NYT Says Taylor Swift Is Bigger Than The Beatles!? WTF 

The fact that every new artist is still compared to the Beatles tells us that nobody is bigger than the Beatles.

The fact that the Beatles did what they did without social media, streaming and all the instant platforms out there tells you how big they were.

"Don't confuse the size of your paycheck with the size of your talent". Marlon Brando

So in the 80s I saw Paul McCartney in Tampa stadium. 60,000 people were mesmerized by a small band with no smoke/fireworks, backup dancers, and flashy costumes. You haven’t lived until you sing Hey Jude with McCartney and 60,000 people on a warm summer evening. Taylor Swift is a smart woman who has captured her audience. I admire her showmanship skills, her relationship with her fans and her style. I just watched her Eras tour video. I see why she is so popular. She’s a personal event storyteller. But she’s not the Beatles no matter how many records she sells. I don’t even think she wants to be anybody but Taylor. Good for her. Different times produce different artists. Opinion writers seem to feel the need for comparisons that are pointless. Like comparing Van Gogh and Jackson Pollock. I feel the Beatles legacy is safe.

Taylor Swift is "changing her content for the algorithm of pop music". Rick you've summed it up perfectly.

Can someone please explain why I have spent the last ten years hearing about Taylor Swift but I couldn't name one of her songs?

6:13 oh i would say swifties do give credit to jack antonoff and max martin - it's really rare for producers to have the recognition they do, but partly through all the behind the scenes videos, most swifties know Jack

You’re always so professional and fair in your analysis, Rick. Very much appreciated! As a Swiftie, I’m unfortunately used to seeing quite mean commentary about her and it’s difficult not to take to heart. In your case, there’s nothing like that, and I thank you for it.

It's like comparing a Diet Coke to a Chardonnay based on their selling results.

*"[Blank] artist/band is now bigger than the Beatles."* We've heard that over, and over, and over through the decades.

2:03 "Anyone can have a No. 1 country song, including me!" And there went my coffee all over my pressed shirt! 😂

I was 7 years old when the Beatles appeared on the Ed Sullivan show. Thus I got to see their entire working history as it played out. The one thing I remember about that time was that numerous people - myself included - who had *never* bought a record of *any kind* - went out and bought Beatles records! I even knew a couple of friends who did not even *own* a record player who went out and BOUGHT a record player expressly so that they could listen to Beatles records! The Beatles single-handedly enlarged the entire music industry world-wide. The exact amount of the increase may certainly be debated, but there is no doubt that the Beatles brought forth millions of people who had never before been part of the "music buying public" before. They also spawned the "British Invasion", opening the door for bands like the Stones, the Who, Led Zeppelin, etc. Think about how many millions of records were sold by those bands, and the fact that some of those bands may never have made it "across the pond" had it not been for those four mop top lads from Liverpool!

As somebody who grew up in the UK with the Beatles music, yes I am that old, they were more than just their songs. They were at the forefront of a generational change, both musically and culturally. Their legacy goes far beyond than just their music.

The Beatles' later albums = Michelin-rated restaurants. Taylor Swift's later albums = McDonald's or Taco Bell. Sales does not equal quality.

Let’s have this conversation in 50 years time

Rick you are more than 100% on point. The nerve of the un-informed NYT!

the Beatles had a ton of #1 when the competition was: the Stones, Hendrix, the Beach Boys, etc, etc.

To this day, I could not name one of Taylor's songs.

The Beatles RIAA USA album sales figures alone total approx. 180 million sold. Taylor Swift RIAA USA albums sold approx. 50 million.

Content creator is probably the best thing ever said about Taylor - it's not hate - just a fact.

Even in my country in Kazakhstan, Almaty we have a statue of the Beatles

I’m from the Netherlands, The Beatles are inside our high school history curriculum. They are a mandatory thing we need to know about for our history exams, that is the extent of the cultural impact they’ve had. Who cares if Taylor Swift has more streams, her name will turn to dust in 100 years or so. The Beatles, like many of composers of old, such as Beethoven or Mahler, are here to stay. Immortalized in the history books.

