Taylor Swift
was presented
Billboard's Woman of the Year honor
during ceremonies Friday (Dec. 2) in New York City. She officially earned the recognition in October and graces the industry
publication's cover this week. In the magazine interview, Swift said she's never found a prejudice against female performers
in country music. "I was fortunate enough to come about in a time when I didn't feel that kind of energy at all, and it was
always my theory that if you want to play in the same ballgame as the boys, you've got to work as hard as them," she said.
"I was always playing just as many shows as they were and playing on the same shows as they were. I was willing to pay my
dues as an opening act, playing in clubs and bars and playing in tiny venues. The new male artists were doing the same thing,
so I never saw an issue there."
