Joe Elliott recently spoke of Def Leppard’s past collaboration with Taylor Swift in an interview with Billboard. He recalled performing parts of Swift’s ’Love Story’ during rehearsals 16 years ago and shared his admiration for her as an artist.
Elliott also compared the pop singer’s success to that of The Beatles and The Rolling Stones:
“I think we’d all be lying if we said we knew she was going to become as big as she has because she’s actually become bigger than anything that’s ever been before. She’s probably bigger than The Beatles and The Stones combined, for her generation of fans. I’ll probably get lynched by some 75-year-old reading this, but it’s all relative.”
He explained:
“Today it’s all about the streaming numbers and all that kind of stuff. There’s been a lot of massively successful bands, but she’s taken success to a level that is unheard of. It’s absolutely mad. It’s success beyond anything that anybody could have ever dreamed of, probably her herself.”
She’s A Def Leppard Fan
Joe Elliott teamed up with Swift to perform ’Photograph’ on an episode of CMT’s ’Crossroads’ when she was just eighteen. He noted how he was impressed by her even at the beginning of her career.
The frontman also mentioned that Swift’s mother, Andrea, was a Def Leppard fan and commented:
“So basically, in the womb, she was listening to ’Pyro’ and ’Hysteria,’ because her mom was a big fan. She was born to Def Leppard, basically. [Prior to CMT Crossroads] we saw this article where she said, ‘There’s only one band I would do Crossroads with,’ and it was us. We were beyond flattered and management said, ‘We should get in touch with her management to see if she actually really means it.’ And she did.”
Her Album Broke Records
Taylor Swift newly released her 11th studio album, ’The Tortured Poets Department.’ The album broke several streaming records on Spotify since day one. It received the most pre-saves in the platform’s history and became 2024’s most streamed album in a single day.
Meanwhile, the pop artist continued her ’Eras Tour.’ She will take her international trek to Paris on May 9. Def Leppard’s new set of shows will follow in St. Louis, Missouri, on July 6.