As any good Swiftie knows, Taylor Swift comes in clutch with her wide array of work about any emotion. Breakups? Romance? Have to hide a body? She’s got you covered.
I can’t think of a time where I didn’t find solace in her work, so today I am sharing with you my top five tracks that have gotten me through the beginning of this semester.
- Guilty As Sin
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Coming in hot at number one is the rhythmic romance of her newest album The Tortured Poets Department. As a fellow poet, I found this album to be both artful and raw. Swift works in delicate ways to weave a beautiful story about a prospective romance without ever pointing fingers at her subject. I am a recent transfer from Maine, so because I feel a bit homesick and left my beau back home, an ode to my love is just what I need to comfort me in times of distress. Everyone gets a bit homesick sometimes, especially if we’ve left a piece of ourselves in the hands of someone else.
- Now That we don’t talk
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Controversial depending on who you ask, but this song about distancing yourself from people or things that no longer serve you, is a certified bop. One of the notorious (and very successful) vault tracks from her re-recorded album 1989, “Now That We Don’t Talk” is the narration of one struggling to let go of the person they were once closest to. In lines like “I called my mom // she said to get it off my chest” and “You didn’t have to change // but I guess I don’t have a say” relate to the internal monologue of wondering why the person you knew the best is becoming a stranger. If you’re down in the dumps about a friendship you’re struggling with, this upbeat anthem is sure to help you ground yourself.
- August
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A cult classic in the Swiftie community, “August” is a sweet anthem of endless summer days and tasteful decisions in the middle of the night. A track off of her surprise 2020 release Folklore, the track is from the point of view of a young woman who recounts the summer days spent with someone she’s fancied for quite some time. All too relatable, our narrator takes us on a journey of salt air, front porches, and waiting by the phone for that specific someone to call. The Swiftie community bid summer of 2024 goodbye as the new school year began and the last taste of summer sun began to slip away into a moment in time.
- Getaway Car
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Perhaps my top favorite album since its highly anticipated release back in 2017, Reputation is an album centered around Swift’s acceptance of how both peers and the media saw her, and what it meant to find herself in the death of her reputation. The anthem is full of feel good vibes, eccentric energy, and probably one of the most memorable bridge creations in her catalog. “Getaway Car” depicts the cinematic image of a Bonnie & Clyde relationship, where our narrator ultimately steals the keys and it’s the last time her past-life can catch up to her. I was lucky enough to attend the Reputation Stadium Tour back in 2017, where the song opens with a long poem (written by Swift) detailing her journey from the mayhem of the KimYe betrayal down to her pocketed love with then-boyfriend Joe Alwyn, and the overall acceptance and newfound peace within herself. Turn this tune on and everyone (including yourself) will be dancing around in refreshing freedom, perhaps in your own sparkly outfit, just as Swift did.
- Long story short
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A beyond personal favorite from the second album release of 2020, sister to her surprise album Folklore comes Evermore. The album is refreshing, bold, and takes storytelling to an elevated level. The song discusses Swift’s “downfalls”, perhaps in reference to the strife she overcame during her Reputation era, and the isolation of the pandemic seems to have given Swift a fresh perspective on herself. It refers to guys she dated who ended in a messy breakup, alludes to her fall from fame when the media painted her as conniving, and how she got right back up again in the end. The song is all things fun, accepting, and open-minded. This anthem’s lyrics comfort the listener, giving voice to all of our innermost feelings that don’t always come off as ‘clean’ to the societal norm that surrounds us. One thing is for sure, Swift is quick to remind us that we should never get caught in these petty things, that our enemies will always receive the karma that they deserve.
Long story short, it was a bad time
Pushed from the precipice
Climbed right back up the cliff
Long story short, I survived.