Taylor Swift has risen from a young teenager aspiring to become a country singer to one of the biggest musical acts in the entire world— and of all time. She's the only woman to ever win a Grammy Award for Album of the Year three times, has multiple platinum albums and has proven that she can fit into various genres from country to pop to folk. But throughout her impressive rise to superstardom, she's had her mom Andrea by her side and they remain incredibly close to this day.
Andrea Swift is a native of Houston, Texas. The former advertising agency professional wed Taylor's father Scott Swift, a vice president for Merrill Lynch, on Feb. 20, 1988. Taylor was born on Dec. 13, 1989, with Austin following on March 11, 1992.
"I love you, Houston," Taylor told the crowd during an Eras Tour stop in the city. "You treat us like Houston is my mom's hometown, which it is. You treat us like this is where my parents got married, which it is."
Andrea and Scott raised young Taylor and her brother Austin Swift on the the 11-acre Pine Ridge Christmas tree farm in Reading, Penn., which inspired a song as well as a holiday music video made from old home movies. From her daughter's many record-shattering tours around the world, Andrea has developed a steady fan base of her own from Swifties meeting her out on the road— as chronicled in the 2008 song "The Best Day."
"'The Best Day' is a song that I wrote without telling my mom," Taylor explained (via Big Machine Records). "I wrote it in the summertime, and I recorded it secretly too. I had this idea that I wanted to play it for her for Christmas. So when I got the track, I synced up all of these home videos from when I was a little kid to go along with the song like a music video and played it for her on Christmas Eve, and she was crying her eyes out."
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Andrea and Scott has supported their eldest child's career, dating back to when they drove the future star to gigs in Pennsylvania and during the family's earliest years visiting Nashville.
"My mom waited in the car with my little brother while I knocked on doors up and down Music Row," Taylor told Entertainment Weekly. "I would say, 'Hi, I'm Taylor. I'm 11. I wanted a record deal — call me."
They weren't stage parents, though, and left the door open for Taylor to pursue other interests.
"There would always be an escape hatch into normal life if she decided this wasn't something she had to pursue," Andrea told Entertainment Weekly. "And of course that's like saying to her, 'If you want to stop breathing, that's cool.' "
Both parents' business acumen aided Taylor while she was still seeking the record deal she signed at age 14.
"The parents already had her Myspace and her website up and running," Taylor's manager Rick Barker told Entertainment Weekly. "The mom and dad both have great marketing minds. I don't want to say fake it until you make it, but when you looked at her stuff, it was very professional even before she got her deal."
The family relocated in 2005 to Hendersonville, Tenn, which is near Nashville.
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 explained. "We've always told her that this is not about putting food on our table or making our dreams come true."
Andrea was initially diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015. Her cancer battle inspired the heartwrenching Taylor song "Soon You'll Get Better" on Lover.
"Everyone loves their mom; everyone's got an important mom, but for me, she's really the guiding force," Taylor told Variety.
"Almost every decision I make, I talk to her about it first," Taylor continued. "So obviously it was a really big deal to ever speak about her illness."
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Andrea was diagnosed with breast cancer again in 2019 and with a brain tumor in 2020. In a 2019 essay for Elle, Taylor revealed that both of her parents have had bouts with cancer.
It's clear that Taylor and Andrea are setting an incredible example for their fans and the rest of the world. They have not let the cancer diagnoses get them down and are continuing to play their part doing good for others and keeping positive.
Though their current level of involvement is unclear, both of Taylor's parents have attended Eras Tour shows, with Scott receiving a Dad of Headliner (DOH) pass at at least one show.
This story previously ran on April 20, 2021.
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