With folklore and evermore songs definitely don't feel like you're reaching because Taylor said it herself she purposefully leave clues and reoccurring words that connects the songs to each other. Champange problem was the next song after willow on the album, so her singing train is definitely intentional.
To me this song is another retelling of how she met and began dating Joe. A lot of the lyrics match their relationship timeline and I think the bridge is referring to 2016 when everyone cancelled her. "Wait for the signal and I'll meet you after dark" links to a song of hers called Delicate from the Reputation album where he texts her late at night to meet up. I think he was a very aloof, "too cool" kinda guy and was hard to read which drove her crazy but also enchanted her.
Love this reaction! I feel like most Swifties would agree with you on the couple lines around ‘90s trend’ - feels out of place but also hard to imagine there’s no reason for it because she’s so good at world-building in songs and so intentional with diction
I also feel like the 90s trend thing was out of place in this song. I think another nice song to react to considering the Halloween mood would be “no body, no crime” from Evermore. I think the name already gives a little hint. It’s not actually spooky or anything but it’s a little on theme.
I’ve always interpreted this song as romantic. She compares herself to rough waters, but he saw right through it. And “the more that you say, the less I know” I think alludes to her never having been with a gentleman before, or someone that treats her well. And “every bait and switch was a work of art” I think means that she has sought after love so many times and has always felt tricked, but it lead her to him so she considers those bait and switches “a work of art.” Taylor also has referred to fate as a “thread of gold” in another song, which you can see in the music video for Willow.
When I first heard this song I heard "bent right to your whim" (instead of "wind"), which makes me wonder if that was an intentional almost-homonym. Knowing how intentional Taylor is, she might spend some time thinking about how people will mishear certain words and make certain wordings more or less plausible in how she delivers the lines.
Willow is about Joe, imo, it seems very obvious to me. The part where she sings about "they count me out time and time again, but I come back stronger than a 90s trend" is very perfectly placed in the timeline of their relationship and the timeline of the song. Because she started getting together with him when everyone turned on her, and took her down, so they "counted her out time and time again" and he was with her when she came back with Reputation and "came back stronger than a 90s trend." This line represents the shift in the song, where she goes from the "Cruel Summer" with him to a place where she now is getting actual intimacy from him, she's connecting with him, "I'll meet you after dark, show me the places where the others made you scars" he's finally opening up to her and trusting her, just like in End Game she says "I don't wanna hurt you, I just wanna be drinking on a beach with you all over me." The priceless wine line is also like he intoxicates her, she's lost in his current, because he is the priceless wine, he makes her drunk in love "Drunk on something stronger than the drinks in the bar" she sings in Cornelia Street, which is also about him. She's retelling their whole relationship through Willow, from the beginning when he "cut through like a knife" and cut through all of her "turbulence" that her life was in at that time, and he made his "mark on me, a golden tattoo" (Dress).
"And NOW this is an open-shut case, I guess I should've known from the look on your face, every bait and switch was a work of art" this line actually means, now I got you "before I locked it down" (Cowboy Like Me), and she should've seen in his face that his feelings were now clear, and the chase was over. The "work of art" refers to how he kept her chasing and hid his feelings because he was afraid, but now they're both all in "hey, that's my man." And in the video he takes her hand at the end, meaning, he took her hand and wrecked her plans, her "plans" are referred to in "King Of My Heart" - "I'm perfectly fine, I live on my own, I made up my mind, I'm better off bein' alone," these are the plans she wanted him to wreck, and he did, as we're shown in the rest of the song "We met a few weeks ago, now you try on callin' me, baby, like tryin' on clothes."
Me coming to this video expecting to hear about 'Don’t Blame Me' or 'Haunted'. Lol. I often wondered with 'Willow' if her man is the Devil playing tricks and making her think he is a lover.
This song almost feels like a trance, right? She’s trying to convince us and herself. I figured the random 90’s trend line was her snapping out of it? I’m not sure
Yesss definitely has that feel. And oooh I could get onboard with that interpretation (she "comes back" like coming back to herself/back to reality maybe?)
I agree the '90s line seems out of place but I also agree that Taylor did it for a reason. I sometimes think that she was trying to say something to make us laugh and bring us back to the current time and reality. Taylor has been looking for her soulmate and she thought it was Joe. Here's hoping that her new man Travis is the one she's been looking for, he seems like a priceless wine to me!
