Austin Mahone on Taylor Swift

“I was in this coffee shop in Nashville when I looked up and saw this really tall, pretty girl who looked kind of familiar to me. It couldn't be. Only, yeah, it was: Taylor Swift. I had to go say hi to her. I walked up to her table, feeling kind of shy and dorky, but she looked up and gave me a big smile. "Are you Taylor?" I said. "Yeah," she said. "Hey, my name's Austin Mahone," I said. "I'm a singer on YouTube." Her smile got even bigger. "That's really cute," she said. "Keep up the hard work and never stop believing." "Thanks," I said. "Do you mind if I get a picture with you?" "Of course not," she said. We posed together and my mom took the picture. Little did I know at the time that we'd meet again a year later, under circumstances I couldn't have imagined then. Life is too crazy sometimes.”

“I was excited to be achieving one of my goals of reaching a wider audience. I got some help reaching that goal during the summer of 2013 when I was asked to be the opening act for a huge artist I really admired, which was exactly the kind of opportunity I'd been hoping for. I have to tell you, though, when my managers told me who I'd be opening for, I couldn't believe it: Taylor Swift- who I'd always felt a real respect for, especially since she'd been so nice to me back in Nashville. Plus, I admire how she's grown her career and respect her talent. The first time we met backstage, I had to tell her where and how we'd met before. Of course, this time she knew I was a singer because I was her opener, and she smiled at me even bigger than before. "Hey, Taylor, we actually met once in Nashville a couple years ago," I said. "I came up to you in a coffee shop and told you I was a singer on YouTube." "I totally remember you," she said, laughing. "No way," I said. "No, I totally do." I wasn't sure I believed her. But it didn't matter. I was her support act on a lot of her dates that summer, and we always got along well. Plus, I got to meet and hang a little with Ed Sheeran, who was also on the tour. He's a cool guy and very talented. That tour was fun and amazing, and I learned so much from watching Taylor. She's always such a pro.”