's one thing you still have from your childhood?
Taylor: My insecurities. Do you want to go outside and check out the other situation?
Host: Let's check out the other situation. What's your favorite TV show of all time?
Taylor: Friends.
Host: Favorite TV show that's currently on the air?
Taylor: Dateline.
Host: What is your favorite movie?
Taylor: Love Actually.
Host: What was a movie that made you cry your eyes out?
Taylor: Oh my God, The Martian.
Host: Why do you think you're the most followed person on Instagram?
Taylor: Because my cats are adorable.
Host: So, have you ever Googled yourself?
Taylor: Yeah.
Host: Taylor, what do you think when you Google yourself?
Taylor: I think you should never Google yourself again.
Host: If you had a superpower, what would it be?
Taylor: Healing people.
Host: If you were not a singer, what would you be doing?
Taylor: Might be in advertising. Maybe coming up with slogans and concepts is the same as hooks and songs.
Host: Well, this is very lovely out here.
Taylor: Thank you.
Host: Can you show me a really cool or bizarre talent?
Taylor: Okay, I'm well aware that this is not a talent, but this is the only thing that I can do. I have double-jointed elbows, so...
Host: No. Oh, man.
Taylor: Yep. They're weird.
Host: They're a little bit weird.
Taylor: Yeah.
Host: What's something you can't do?
Taylor: I can't do a cartwheel or a handstand.
Host: What's the best compliment you've ever received?
Taylor: That I'm generous.
Host: What is the best gift you've ever received?
Taylor: My boyfriend planted an olive tree in my yard for Christmas.
Host: What's one habit you wish you could break?
Taylor: Well, when I'm sitting there, usually I just do this with my leg, and people think that I'm nervous, and then they get nervous, and then everybody's nervous.
Host: Do you have any nicknames?
Taylor: Yeah, my brother calls me Taffy.
Host: What surprises you most about people?
Taylor: I'm pleasantly surprised by the fact that I tell my friends absolutely everything, and it never ends up getting out.
Host: What makes you laugh no matter what?
Taylor: Kevin Hart.
Host: What does creativity mean to you?
Taylor: Creativity is getting inspiration and having that lightning-bolt idea moment, and then having the hard work ethic to sit down at the desk and write it down.
Host: So, I found out Nicole Kidman swam with sharks. What's the most adventurous thing you've done?
Taylor: Watching Shark Week.
Host: What's your favorite lyric of all time?
Taylor: "I had some dreams, they were clouds in my coffee," from "You're So Vain" by Carly Simon.
Host: What's one song that you wish you had written?
Taylor: The Friends theme song because of those royalties.
Host: What's a great fan moment that comes to mind?
Taylor: I'll be driving down the street, and I'll see a kid walking down the street with my shirt on from my tour, and I'll just stop my car and be like, "Hey. Nice shirt."
Host: Most memorable career moment so far?
Taylor: I think filming the "Bad Blood" video was my favorite memory.
Host: What's one accomplishment you're most proud of?
Taylor: My Grammys.
Host: What's something you've always wanted to try but you've been too scared to do?
Taylor: Oh, Coachella.
Host: What's your spirit animal?
Taylor: A dolphin, because they're very social. They travel in groups.
Man: Hey, Taylor.
Taylor: Oh, hey.
Man: Hey, my wife and my anniversary is coming up. Where should I take her?
Taylor: Congratulations, and you should take her to Big Sur. You're welcome.
Host: It's freezing outside.
Taylor: Yeah, it is.
Host: Alright, what advice would you give to anyone who wants to become a singer?
Taylor: Get a good lawyer.
Host: Any pre-show rituals?
Taylor: Yeah, I stretch, I warm up my voice, and then my band and dancers and I get in a huddle, and it's just good vibes.
Host: What's the most difficult song to perform on stage, and why?
Taylor: There's a song I wrote called "The Best Day" that is about my mom, and it's just hard to sing because it makes me really emotional.
Host: So, this is a really great room you have.
Taylor: Thank you.
Host: And you have a lot of cats.
Taylor: Yeah.
Host: How many cats are in this room?
Taylor: Probably more than 10, and I don't know if you're counting the one that's alive down there.
Host: What? There's a cat there. I see the kitty. Alright, here's one for you. If you were a cat, would you get along with your cats?
Taylor: Probably not. They would probably not think that I'm cool.
Host: How many cat breeds can you name in 10 seconds?
Taylor: When do we start?
Host: Go.
Taylor: British Shorthair, Scottish Fold, Himalayan, Exotic Shorthair, Exotic Longhair, Sphynx cat, Munchkin, Siamese... um, um, the, the...
Host: Time's up. Amazing. What's the coolest thing in this room?
Taylor: I can do so much better than that. The coolest thing in this room, I think, is the fireplace.
Host: Nice. If you could raid one woman's closet, who would it be?
Taylor: Blake Lively.
Host: What's your favorite fashion trend of all time?
Taylor: High-waisted stuff.
Host: Besides your phone and wallet, what are a couple of must-have purse items?
Taylor: I have this lavender antibacterial hand spray, and whenever my friends and I are in a public bathroom and we have to wait in line at the sink to wash our hands, I'm like, "No, check it out." And everybody's like, "Thanks, girl."
Host: Can you tell me what you'll be wearing to this year's Met Gala?
Taylor: I'm going to be dressed as a robot, and I'm gonna carry a sword.
Host: Okay, so my little cousin Julia wants to know: What did you want to do with your life at age five?
Taylor: When I was five, I knew that my dad was a stockbroker, but I did not know what a stockbroker was. Yet I walked around telling people, "I'm gonna be a stockbroker when I grow up."
Host: What's the one thing you wish you knew at 19?
Taylor: If I could talk to my 19-year-old self, I'd just say, "Hey, you know, you're gonna date just like a normal 20-something should be allowed to, but you're going to be a national lightning rod for slut-shaming."
Host: What's something you will not be doing in 10 years?
Taylor: Something I will not be doing in 10 years... I'll be 36. I really hope that I'm not stressed about the idea of approaching 40. I hope that aging is not something that really freaks me out.
Host: What do you think is the most important life lesson for someone to learn?
Taylor: That karma's real.
Host: Okay, what can you say in another language?
Taylor: I can count to 10 in German.
Host: Do it.
Taylor: Eins, zwei, drei, vier, fünf, sechs, sieben, acht, neun, zehn.
Host: Go, Taylor.
Taylor: Thank you.
Host: Okay, I hate to break it to you, but the interview is coming to an end.
Taylor: Okay, well, I'll walk you to the door.
Host: Okay. What did you love most about the town where you grew up?
Taylor: I grew up in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, and I liked the fact that it had a lot of historic buildings.
Host: What's the bravest thing you've ever done?
Taylor: Writing the Apple Music letter.
Host: Most spontaneous thing you've ever done?
Taylor: Writing the Apple Music letter.
Host: What's one goal you're determined to achieve in your lifetime?
Taylor: I really want an honorary doctorate degree because Ed Sheeran has one, and I feel like he looks down on me now because I don't have one.
Host: Alright, Taylor, we did it. Now it is time for the final question.
Taylor: I'm gonna take you over here first and let you out.
Host: Okay, great. What is your favorite scented candle?
Taylor: Byredo Tree House. That is it.
Host: Oh my God, that's amazing.
Taylor: Thanks.
Host: I'm gonna go buy it right now.
Taylor: Bye.
Host: Thanks, Taylor. See you later.