With a star-studded cast already lined up, it looks like the new film adaptation of “Les Misérables” will also feature Taylor Swift. It has been reported that Universal has offered Swift the role of Eponine in the film, and the announcement has already caused cheers and jeers from fans of film, Broadway and music. CBS News reports that Swift beat out Scarlett Johansson, Evan Rachel Wood and Lea Michele for the role. All of those names have significantly more acting experience than the country singer, as Johansson is a Tony Award winner, Michele is a Broadway veteran and Wood has starred in many films. Amanda Seyfried, star of “Mamma Mia!” also was offered a “Les Mis” role recently, that of Cosette.

If Swift joins the cast, which is reported to be likely, she will join an all-star group including Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean, Russell Crowe as Javert, Helena Bonham Carter as Madame Thenardier and Anne Hathaway as Fantine. The film is currently set to begin filming in March and has a tentative release date of December 7, 2012.

Swift’s acting experience has been relegated mainly to cameos in music videos, though she has been showing up in small roles on both the big and small screen recently. She has appeared in “Hannah Montana: The Movie,” “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” “Valentine’s Day,” and it was recently announced that she will lend her voice to the upcoming animated movie, “The Lorax,” also set to be released in 2012.

In other Swift news, she recently was announced as Billboard magazine’s “Woman of the Year.” In her interview with the magazine about the honor, she explained a little about what her approach has been to her career.

“I’ve just tried to grow up in the most natural and gradual process that I possibly can and make choices I feel are right for me and my fans,” she said in the interview. From the recent announcement, it would appear that acting might be the next step in that process.

Adele and Taylor Swift tied for the total number of wins at last night’s 39^th American Music Awards, but Swift would have to be called the big winner since she beat out Adele (as well as Lady Gaga, Lil Wayne and Katy Perry ) for Artist of the Year, which is the ceremony’s highest honor. The other two awards Swift took home were for favorite Country Female artist and favorite Country Album for her third record, Speak Now, which was released in 2010.

Adele’s three awards were favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist, Adult/Contemporary Artist and Pop/Rock Album for 21.

Other big winners included Nicki Minaj, who delivered an electrifying performance to kick off the show. She later picked up two awards, favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Artist and favorite Rap/Hip-Hop album for her 2010 debut Pink Friday.

The awards show has become known for its spectacular performances, and this year’s show was no different. In addition to the aforementioned Minaj performance, Justin Bieber performed “Under the Mistletoe” from his recently released Christmas album, and Katy Perry accompanied herself on acoustic guitar. Other performers were Chris Brown, The Band Perry and Jennifer Lopez, who was joined during her performance by current rap sensation Pitbull. The last performance of the night was one of the most memorable, as Bieber returned to the stage to dance as LMFAO performed. While Bieber was wearing animal-print pants, the performance was stolen by David Hasselhoff, who stripped down to smiley-face underwear with the rest of the group (excluding Bieber).

At one of the few music awards shows where winners are determined by fans rather than industry insiders, other winners included Bruno Mars, Lady Antebellum, Foo Fighters and Rihanna for her album Loud, which won for favorite Soul/R&B Album. The singer’s follow-up album to Loud, Talk That Talk was released this week.  Hot Chelle Rae won for New Artist of the Year.

Taylor Swift will appear in an interview on CBS’s “60 Minutes” this Sunday, November 20. The interview will be part of a profile of the 21-year-old country singer.

Fresh from receiving the Entertainer of the Year award at the year’s Country Music Association awards show last week, Swift sat down with Lesley Stahl to talk about her role as a celebrity, among other things.

“I definitely think about a million people when I am getting dressed in the morning,” Swift said in a clip of the show released online. “That’s just part of my life now. I think it’s my responsibility to know it and to be conscious of it”

She went on to elaborate on the importance of her role as a young, popular singer.

“It would be really easy to say, ‘I’m 21 now, I do what I want. You raise your kids,’” she said. “But that’s not the truth of it. The truth of it is that every singer out there with songs on the radio is raising the next generation, so make your words count.”

In other Swift news, her latest single, “If This Was a Movie,” debuted this week in the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 charts. The song was released as a single on iTunes and also on a bonus disc for singer’s latest record, Speak Now.

Speak Now was released in October 2010, and has gone on to sell more than 5.5 million copies worldwide and has been certified triple platinum in the United States.

Swift currently is finishing up tour dates for her year-long “Speak Now World Tour,” which will conclude in New York with two show at Madison Square Garden on November 21 and 22. The only other dates she currently has scheduled are 12 dates in Australia and New Zealand in March 2012.

U2, Jason Aldean and Taylor Swift were among the winners at the 8^th annual Billboard Touring Awards, held on November 10 at New York’s Roosevelt Hotel.

