This is worth posting three videos about! Why? Because I can!
To being with, say what you want about Taylor Swift, she has a knack for finding other talented, young artists and does a good job pulling them into the spotlight with her.
Vance Joy, the stage name of Australian artist James Keogh, has been selected to open every show of Swift’s North American tour in support of her 1989 album.
The added publicity seems to be working in his favor, with Riptide breaking into the top ten in numerous Billboard categories in the U.S.
Swift even tipped her hat to Vance Joy by covering Riptide on the BBC program Live Lounge in October.
The Swift version of the song, using primarily a piano for instrumentation, comes across as much more somber than the original. I can’t say that it’s necessarily better, but I really like it.
The last video is of Riptide being used in a GoPro commercial.
I like this just because it’s fun, and probably also contributes to the recent commercial success of Riptide, which was originally released in 2013.
Vance Joy performing on Stockholm. (Photo credit: Daniel Åhs Karlsson)