It’s not like I haven’t talked about Taylor Swift’s third album, Speak Now before. I first discussed it toward the end of my 2021 Swiftening series, where I reviewed all of Taylor’s then-nine albums in backwards order. Back then, while I still hadn’t fully admitted my Swiftieism, it was definitely there. I loved this album from the minute I listened to it, even shielded from total bias by my loosened-but-still-present biases against Taylor and her music.
The second time I talked about it was when Taylor made her surprise announcement of Speak Now Taylor’s Version, releasing July 7th, and I, in all my excitement, made my case for why this album is so important to me. That was a pretty personal post, focusing on my personal connection to this album.
But, as the release date of Speak Now Taylor’s Version looms, I felt like I wanted to take another crack at what makes this album so special, from a bit more of an objective point of view.
Now, obviously, I am not a Taylor Swift expert. I am only a recently-minted (though definitely enthusiastic) fan, and I’ll be the first to admit that a lot of the context and history around this album is only known secondarily for me. If you want firsthand knowledge of the album, I highly recommend checking out this video from YouTuber and longtime Swiftie Ally Sheehan, discussing the real-life inspirations behind the album and the context of its place in Taylor’s career, in the perspective of someone who was there at the time.
What I can provide, though, is a deep and unabiding love and passion for this album, and an analytical lens to its themes. I can also provide some guesses as to how these themes might evolve as they’re revisited 13 years later. So let’s go track-by-track and discuss what is going on in this beautiful little album.
Overall
Though I can’t provide an expert or firsthand perspective on Speak Now, I still think it’s necessary to provide some context. The album was released in 2010 and was largely written by an 18- and 19-year-old Taylor. At this point, she had just experienced the newfound and unexpected success of her second album, Fearless, and its hits – “Love Story” and “You Belong With Me”. She had also earned several Grammys for this album, and a notable MTV VMA Award where she was interrupted by Kanye West, an event which would (unfortunately) have echoes throughout her career for years to come.
Though there was obvious success under Taylor’s belt at this point, there were also rumblings of backlash. The backlash that was particularly important to this album was a general doubt of Taylor’s singer-songwriter status. She was very young when she dropped into the spotlight, and so many respected music reviewers didn’t really put much stock into her actual songwriting, preferring to defer respect to her cowriter Liz Rose.
It was clear, though, that Taylor deeply desired respect and admiration for her songwriting talent. And so, to dash any further doubts that she was leaning on her older and more experienced cowriter, she embarked on a mission to fully self-write an entire album. That album was Speak Now.
The concept of the album is a confessional, no-holds-barred admission of truth. All of the things left unsaid, all of the emotions hidden away are brought to the surface. As far as album themes go, I feel like this is one of the most successful of Taylor’s discography. Simultaneously, this theme is simple and easy to understand but also complex enough to add depth and meaning to each song.
However, I think another key theme of the album, though most likely an unintended one, is naivete. As mentioned, this was an album written by a young woman on the very verge of adulthood, experiencing adult emotions for the very first time and tackling this difficult transition period. To me, this is one of the things I love so much about this album – it is simultaneously mature and immature, clear-sighted and misguided. It’s the perspective of someone who has learned and grown but still has so much growth and learning to do. It’s a feeling I haven’t seen in many other media. Unlike Fearless, which is a pretty straightforward account of an idealistic teenager, Speak Now is in the perspective of an adult woman who has only just left childhood behind – and all of the complexity that comes with it.
With that, I’m ready to break down the songs on the album.
1. Mine
The album opens with its biggest country hit, a song which immediately seems at first glance to not obviously fit the theme of confession. But I think what some people miss is that this is a song set in a framing device. It centers on a young couple dreaming of their future together. The pre-chorus mentions this so quickly it’s easy to miss, but:
“I say, ‘Can you believe it?’ as we’re lying on the couch,
The moment I could see it, yes, yes,
I could see it now…”
This indicates that the winding story of trials and tribulations this couple goes through are an imagined future. Because of that, I feel there is a vulnerability to this song I think goes overlooked at times. This is certainly not an autobiographical song, but it does reveal a very honest and vulnerable look at Taylor’s hopes for her own romantic future. Plus, within the story, I’ve always felt that this future might be something the narrator is silently hoping for and communicates to their partner.