Ok the early hits are down to the 4 of them. Mainly John and Paul. But to be fair the producer (George Martin) and engineer (Geoff Emerick) were incredibly important to the Beatles too just like Taylor Swift - particularly post 1965. Without GM no string arrangements (Yesterday, Eleanor Rigby, For No-One). Without GE no weirdness (Tomorrow Never Knows, Walrus etc). They couldn't have done it without them and they were lucky to have them.

She's the latest version of the Bay City Rollers.

Another important factor to take into account is that the world's population has more than doubled since the 60-70s and when you couple that with the changes in how people listen to music and how accessible it is nowadays, you start to realize that it's impossible to make a proper comparison

I read the NYT article and their number-crunching nonsense. They should have dialed up Rick and asked for a comment. This video is the best response to it I've seen.

i would like to add a bit to what rick said. taylor swift constantly changes her style to fit in as pop music changes. the beatles changed pop music to fit their style.

We can always count on Rick to give us the skinny . . . Up front and in your face, Rick always comes through with great analysis!

I don't understand the comparisons. The Beatles are part of the palette we use to paint, it's beyond chart positions and sales.

60 years later, young Russian kids know Beatles and can sing them in English, Japanese symphonies are still playing their melodies, Brazilian string quartets are playing their music. They wrote in the genres of Pop, Baroque, rock and roll, Rock-a-billy, Folk, Country & Western, Heavy metal, Chamber music, Ragtime, Vaudeville, Music hall, Tin Pan Slley, Twelve bar blues, Ballad, Piano roll, Showtunes, Eastern Indian, Psychedelic, Circus music & Children’s music... Wrote in dance styles - waltz, cha-cha, polka, jitterbug, two step The group is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Each member is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame individually Three members are in the Songwriters Hall of Fame They were such prolific song writers that they wrote 26 songs for other groups, Including the Rolling Stones’ first hit and 4 # 1 songs for those groups. Their song ,“Yesterday”, has been covered by more artists (an estimated 2500) than any song in history. AND WE'RE HAVING A DISCUSSION ABOUT THIS????!!!!

Coming to number one today is like coming to "last" in 1965. You can't compare a small cat with a tiger.

This is so true, spot on Rick. Sadly, too many casual listeners and fans of music nowadays fail to appreciate and understand all the work behind the scenes. Great video.

My ultimate belief is , in the next 100 years the Beatles will still be taught in music classes in schools and musicians will still be trying to learn those songs.

You are not an idiot. I remember the Beatles back then. The hype. How they changed the music and culture of a generation. I remember what music was like before them. You are spot on.

Thank you for putting this into perspective. A lot of people will just look at the official # of hits and think that there is a comparison. Here's a rhetorical question: If Taylor Swift starred in a movie, would it be as watched, admired and studied 60 years in the future as "A Hard Day's Night" is today? Will her albums still be listened to and admired in 60 years as most of the Beatles' albums are today?

Taylor Swift would’ve never been able to get a song played on AM radio in the 60’s or 70’s !

And remember, Rick, the Beatles would have had MORE number 1 songs in '64, but songs like Please, Please Me and Twist and Shout were blocked from hitting number 1 by...other Beatles songs!

The mere comparison is ABSURD.

It's a thing to get 15-20 number one songs like The Beatles or Taylor Swift...But It's another thing to have all those epic and cult songs that never been number one but just came stone cold Classic like A Day In the Life, I Am The Walrus, Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds, Across The Universe, While My Guitar Gently Weeps, Happiness Is A Warm Gun, Blackbird, Here Comes The Sun, Abbey Road's Side B Medley...etc. etc. etc. Anybody who have a minimum of musical knowledge knows that nobody can't beat The Beatles. Ever.

I heard the same thing about some boy group that had a headline saying they were greater than the Beatles. Never heard from them since. I’ll be enjoying the Beatles long after they are all done

The true test of time is how many of her songs get picked up and played by other artists and orchestras in the future.

