Taylor Swift a Jersey Girl? Who Knew?

The term "overnight success" is thrown around a lot, but in reality, success is something that's chased for a very long time before we hear the final product.

Bruce Springsteen played dive bars and performed whenever he could in order to shape his sound.

Jon Bon Jovi didn't just walk into a recording studio and record a number one album.  When his band came together, they worked their butts off to find a sound that would propel them to fame.

Taylor Swift is no different.  Growing up, it turns out that she and her family would vacation right here at the Jersey Shore.  It was in Stone Harbor, that they discovered a little coffee shop called Coffee Talk.

Coffee Talk would play host to locals who would come in and perform.   I imagine it was probably a bit like Central Perk on Friends, although I doubt anyone was singing Smelly Cat.

Madlynn Zurawski is the owner of Coffee Talk, and in an interview with the Courier-Post a few years ago, she recalled how Taylor's mother, Andrea, would call the coffee shop and ask if the young Taylor could come in and play.

“It's funny because people say, ‘Oh, did you have any idea?’ and I mean what do I know? I don’t know anything,” Zurawski said. “I just thought she was adorable and cute and [had] a very, very nice family.”   Courier Post, Dec 2, 2021

Taylor may not be playing coffee shops anymore, but the next time you see someone else who is, give them a chance.  They might well be the next Taylor Swift.

Stone Harbor NJ was a Taylor Swift summer haunt before she was famous (courierpostonline.com)