When it comes to Taylor Swift’s rerecordings, “the stakes are high, the water’s rough, but this love is ours.” We can only imagine how intimidating it must be to have to go back and recreate six full albums, on top of combing through unreleased songs to add to the tracklist, but Taylor is so passionate about artists’ rights to own their work and her relationship with fans. This has been such a special time in her career, and the release of Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) is making us especially emotional.
Taylor first released Speak Now in 2010, when she was starting to transcend country stardom to become a full-fledged musical superstar. It was just under a year after what Taylor called “the mic-grab seen around the world” in the album prologue and she had more eyes on her than ever, which is a whole lot of pressure for a teenage girl adjusting to fame and trying to find her footing in adulthood. She was getting more criticism than ever for her performances and more skepticism than ever over whether she truly wrote her own lyrics, so she decided to prove everyone wrong, choosing to train her voice more and write the album completely alone so no one could claim her co-writers were the ones really writing her songs.
On top of her life in the spotlight, Taylor was navigating formative romantic relationships, growing up and moving out on her own, and grappling with how to be an adult while still staying true to her hopeful, playful side. The result was a 17-track exploration of fairytales, realism, optimism, doubt, and magic, sincerely capturing all the emotions you deal with in your late teens and early 20s. It’s helped so many of us over the years and now it’ll get to help a whole new generation of Swifties!
I always looked at this album as my album, and the lump in my throat expands to a quivering voice as I say this. Thanks to you, dear reader, it finally will be. I consider this music to be, along with your faith in me, the best thing that’s ever been mine.
Taylor Swift in the Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) prologue
To celebrate Taylor finally owning Speak Now and the fact that she wrote the whole album by herself (rest in peace, ‘If This Was A Movie’), we’re rounding up 13 of the best lyrics! These are lyrics that have stuck with us over the course of nearly 13 years, as well as new favorites courtesy of the six From The Vault tracks.
“Braced myself for the goodbye ‘cause that’s all I’ve ever known, then you took me by surprise…”
Throughout ‘Mine’ and the Speak Now album (especially with Vault songs like ‘Foolish One’), we learn more about how Taylor views love and its fragility. No matter how much we want someone, or how many times we daydream about being with them, sometimes things just fall apart. ‘Mine’ sees Taylor thinking about what her ideal future with someone would be like, and even when her insecurities about heartbreak come crashing in, that person pledges not to leave her alone and chooses to fight for their love. It’s her modern fairytale view that evolved from learning fairytales don’t always work out the way they want them to.
“She is yelling at a bridesmaid somewhere back inside a room wearing a gown shaped like a pastry…”
‘Speak Now’ deserves so much more recognition than it gets! There are so many playfully sassy one-liners like this one that describe what a nightmare this theoretical wedding is in such a fun way. Come on, tell us you haven’t spent at least a few hours over the past 13-ish years trying to imagine what a pastry-shaped wedding dress would look like. You can’t, because we’ve all done it. That’s how impactful this line is!
“The girl in the dress cried the whole way home…”
This line from ‘Dear John’ sends a special kind of pain straight to our hearts. It always has, but especially now that we’ve grown up with Taylor. Throughout the Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) album prologue, Taylor talks about how this album was “so violently aglow with the last light of the setting sun of [her] childhood,” and we also got more context on how Taylor feels like heavy relationships can take away the last bits of your “girlhood” throughout the promotions for her ‘All Too Well’ short film. Pair those facts with the “give me back my girlhood, it was mine first” lyric from ‘Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve’ and you have a guaranteed sob session.
“Somebody made you cold, but the cycle ends right now ‘cause you can’t lead me down that road…”
Over the years, Taylor has been through so much, but she’s still kept her heart open and stayed kind to the world. She’s refused to let anything stop her from being exactly who she is and that’s one of the things we admire most about her! No amount of ‘Mean’ comments, online hate trains, or rude reviews can take away her warmth or hope, whether it’s for her hope in the world or for her future. Keep shining with kindness, Tay!
I have developed a thicker skin about public criticism and the cynicism with which people approach the music I make. At that time, it leveled me. I had these voices in my head telling me that I had the perfect chance and I blew it. I hadn’t been good enough. I had given it all I had and been found wanting.
Taylor Swift in the Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) prologue
“My thoughts will echo your name until I see you again…”
If you haven’t dramatically sung ‘Enchanted’ in your room after running into your crush at least a handful of times, are you really a Swiftie? We love the dramatic, theatrical flair of this song and lyrics like this one from the bridge. It was also the blueprint for the ‘Treacherous’ lyric “your name has echoed through my mind” and the ‘Don’t Blame Me’ line “echoes of your name inside my mind.”
My most wistfully romantic [song] is ‘Enchanted.’
Taylor Swift in the Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) prologue
“He was a moth to the flame, she was holding the matches…”
The ‘Better Than Revenge’ lyric change is already a hot topic in the fandom, but dare we say that we like the new version more? This line captures the same anger and frustration as the original while also playing into the fire motif that pops up throughout the album. With that in mind, matches become a symbol for power and who has the upper hand in a relationship – here, it’s the other girl who led the boy astray, while Taylor takes her own power back on ‘Dear John’ with the lyric “I took your matches before fire could catch me.”
