Taylor Alison Swift was born on December 13, 1989, in Reading, Pennsylvania. She developed a passion for music at a young age, influenced by country artists such as Shania Twain and Faith Hill. Swift began performing locally and traveling to Nashville, Tennessee, to pursue a music career. At 14, she became the youngest artist signed by the Sony/ATV Music publishing house, and soon after, she signed her first recording contract with Big Machine Records.