Behold the lyrical genius of the 21st century — a poet, mastermind, and indomitable storyteller in one. Having recently announced her 11th studio album The Tortured Poets Department onstage at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards, this iconic musical star has more than proven her wit and worth in writing. Ahead of the album’s April 19 launch, we look at Taylor Swift and 13 of her best and most poetic songs and lyrics, from The Great War and You’re Losing Me, to The Lakes and Champagne Problems.
Having attained global success as a multi-talented musician, Taylor Swift has made massive waves in her iconic two-decade career with seemingly unshakeable confidence — ‘shaking it off’, as it were. Her musical catalogues are testament to her desire for growth and transformation; she has eluded the dreaded pigeonhole with sheer will and perseverance, seamlessly transcending genres and unveiling breathtaking metamorphoses between each enthralling era.
The one thing that has remained consistent?
Taylor Swift is a wordsmith armed with wondrous wit, and her most poetic song lyrics have turned the coldest of hearts into beating beacons of hope and love.
Swift’s way with words and lyrical genius has led many contemporaries to dub her the ‘Shakespeare of our time’. With lush, adjective-rich sentences structured with precision to strike at our deepest emotions, the singer bends her musical talents to present fresh offerings that surprise fans time and time again.
Amid her globally acclaimed Eras tour, Swift has nonetheless found the time to support her beloved — and Swifties hope, endgame — beau Travis Kelce, catch up with her iconic squad, and even snag her record-breaking fourth Album of the Year Grammy win for her 10th studio album, Midnights. If you’re wondering how a singular human can manage that hectic schedule, you wouldn’t be the only one.
On The Tortured Poets Department
On stage to claim her Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Album, also for Midnights, Swift dropped yet another bombshell that would leave fans in full panic, no disco mode.
A stunning vision in a gorgeous Schiaparelli gown paired with black co*cktail gloves and a Midnights-inspired watch choker, Swift nonetheless played up Reputation-coded aesthetics, leading fans to believe that she would announce the release of Reputation (Taylor’s Version).
Instead, fans were surprised by the announcement of a brand-new album: The Tortured Poets Department, slated for release on April 19. Following the album’s announcement, Swifties and social media sleuths amassed to decode the songstress’ album title and its possible meanings.
It soon emerged that Swift’s once-love and ex Joe Alwyn belonged to a WhatsApp group chat called the ‘Tortured Man Club’ alongside Paul Mescal and Andrew Scott, a fact he had personally shared in 2022 interviews with Variety and GQ. Fans were quick to highlight the jarring similarities between Swift’s new album name and the name of Alwyn’s chatgroup.
Further adding fuel to the fire, the album is set to release on April 19, 2024 — exactly one year to the day Swift’s celebrity friends, including Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, mass-unfollowed Alwyn on Instagram.
The collection of seemingly damning evidence, paired with the new album’s tracklist which includes titles like My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys, I Can Do It With a Broken Heart, I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can), and So Long, London all points to The Tortured Poets Department being a breakup album centred on Alwyn himself.
Swifties have a long wait ahead to know for sure what heartbreak the album (and its lyrics) will bring. To ease the experience while also honouring Taylor Swift’s favourite number 13, here’s our list featuring her best and most poetic lyrics and songs.
13 of the best and most poetic lyrics and songs by Taylor Swift
My Tears Ricochet, Folklore (2020)
There’s absolutely no way we can narrow down our favourite passages in the lyrical masterpiece that is Taylor Swift’s My Tears Ricochet.
The sombre melody unfurls in a beautifully tragic story and recalls the regret of the living in the face of those they have loved and lost. Each masterfully crafted lyric reflects the sorrow and struggle of letting go, from “And if I’m dead to you, why are you at the wake?” to the crescendo of “And I still talk to you when I’m screaming at the sky / And when you can’t sleep at night you hear my stolen lullabies.”
The Best Day (Taylor’s Version), Fearless (Taylor’s Version) (2021)
It takes someone with a stone-cold heart to be unmoved by this touching tribute from Swift, written as a love letter of sorts to her mother. While not overly deep in its meaning, the beauty of this song lies in its simplicity, bringing the listener through happy days and heartfelt memories shared between the mother and daughter.