Rick pulling out his No 1 Country song plaque had me rolling 😂😂😂

I struggle to imagine, in 50 years time, people will be asking if 'xyz band/artist' is bigger than Taylor Swift. They come; they go; they're forgotten. I recall 'The Bay City Rollers' having similar comparisons made between them and The Beatles.

I wanna thank u for your analyses. I thank u alors for your passion for music. I really appreciated your vidéo on comfortably nomb...it is so émotionnal. Thank u for being so engaged. You are that kind of person I would have liked to meet. Thank u again

Your explanation of "I Am The Walrus" gave me goose bumps. I never realized that opening chord was B. What a strange progression, no wonder it blew me away when I was a kid in 1967.

Once I went to a band's concert, They had made video that went viral getting 3M views but the venue was empty. That's when I realized you tube numbers could give a fake perception of what success really means.

This happens all the time, when Thriller came out it was the same hype. ( I loved Thriller btw and had it 3 days after release, loved it until radio overplay killed it for me ) I pointed out to my friends who were buying the hype that Off the Wall came out in 79, Triller was 82. I then had them consider the Beatles output from 64 to 68. More than half the Beatles (recorded) career passed by in the same time gap BETWEEN MJ albums! Also understood that Michael had over 100 tunes by professional writers to compile the LP from. The Beatles released pretty much everything they wrote. There is just no comparison. As the comment directly below says, there is a reason that every subsequent success it held up against the Beatles. They set the modern standard - much as , say, Charlie Parker set the standard for sax. Saxophone was 'before Bird' and 'after Bird'. Tremendous artists followed but Parker was the faultline. Same for Beatles. Keep shooting, guys. Great channel Rick!

I cant name a single taylor swift song and im FKKIN PROUD OF IT

Nailed it, Rick. And you’ve been extremely kind in your analysis. The Beatles and Taylor Swift are “completely different universes.”

I remember a video from Ozzy stating that: "Everything used to be black and white, with shades of grey, they brought color to the world" or something like that. You just can't compare.

What Software doeshe use to remove the vocals from the song?

Nailed it. My only problem is you didn't continue. This should have been a 40 minute video. As you can see from all the comments this comparison is lopsided in so many ways.

As a music teacher, I love everything you say in this video and your insight as far as the history of music and the production of music is spot on, but I worry that it doesn't matter to this generation that is so driven by Tik Tok and other social media. They don't seem to care about any of the history and seem to fail to recognize the limitations of past technology and how bands like the Beatles over came those things and still accomplished what they did. I have a real concern for the future of music because of a lack of understanding of how music has developed, to them "Streaming" has always been a thing, and they don't realize how epic a band like the Beatles was and they did it with out all that Tech. Keep up the good work, I love your content.

The real problem here is the NYT thinking this is a legitimate comparison!

The comparison to some may be absurd but it forced you to give an excellent explanation. Great work on your part. I am always awed by your deep knowledge of music.

When I think of the variety of melodies from the Beatles, I'm just blown away, 60 years after I first sat up, listening to the radio and saying to my 12 year old self, "What the hell was THAT? - "I wanna hold your hand" There was NOTHING like it. Meet the Beatles was the first LP I ever owned - an Easter present from my parents. And then it didn't stop for years, all through highschool. The world changed, and they changed with it, along with me. I'm eternally greatful to the universe that i have been in it at the same time as the Beatles.

The better question is who will be continued to be listened to and covered by all genres of music in 50 years? Pop music "beds" reminds me of the music I search for on music libraries for TV shows.

Number one songs... Show a picture of The Beatles to the people of the world and most will know it's a picture of The Beatles and can list and sing numerous songs of theirs. Show them a picture of Taylor Swift and most won't know who is in the picture and some of them will say they have heard the name, when they hear it, but can't name any of her songs. I doubt anyone will be listening Taylor Swift's songs after 60 years. I can't think why The Beatles' songs wouldn't be listened after another 60 years just as they are now.

