@@ssp4795 you can hear lana in the back and it’s a very lana song, though i agree i was hoping she’d have her own verse and that we’d be able to hear her more clearly
She has said she thought it was her last chance for pop success, and I guess she went for a very easily digestible type of aesthetic and single choices…. It’s a shame, its my lesst favorite record from hers
you are SO right about lover. i'm kinda realising listening to your explanation that the theme for this album instead of love could have been... summer love? which doesn't like change a lot but starting with cruel summer would've given the pastel 'i'm so in love let me tell you about it' vibe a much better platform for the rest of the album. like it's a hot night and we're in our little club outfits and with that vibe songs like DBATC and lover and london boy still all play into it? it's fun, it's free, it's chill.. and the public would've responded a LOT more to it. can we also talk about how embarrassing it is that miss americana the doc has a whole section dedicated to the creation of me! like it's her magnum opus i don't think i could ever watch her talk about it again
I couldn’t agree more. This is still one of the biggest mysteries and injustices I have ever seen in the history of my life and I will be devastated forever
"Reputation. Listen. This is a crisis." 😂😂 Rep was the album that first got me into Taylor's music (I bought the cd and listened to it in my car obsessively) and then I was SO BETRAYED by the singles/music videos after LWYMMD. My dream Rep singles lineup: LWYMMD + the original music video (no changes, already iconic, she is beauty she is grace) Delicate + an actually good, not-cringey music video Getaway Car + a cinematic, globetrotting music video, think Wildest Dreams but with more grand theft auto, a very famous male celebrity to co-star Dress + a moody, mature, sexy music video, maybe in a crowded dive bar Call It What You Want + a music video featuring Taylor being happy and dreamy in a castle that's crumbling down around her BUT SHE DOESN'T CARE because she's finally realized what's really important in life 🥰🥰 And maybe at the end she ends up living in a cottage in the woods
My single choices for Lover would have been as follows: 1. Cruel Summer 2. Lover 3. London Boy 4. Cornelia Street 5. Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince (Seriously we missed the perfect promotional single for the Miss Americana documentary
Cruel Summer was too powerful I fear. I do wonder if maybe she didn’t feel like doing the promo having to sing that song everywhere because it gets quite crazy and energetic at the end. Maybe she finds it hard to sing live? Idk.
Taylor is much better and skilled vocalist than people think, but she just needs that confidence to show it. And while performing it, she always can change the key + she can use her back-up singer or backing track for help. I don't think it was the vocal side of the song. Taylor just had a plan to keep it until Lover Fest.
Anti hero is now biggest hit dethroned shake it off. Although overall chsrt points, shake it off is still ahead, but Anti-Hero really cemented its legacy as Taylor's second biggest hit to date.
I always love hearing you foam at the mouth with anger at ME! It fills me with joy to know that I’m not the only one who hates that song to the deepest pits of hell. Satan won’t even listen to that “song”. I agree that Holy Ground and State of Grace should have been singles. I honestly think that State of Grace being the lead single would have done a better job at telling listeners what the album was about, because it is the moral of the story of Red “love is a ruthless game unless you play it good and right” but that’s not to say that I don’t love We Are Never. The gag would be if she did a double lead single with both of these songs. That would have been perfect.
I was yelling WITH YOU for this entire video because YES! I am a very recent swiftie, but if Forever and Always, Haunted, Dear John, State of Grace and All Too Well had been singles I would have been SO on board. As it was, I really didn't get the hype and thought her songs were shallow but I had NO idea that these other songs existed and I'm mad at myself lol
I truly agree on lover. The album has the weakest lead singles that makes the vibe of the album kind of a let down since many people didn't like ME! and yntcd some actually altered ones feelings and perception of the album. Really wish lover was more well thought out and not really rushed things out though it's clearly not rushed lmao lover deserves good management N2odhwidhwirjkwrhiwje
@@theswiftologist It really is disappointing. especially it being the album after one of her biggest comebacks. And also the vibe of the album was really saturated and it pulled you so high and bubbly from where it left you coming from reputation aside from that for me lover was really not a bad album :)
as a recently converted swiftie, I really love your videos and also really love your intellectual dragging of lover. I don't have the long-running attachment to taylor, nor anywhere near all the knowledge about her and her (publicized) personal and professional life, but I desperately want to analyze what happened with that era - and would absolutely watch you do the same
ughhhhhhh i LOVE your thoughts. also the 1989 praise in this video fuelled me lol everytime you talk about lover it doeeees make me want the burn video in the future
‘Reputation was a mismanaged album, and had it been in the right hands, my hands, it would have been appreciated’ Your chutzpah is absolutely sending me bestie
Looking back to this video, I think she realized that Me was not the best to be the lead single, so she didn't even put this song into her lover section on tour. Instead, she finally chose Miss Americana and Cruel Summer, which, in my mind, should've be the first two singles to come out!
