Nearly a decade before launching what is likely to be the highest-grossing tour ever and being named Time's "Person of the Year," global superstar Taylor Swift spoke with Â鶹ӰÊÓ' Marcia MacMillan in 2014 about what living in the spotlight is like.
"I've been more fascinated with discovering who I actually am," Swift said on Canada AM, shortly after the release of her album 1989, an album she re-released earlier this fall. "What I actually want and living my life on my own terms."
FANS MAKE SWIFT "FEEL NORMAL"
Swift's devoted fandom of "Swifties" is regarded as one of the largest and most devoted groups in not only music, but pop culture --- key in the rise of the pop star.
She's played an important role in cultivating and "inserting myself into their online communities," because, according to Swift they make her "feel like my life is normal."
"There are so many abnormal circumstances surrounding my life that the only way I actually get to feel normal is when I go online and I read about their day at college."
"THE LIFE THAT I CHOSE"
However, despite a desire to feel "normal" Swift's life in the spotlight is obviously far from it.
The superstar is under the microscope when out in public and she's constantly being followed by camera crews and paparazzi – an experience she admitted can be "absolutely stifling and overwhelming."
How does she deal with that pressure? Swift said she tries to restore some sense of normalcy by not engaging in public, saying that she doesn't want to turn everyday moments "into a press conference."
She also said that she asks herself "how long did you dream about this" and uses the mental exercise to make the most of her stardom.
"When I'm outside the doors of my apartment, people are watching me," Swift reflected. "And that's the life that I chose."
"I'VE GOTTEN COMFORTABLE WITH BEING MYSELF"
Swift also talked about the release of her fifth studio album, 1989 – an award-winning release that was considered the singer-songwriter's official move from country to pop.
In 2014, Swift said the album "says a lot about where I am in my life" and defining what she wanted in her life and career with "no outside input."
"I've gotten comfortable with being myself," Swift said. "People know that I'm awkward sometimes, I'm not that cool and I'm not edgy."
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