"I think it's great for her," Rucker tells Radio.com after Swift announced her first fully pop record 1989. "She was already in the pop world anyway. I'm happy for her. I think she's an amazing person first of all. She's a great musician and an incredible songwriter. One of the true great songwriters of this time. She writes great songs, great melodies, great hooks. Unforgettable words. More power to her."

While Rucker didn't have any advice to give Swift, he did suggest she enjoy every second of her pop transformation. "Enjoy it, have fun, kill it," he says. "Be the biggest thing in the world, you already are. Just go ahead and get a little bigger. I'm really happy for Taylor. You don't sell the number of records you do without doing what she's doing."