There's Nothing Like This: The Strategic Genius of Taylor Swift

by Kevin Evers

Overview

A smart, page-turning exploration of the business and creative decisions that transformed Taylor Swift into an unprecedented modern cultural phenomenon.

Named one of "Thirty books we're excited to read in the first half of 2025" by The Sydney Morning Herald

Named to the Financial Times "What to Read in 2025" list

Singer-songwriter. Trailblazer. Mastermind. The Beatles of her generation. From her genre-busting rise in country music as a teenager to the economic juggernaut that is the Eras Tour, Taylor Swift has blazed a path that is uniquely hers.

But how exactly has she managed to scale her success—multiple times—while dominating an industry that cycles through artists and stars like fashion trends? How has she managed to make and remake herself time and again while remaining true to her artistic vision? And how has she managed to master the constant disruption in the music business that has made it so hard for others to adapt and endure?

In There's Nothing Like This, Kevin Evers, a senior editor at Harvard Business Review, answers these questions in riveting detail. With the same thoughtful analysis usually devoted to iconic founders, game-changing innovators, and pioneering brands, Evers chronicles the business and creative decisions that have defined each phase of Swift's career.

Mixing business and art, analysis and narrative, and pulling from research in innovation, creativity, psychology, and strategy, There's Nothing Like This presents Swift as the modern and multidimensional superstar that she is—a songwriting savant and a strategic genius.

Swift's fans will see their icon from a fresh perspective. Others will gain more than a measure of admiration for her ability to stay at the top of her game. And everyone will come away understanding why, even after two decades, Swift keeps winning.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9798892790178
Publisher:	Harvard Business Review Press
Publication date:	04/08/2025
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	6.40(w) x 9.50(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Kevin Evers is a senior editor at Harvard Business Review. Passionate about shaping groundbreaking research and amplifying pioneering ideas, he has edited bestselling and award-winning books on high performance, creativity, innovation, digital disruption, marketing, and strategy. He has also written popular articles on brain science, Hollywood blockbusters, the art of persuasion, and the unpredictability of success.

Editorial Reviews

02/17/2025

This astute debut study from Evers, an editor at Harvard Business Review, examines how business savvy helped Taylor Swift conquer the music industry. He recounts how a 14-year-old Swift exited her songwriting deal with RCA, who wanted to wait until she was 18 before launching her as a musical artist, so she could sign with a smaller label that released her debut album when she was 16, tapping into an underserved market of young fans who wanted to hear someone their own age sing about problems they could relate to. Evers suggests that the singer’s transition from country to pop mirrors Nike’s growth strategy of breaking into new markets by introducing products related to its established offerings. Swift excels at adapting to new technologies, Evers argues, contending that revealing the track list of Midnights on TikTok ahead of the album’s release inspired rampant speculation about the meanings of the song titles and demonstrated Swift’s ability to dominate social media. She also adjusted to the rise of streaming by releasing more songs at a quicker clip, likely hoping that the greater quantity would increase her odds of getting picked up by algorithm-generated recommendations. The sharp analysis of Swift’s branding and financial dealings reveals how a canny business sense is as integral to stardom as artistic talent. It’s a unique take on the ubiquitous musician. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

"For Swifties, this book incorporates a deep well of fascinating stories about her career. But for marketers and business leaders, there are nine principles she embodies that should be foundational to every marketing plan. From owning the narrative to creating immersive experiences, Swift has created a playbook that is a goldmine for CMOs looking to build lasting relationships with customers and drive brand loyalty." — CMSWire

“I've always admired gifted entrepreneurs who aren't degreed but nevertheless possess preternatural business abilities. That's why I enjoyed There’s Nothing Like This: The Strategic Genius of Taylor Swift, the incredible absorbing new book by Harvard Business Review Editor Kevin Evers." — Boston Business Journal

Named one of "The Next Big Idea Club's April 2025 Must-Read Books"

"The sharp analysis of Swift's branding and financial dealings reveals how a canny business sense is as integral to stardom as artistic talent. It's a unique take on the ubiquitous musician." — Publisher's Weekly

Advance Praise for There's Nothing Like This:

"Absolutely terrific, and riveting to read. This is a phenomenal story, and it's full of implications for business, culture, and even politics. A standing ovation for Taylor Swift for her huge success—and another one for Kevin Evers for this wonderful book." — Cass R. Sunstein, coauthor, Nudge; author, How to Become Famous

"Thirty-plus years of studying achievement and influence have taught me that winners rarely know why they win. They think they know, but the truth is that a lot of it comes down to good instincts. Which is why someone like Taylor Swift needs someone like Kevin Evers, who brings mesmerizing research and insights to his fantastic retelling of Swift's extraordinary story.” — Heidi Grant, author, Nine Things Successful People Do Differently

"Packed with fascinating stories and insights, There's Nothing Like This shows how Swift has made a signature of constantly reinventing herself while also remaining quintessentially authentic. The book reveals how stretching beyond your core identity is the secret to lasting career success." — Herminia Ibarra, professor, London Business School; author, Act Like a Leader, Think Like a Leader and Working Identity

"We couldn't put this book down. Kevin Evers introduced us to the sides of Swift we didn't know—category disruptor, fearless innovator, visionary leader—and explained her astonishing cultural and economic rise with unprecedented rigor." — Frances Frei and Anne Morriss, bestselling authors, Move Fast & Fix Things; hosts of the podcast Fixable

From the Publisher

03/01/2025

Taylor Swift's meteoric rise over the past almost two decades has been studied from a number of angles, but here, Evers (a Harvard Business Review editor) offers a unique perspective that treats Swift as a business entity as well as a creative one. The book is organized chronologically into nine distinct sections, each covering a particular period of Swift's career, from her original RCA development deal at age 13 through the Eras tour and her latest releases. While Swift wasn't studying these business school cases or strategies herself, Evers's book highlights core business concepts to discuss her strategic decisions, from choosing cowriters and cultivating parasocial relationships with her fans via social media, to her reinventions with each new album and the negotiations over her masters and rerecordings. While Evers didn't interview Swift for this work, his synthesis of original research, business analysis, and previous interviews to explore Swift's position at the nexus of business, innovation, and creativity is excellent. Extensive footnotes and references complete the work. VERDICT Overall, Evers's book provides a good analysis of Taylor Swift's evolution as both an artist and a brand unto herself. A good choice for all academic libraries and public libraries with strong business collections.—Whitney Kramer

Library Journal