The touring awards celebrate excellence in touring, promotion and performance, and are based primarily on global box office numbers. This year’s awards were based on the period from October 1, 2010 to September 30, 2011.

U2 was presented with both the Top Tour Award and Top Draw Award in honor of its 360 Tour, which was highest grossing and most attended tour of the year.

Jason Aldean received the breakthrough award. Aldean’s most recent record, My Kinda Party, was released in November 2010 and currently is the best-selling country album of 2011.

The Concert Marketing & Promotion Award was presented to Taylor Swift for her Speak Now World Tour 2011, which was sponsored by Covergirl. Swift’s 2010 album Speak Now, for which the tour was named, has sold over 5.5 million copies worldwide.

Other winners at the ceremony included Live Nation for Top Promoter, C3 Presents for Top U.S. Indie Promoter and Front Line Management for Top Manager. The Coachella Music & Arts Festival was named best festival and the Comcast Center in Mansfield Main was named best amphitheater. The 9:30 Club in Washington D.C. won the award for Best Club, an honor that is based on attendance.

Journey was presented with the Legend of Live award, honoring the band’s 38 years of touring. Not merely focusing on music, there was also an award for top comedy tour, which went to Jeff Dunham.

In addition to the awards ceremony, the music trade magazine also hosted a two-day Touring Conference, which was highlighted by a keynote speech from Jane’s Addiction frontman and Lollapalooza founder Perry Farrell. Farrell also received the first Apple Award, which honors legendary concert promoter Bill Graham.

The Country Music Association named Taylor Swift the Entertainer of the Year at this year’s CMA Awards, held November 9 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. It was the first time the 21-year-old has won the award. Her 2010 album, Speak Now, was passed over for the Album of the Year award, however, with that honor going to Jason Aldean, for My Kind of Party, which was released in November 2010 and currently is the best selling country album of 2011.

Swift, who seemed shocked to win the award, thanked a wide variety of stars for appearing at her shows, including Justin Bieber, Usher, Tim McGraw and Nelly.

Other winners included the Band Perry, which won for new artist. The band’s single “If I Die Young” was picked for Song of the Year honors. Husband and wife team Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton won the female vocalist and male vocalist awards, respectively, and Lady Antebellum won vocal group of the year. 2011 marks the third consecutive year the band has won the award.

Other notable moments included Lionel Richie singing a medley of songs including “Deep River Feeling,” “Stuck on You” and “Dancing on the Ceiling.” Former Hootie and the Blowfish singer and current country star Darius Rucker joined Richie for “Stuck on You.” Richie’s appearance foreshadows his upcoming country duets album, which will be released later this year.

Co-hosts Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood also performed a duet of “Remind Me,” which was a number one country hit for the two performers this summer.

The CMAs also spent time honoring country legend Glen Campbell, who announced earlier this year that he has Alzheimer’s disease. Vince Gill, Keith Urban and Brad Paisley took turns singing Campbell’s hits “By the Time I Get to Phoenix,” “Wichita Lineman” and “Galveston.” Campbell, who still has tour dates lined up, appeared on stage but did not perform.

Taylor Swift has led a charmed as well as awards-filled life. The talented and beautiful superstar now can tack another two accomplishments onto her resume. The country superstar is now able to claim two 2012 Guinness Book of World Record mentions. Taylor, congratulations on holding two Guinness World Records.

So what do Swift’s achievements refer to? Don’t worry, they have nothing to do with owning more red lipstick than anyone or baking the largest cupcake in the world, although someone is always achieving weird records like these. All of Swift’s mentions are career and music related. She currently holds the latest record as Female Artist with the fastest-selling digital album. In November 2010 her album “Speak Now” had 278,000 digital version sales. Swift’s second world record was for having Most Simultaneous Hot 100 U.S. Hits from a Female Artist. Swift has had 11 Hot 100 Hits in a row.

A note to all of the potential boyfriends of Taylor Swift: break her heart and she’ll write about it in her songs. She will enjoy the last laugh and break music records as well as break Guinness Book of World Records because of it. In the world of Taylor Swift, it’s reciprocal. She is able to turn the most sour lemons from life into a refreshing, tall glass of lemonade through her songs.

Taylor Swift, for the very first time since rising to the top of the country-pop music world, has had to go to the sidelines due to sickness. Swift has announced that four concerts will have to be canceled off her current tour due to bronchitis. According to Paula Erickson, Swift’s spokeswoman, this is the first time the 21-year-old singer, who is one of the top-selling songwriter-singers in the U.S., has had to cancel or postpone a show due to illness.

On June 25, Swift started to get sick after she performed in a hard rain at Gillette Stadium outside of Boston during her sold-out show. Six days later, she apologized to her fans in Knoxville for her hoarseness. The singer had to pull out of her Louisville, KY show scheduled for the next day. Swift has now announced she has been informed by her doctors that she can not perform in Charlotte, N.C. for three shows or in Atlanta this weekend. In a statement, Swift said, if I were able to physically perform those shows I wouldn’t cancel.

