Speak Now is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. It was released on October 25, 2010, by Big Machine Records. Production for the album took place during 2009 to 2010 at several recording studios, and was handled by Swift and Nathan Chapman. Written entirely by Swift as the follow-up to Fearless (2008), Speak Now expands on the country pop style of her previous work, and features lyrical themes concerning love, romance and heartbreak.
Speak Now received generally positive reviews from music critics, who complimented Swift's songwriting and themes. It received aGrammy Award nomination for Best Country Album, making it her second consecutive nomination in the category, following her 2010 victory for Fearless. Several music critics and publications included Speak Now in their year-end lists. Six singles were released from the album, all of which have either received a gold or platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Swift promoted the album with the Speak Now World Tour, which became the third highest grossing tour of all time by a country artist, grossing over $123 million.
Speak Now debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart, giving Swift her second consecutive chart topper in the US. Its first week sales of 1,047,000 copies was the fifth biggest debut in history for a female artist, the third biggest ever by a country album (the first being Swift's own Red album later released in 2012), the biggest in five and a half years, and the biggest first week sales of 2010. The album also made music history for claiming the biggest one-week sales tally for an album by a female country artist. As of 2014,Speak Now is ranked 17th in United States history to sell one million copies in a single week. It was also an international success, charting within the top 10 in several countries, including Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. The album has been certifiedquadruple platinum by the RIAA and, as of January 2015, has sold 4.5 million copies in the United States. It is also the tenth best-selling digital album of all time.
Speak Now was included in the "50 Best Female Albums of All Time" list published by Rolling Stone in 2012, ranking at number forty-five. This gave Swift, 22 at the time of publication, the distinction of being the youngest artist across all genres to be included on the list.