I love Willow so much! Just the premise of.. i had this plan, thought life would go one way, and then you showed up and it all shifted. Willow trees are symbols of growth, rebirth, strength, resilience. You can take a cutting of a willow tree, plant it, and it will grow into a new one. I got "life was a willow" with a willow tree tattooed this summer on the day i went to the Eras tour. ❤
No i totally feel you on the 90s trend line. The Lakes is one of my faves of hers and it has such a timeless ethereal feel to it and then one line mentions twitter and i literally sing my own alternate version every time because it doesn't fit the song at ALL
I agree a lot about the “90’s” line! I always felt that the music was about something mythical and magical! And suddenly the phrase broke this aesthetic, but i still enjoy the song tho Hi, from Brazil! I'm addicted to your videos analyzing Taylor's songs, it helps me a lot to better understand their meaning :)
I'm so glad to hear that!! I thought more people would love that line for some reason, haha. And that's awesome!! Makes me so happy to know my videos are helping ^.^
I think the music video definitely adds a whole new layer. When I read the lyrics on their own, I didn't get that same vibe, which I think is interesting. I found it on a list of Halloween-ish TS songs, so it's been fun to see how people view it differently haha. But either way, it's lovely ^.^
With folklore and evermore songs definitely don't feel like you're reaching because Taylor said it herself she purposefully leave clues and reoccurring words that connects the songs to each other. Champange problem was the next song after willow on the album, so her singing train is definitely intentional.
Yes
Oooooh, amazing haha. This makes me feel better ;)
To me this song is another retelling of how she met and began dating Joe. A lot of the lyrics match their relationship timeline and I think the bridge is referring to 2016 when everyone cancelled her. "Wait for the signal and I'll meet you after dark" links to a song of hers called Delicate from the Reputation album where he texts her late at night to meet up. I think he was a very aloof, "too cool" kinda guy and was hard to read which drove her crazy but also enchanted her.
Love this reaction! I feel like most Swifties would agree with you on the couple lines around ‘90s trend’ - feels out of place but also hard to imagine there’s no reason for it because she’s so good at world-building in songs and so intentional with diction
Thank you! I'm glad it's not just me haha, and yes - really makes you wonder!
I also feel like the 90s trend thing was out of place in this song.
I think another nice song to react to considering the Halloween mood would be “no body, no crime” from Evermore. I think the name already gives a little hint. It’s not actually spooky or anything but it’s a little on theme.
I'm so glad it's not just me, haha! And ooooh yes. I was surprised how many of her songs had spooky elements or fit well with the Halloween season
Me too, that line always felt out of place
I’ve always interpreted this song as romantic. She compares herself to rough waters, but he saw right through it. And “the more that you say, the less I know” I think alludes to her never having been with a gentleman before, or someone that treats her well. And “every bait and switch was a work of art” I think means that she has sought after love so many times and has always felt tricked, but it lead her to him so she considers those bait and switches “a work of art.” Taylor also has referred to fate as a “thread of gold” in another song, which you can see in the music video for Willow.
I could see that! Paired with the music video, it definitely has a way more romantic interpretation haha XD
Of course it is, it's about soulmates
I think current like a priceless wine is a play on words with currANT like currant wine which I think can be really expensive lol
CURRANT. Amazing.
When I first heard this song I heard "bent right to your whim" (instead of "wind"), which makes me wonder if that was an intentional almost-homonym. Knowing how intentional Taylor is, she might spend some time thinking about how people will mishear certain words and make certain wordings more or less plausible in how she delivers the lines.
Always love your analyses! this song has so much more depth to it than I thought. I used to just think of it as a cute little love song.
Thank you tons!
Willow is about Joe, imo, it seems very obvious to me. The part where she sings about "they count me out time and time again, but I come back stronger than a 90s trend" is very perfectly placed in the timeline of their relationship and the timeline of the song. Because she started getting together with him when everyone turned on her, and took her down, so they "counted her out time and time again" and he was with her when she came back with Reputation and "came back stronger than a 90s trend." This line represents the shift in the song, where she goes from the "Cruel Summer" with him to a place where she now is getting actual intimacy from him, she's connecting with him, "I'll meet you after dark, show me the places where the others made you scars" he's finally opening up to her and trusting her, just like in End Game she says "I don't wanna hurt you, I just wanna be drinking on a beach with you all over me." The priceless wine line is also like he intoxicates her, she's lost in his current, because he is the priceless wine, he makes her drunk in love "Drunk on something stronger than the drinks in the bar" she sings in Cornelia Street, which is also about him. She's retelling their whole relationship through Willow, from the beginning when he "cut through like a knife" and cut through all of her "turbulence" that her life was in at that time, and he made his "mark on me, a golden tattoo" (Dress).
You have to take this song as the timeline that it is, and then it all makes sense.
