What Was Taylor Swift Thinking?

Music fans fall in love with an artist, genre, or particular style. Problems arise, however, when that artist changes course or the genre evolves. Bob Dylan, The Beatles, and Taylor Swift all did something that upset some of their fans while making them appeal even more to others. Here are 20 times musicians polarized their fans. 

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1. Dylan Goes Electric

At the Newport Folk Festival in 1965, Bob Dylan did the unthinkable and plugged an electric guitar into an amp. Dylan going electric sent shockwaves through the folk music scene, and many fans felt betrayed, while some thought it was an expression of his artistic freedom. 

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2. The Beatles Stopped Touring

At the height of their fame, The Beatles made the bold choice to stop performing and retreat into the studio. For fans, the loss of these iconic concerts was beyond disappointing. Yet, this decision allowed room for the band to experiment and led to some of their more groundbreaking work. 

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3. Taylor Swift Crosses from Country to Pop

Taylor Swift's mega-stardom makes some people forget the controversy that surrounded her move from country to pop music. Longtime fans missed the acoustic simplicity of her early work, while new fans embraced her polished pop image and spectacles.

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4. Radiohead Turns to Electronics

After the massive success of their first few albums, Radiohead took a sharp turn into electronic territory with Kid A. Fans expecting soaring guitars and catchy choruses were shocked and confused. Others praised the band's willingness to take risks at the height of their popularity.

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5. Neil Young Releases Trans

Neil Young's Trans album used heavy synthesizers and vocoder vocals, which was a stark contrast to his reputation for rawness and minimalism. Many fans struggled with this, but this album eventually gained appreciation for its emotions and experimental spirit.

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6. Miles Davis and Jazz Fusion

Miles Davis shocked the world of jazz when he embraced electric instruments in the late 1960s. He broke from traditional jazz structures, and his willingness to polarize his fans helped introduce him to a new legion of admirers.

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7. David Bowie Introduces Ziggy Stardust

When David Bowie introduced his alter ego, Ziggy Stardust, to the world, he blurred the lines between music, performance, theater, and identity. Some fans embraced his persona, while others felt the theatrics distracted from his music. 

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8. Metallica Released Load

Just ask any Metallica fan, Load was a huge departure for them. They left the thrash metal sound that made them one of the world's most famous bands and embraced more blues influences and mid-tempo songs. 

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9. Joni Mitchell Goes Jazz

Joni Mitchell's move from folk-pop into jazz-inflected compositions surprised her large fan base, who loved her melodic tunes. She alienated a portion of her followers, but many admired her refusal to simplify and stick to what she knew. 

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10. Prince Changed His Name

When Prince adopted an unpronounceable symbol as his name, fans were confused, and the media had no idea what was going on. This move was tied to his artistic independence, but created some distance between Prince and his audience. 

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11. U2 Shifted Toward Electronic Dance

U2's late-1990s move towards electronic dance influences was a sharp turn that fans were not expecting. Albums like Pop were divisive, especially for fans who liked the band's early anthemic stadium songs.

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12. Johnny Cash Recorded the American Series

Johnny Cash's stripped-down American recordings were his way of reintroducing himself to the music scene. It was unsettling for long-time fans, but these recordings were Cash's honest attempt to confront his mortality and legacy. 

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13. Fleetwood Mac and Pop Perfection

Fleetwood Mac's embrace of more polished pop contrasted with their blues-rock origins and upset quite a few fans. Some dismissed its rawness, while others felt the songwriting and production were better than ever before. 

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14. Lou Reed Released Metal Machine Music

To some, this album by Lou Reed was a wall of noise that was baffling at best. Fans endlessly debated the musical merits of this album, and Reed's refusal to clarify only fueled arguments. 

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15. Beyoncé Drops Surprise Album

Beyoncé's decision to release a full visual album without any promotion didn't sit well with the industry and a portion of her fans. Most were split between amazement at her ambition and confusion over how to engage with music solely as a visual experience. 

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16. Bruce Springsteen Released Nebraska

Nebraska stripped away Springsteen's full-band rock sound in favor of stark home-recorded storytelling. Fans missed his arena anthems, and others loved the narrative drive and depth. Yet, Nebraska remains a quintessential Springsteen album to this day. 

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17. Madonna's Continuous Reinventions

Every time Madonna reinvented herself, she polarized her fans who preferred her specific eras and sounds. Her transformations were musical, visual, or stylistic, and each time she would shed her previous persona, much to the chagrin of some of her fans. 

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18. Arcade Fire Moves On From Indie Roots

Arcade Fire started out as indie darlings only to evolve into arena-scale performers. This made some fans feel disconnected from the band's initial sound and intentions, but it also grew their audience substantially. 

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19. Bon Iver Ditches Folk Intimacy

Bon Iver's early success was all about sparse, emotional folk songs that were personal. It's an understatement to suggest that fans were upset when he pivoted toward layered electronics and distorted vocals. 

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20. The Beach Boys Abandon the Beach

The Beach Boys were synonymous with carefree surf songs. When Brian Wilson steered the band toward orchestral arrangements for Pet Sounds, fans were shocked by the complexity in the songs. Many longed for the familiar sounds of The Beach Boys. 

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