On Aug. 9, 2023, Taylor Swift announced “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” at the last show of her U.S. tour at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, CA. She came to Instagram this August saying that “From The Vault tracks are so insane.”
On Sept. 19, 2023, Swift announced a vault through Google containing 89 puzzles to decode in order to find the titles of her vault tracks. Swifties spent hours solving 89 online puzzles to uncover the vault tracks, and the following day Swift announced five of her vault tracks, songs that were not on the original “1989” release. Fans have waited in anticipation for these re-recordings and new tracks, and after months of excitement, the time has finally come! “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” is here and Swifties are ready to listen and interpret the new five vault tracks!
The five new Taylor’s Version From The Vault tracks are:
Fans did not know what to make of these track titles! They were interpreting the songs to the best of their abilities with only the titles. Which songs would be a ballad? Which songs would be another upbeat pop hit? Which songs would be empowering? Or would any of them be what we usually anticipate from Swift? Now that they are here, we can finally know the answers and understand Swift’s excitement for these tracks!
1. “SLUT! (Taylor’s version) (From the vault)”
In the early 2010s before the release of “1989,” Swift was criticized by the media for her dating life, labeled as a “slut.” This song can be easily compared to the sentiments in another “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” song, “Blank Space (Taylor’s Version).” However, “Slut! (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault)” takes a different path as the song reveals Swift’s feelings about a relationship during this era of her life. She uses lyrics such as “And if they call me a slut / it might be worth it for once” and “Got love-struck / went straight to my head / Got lovesick all over my bed” to exemplify these feelings. Swift knew she would be criticized no matter what, but it was worth the love and lessons she learned within relationships.
Taylor Swift has discussed numerous times over the past decade of her career that she just wishes she was not attacked for dating like a normal person in their twenties. This song provides an inside view of how she felt within those relationships, and it is both saddening and encouraging to fans to see how Swift has embraced and fought back against this judgmental view of her.
2. “Say don’t go (Taylor’s version) (from the vault)”
“Say Don’t Go (Taylor’s Version) [From The Vault]” is another song that presents more insight into Taylor Swift’s relationships during this time of her life. This second vault track reveals Swift’s insecurity and uncertainty within her relationship, containing lyrics such as “I’m tryna see the cards you won’t show” and “I’m standin’ on a tightrope alone.” The first line reveals her feelings of wanting to know the cards her partner is holding or what their true thoughts and feelings are, and the second line reveals her anticipation of waiting to fall from the thin line, or a tightrope, that her relationship is on.
The chorus depicts Swift begging for her partner to just ask her to stay, and the track itself bears similarities to another track from Swift, “All You Had To Do Was Stay (Taylor’s Version).” In the chorus of “All You Had to Do Was Stay (Taylor’s Version),” Swift is on the other side of the situation where she is the one asking her partner to stay.
3. “now that we don’t talk (Taylor’s version) (from the vault)”
“Now That We Don’t Talk (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault)” perfectly represents how it feels after the end of a relationship. The song begins by describing the strange feelings of distance that are growing between two people after a break-up—it is odd to see someone who was arguably the closest person in your life become a stranger to you. Swift depicts this feeling in these lyrics, “Did you get anxious though / on the way home? / I guess I’ll never know / Now that we don’t talk.”
This vault track ends on a note of acceptance, though, with Swift singing that although the change is strange, it is normal. Through conversations with her mom and internal healing, she grows to understand why they don’t belong together; change is normal and allows her to accept that her relationship is over. This song is empowering to listeners who are struggling or have previously struggled with similar post-breakup feelings!
4. “Suburban Legends (Taylor’s version) (from the vault)”
“Suburban Legends (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault)” reveals yet another experience of one of Swift’s past relationships, taking listeners on a journey through a powerful relationship that ends in heartbreak. It seems that Swift reflects on this relationship with intense feelings to this day with lyrics like, “I am standin’ in a 1950s gymnasium / And I can still see you now.” This portrays the depth and power this relationship had in her life—it was a lasting relationship that she still reflects on.
Another set of lyrics, “I had a fantasy that maybe our mismatched star signs / Would surprise the whole school,” shows that while Swift felt this relationship was profound, she knew that it was still destined for heartbreak. Fans can learn a lot from Swift through this vault track as she reflects on a monumental relationship in her life with understanding, acknowledges her feelings, illustrates acceptance and moves on from the relationship. It is also comforting to see how Taylor Swift felt this relationship was so different but went on to learn so much about herself in singleness and now embraces loving relationships.
5. “Is it over now? (Taylor’s Version) (from the vault)”
“Is It Over Now? (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault)” is the final track on “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” and wraps up the album in such a simple way. Throughout the album, Taylor discusses her relationships at the time and all the different types of feelings that come with them, and this track reveals more feelings of heartbreak as she reflects on the past relationship.
She opens with the lines, “I slept all alone / You still wouldn’t go,” explaining the loneliness she felt at the time while still being haunted by past memories of the relationship. In this song, she picks out memories of hard times in her relationship while continuing to question if the relationship is truly over due to the frequency of her memories of it. It is assumed that she felt that nothing could compare to their relationship at the time, even though they both seemed to move on, which can be seen in the line, “Let’s fast forward three hundred awkward blind dates later.” They were both dating new people, but Swift seemed to feel that both of them were just filling the space that they left in each other’s lives.
listen to “1989 (Taylor’s Version)”!
While I am excited and honored to get this new view on Swift’s life at this time of her life, it is important to note that these feelings have almost definitely been resolved—after all, Taylor Swift has released five albums since the original “1989.” Swift has unpacked some hard and scary feelings about relationships in her life in much of her discography, having persevered and healed from numerous types of emotional wounds. Reflecting on these new and old tracks can also enable us to consider how much Swift has grown during her life and offer encouragement of growth in our own lives as well. If you haven’t gotten your chance to listen to the new re-recording, “1989 (Taylor’s Version),” I encourage you to dive into this ground-breaking album and enjoy!