My theory she doesn't measure up. Yes she can sing but there is no depth to her voice. Its hollow. Any meaning behind her lyrics? No ability to dance/perform on stage.
To be fair, everything you said could be equally applied to the Beatles, and they are the most successful band in history.
I'm not a huge Taylor Swift fan, but to say she is not talented is to ignore the truth.
1. She is extremely young
2. She writes most of her own songs
3. Many of the songs she has written have risen to #1 on the billboard top 100
4. Speaking of #3, she is the only female vocalist in history to have replaced herself at
#1 on the billboard top 100 ("blank space" replaced "shake it off")
5. Some of her songs are not only catchy, they tell an interesting story. The lyrics of blank space are basically ravings in the mind of a crazy woman.
6. Even if you disagree that she is musically talented (which I would dispute seeing how she sings, plays multiple instruments, composes her own songs, and has had massive commercial success doing so), you can't dispute that she knows how to write for the mass market. With few exceptions, she is one of the only singer songwriters today that possesses that talent. That makes her a force to be reckoned with in the business side of music.
Everyone on that stage is far more talented then TS and I think the producers know it.
Can't agree with this. The truth is probably more like TS is less talented in some areas than those performers, but more talented in other areas. You do not achieve her level of success without being talented at all. Certainly not for the length of time that she has been around.
TBH, comparing the "talent" of two star vocal performers to another is like comparing two MLB shortstops. In most cases both will be excellent (relative to your average joe schmoe), with one having strengths that the other lacks, and vice versa. Rarely do you find a shortstop (or player at any other position) that is elite at all aspects of the game.
To continue the baseball analogy - Adele could be considered the Cal Ripkin of the vocal field. I.e., one of the best at her particular position (singing) at her time. TS on the other hand might be considered the Chone Figgins of vocal performers, i.e., strong at multiple positions (singing, writing, choreography, music business, marketing, etc.) but not stellar (i.e., better than some of her peers) at some of them. In other words, TS's extreme talent lies in the fact that she can do pretty much anything in the music business at a very high level.