This is another moment of tension between maturity and immaturity, though. The song does center on a couple overcoming conflict and staying together, something that a teenager likely wouldn’t have much experience with. As the bridge describes a momentous conflict between the couple:
“And I remember that fight, 2:30AM, as everything was slipping right out of our hands
I ran out crying and you followed me out into the street
Braced myself for the goodbye, ’cause that’s all I’ve ever known
Then you took me by surprise
You said, ‘I’ll never leave you alone’”
But on the other hand, there’s something so idealistic and youthful about the way Taylor imagines resolving conflict – not through frank conversation but rather through wild and romantic declarations.
2. Sparks Fly
One of my very favorite song on the album, “Sparks Fly” returns to a tried-and-true formula for Taylor – a song about new love. The romantic descriptions of this early romance are dramatic and fantastical in all the ways Fearless documented, but with an added sensuality that is present (if tame). I love this aspect, because it’s obvious that sexuality was not something in the cards for a young Taylor to include in her image.
The confessional in this song is a lot more straightforward, I think. It’s admitting for the first time your desires for someone and hoping against hope that they respond in turn. It’s hope for a new relationship to blossom into something real.
3. Back To December
Though I’ve eschewed some of the responsibility of providing information on the real-life inspirations behind these songs, I think it’s unavoidable to mention Taylor Lautner, who inspired this song. He and Taylor 1 met on the set of the movie Valentine’s Day, which they both starred in, and had a brief, lightly-publicized romance.
By all accounts, Taylor 2 was an absolute gentleman to Taylor 1, and has only had kind things to say about her and their time together since. I think this is one major contributing factor to the unique nature of this song. For the first time ever, this is a song featuring Taylor apologizing to an ex and taking responsibility for the ending of their relationship. Yes. Shock horror.
There’s an obvious application here to the themes of speaking your truth and admitting things that have been hard to voice before. This is a very vulnerable song, with Taylor taking on responsibility for her lack of interest and effort in maintaining the relationship.
At the bridge, she also delves into those themes of conflicting maturity and immaturity, as she confesses her knowledge that wishing for the relationship to come back is naïve.
“Maybe this is wishful thinkin’
Probably mindless dreaming
But if we loved again, I swear I’d love you right
I’d go back in time and change it, but I can’t
So, if the chain is on your door, I understand.”
She has the maturity to know that she’s done this man wrong, but the immaturity to wish for a miracle to happen regardless. It’s this vulnerable conflict that I love so much.
4. Speak Now
The title track of this album focuses on an imagined scenario of the narrator interrupting the wedding of her love. It’s somewhat maligned for not being as deep, with some takes wishing that she had chosen a different song as the title track and sort of thematic centerpiece.
In my opinion, though, there’s something pure about this song lending the album its title. While yes, it’s an imagined scenario, it’s an imagined scenario with a ton of dramatic weight to it. This is the ultimate speaking of your truth, with a ton of cultural stakes tied up in it. The idea of interrupting a wedding to speak your feelings, risking embarrassment and resentment from all involved… it’s the quintessential concept of the album condensed.
And, my pet theme throughout, the naivete. This is something I’ll discuss more later, but the narrator’s perspective on the woman her love has chosen to marry is… let’s say, stereotypical. That works for a lighthearted song like this one, but there’s also a kind of childishness in imagining the woman who “stole” your man as some sort of heartless demon with no redeeming qualities.
5. Dear John
Every Taylor Swift album has one of its most vulnerable tracks situated at track 5 and Speak Now is no different.