I tried and tried and tried, but I cannot find a Taylor Swift song I really like. When I hear one, I' ve forgotten it within a few seconds. But I will not give up. At some time I will find this one song, I'm sure.

Rick pulls out a framed certification for a number one song -- "It's not hard to get". I think I hear the cries of thousands of songwriters.

Let's keep in mind Taylor Swift isn't suggesting this, it's some writer for the NYT trying to sell newspapers

Extremely good episode. Fantastic points. Fantastic reasoning. Thank you!!

So glad you are reminding people about the truth and craft of music. As a singer songwriter who does actually do my own beats, play my instruments, sing, write, arrange , mix, etc I get tired of artists getting credit for more work than they do.

Taylor Swift is a content creator. The Beatles are musicians. - the nail couldn't have been hit squarer in the head than that.

Nailed it. Look at impact not just to music as a whole, but to MUSICIANS. The Beatles are historic.

TS is a product, not a person. She is molded for recyclable content and promoted aggressively. Most importantly, she helps to promote certain politicians.

You couldn’t have explained better. Bang on !

I’m sick of people comparing her to The Beatles.

This is a clear narrative of the difference of how music is made of then and now, using the Beatles and TS as examples. Well done Rick for approaching this without bias and with clear, real information.

How do you separate the vocals from the backtrack? Do you just drop sounds of a certain frequency? What kind of software case do this?

Great job Rick as always. It’s always nice to get behind the curtain and see how today’s music is just assembled pieces whereas yesterday’s music were true creations.

The Beatles are the most influential pop music act of all time. To this day we’re still using them as a reference.

I agree Rick. Also, as you. pointed out when "Get Back" was released, when the Beatles called it quits, the entirity of the Beatles catalog was written before any of them had reached their 30th birthday. A fact that just astounds me and is hard to fathom.

Very nice, breakdown. Swifties don’t like me trying to explain this on Twitter so now I can just send your video lol

I'm a die hard swiftie and this video made me understand the comparison so much better

Bro those bed tracks sound like the previews of the default ringtones in your phone settings

The point about the Beatles music being so varied is so valid. Look at the I, V, vi, IV progression. It’s literally used in 100s, probably even thousands of pop songs. Plenty of artists use that progression in multiple songs, even from one album. The Beatles used it once, in the song let it be. All of those hits, and they used one of the most common chord progressions only one time

When the electricity goes out, we're all back to an acoustic guitar, piano and drums. Rock on!

Never knew Rick produced needtobreathe! I remember my mom playing their music in the car and now I’m here watching Rick, funny how life works

Amazing that they still compare anyone who's had any musical success to a 60 year old band, that was done and dusted by about 1970. I'm just reading a fantastic Paul McCartney book and he constantly talks about the face to face, two guitar songwriting sessions with John, in bedrooms, hotel rooms, studios, on planes, in cars whatever, they wrote everything and recording everything themselves. Then I saved up and queued up in the rain and snow to buy the single or the album and still have them. Nice article Rick.

The Beatles is still being discovered. I read a book about the Beatles in 4th grade (2020) for school work and was amazed by how popular they are. So I told my Alexa and said to play their most popular songs and I started listening to them daily on my Amazon Alexa while playing video games. Then when I got a phone a year later the first app I got was Spotify so I could listen to the Beatles. My friends thought I was weird for listening to the Beatles until one really liked the song Hey Bulldog. And he got into music and now loves The Beatles. And another one of my frineds isnt really a Beatles fan but started listening to rock and older music. The Beatles are still being discovered amd loved in new technologies and generations and it will probably stay like that. Also i listened to The Beatles for 32,000 minutes on spotify

I'm from the era of the Beatles and I was astounded by their talent and music. Taylor Swift is as Rick describes her, a content creator. As also said by Rick, she does a great job and obviously, she has a legion of fans. But, there is no contest on the question. The Beatles are one of the greatest of all time. Don't forget, they made this music in only a few years working essentially by themselves. Music is always evolving but giants aren't diminished over time.

Outstanding in-depth analysis, Rick. Well done.

