It’s safe to say we weren’t “…Ready For It?” Boom Boom Boom – Pow! Taylor Swift and The Starlights (fan-given name to her backup singers – Melanie Nyema, Kamilah Marshall, Eliotte Nicole and Clare Turton Derrico) took the stage at SNL to give two amazing performances of two songs off Swift’s new album Reputation. First up was “…Ready For It?” where they busted out amazing vocals and sultry dance moves.
You can watch the full performance below!
Swift also gave an acoustic performance of “Call It What You Want” where she picks up the guitar. She is accompanied by Agency (band) members) Paul Sidoti on Guitar and Mike Meadows on Cello. It’s so wonderful to see the gang together again! It’s getting us very excited for the Reputation Tour which will be announced closer to Swift’s 28th birthday! We can’t wait to find out when we can see all this live ourselves!!!!
WATCH TAYLOR SWIFT PERFORM “CALL IT WHAT YOU WANT” ACOUSTIC
Taylor Swift has just released her fourth promotional song off her 6th studio album Reputation coming out November 10! “Call It What You Want” quickly reached #1 on iTunes and Reputation has reached over 400,000 presale copies, more than double it’s predecessor 1989 which sold almost 1.3 million copies the first week of sales.
“Call It What You Want” is track #14 on the album and it is a beautiful love song. One of the fans who attended the secret sessions and has heard the album in its entirety stated that the album is about how Swift has been feeling the last few years, but that the last two songs on the album, (tracks 14 + 15) are how she feels right now.
“While this album is how I’ve been feeling over the last two years, these last two songs are how I feel now.”
Swift also told a fan (who thought maybe “Call It What You Want” was the perfect wedding song), that track 15 would actually be a better choice! So there’s at least one more great love song on the album!
“Want” has a much slower pace than the previous three singles released and instead of being driven by production and beats, it’s driven by lyrics.
Listen to the song and read below as we break down the lyrics to “Call It What You Want”
“My castle crumbled overnight I brought a knife to a gunfight”
Remember back when Swift was a crumbled up piece of paper laying there (“All Too Well”) and when she could build a castle out of all the bricks they threw at her (“New Romantics”)? Now that armor has fallen down and she was not as prepared as she thought she was. That’s what the next line suggests, by bringing a knife to a gunfight.
“They took the crown but it’s alright”
They took her crown – everything she had built up. With 1989, she was at such a happy place. She won album of the year, every media outlet was singing her praises. They loved how happy she was in her relationship and stopped calling her a man-eating whore. She had her good name back, and they took it away. This is not playing the victim, these are facts. People will say anything to make a headline or get attention, no matter how inaccurate and false it may be. But it’s alright, you know why? She’s doing better than she ever was.
“All the liars are calling me one
Nobody’s heard from me in months
I’m doing better than I ever was.”
This is so heartbreaking but freeing at the same time. That she had to get out of the public eye and not be seen or photographed in order to finally get peace and be happy. But now she is and she’s a happy little hermit!
“Cause my baby’s fit like a daydream Walking with his head down I’m the one he’s walking to So call it what you want yeah, call it what you want to My baby’s fly like a jet stream High above the whole scene Loves me like I’m brand new So call it what you want yeah, call it what you want to”
While the initial tone of the song seems sad, it just makes her appreciate everything so much more. All of that doesn’t matter because she has so much happiness and love in her life. She has this handsome man she gets to spend all her time with so she doesn’t care what anyone else has to say because he makes her feel worth it. He makes her feel like the her that she truly is. The her, her fans wish they could make her believe she is. We are always going to be our own worse enemy. So now she feels brand new, she’s able to disregard what lies are being said about her and just smile all the time. Isn’t love wonderful?
“All my flowers grew back as thorns Windows boarded back up after the storm He built a fire just to keep me warm”
Remember in “Clean” when the flowers died of thirst, and the sky turned black like a perfect storm and the rain came pouring down AND she punched a hole in the roof to let the flood carry away all the pictures of him? Taylor was clean, she wasn’t going to risk it… the flowers grew back with thorns, (she got a little stronger, got a little harder) and now she’s rebuilt what was torn down. She wasn’t completely whole, boarded up windows aren’t new and secure windows, but still, she had someone there to make the best of it. To make her feel safe and loved and do everything he could to help her trust and love again.
“All the drama queens taking swings All the jokers dressing up as kings They fade to nothing when I look at him”
These are really great lines. They are so accurate and even after this song came out, the media and others still continued to attack her. They are still taking their swings. And those people who are rude and unkind make themselves look so important, but again, all of that doesn’t affect her because she’s in a wonderful place right now, with her man who makes her so happy. That is love!
“And I know I make the same mistakes every time Bridges burn, I never learn At least I did one thing right, I did one thing right”
Personally, I love these verses because they can be taken from their original meaning and applied to so many situations. While here, Swift can be talking about past relationships as well as friendships. I know I’ve personally made the same mistakes over and over with friends that have pushed people away. Here she is talking about those mistakes, about no longer having contact with those people she’s hurt and who have hurt her, but she did one thing right, which is him! He makes everything better. She got this relationship right. So even though she has lost so much, she has also gained everything.
“I’m laughing with my lover Making forts under covers Trust him like a brother Yeah you know I did one thing right Starry eyes sparking up my darkest night”
Doesn’t it sound like they have the best time together? That, ultimately is what makes a lasting relationship. Someone you can be a complete goofball with, someone you trust more than anyone in the world, someone who makes you laugh and still gives you butterflies.
I want to wear his initial on a chain around my neck Chainround my neck Not because he owns me But ’cause he really knows me
These lines are especially cute because Swift has been wearing a necklace since last year with the initial “J” on it. She’s so proud to be his girl, in a completely nonposessive way. He gets her.
I recall late November Holding my breath, slowly I said “you don’t need to save me But would you run away with me?” Yes
Last November was also the last time we really saw Swift out in about, not hiding behind an umbrella or ducking from the cameras. Knowing her life, and how documented it was, she probably asked Joe Alwyn, if he would be her lover away from the limelight. He didn’t care, he wasn’t seeking attention, he just wanted to be with her. The media didn’t find out about the relationship for at least 6 months, allowing them to really get to know each other away from the headlines.
It looks like she found her Romeo after all and maybe the next one saying “Yes” will be her.” 🙂
Fun fact in Swift’s hit song “Love Story” has a secret code spelled out in the lyrics that say “Someday I’ll find this.” While she sings lines like “Romeo save me, I’ve been feeling so alone.” “Take me somewhere we can be alone, I’ll be waiting, all there’s left to do is run” “It’s a love story, baby just say yes.”
Now she’s found it and she’s truly happy and ultimately that’s what really matters.
Swift shared a personal video of her singing the song on social media! Check it out!
