Was Taylor Swift ever on ‘American Idol?’

When Taylor Swift shot to fame in the late aughts and early 10s, American Idol was the biggest program on television, so was that how the singer got her start?

At the time, American Idol presented a valuable opportunity for aspiring artists by giving them a platform of nearly 40 million viewers — at the time, the show was at the peak of its popularity. The show spawned fantastic careers in music like those of Carrie Underwood, Kelly Clarkson, Jennifer Hudson, and Adam Lambert. Was Taylor Swift’s record-breaking body of work one of them?

Did Taylor Swift get her start on American Idol?

No. Taylor Swift was never on American Idol or any other major televised talent show as a contestant. But if you were convinced that she had been, you’re not alone. It’s also possible you’re confusing Swift’s rise to fame with that of Carrie Underwood, a fellow budding blonde-curly-haired country singer coming up in the mid-2000s, and the famous winner of the 4th edition of American Idol.

Swift, however, got her start in Nashville, Tenessee, where she knocked on a few doors before being discovered by her first label executive, Scott Borchetta, at a local showcase. The then-teenage musician was no stranger to talent shows, though. Her hit song “Our Song,” from her debut album Taylor Swift, was written for a ninth-grade talent show and became so popular among her classmates that she insisted it would be included in her first album. The country song eventually became her third single and made it to the top spot on Billboard’s Country chart.

In 2007, when she was just 17, Swift performed “Teardrops On My Guitar” with America’s Got Talent contestant Julienne Irwin. She’s also visited the sets of The Voice and X Factor UK numerous times, including season 17 of the former where she joined the show as a Mega Mentor.

The Grammy-winning singer-songwriter eventually crossed over into pop, in the process achieving global stardom and becoming one of the most successful artists in history. Today, she dominates charts and sells out stadiums worldwide in a matter of minutes almost two decades after kickstarting her career at Nashville’s Bluebird Cafe in 2005.