Taylor Swift Knows How to Sell Albums

Taylor Swift, teen idol and Grammy Award-winner who shot to fame with catchy lyrics like "we are never, ever, ever getting back together," is perhaps not the first person you'd expect to be delivering economic insights in the pages of the Wall Street Journal, yet that's just where you can find her. And why not? Taylor Swift is the country's highest-paid musician, and that success is due only partly to the mass popularity of her music. After all, there are many artists who get more radio time but don't make as much money. Swift has made very astute decisions on how to monetize her music and image and position herself for a lengthy, successful career. However her musical stylings strike you, her thoughts on the future of the music industry—an industry she has come to dominate at the age of 24—are worth considering.