This is also where I must unavoidably mention the man who inspired it, John Mayer. I am obviously not a fan of Mayer and his repeated awful behavior toward the women he has dated, and I have already written about my perspective on his relationship to Taylor during this time. She was 19 and he was 32 when they dated, and to add to the power imbalance, Taylor was admittedly a huge fan of the at-the-time far more well-respected songwriter.
But it’s also important to note that, for better or worse, this was an important milestone for Taylor. Her relationship to John Mayer appears to be her first “adult” relationship, and also, as later songs would insinuate, a huge transition for Taylor emotionally.
What’s fascinating about this song, for me, is the clarity with which a young Taylor seems to understand what caused the toxicity in this relationship.
“Well, maybe it’s me and my blind optimism to blame
Or maybe it’s you and your sick need to give love and take it away.”
She spells out, in no uncertain terms, the power imbalance caused by their age difference and the way he seemed to take pleasure in playing emotional games with her. But in this line, we also see her taking on some sort of responsibility for believing so much in the relationship and allowing herself to be taken advantage of. Valid or not, it’s a genuine way she feels – guilt over her own role in being taken advantage of.
Another key part of this song, though, is the feeling of having survived and thrived besides being mistreated. Sad as it is, though, Taylor’s further writing on the relationship suggests that this was a bit of an exaggeration – she was obviously very affected by this relationship. Whether that was youthful naivete or an inability to admit that this relationship left a mark… well, it could be both.
6. Mean
A little less heavy, but no less thematic, is “Mean.” This is Taylor’s first song addressing the haters, a topic she would return to a few more times in the albums to come. What’s unique about this song is it’s a very pointed song, addressing one particular critic who argued after Taylor’s 2010 Grammys performance with Stevie Nicks that she couldn’t sing. (While, yes, it was a bad performance, if we were to judge singing talent based just on the ability to sing “Rhiannon,” well, let’s just say there wouldn’t be many good singers out there).
Addressing a very specific critic in song is… well, it’s certainly feisty. I think it’s important to note that Taylor was not nearly as popular in 2010 as she is now, and she was, as mentioned, still quite young. If she did something like this nowadays, well, that’s another conversation to have. But I also think it’s a choice that shows her immaturity.
Taylor is absolutely brutal in this song, though. Going so far as to call the critic “a liar… and pathetic… and alone in life” it’s hard not to love the fighting words.
7. The Story of Us
A song rife with tension, “The Story of Us” is a song about the difficulty of holding back from expressing your sadness and confusion over the end of a relationship. I’ve heard some people argue this means it doesn’t fit the theme, as the narrator isn’t saying what they want to say to their ex, but I think that’s a bit of a silly assertion.
This is a song about being tortured by losing a connection that was once there, of feeling frustrated by silence and conflict. The anxiety behind this is palpable in every musical choice, to the point where it’s obvious to me that this narrator wants to speak, but is too stymied by the tension.
8. Never Grow Up
I said I would be trying to stay objective in my analyses here, but I’m going to stop that for a moment and tell you a story about my first night at college. After a whirlwind day of decorating my dorm, buying supplies for the school year, rushing around my new campus, and having dinner with my family and partner, I was left alone in my new dorm room, sitting on the top bunk.
In the soft darkness, illuminated only by my new fairy lights on the wall, I found myself in tears at the enormity of what had just happened. It’s an intense, shocking kind of loneliness, one that I’ve not seen captured in song before I heard “Never Grow Up.”
The song begins as advice for a child, urging them to savor their childhood while they have it and appreciate their parents’ love and guidance. But quickly it becomes clear that this is a song expressing the truth that the narrator has come to realize in her new adulthood – she misses the simplicity and comfort of childhood as she moves into her new adult life.
Interestingly, this is a song about finally being able to say something to yourself that you’ve been holding back – the vulnerability that you aren’t totally ready for adulthood yet. It’s a perfect melding of the two themes of this album.
9. Enchanted
Though it wasn’t as much of a hit at the time, in the years since Speak Now’s release, “Enchanted” has become the enduring hit, particularly when it became a TikTok meme.
