Only 25-years-old, Taylor Swift landed on 2015's Most Powerful Women list as the 64th Most Powerful Woman in the world by Forbes Magazine. The star, who makes the list for the first time, is also the youngest among the women, with an estimated net worth at $81 million.
"She has not only broken record sales and captivated the world with her fantastically honest lyrics, but she has proven herself as an impressive businesswoman," says Forbes of the inclusion, as reported by Daily Mail. The "Bad Blood" singer's wide fan base on social media has also influenced and changed the way celebrities engage with their followers, making her ranking and addition to the list quite telling.
"There's no denying that she's one of the most significant cultural influencers of our time," notes the magazine.
Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, emerged as this year's number one. She has held the same position for five years in a row, according to Forbes. However, closely following Merkel is Hillary Clinton, the former U.S. First Lady and Secretary of State, who is now running for presidential office. Clinton was at number six in last year's list.
The rest of the top 10 include Melinda Gates, the chairperson of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Janet Yellen, the head of the U.S. Federal Reserves, Mary Barra, the CEO of General Motors, Christine Lagarde, the IMF chief, Dilma Rousseff, Brazil's president, Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook's COO, Susan Wojcicki, YouTube's CEO and Michelle Obama, the First Lady of the United States.
The list cover eight categories, rounding up and recognizing women in the fields of business, finance, technology, politics, media, entertainment, philanthropy and billionaires.
Among the celebrities, Oprah Winfrey and Beyonce also made the cut under the Top 20 bracket. Ellen DeGeneres, Angelina Jolie and Sofia Vergara are also on the list this year. Other newcomers like Swift include European Union's foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, The Guardian editor-in-chief Katharine Viner and U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, according to Reveal.
Of the women, 59 percent are Americans or belonging to a family who emigrated to the United States. About 18 of the women come from Asia-Pacific, 12 are from Europe, and Latin America and Middle East have four names each. There are also three African women on the list, as reported by the Sydney Morning Herald.