Maybe the other thing with Lover is that since it was the first album of hers that she owned, nobody wanted to tell her no they didn’t agree with her decisions…still being fired up from the Big Machine/masters situation 🤷♀️
Watching old zach videos and YES this has aged so well, your singles choice and order for Rep is perfection! I love You Need To Calm Down but I think if it was going to be a single it needs to be a way later single, or the first attention-grabber but quickly followed by a top quality leader like Cruel Summer. DBATC is also an iconic single choice and I guess I hadn’t realized it wasn’t because she played it on the Tiny Desk!
With Reputation I think she should have released in October and do Don’t Blame and I did something bad as singles. With Lover I truly believe it is a summer album and she should have released it in late May. I would have dropped Lover in February and ended with Cruel summer as the the last single
omg i laughed so hard when you deadass said „she wrote me he he hohoho and thought this is going to be the first single“ you’re so right about all of lover, i agree with all of what you said
If i was in control of the roll out for Lover i would do the singles as follows: 1. Cruel Summer 2. Cornelia Street 3. I think he knows or London Boy and finally 4. Lover
I'm a year late watching this. I just want to say how much I love your videos. As a fellow music enthusiast, I feel a sense of bonding hearing someone so eloquently put into words the rants in the back of my head. If you ever happen to read this, I wanted to bring up a theory that has been brewing in the back of my head ever since 1989 came out. Taylor drew a lot of inspiration from more indie type of artists like echo smith and Lorde during this time. She changed her melodic writing to fit into that punchy, moody suburban trend that was so big at the moment. Then, I don't know if its just me, but I feel like after Lover's mid success she found a more Lana Del Rey version of herself as far as the vintage timeless aesthetic mixed with stream of thought lyricism. I was pleasantly surprised to see them collaborate on Midnights later on. She has gone from a Lorde type of artist to a Lana type of artist, what's interesting to me is that Jack has worked with these artists around the same time Taylor was leaning into their lane, is there something there? No? Just me? Also, can we talk about the missed branding opportunity the "Taylor's Version" albums failed to capitalize on? It drives me insane how none of the album covers go together. We could have had some prime packaging designs. Instead we've gotten everything from the very forgettable sepia tone album cover to the cringey Aeropostale 1989 aesthetic. Who is not doing their job in Tay's camp??
Looking back over Fearless, I wonder if Breathe might have done well on radio (as a radio edit, taking out the second verse before the first chorus and maybe ending at the low chorus after the bridge). It has a similar energy to White Horse, but I wonder if having Breathe as a single might have helped the public to see a more mature side to Taylor as an artist a bit sooner, as well as helped convey that Fearless wasn’t just a fluffy fairytale album, given Love Story and YBWM made such an impact. It would have made for good easy listening radio- the instrumentation is beautiful and the chorus melody for ‘breathe’ is an earworm. All in all though, I think you’re correct that if Forever and Always had been added as a single, it would have landed well, and it probably would have been the best choice were there room for just one more single.
I’m Canadian but won’t on a road trip recently through the west coast of the US. Speak Now is the album that before I was a Swiftie, I knew the least about, and never really heard the songs on it. But when I was on the road trip, I only heard maybe 3 TS songs on the radio and 2 of them were Mean and Mine, which really surprised me and makes me think speak now is finally getting recognition now in 2023. I mean obviously since SNTV, but this road trip was before it was announced.
i just can’t comprehend why the story of us wasn’t an absolute hit! the music video is so tan colors but it’s so good 🫶🏼 personally think that’s her best music video i just love it
Just discovered your channel a few days ago, loving the videos I’ve seen so far! I agree with you about Lover, despite loving the album I remembered vividly having high expectations when 1st & 2nd singles dropped (because of course), listening to them and be like… very underwhelmed to say the least 😅 with her hopes to be taken seriously by the music industry I don’t understand why ME! was her first choice.
