When Taylor Swift held a worldwide live stream event to announce the details about her upcoming fifth album titled 1989, she declared it the “favorite album I’ve ever made” and her “very first documented, official pop album.”

She also revealed the inspiration behind the album during that event, saying, “I was listening to a lot of late-’80s pop, because I really love the chances [those artists] were taking. I loved how bold it was. I loved how ahead of its time it was. So, being inspired by that, I started delving into the late ’80s and what that period of time actually meant…

“It was, apparently, a time of just limitless potential. The idea that you can do what you want, be who you want, wear what you want, love who you want, and you get to decide where your life is going. Bright colors, bold chances, rebellion. And the idea of that was so inspiring to me. The idea of endless possibility was kind of a theme in the last year of my life. Basically, in thinking about that and how this new album is about a rebirth for me… having been born on Dec. 13, 1989, this album is called 1989.”

Now, she has another reason she’s undergone the change from country artist to pop artist, telling the British edition of Vogue, “With this album I’ve completely changed the sound of everything I’ve done until now. So it’s interesting to not be afraid of that. You know, I don’t want to hurt people’s feelings, I don’t want to betray Nashville — but essentially it comes down to challenging yourself as an artist.”

What is Nashville saying about her comments?

Kenny Chesney said to Entertainment Tonight he’d always been one of her biggest fans and added, “She’s such a global act.” He also noted how good her songwriting has become and said, “And I think that’s the foundation of everything we do—songwriting.”

Shania Twain said Swift has the right to follow her creative urges. “I think that everybody should just follow their heart and do their artistic best, and just enjoy their creativity,” Twain told ET Canada. “[Taylor]’s a singer-songwriter-performer, she does it all … the world is her oyster. She’s young and she needs to just do whatever she’s having fun at, and I think everybody’s loving it.”