Taylor Swift kickstarted the 2014 American Music Awards Sunday night with a dazzling live debut performance of 1989's "Blank Space."
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Swift gave a live recreation of the video, opening the track seated at an elegant dinner table before poisoning her significant other. The scene shifted to Swift burning a rose while a series of background dancers displayed their faces with art frames before the singer vanquished multiple beaus. At the end of the video, a door opens to reveal Swift's mystery date.
The singer also received the inaugural "Dick Clark Award for Excellence" at the award show. The award recognizes the country-pop singer for being the first artist to have three albums debut with more than 1 million sold in their first week. After recognizing Clark and Diana Ross in her speech (the latter introducing the singer), Swift took another subtle shot at Spotify, the streaming service that the singer has been in battle with since the release of 1989
"What you did by going out and investing in music and albums is saying you believe in the same thing I believe in," said Swift. "That music is valuable and should be consumed in albums and albums should be consumed as art and appreciated."
Swift released an interactive app to accompany her "Blank Space" video. Joseph Kahn, the director who helmed the video, spoke to Rolling Stone about the app that allowed fans to unlock secrets in the video's mansion, follow minor characters and hunt for 41 collectibles that shows never-before-seen photos from Swift’s life. "It’s non-linear in that you can be in any of the rooms whenever, but it’s done in linear time," explained Kahn. "It’s like a stage play."
Added Kahn of Swift: "She’s the smartest artist I’ve worked with in 20 years of making music videos."
Swift is no stranger to the AMAs. The singer performed "Back to December" at the 2010 awards and returned two years later to sing "I Knew You Were Trouble."
