AS they say, Speak Now album is for the Swifties who grew up with Taylor Swift — those who would pick up their tiny mp3 players and listen to Enchanted and Sparks Fly on loop as they daydream about a romantic, fairytale-like encounter with their high school crushes.
This majestically written record is for boys and girls, and gays who still believe in the magic of love at first sight and those who cherish their friends more than anything in the world.
Speak Now is also for people who grew up a little too fast because of their fear of missing out and for those who couldn’t leave anyone because they know how awful it feels.
And for those who lost their balance on a tightrope and lost their minds trying to get it back.
But this 2010 self-written masterpiece from the American singer-songwriter is more than just something people would play when they are feeling blue or when they feel like going on a trip down the memory lane.
Because as Swift released the re-recorded version of Speak Now, we are reminded of the lessons on life and love we were able to pick up as we grew up.
Don’t rush
I just realized everything I have is someday gonna be gone
The eighth track on the Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) album is probably one of Swift’s most underrated songs in the album. Although it doesn’t revolve around enchanting first meetings and kissing under the pouring rain, Never Grow Up allows its listeners to travel back to their childhood and long for the bliss that comes with being young.
While it is true that there’s no chance we could be the carefree children we once were, the song reminds listeners that they should cherish every moment they have with their family and friends, because at some point in life, all these will cease, just like our childhood.
Who you are is not what you did
Wasn’t it beautiful when you believed in everything and everybody believed in you?
As Swift said in her song called Innocent, life is a tough crowd — we could do all these wonderful things yet some people would still point out our mistakes.
There would be moments where we would stumble, fall, and have little to no idea of how to get back up. There would be times where we would do terrible things we couldn’t speak about and wish we would just go back to moments where life was easier, instead of reliving those mistakes in your head at night.
But the song is a reminder that whatever mess we’ve made, there will always be an opportunity to clean that up because there are people who see beyond our faults. After all, it is never too late to be brand new.
The world is always going to be mean
Someday, I’ll be big enough so you can’t hit me and all you’re ever gonna be is mean
Just like everybody else, Swift has been a target of a tremendous amount of criticism all throughout her career as a musician. That’s why when she released the song Mean in 2010, people couldn’t deny how the track resonated with them.
Mean talks about how unkind words could dull somebody else’s sparkle, how it could make someone feel like they aren’t good enough despite their efforts to succeed in the things they do.
While it’s inevitable to take these nasty words to heart, the song tells its listeners that these words are not a reflection of who they are, but rather a manifestation of their detractors’ insecurities and low self-esteem — all they ought to be is mean and nothing else.
Regrets won’t bring love back
If we loved again, I swear I’d love you right
All that I know is I don’t know how to be something you miss
Apart from the life lessons, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) also teaches us a lot about love and how regrets could linger in our mind for who knows how long.
Swift has written several tragic, tear-jerking songs in the album, including Back To December, Haunted, Last Kiss, and the newly added From The Vault tracks Timeless, Foolish One, and Castles Crumbling.
Many of these songs narrate how excruciating it is to put an end to a love connection we believed would last forever, and how regrets about the things that could have been done to prevent its death would linger in our mind as we try to move past the break up.
And while we hope we could go back in time and change every single mistake we’ve committed, regrets wouldn’t be enough to bring love back to life.
Healthy love exists
And any snide remarks from my father about your tattoos will be ignored, ’cause my heart is yours
Swift is not Taylor Swift without her sappy songs for the hopeless romantic, and Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) is home to many of her greatest hits like Enchanted, Mine, Sparks Fly, Ours, and Superman. And with the addition of From The Vault tracks Electric Touch, When Emma Falls In Love, and I Can See You, Swifties just couldn’t help but bask in that warm, fuzzy feeling of falling in love.
All these love songs from Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) are testaments that healthy love exists and we don’t have to see past red flags for the fairytale storyline we were tailoring in our heads to come to reality.
Swift wants to remind her listeners that there would be people willing to climb up our walls instead of breaking them down, just to see our faces, know our frailties and what keeps us up at night.
Not everyone who says they love you mean it
I lived in your chess game but you changed the rules every day
Dear John is one of the most famous songs in this re-recording of Swift’s 2010 album. Many Swifties suspect that this track is about her previous romantic partner, Edge of Desire singer John Mayer.
The song, which is filled with angst, remorse, and anguish, narrates how the persona was made to believe in a love that only intended to control and devour her until she’s burnt out.
Dear John is an aching reminder to be wary of the people we let in our lives and a nudge to exit a toxic relationship before it drags you down.
We will be remembered
Long live all the mountains we moved, I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you
Track 14 of the Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) album is undeniably for the good old friends who never left our side no matter the troubles we’ve been through. Long Live is an ode to the friendship that has survived years of mishaps and fortunes and transcends curbs and stumbling blocks we had to put up in this life.
It’s a celebration of the unparalleled connection between friends whom we’ve shared our lives with. It’s a song dedicated to those who sit with us through our darkest days and those who rejoice with us for every little feat.