Reputation is my fav era from Taylor, also i got into her music in this era; love the music video from lwymmd, and love all her music videos from this era (except for delicade music video 😅), still can belive getaway car wasn’t a single, still cant belive we got me! As a single, instead of cruel summer/cornelia street/ day light/ afterglow/.
I totally agree with your comments, especially the ones about reputation. I've been a swiftie since the beginning and honestly, after LWYMMD and ready for it I was like: omg I lost her. I decided to wait for the deluxe cd but we didn't get one... I listened to the full album months after it's released :( is sad cause it's a big gem that didn't get the recognition it deserves
Although both Swifties, we definitely have different music tastes, for Me and You Need To Calm down were the songs that actually lured me to listen to Taylor's songs in the 1st place (also why even now Lover's my favorite album) 🙋
I love the song ME! Probably because I spent a lot of the time hating myself and blah blah blah and really upbeat songs can make me feel a lot better? kinda? I just love occasionally listening to it. Also I just love how happy she was in miss americana while making this song.
@@theswiftologist Their both a moment though. Like I see how Me! could be cringe, but it truly is fun for many people. I don't think it should've been the lead single but it isn't bad. You need to calm down was also a big moment and wasn't really trying to be "woke" in my opinion. She was just trying to show her support for something she actually believes in. Even if it felt forced to you, it was her true feelings. The man is also not about her personal experiences, its about Women in general. A lot of her singles are released for the sole purpose of being anthems for people to relate to. Cruel Summer is definitely the best song of the album and one of her best in general, it would've gotten me overhyped if it was a lead single. In my opinion, the singles should go like this. 1. Lover 2. Cruel Summer 3. You Need to Calm Down 4. Death By A Thousand Cuts 5. Afterglow
Same! Me!, Shake it Off, yntcd were the songs that made me discover her. I'm not obsessed with them as much as I was when they came out and I was 9/10, but I still love them so much and don't get why ppl hate them. Also- Swifties are so toxic. They don't like these songs because they're overplayed but then they like folklore and evermore when they're SO monotonous??! I do like a few songs off them but they're not at the same level of other albums.
I liked Me! a lot. I think it’s the very best follow up to the drama of Reputation which I also loved. I think she needed the public facing end of drama with a kick of self affirmation. I also love Panic! at the Disco. So for me this was the perfect follow up. That said, I love love love your content.
Overall, I agree with you. I just think that I did something bad could have been a perfect second single to Reputation and yeah, Delicate the 3rd one just before the album release. Meanwhile for Lover, I always thought Cruel Summer should ‘ve been first, I think he knows second and Cornelia Street the last one because I think it could’ve had a beautiful music video 🫣
I’m binge watching your videos and loving them! Although i don’t agree with your evaluation of Speak Now. I remember Mine, Mean, and Back To December being played constantly on the radio. I heard her all the time when riding the bus! Country radio is huge so even if her song doesn’t become a “worldwide hit” doesn’t really mean it wasn’t a hit. If it wasn’t for radio I would have never heard her in the early days!
Love your videos, podcast and you so I’ve refrained from commenting about lover because I know we feel so differently about it (I honestly really love the aesthetic?? Not for everyone I know) but I think of The Man and YNCD in a way where I don’t really associate Taylor too much, like I love those songs for myself and for my friends who have faced those kinds of prejudices. There are some not relatable lines in the Man but there are some I feel to my coreeee idk if that makes any sense but sometimes I just distance blondie herself from the meanings
generally love your lover slander, even though i like many songs on the album, the singles were not it and i remember being seriously scared when the two singles came out back then i thought taylor’s prime was over lmao
I literally always thought singles were just the most popular songs on the album and not actually sent in by the artist 🤦♀️ question - are singles still relevant nowadays w less radio emphasis ?