"And NOW this is an open-shut case, I guess I should've known from the look on your face, every bait and switch was a work of art" this line actually means, now I got you "before I locked it down" (Cowboy Like Me), and she should've seen in his face that his feelings were now clear, and the chase was over. The "work of art" refers to how he kept her chasing and hid his feelings because he was afraid, but now they're both all in "hey, that's my man." And in the video he takes her hand at the end, meaning, he took her hand and wrecked her plans, her "plans" are referred to in "King Of My Heart" - "I'm perfectly fine, I live on my own, I made up my mind, I'm better off bein' alone," these are the plans she wanted him to wreck, and he did, as we're shown in the rest of the song "We met a few weeks ago, now you try on callin' me, baby, like tryin' on clothes."
The line lost in your current like a priceless wine is very cool since people age wine in the ocean and it’s very expensive
Me coming to this video expecting to hear about 'Don’t Blame Me' or 'Haunted'. Lol. I often wondered with 'Willow' if her man is the Devil playing tricks and making her think he is a lover.
This song almost feels like a trance, right? She’s trying to convince us and herself. I figured the random 90’s trend line was her snapping out of it? I’m not sure
Yesss definitely has that feel. And oooh I could get onboard with that interpretation (she "comes back" like coming back to herself/back to reality maybe?)
Why would she snap out of a beautiful love?
@@sam_sa09 because maybe the love she’s describing wasn’t as beautiful as she initially thought
I agree the '90s line seems out of place but I also agree that Taylor did it for a reason. I sometimes think that she was trying to say something to make us laugh and bring us back to the current time and reality. Taylor has been looking for her soulmate and she thought it was Joe. Here's hoping that her new man Travis is the one she's been looking for, he seems like a priceless wine to me!
It's a timeline mark, it's a reference to Reputation, and marks the shift in the song to their relationship becoming intimate and stable.
I love this reaction so muchhh this made me understand the song even betterr and you should check out the new 1989 vault tracks they are sooo goodd!!!
Aww thanks! I'm so glad. The vault songs are in editing :D
Currants (the berry) are a very common flavor in good wine.
LOVE IT
I love Willow so much! Just the premise of.. i had this plan, thought life would go one way, and then you showed up and it all shifted. Willow trees are symbols of growth, rebirth, strength, resilience. You can take a cutting of a willow tree, plant it, and it will grow into a new one. I got "life was a willow" with a willow tree tattooed this summer on the day i went to the Eras tour. ❤
No i totally feel you on the 90s trend line. The Lakes is one of my faves of hers and it has such a timeless ethereal feel to it and then one line mentions twitter and i literally sing my own alternate version every time because it doesn't fit the song at ALL
hahaha I love that you replace it XD
that line is supposed to feel jarring, it represents the contrasting ideas of nature and technology
@@aryaveer.8 that's one interpretation that you could argue. I still hate the line whether the jarring nature of it was intentional or not
I agree a lot about the “90’s” line! I always felt that the music was about something mythical and magical! And suddenly the phrase broke this aesthetic, but i still enjoy the song tho
Hi, from Brazil! I'm addicted to your videos analyzing Taylor's songs, it helps me a lot to better understand their meaning :)
I'm so glad to hear that!! I thought more people would love that line for some reason, haha.
And that's awesome!! Makes me so happy to know my videos are helping ^.^
I used to think it's a romantic song💀
Haha the music video seems so much more romantic... it confused me tbh
It is.
Context is King.
It is
I think right where you left me is the spookiest song/lyrics
Yup!!!
i was sure no body no crime was gonna be here!
Please do something off 1989 (TAYLORS VERSION!!!)
Out of the woods is a fan favorite lyrically and that bridge!!!!
the vault songs are on their way!
Willow is not spooky at all, it's a beautiful love song ❤️
I think the music video definitely adds a whole new layer. When I read the lyrics on their own, I didn't get that same vibe, which I think is interesting. I found it on a list of Halloween-ish TS songs, so it's been fun to see how people view it differently haha. But either way, it's lovely ^.^
Thats 90s line in willow along with the tweet one in the lakes... 😢 why?
Te amo moça
Te acho muito foda
You're totally right about the 90s line. It was a bad decision
I agree. Its a cool line but it pulls me right out of the song.
Yayyy I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks so haha 😅
I agree with 90s trend. It’s so out of place with the theme of this song
So glad it wasn't just me!
You pause too much
Gotta avoid copyright claims and strikes! The longer, uncut versions are on my Patreon ^.^
when she uses the word “tweet” on the song The Lakes also pisses me off, don’t think it fits, just like the 90’S trend in willow