Taylor Swift wanted to be like Carole King, Hayley William reveals

Taylor Swift expressed her desire to resemble Carole King when she was 19 years old, according to the vocalist for the band Paramore Hayley Williams.

The Good Dye Young co-founder, 34, reflected on a discussion she had with Swift, 33 when they were both just starting in the business as she talked to Billboard about her group's new album This Is Why and its opening spot on the first night of Swift's The Eras tour.

"When we were 19, [Swift] told me — she was a country singer at that point — that she wanted to be like Carole King," Williams recalled.

"And I was like, 'Whoa, that's a crazy thing to say,' you know? Because we were kids. And I'll be damned, this woman, she's crossing genres and bleeding over into other aspects of pop culture, and she's helping to shape it at the very least."

Williams described Paramore's March opening-night performance in Arizona as a "big deal," and Swift shared her thoughts on the occasion in the Billboard cover story, calling it "such an honour."

"We came up alongside each other as Nashville teenagers writing our own music, so it feels insanely special to kick off the tour together nearly two decades later," Swift said. "I just remember being constantly floored and inspired by their writing, originality and artistic integrity."

"Hayley is such a riveting performer because she's so multifaceted — bold and playful and ferocious and completely in command," Swift resumed. "It's a dream come true to join forces like this."