From “I don’t know why all the trees change in the fall”, at the song’s opening to “Now I know why all the trees change in the fall / I know you were on my side even when I was wrong / And I love you for giving me your eyes / For staying back and watching me shine,” The Best Day is an absolute tearjerker that gives, “We mothers stand still so our daughters can look back and see how far they’ve come.”
Champagne Problems, Evermore (2021)
Soft melancholia pervades Swift’s Evermore and Folklore eras, culminating in wistful tracks that lend weight to her masterful storytelling. Accompanied by gentle piano notes, Champagne Problems lingers like a parting kiss long after its last lines are sung.
Masterfully arranged lyrics tell the story of a troubled protagonist who must release their lover and refuse their proposal to give them peace and lasting happiness. The song crests at the bridge, where the barest hints of regret and bitterness shine through, with, “How evergreen, our group of friends / Don’t think we’ll say that word again / And soon they’ll have the nerve to / Deck the halls that we once walked through.”
Death By A Thousand Cuts, Lover (2019)
At first glance, Lover may look like an explosion of pretty pastels, but beneath the colours and charm lie an authenticity that is intrinsically Swift. Cue Death By A Thousand Cuts, with its paragraphs of melancholy lyrics craftily packaged and presented as a cheerful and fun bop.
Leaning into its heartbreak theme, its best lines include, “You said it was a great love / One for the ages / But if the story’s over / Why am I still writing pages? / ‘Cause saying goodbye is death by a thousand cuts.”
Daylight, Lover (2019)
If there were ever a soundtrack for soft early mornings spent luxuriating in bed with your beloved, Taylor Swift’s Daylight, with its poetic and inherently romantic lyrics, most certainly fits the bill. The words are gentle and reflective, painting a picture of turbulent romances and relationship dramas — all of which culminate in the realisation that love is warmth and kindness. The song’s best lines go on to elucidate that, with, “I once believed love would be black and white / But it’s golden.”
Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) (2023)
Hopeless romantics who harbour dreams of being stolen away by their lovers can look to Speak Now as the perfect song to belt out on long car rides. True to Taylor Swift’s poetic way with words, the lyrics tell the tale of a girl who is in love with a boy — except he’s getting married. Speak Now takes us through a whirlwind ride of will-they-won’t-they, culminating in lines that aptly portray how it can feel like death to watch the one you love marry someone else.
From, “Fond gestures are exchanged / And the organ starts to play a song that sounds like a death march / And I am hiding in the curtains / It seems that I was uninvited by your lovely bride-to-be,” to “I hear the preacher say / Speak now or forever hold your peace / There’s the silence, there’s my last chance / I stand up with shaky hands, all eyes on me / Horrified looks from everyone in the room / But I’m only looking at you,” this bop is an icon in every way.
Call It What You Want, Reputation (2017)
Following the fallout of her decades-long feud with Kanye West and Kim Kardashian, Swift’s Reputation era was marked by turbulent emotions and widespread public condemnation. The lyrics in the album aptly reflect the feud’s lingering effects on Taylor Swift’s psyche, echoing vulnerability cloaked in prime baddie energy.
With lines that read, “All the liars are calling me one / Nobody’s heard from me for months / I’m doing better than I ever was,” Call It What You Want is a clear indicator of Swift’s headspace during the time, highlighting the merits of staying out of the spotlight to recoup one’s mental health. The lyrics go on to speak on the kindness and warmth of a helping hand, with, “All my flowers grew back as thorns / Windows boarded up after the storm / He built a fire just to keep me warm.”
New Year’s Day, Reputation (2017)
Yet another song that speaks to Swift’s vulnerability in her time of strife, New Year’s Day is an ode to the early days of a relationship, its soft melodic notes ringing with hope. The lines speak of a person in deep reflection with high hopes for the future of a budding love, from, “I’ll be there if you’re the toast of the town, babe / Or if you strike out and you’re crawlin’ home,” to “Please, don’t ever become a stranger / Whose laugh I could recognize anywhere.”
The Great War, Midnights (2022)
From the magical realm of Midnights came The Great War, Swift’s ode to the highs and lows of a turbulent relationship. The words draw striking resemblances to the pains of war, painting a tale of charged battles fraught with mistrust and paranoia.
