This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at TAMU chapter.
TAYLOR SWIFT SONGS TO LISTEN TO THIS QUARANTINE (A Series)
SPEAK NOW
- Speak Now was Taylor Swift’s third studio album. It was officially released on October 25, 2010. Swift claimed that this album was written by her in its entirety without the contribution of other co-writers. Speak Now was so successful that it currently holds the record for Fastest Selling Digital Album by a Female Artist in Guinness World Records. Out of all seven albums by Taylor Swift, Speak Now has, is, and will forever be my favorite. Every single song in this album holds a special place in my heart, for they had been the soundtrack of the most remarkable moments, both sad and happy, of my life. Narrowing this list to only four or five songs was almost impossible, so I decided to split this article into two parts with a total of seven songs. I hope you enjoy listening to them and that, by the time you finish playing them, you know me a little better.
- Mine
- It is no coincidence that this song is the first track of the album. The meaning behind the lyrics is simply magical. In this song, Swift narrates the story of a girl who is afraid to fall in love because of the unhealthy relationship her parents had. This track, however, teaches us that as sad our past has been, it does not determine our ability to find or not happiness in the future. It also shows us that if both people in a relationship are equally committed to making it work, then it will work. So, no matter if your past experiences with love have not been what you expected, never fear love, for it only takes the right person with a pure heart to take “a careless man’s careful daughter” and make her feel like “she is the best thing that has ever been [theirs].”
- Fun Fact: The boy that appears in the video is Toby Hemingway. He is known for his roles in the movies Black Swan and Feast of Love. His performance in the latest one was “so great” that Taylor thought he was perfect for her video.
- Back to December
- How could I even start to describe how beautiful this song is? It is an understatement to say that this song is one of the most amazing songs I’ve heard in the 20 years I’ve been on this Earth. The lyrics, the music, the video, and the look on Taylor Swift’s face every time she sings it in public make of this song a piece of art. It is not a secret that this song is one of the few -if not the only one- in which Swift depicts herself breaking someone’s heart instead of having hers broken. In Back to December, Taylor narrates a relationship full of happy moments. She talks about that one September night, which many people associate with the well-known 2009 VMAs Awards scandal, in which her former love held her in his arms as she cried. She also reminisces about the little details that made this relationship. The lyrics are, without a doubt, heartbreaking. They explain that anxiety and impotence that comes with recognizing our mistakes and wishing that it was not too late to make up for them. They talk about loving someone with such intensity that when you lose them, it feels as it “freedom ain’t nothing but missing [them].” And how you would do everything to see them one more time, but the mere thought of them having their guard up when they once had their entire heart open to you scares you to death. Taylor poured her whole heart in every word of this song, and it shows. I guarantee that after listening to this song, [you’d] want to go back to December, turn around and make it all right, for even I go back to December all the time.”
- Dear John
- Dear John is the longest song of the entire album with 6 minutes and 44 seconds of pure sadness, pain, love, and tragedy. If not a single song of the previous articles has made you cried, this one will. I’ve been refusing to mention the names of the guys whom the mentioned songs might be dedicated to, but I think there is no point in doing so with this song, for the title is pretty explicit. So yes, this song, according to 99% of the sources, was written for a man named John. I won’t give out his last name, but feel free to do some research on the story that inspired this beautiful track. Dear John narrates the relationship between 19-year-old Swift and a guy older than her. From the very first verses, their story is described as a tragedy rather than a romance. Swift talks about the long nights and days in which her entire self was dedicated to monitor her every action and count her every step, praying that she would not make a mistake that resulted in the floor falling through, again. She also describes how exhausting and painful it was for someone her age to be in a relationship with someone that ‘changed the rules [of the game] and his personality towards her every day. Taylor also expresses the regret that comes with letting an unhealthy relationship blind you for so long, as she mentions she wishes she had not ignored “when [their loved ones] said ‘run as fast as you can.” This song, in general, explores the pain caused by disappointment. The sadness that comes when you realized that the person you loved, fought for, and defended for so long is not who you thought they were. How you feel completely foolish for loving someone that only did you wrong so intensely that every bone in your body hurts. Dear John is, indeed, a very sad song; however, it has the most beautiful ending. In the last verses of the song, Taylor Swift comes back stronger. “Taking his matches, before the fire could catch her,” Swift communicates an important message: no matter how broken you think your heart is, you will always have the promise of a happier tomorrow. One in which that person that caused you so much pain won’t even be able to look at you, for you will be “shining like fireworks over your sad, empty town.” IF YOU ARE GOING THROUGH A HARD TIME RIGHT NOW, PLEASE REMEMBER THAT YOU ARE LOVED AND THAT BRIGHTER TIMES ARE COMING YOUR WAY.
This concludes the first half of the third article of this series. Stay tuned, for the second half will be coming very soon. I truly hope that listening to these songs and learning more about the meaning behind the lyrics brought some happiness to you in these times of hardship.
Please stay safe, stay home, and be sure that better times are coming!