Taylor Swift’s schedule since February has been grueling. The tour involves 98 shows in a total of 17 different countries in support of “Speak Now,” her new, chart-topping album released in October. Since the beginning of the tour, Swift has performed 36 shows and traveled throughout Europe and Southeast Asia. In late May she returned to the U.S.

According to Erickson, Taylor is convalescing in her Nashville home and is hoping to return on July 14 where she is scheduled to perform in Montreal at Bell Center.

You don’t have to be old to be a country music royalty, or a veteran in the business to be considered a top paid celebrity, and this has been proven many times over by 21-year old chart topper, Grammy winner and consistent sold-out performer Taylor Swift and ‘American Idol’ winner and also chart topping country superstar Carrie Underwood who is still two years away from hitting the big 3-0. Both country artists have landed a spot in Forbes’ Best Paid Celebrities Under 30 List, with Swift rounding up the top five and Underwood at the 19th spot.

Swift’s $45 million income last year, which mostly came from her sold-out tour, successful releases and a triumphant bid in other non-music ventures such as in fragrances and films, aligned her with the likes of Miami Heat’s LeBron James, seventeen year old pop superstar Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga, who at 25, ruled the Forbes list after raking in $170 million, also mostly attributed to her sold-out Monster Ball tour and the success of her first two studio efforts. Underwood’s estimated income of $15 million is more than enough for her to be included in the top 20.

Swift’s name is also frequently listed in Forbes’ other annual lists such as the Highest Earning Stars list, Celebrity 100, Most Powerful Celebrities and the Highest Earning Women list, proving over and over again that the 21-year old is a force to be reckoned with not only in the music industry but in show business as a whole, and that her accomplishments at a young age is an inspiration that resonates among women, and men as well, regardless of age.

With Taylor Swift being hailed as the Academy of Country Music’s Entertainer of the Year for 2011, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is now assured of a $75,000 grant from both the ACM and Swift in accordance with the organization’s Lifting Lives Matching Gift program.

Lifting Lives was initiated by the ACM and is aimed to help various institutions and charities, from research facilities, to hospitals, and foundations focused on helping communities or enhancing art programs. To raise funds, Lifting Lives will donate twice the amount that the ACM Entertainer of the Year will shell out, aptly dubbed as the Matching Gift program. This year, Swift donated $25,000 so in effect the program will be donating $50,000 to the children’s hospital. The donation was formalized when Erin Spahn, Lifting Lives executive director, met with Swift in Detroit Saturday, where the singer just wrapped up a show as part of her Speak Now tour.

This isn’t the first grant that the St. Jude Hospital received this year from the country music industry. Last May, it also received a $1.25 million donation from the NBC show Celebrity Apprentice and its current season’s winner, country musician John Rich, who personally chose the said institution as his charity beneficiary.

Other previous beneficiaries of the Lifting Lives Matching Gift program are MusiCares, C.A.T.S. Foundation, and the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.

The CMA Music Festival closed out with a bang with Entertainer of the Year Taylor Swift headlining the four-day event’s final night on Sunday, held at LP Field.

“The cool thing about being on this stage is you get a really good view,” exclaimed the ‘Love Story’ singer in front of the thousands who attended the show. She performed an array of her chart topping hits like ‘Love Story’, ‘Mean’, ‘Story of Us’, ‘Our Song’ and also ‘Fearless’, which she performed while strumming the ukulele after roaming through the crowd on her way to the second stage.

She also had both her hands painted, with her trademark ‘13’ on the right and lyrics from a Sugarland song on the left which said, “Remember me in ribbons and curls, love your baby girl.”

Newlyweds Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton also headlined one of the festival’s shows, with Mrs. Blake Shelton thanking her fans for making her new single, ‘Heart Like Mine’, a number one hit right in time for her wedding, talk about the perfect wedding present. Like Swift, she also performed a bunch of her smash hits like ‘The House that Built Me’, plus some songs from her new side project Pistol Annies, the band she formed with friends Angaleena Presley and Ashley Monroe. The group, which Lambert described as “everything but a goofy side project”, performed their latest single ‘Hell on Heels’ during the show.

Her husband Blake also performed a duet with Trace Adkins for the song ‘Hillbilly Bone’. The crowd just went wild every time a ‘Yee Haw!’ was in order.

Other acts who made the festival a spectacular experience for country music fans were Darius Rocker who had the crowd under his control with his cover of ‘Family Tradition’, The Band Perry who also had the vast audience cheering and backing him up while singing to ‘If I Die Young’, and The JaneDear Girls.

For those who missed the show, or shows, you can catch it on the tube when ABC airs it later this season.