Filled with Swift’s iconic use of adjectives to paint a lush, poetic, and descriptive picture, the lyrics go from, “My knuckles were bruised like violets / Sucker punching walls, cursed you as I sleep-talked / Spineless in my tomb of silence / Tore your banners down, took the battle underground,” to “We can plant a memory garden / Say a solemn prayer, place a poppy in my hair / There’s no morning glory, it was war, it wasn’t fair / And we will never go back / To that bloodshed, crimson clover / Uh-huh, the worst was over.”
Bigger Than The Whole Sky, Midnights (2022)
An incredible song portraying deep sorrow and loss, Bigger Than The Whole Sky has some of the best and most poetic lyrics that Taylor Swift has ever written. In the aftermath of an ending, Swift sings of grief, highlighting just how much the ‘you’ of the song had meant to her.
The lyrics sufficiently echo this sentiment, with, “No words appear before me in the aftermath / Salt streams out my eyes and into my ears / Every single thing I touch becomes sick with sadness / ‘Cause it’s all over now, all out to sea,” and “Did some bird flap its wings over in Asia? / Did some force take you because I didn’t pray? / Every single thing to come has turned into ashes.”
All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version), Red (Taylor’s Version) (2021)
Ever since Taylor Swift first floated the idea of a 10-minute-version of All Too Well, fans had guessed at its lyrics, wondering if they held some of her most poetic prose. When it was eventually released in Red (Taylor’s Version), Swifties were treated to some of the best examples of Swift’s songwriting genius, with the lyrical additions rending hearts and souls across the world.
From “You kept me like a secret, but I kept you like an oath,” and “And you call me up again just to break me like a promise / So casually cruel in the name of bein’ honest,” to “The idea you had of me, who was she? / A never-needy, ever-lovely jewel whose shine reflects on you,” and “And did the twin flame bruise paint you blue? / Just between us, did the love affair maim you too?”, All Too Well (10 Minute Version) is a magnus opus of feelings and words left unsaid.
The Lakes, Folklore (2020)
Literally inspired by poets, The Lakes is a romantic take on finding tranquility away from the glaring intrusion of celebrity spotlighting. Within the words and lyrics, Swift paints a pretty picture of peace with a loved one, traversing secret places ‘frequented by the poets’.
From “What should be over burrowed under my skin / In heart-stopping waves of hurt / I’ve come too far to watch some namedropping sleaze / Tell me what are my words worth,” to “I want auroras and sad prose / I want to watch wisteria grow right over my bare feet / ‘Cause I haven’t moved in years / And I want you right here / A red rose grew up out of ice frozen ground / With no one around to tweet it / While I bathe in cliffside pools / With my calamitous love and insurmountable grief,” The Lakes is a lyrical masterpiece that transcends genres.
You’re Losing Me (From The Vault) (2023)
Following the announcement that she was Spotify Wrapped’s top star for 2023, Swift released You’re Losing Me from the vault of Midnights. From the very beginning, the song was lauded as a breakup song, detailing the slow and painful death of a relationship. Given the timing of its release and the raw depth of its lyrics, Swifties believe the song is about her ex Joe Alwyn.
One thing is for certain — the lyrics paint a vivid picture of Swift’s relationship, marking pivotal moments in pointed prose that speaks of heartache and disappointment. The gutting lyrics read from the point of view of one who has realised that their needs and feelings have been neglected, from, “Remember lookin’ at this room, we loved it ’cause of the light / Now, I just sit in the dark and wonder if it’s time,” and “I’m getting tired even for a phoenix / Always risin’ from the ashes / Mendin’ all her gashes / You might just have dealt the final blow,” to “Every mornin’, I glared at you with storms in my eyes,” and “And the air is thick with loss and indecision / I know my pain is such an imposition.”
(Main and featured images: Taylor Swift/Instagram)
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
– What is Taylor Swift’s most listened to song ever?
As of the end of 2023, Taylor Swift’s most listened to song on Spotify is Blank Space, with 1.7 million plays.
– What is Taylor Swift’s most poetic song?
While we have included some of Taylor Swift’s best and most poetic songs and lyrics in our list, the ultimate answer is one that depends on individual preferences. However, it is generally understood that Swift’s most poetic songs and lyrics include Daylight, The Lakes, All Too Well, Cardigan, The Last Great American Dynasty, and more.
