1989–2003: Childhood and education

Swift's childhood home in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania

[1]
Taylor Alison Swift was born on December 13, 1989, at the Reading Hospital in West Reading,
[2] [3]
Pennsylvania. Swift's father, Scott Kingsley Swift, is a former stockbroker for Merrill Lynch
and her mother, Andrea Gardner Swift (née Finlay), is a former homemaker who previously
[4] [5]
worked as a mutual fundmarketing executive. Her younger brother, Austin, is an actor. She
[6] [7]
was named after singer-songwriter James Taylor, and has Scottish and German heritage.
[8]
Her maternal grandmother, Marjorie Finlay, was an opera singer. Swift spent her early years on
[9][10]
a Christmas tree farm that her father had purchased from one of his clients. Swift identifies
[11]
as a Christian. She attended preschool and kindergarten at the Alvernia Montessori School,
[12] [13]
run by the Bernadine Franciscan sisters, before transferring to The Wyndcroft School. The
[14]
family moved to a rented house in the suburban town of Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, where
[15]
Swift attended Wyomissing Area Junior/Senior High School. She spent her summers at the
[16][17]
beach in Stone Harbor, New Jersey, and performed in a local coffee shop.
At age nine, Swift became interested in musical theater and performed in four Berks Youth
[18]
Theatre Academy productions. She also traveled regularly to New York City for vocal and
[19]
acting lessons. Swift later shifted her focus toward country music, inspired by Shania Twain's
songs, which made her "want to just run around the block four times and daydream about
[20] [21][22]
everything." She spent weekends performing at local festivals and events. After
watching a documentary about Faith Hill, Swift felt sure she needed to move to Nashville,
[23]
Tennessee, to pursue a career in music. She traveled with her mother at age eleven to visit
Nashville record labels and submitted demo tapes of Dolly Parton and The Chicks karaoke
[24]
covers. She was rejected, however, because "everyone in that town wanted to do what I
[25]
wanted to do. So, I kept thinking to myself, I need to figure out a way to be different."
When Swift was around 12 years old, computer repairman and local musician Ronnie Cremer
taught her to play guitar. "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer was the first song Swift learned
to play on the guitar. Cremer helped with her first efforts as a songwriter, leading her to write
[26][27]
"Lucky You". In 2003, Swift and her parents started working with New York-based talent
manager Dan Dymtrow. With his help, Swift modeled for Abercrombie & Fitch as part of their
"Rising Stars" campaign, had an original song included on a Maybelline compilation CD, and
[28]
attended meetings with major record labels. After performing original songs at an RCA
Records showcase, Swift, then 13 years old, was given an artist development deal and began
[29][30][31]
making frequent trips to Nashville with her mother. To help Swift enter into the country
music scene, her father transferred to Merrill Lynch's Nashville office when she was 14 years old,
[9][32]
and the family relocated to Hendersonville, Tennessee. Swift initially attended
[33]
Hendersonville High School before transferring to the Aaron Academy after two years, which
[34]
better suited her touring schedule through homeschooling. She graduated one year early.