This is a song that really exemplifies the stated themes of the album. It’s about meeting someone for the first time and immediately feeling that spark, knowing that there’s fantastic potential for the relationship to grow into something more. In that situation, there’s an overwhelming urge to voice the admiration and emotion the meeting has caused. It’s a speak now situation!
The urgency of the song is so palpable in the slow rise into the chorus, as well as its iconic bridge, where the narrator feverishly repeats their wish that this person they’ve met isn’t in love with someone else. The raw, unfiltered feelings is tied into this fantastical package, like a fairy tale.
10. Better Than Revenge
As I insinuated with “Speak Now,” immaturity can sometimes lead to unfair demonization of those who have done you wrong. And in no song Taylor has ever made is this fact more apparent than “Better Than Revenge.” This song is somewhat controversial even among fans for its absolute ribbing of Taylor’s ex, Joe Jonas’s, at-the-time new girlfriend, an actress called Camilla Belle.
While anyone with an outside perspective of the situation can see than Taylor’s real beef is with Joe, not Camilla, this song completely discards Joe in a total all-out destruction of Camilla, from her fashion to her upbringing to, yes, her sexual experience.
There’s no defending this kind of misogyny, but I will say that it wasn’t uncommon during this time. Other artists, most notably Hayley Williams of Paramore, engaged in similar “not like other girls” misogyny during this time. 2010 was a time when being a feminist was not cool, and many women in women-unfriendly spaces, like music, compensating by cutting down other women in order to build themselves up.
That being said… I think this song is a huge part of what makes me feel like immaturity is such a theme of this album. Because Taylor was immature to say these sorts of things, but they were also her genuine feelings at the time. That tension is so palpable here, as in the rest of the album.
11. Innocent
And hey, speaking of songs with meanings that didn’t age well…
It’s no secret that Kanye West’s interruption of Taylor’s MTV VMA award acceptance speech was a cultural moment with reverberations on both artists’ careers. But in Kanye’s total collapse in recent years and his feud with Taylor in 2016, it’s crazy to imagine that, for a time, Taylor’s public perspective on the situation was focused primarily on reconciliation and forgiveness.
Let me be clear – I don’t blame Taylor at all for choosing to forgive Kanye. It was an upstanding thing for her to do. But it’s also impossible to ignore the naivete present in the way Taylor frames her forgiveness in this song. In it, she reaches for images of innocence she resonates with – childhood vulnerability.
I think what Taylor may not have realized was that Kanye was not a fresh-faced 20-year-old at the brink of adulthood when he chose to get up on that stage. He was an adult who should have known what he was doing was cruel to everyone involved (including Beyonce, who also did not ask to be involved in this at all). Forgiveness is not weakness, but seeing Taylor extend what would become an ill-fated olive branch in this song really has, in hindsight, contributed to that immaturity present in this album.
I’m curious to see what she does with this song in the Taylor’s Version. I have my suspicions (in particular, the fact that Taylor herself is now older than Kanye was at the time – could she reframe the song to be about self-forgiveness instead?)
12. Haunted
Nobody knows for sure who “Haunted” was written about, but if you’ll indulge me in a bit of speculation, I feel like this is another song about her relationship with John Mayer. There’s just a lot of thematic similarities between this song and others she’s explicitly written about this relationship – touching on themes of precarity, confusion, and feeling “haunted” by the ending of the relationship.
I have to voice my speculation because it also contributes to my reading of the themes of this song. Of course, even without my thoughts about who this song is about, it’s obvious that this is a song similar to “Story of Us,” about a relationship ending in silence, feeling confused, and wanting to break that silence and reach out to your love and mend things.