I’m nearly 70 now the Beatles were the soundtrack to my early life,nothing but nothing will ever match what the Beatles were and did and still are, proof? Still talking and playing their music over 60 years later .So glad I was born when I was 🎶🎸🎶🎸

Let's not forget, The beatles did everything back then WITHOUT the help of the internet. Nowadays, artists RELY on the internet whether it streams, views and music videos. The beatles had all of that popularity without the internet and even invented the concept of the music video

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 Hey Rick, that was the best laugh l had in years. Thank you! Love you channel!!👍🏻👍🏻

Got to love an outrageous comparison to hook readers. I remember a magazine in the early seventies asking if some guy called David Bowie would be bigger than Elvis. I often wonder what happened to that David Bowie guy. Actually, are Elvis & Bowie forerunners content creators? I'm not saying they did it just for the hits, but both recognised that they had to keep evolving.

Me, not being American, i simply don't understand the phenomenon of Taylor Swift. For me nearly all her songs sounds pretty much the same. The Beatles are universal. It's a cultural phenomenon. There is absolutely no way to compare Taylor swift with the Beatles, and many other really big artists. The only way is the amount if money made. But this hardly has anything to do with music

"if you remove the vocals..." Thank you, Rick!

Your point is on point and mostly accurate , however you forget that the Beatles also had George Martin and also they did their extrapilations of many U.S artists and took ideas from other local musicians.

This was wonderfully insightful. Thank you 😊

On point! Thank you! In Germany we have a saying: When the sun of culture stands low, even dwarfs throw long shadows ;)

Nothing to compare here. She's a singer and a businesswoman. Beatles were great creative musicians and songwriters. If we're being kind, she has 1% of their talent.

I would have thought the NYT saying Taylor Swift was bigger than The Beatles was ridiculous until I saw a clip of the inside of a theater of children watching her concert film. This was a movie. In a theater. Taylor wasn't there in person. What I saw disturbed me. It made The Beatles on Sullivan look like a bridge game. I lost all my bearings with reality and society. I was set adrift on memory bliss.

In popular music there has been a Golden Age, Silver Age, Bronze Age and crap age. We now live in the crap age.

Yes. I am old-ish at 60, but music today cannot compare in any way to music of the 19060s-1990.

Hey Rick, my my, how times and music have changed. Totally agree with what you're saying, 2 different universes indeed

Thank you for the industry insights, Rick!

As a way to test this theory for myself, I called my 14yr old daughter in and posed the question to her. I started by asking her how big she thought Taylor Swift is. Her answer “HUGE”. She has a lot of Swift albums and can be heard belting lyrics out to almost every song of Swift’s, new or old. She is a Swiftie. Then, I told her about the article but asked her “what band do you think Taylor is being compared against?” She named several and I was kind of surprised at how much prodding I had to do before she came to The Beatles. She is a big fan of The Beatles and regularly asks if we can listen to them on our way to guitar lessons. When she realized the article was comparing these artists/bands to one another she scoffed in disbelief. She emphatically said that she did not believe Taylor Swift was bigger than The Beatles and smartly said that the moments in music history in which each artist exists is so different that it is ridiculous to compare them to each other. She said that Swift would have to be around for a much longer period of time to even be in the conversation. Her opinions are her own and I spoke mostly about how great The Beatles were because I am not a TS fan. Her parting statement was, “I’d like to know what kind of 25 year old writer thought that article was a good idea?” I have no idea how old the writer of the article is but, her comment definitely struck me as comical. Keep up the great work Rick!

Totally agree. I'm 29 but fell in love with the Beatles music when I learned to play guitar as a kid - the way the Beatles shift the underlying chords & melody, leading you somewhere whilst keeping the end result accessible and catchy...it is just complete genius & mastery of songwriting that fully reveals itself when you sit at a piano or with a guitar and play/sing the song. By comparison, if you play a modern pop song on acoustic guitar, it is exactly what Rick describes - the same sequence repeated, with a narrow, often repeated melody. If it changes it all, its predictable. It's just not the same thing, and it kinda falls to bits without the production