“Today is never too late to be brand new…”
Another song that truly deserves more recognition, ‘Innocent’ is an ode to offering forgiveness and empathy to someone who hurt you. It showed such a mature side of Taylor and delivered so many beautiful lyrics like this one, which is all about the magic of new beginnings and choosing to grow and evolve in the face of your mistakes. This line is an important reminder we all need at some point!
Some of these emotional revelations were surprising to people. Some expected anger and instead got compassion with ‘Innocent.’
Taylor Swift in the Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) prologue
“So I’ll watch your life in pictures like I used to fall asleep, and I’ll feel you forget me like I used to feel you breathe…”
This lyric from ‘Last Kiss’ feels like Taylor punched us in the face and tripped us on concrete, then ripped our heart right out of our chest only to tear it into pieces, bit by bit. Graphic description, maybe, but that’s how it feels. ‘Last Kiss’ is the ultimate heartbreak song, reflecting on the soft beginnings, the harsh downfall, and the crushing feeling of having to let go while seeing them live their life without you in it.
It was an album that was the most precious to me because of its vast extremes. It was unfiltered and potent. In my mind, the saddest song I’ve ever written is ‘Last Kiss.’
Taylor Swift in the Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) prologue
“Can you take a moment? Promise me this, that you’ll stand by me forever…”
Ouch. ‘Long Live’ always hit different since it’s Taylor’s tribute to her band and fans, but it’s even more special nearly 13 years later. It also hurts in the context of ‘Castles Crumbling,’ since she was worrying about her dreams falling apart and fans hating her, but let’s focus on the happier emotions instead! All these years later, we’re still here with Taylor and proving that we will stand by her forever. Nothing’s changed – if anything, our connection has become even stronger.
I’ll always feel shivers all over when I remember singing ‘Long Live’ to close the show every night on tour. The outstretched hands of those bright and beautiful faces of the fans. Their support was like an open palm that reached out and helped me up off the ground when others were frankly, mean. These days I make my choices for those people, the ones who thought I had been good enough all along.
Taylor Swift in the Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) prologue
“Still hoping that the fire won’t burn me just one time…”
‘Electric Touch,’ featuring the one and only Fall Out Boy, was one of the Vault songs we were most excited to hear, and it certainly delivered! The song is all about those beginning phases of a relationship where you’re eager to spend time with someone, but also scared that things might not work out. We love the imagery of this line and how it compares to the “if I get burned, at least we were electrified” line from Taylor’s 2017 track ‘Dress.’
“You won’t believe half the things I see inside my head, wait ’til you see half the things that haven’t happened yet…”
When you think about it, ‘I Can See You’ is kind of like a darker version of ‘Mine!’ Taylor’s said that ‘Mine’ was her fantasizing about a future with someone she just met, while ‘I Can See You’ is her fantasizing about… things with someone she just met. It’s like if ‘Mine,’ ‘Sparks Fly,’ and ‘So It Goes…’ were rolled up into one rocking track, and we can’t get enough! It doesn’t sound anything like we’ve heard from her before, bringing such a unique energy to the album.
“Used to scream my name, now they’re screaming that they hate me…”
‘Castles Crumbling’ was truly the blueprint for Red’s ‘Nothing New’ and Midnights’ ‘Dear Reader,’ breaking down Taylor’s fears about fame and whether her fans would abandon her. This line especially struck us because it’s so similar to what Taylor said about the infamous VMA mic-grab in her Miss Americana documentary, really letting us into her mindset and breaking our hearts in the process. Taylor, we could never hate you!
At the time I didn’t know that they were booing him doing that, I thought that they were booing me. For someone who’s built their whole belief system on getting people to clap for you, the whole crowd booing is a pretty formative experience.
Taylor Swift in Miss Americana
“You got her on your arm and me in the wings, I’ll get your longing glances but she’ll get your ring…”
Every line on the hopeless romantic anthem ‘Foolish One’ gets us in our feels, but this one especially. Seeing someone you love with someone else hurts, no matter how much hope you still have that you’ll be the one they want in the end. We can’t get over how this ties into the ‘Superman’ lyric “I hope you won’t save some other girl” or the ‘champagne problems’ lyric “you’ll find the real thing instead, she’ll patch up your tapestry that I shred.” And the imagery is reminding us of the ‘Wildest Dreams’ video scene when actress Taylor sees her co-star crush with another woman at their movie premiere.
“I believe that we were supposed to find this, so even in a different life, you still would’ve been mine…”
To describe ‘Timeless’ in the terms of another song, it’s ‘invisible string’ through the ages! The song explores the idea of a timeless love where two people would’ve found each other no matter what their circumstances were, which is such a sweet idea and a heartwarming way to end the album. It’s also a full-circle moment, since ‘Mine’ is the first song on the Speak Now tracklist.
Which lyrics from Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) are your favorite? Do you have a fave Vault song yet? Let us know in the comments below or hit us up on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter!
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