But with the knowledge that this might be a song about John Mayer, I find it fascinating that Taylor repeatedly asserts that she is surprised that this relationship would end:
“You and I walk a fragile line
I have known it all this time
But I never thought I’d live to see it break”
But as Taylor has asserted in other songs (including one we’ll discuss soon), her relationship with John was one absolutely mired in conflict, and one that many outside observers approved of and warned her against pursuing. It shows Taylor’s immaturity that, despite all of these red flags, she is still surprised at the tragic end of the relationship. Even without the context of John Mayer, though, I still think this assertion shows a sort of tangle between the immaturity of expecting a relationship to work despite red flags and the maturity of realizing that that is what you’re doing.
13. Last Kiss
Speaking of shock over the end of the relationship, “Last Kiss” is a song about just that – not seeing the end of a relationship until it comes. Then, in reflection, the narrator admits their sadness and inability to move on from it all. There’s a lot of vulnerability in that admission, but also a bit of maturity. At the same time that the narrator is having difficulty moving on, she’s also wishing her ex well in a show of maturity and forgiveness.
14. Long Live
Important context to this song is the fact that, in 2010, there was no guarantee that Taylor’s success would last. Sure, she had some big hits and some big awards under her belt, but a young and untested new star is certainly not guaranteed success.
With all that understood, “Long Live” is a celebration of all that Taylor, her band, and those who made her success possible had achieved thus far. My favorite part of the song, and the thing that makes it gel so beautifully with the rest of its album, is its bridge. In it, Taylor admits that she knows how fragile her fame is but hopes anyway that they can make it. Just in case, though, she asks that those who have paved the way for her to succeed remember her and continue to spread the story of what they’ve done.
It’s so sweet that one of the things Taylor felt she needed to say above so many other things is a heartfelt thanks to those who helped her achieve stardom, and it’s only going to get more powerful 13 years later.
15. Ours
This is it! This is the song that makes me so sure of this theme of the conflict between immaturity and maturity. This is a song explicitly about her relationship to John Mayer, and it’s a love song. Unabashedly.
This is what I love about Taylor – she isn’t afraid to capture her feelings at many different times in her life, even if those feelings have since changed. It’s obvious that this was a song written early in the relationship, about continuing to steadfastly believe in a relationship that everyone around you disapproves of.
Knowing that this is a song about John Mayer gives it such a tension that the song itself wouldn’t obviously show. When Taylor describes people warning her that her and her love aren’t good for each other, we know that they’re right. Regardless, Taylor chose to go along with the relationship anyway, showing her genuine love for John at the time and, simultaneously, her immaturity at failing to see that they were correct.
Again, this isn’t me shaming Taylor. In contrast, I really admire her bravery in admitting why she was committed to this relationship, even if she would later come to find that she was wrong. It’s an honest portrayal of someone mature enough to make these kinds of immature mistakes… and it’s a beautiful, heartfelt song.
16. If This Was A Movie
The one Speak Now song that wasn’t solely written by Taylor (this was on the deluxe version, not the actual album) has since been removed by Taylor, reassigned to Fearless Taylor’s Version earlier this year. Though she has not confirmed it, I assume the fact that this song was co-written is the reason she has decided to remove it from the album.
Regardless, I want to talk about this song’s thematic similarities to the rest of the album – it’s what it deserves! And a lot of my thoughts here are similar to other songs – this is about the end of a relationship, but the unwillingness to let go and the naïve belief that things might just be able to work out like they do in the movies.
I think Taylor’s admission, though, that this is only something that could happen in fiction, shows that interplay of maturity and immaturity I’ve tracked throughout the album.
17. Superman
And finally, the last track on the deluxe version of Speak Now continues with many of the same themes I’ve identified, particularly those in “Ours.” In this case, it’s a song about being in love with someone more mature than you. It’s unabashedly immature in a way that’s almost a little jarring. Taylor is unafraid to portray herself in this song as patiently waiting for her love to return from his big serious adult life.
This is a pretty stark reminder that the Taylor penning this album was still quite young, and it adds more weight to what I’ve been tracking throughout. Though I don’t think it was intentional, with hindsight I wouldn’t be surprised if Taylor leaned into this nature of the song in the rerecord.
I’m so excited.
Next week… I review Taylor’s version.
Absoludicrous 