i love that your videos aren’t just non stop praise “everything is incredible” no criticism. because that’s so boring lmao. people should let people have opinions more without telling them they’re “ungrateful” or whatever
I am so sorry Zac but I disagree on what you have said about Taylor swift’s Lover album. I like all the songs on Lover. They are so much fun to listen to. I also think that Lover is a romantic song.
lover had SO MUCH single potential. she had 4 *universal* flops (i know you hate daylight and paper rings but it’s not like a universal flop) and those flops were the man, iftye, yntcd, and me… AND 3 OF THOSE WERE SINGLES + HAD MUSIC VIDEOS??? so here are my single choices AND how i think lover should’ve been done LEAD SINGLE cruel summer SECOND SINGLE lover THIRD SINGLE i think he knows PROMOTIONAL SINGLES: dbatc, miss americana and how i would’ve done lover 1 cruel summer 2 i think he knows 3 false god 4 lover 5 cornelia street 6 death by a thousand cuts 7 miss americana 8 paper rings 9 need 10 the archer 11 afterglow 12 soon you’ll get better 13 it’s nice to have a friend 14 daylight PLUS MY MUSIC VIDEO ROLLOUTS Cruel summer mv first keeping lover mv the same (no mv for i think he knows) death by a thousand cuts mv and i would’ve done an afterglow / daylight mv combo
Hey, I'd like to know your opinions on what I think Lover could have been - Lead Single : CRUEL SUMMER Followed by : LOVER Then : PAPER RINGS Which follows : CORNELIA STREET To wrap things up : DBATC
Sorry but you’re wrong that the average person doesn’t relate to The Man. My friends and I are engineers working in male dominated industries. That song and video completely sums up day to day struggles we face. How our ideas are overlooked when we say them but when a man says them it’s genius. Maybe you don’t relate to this song but this song is hands up gospel to me.
if its relatable to you then go off queen, happy for you! I stand by my thought that her experiences in this song don't translate universally, the way some of her other writing does
yh I really liked the song and it was a relatable song during times of sexism and misogyny that i faced and was like a motivational feminist anthem . I'm glad that Taylor released this song for us to enjoy and to feel empowered every time we listen to it. No offence with all due respect but Swiftologist - idk what gender they identify - but they appear as a cis male, and maybe that's why they didn't identify with the song? P.S. why is no one talking about Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince? I loved that song; it's one of my favs and I feel should have been a single.
Cruel summer is her best song IMO- this is after hearing midnights and loving it. By best I’m not talking about the lyrics (obv great) as much as the music, melody, and CHORUS in particular. Like, this huuuge and powerful rush of serotonin. Love your videos- you’re fun, definitely smart, and know all there is to know about Queen Swift!
I was waiting for your opinion about Folklore and Evermore.. what would be the singles? I mean we only got 1 each album, we got the MVs then nothing follows..
Me and yntcd was actually good I liked me that's only my opinion but cruel summer was great but I also love these songs lover it's like a heart shaped album all of the songs are close to me heart
Lover and Reputation singles were a truly confusing series of mistakes and it all could have been so different. My preferred singles/order is slightly different from yours, but here goes: -Look What You Made Me Do -I Did Something Bad -Getaway Car -Delicate -King of my Heart -Cruel Summer -I think he knows -Lover -Death By a Thousand Cuts I do think You Need to Calm Down was important for her to do because she was trying to do activism for the Equality Act which was a sincere attempt on her part at fighting for change. There were a few places lyrically, however, where she opened herself to criticism and diluted her message/came across as self-involved, and it all read very…Clueless movie, Cher donating her skis to fight poverty, or like Russell Brand’s “Little African Child” lol. So I guess I would have asked her to rewrite that song and try it again without the internet troll verse haha.
eh, idk....what kind of impact did that legislation made? it was very calculated tbh. she wanted to be seen as being a good person. keep in mind this was after years of getting roasted for being a closet republican. it wasn't made in good faith imo
First four albums the singles were the correct choice I think. 1989 is correct except I’d switch bad blood with I know places. Rep should have had: I did something bad, then delicate, getaway car, king of my heart. Lover should have had: cruel summer, I think he knows, lover, Cornelia street, and then folklore and evermore chose fine
i think having look what you made me do as the lead single for reputation really did it a disservice. i understand the shock factor (which i do think was effective), but i also think that having it as the first taste of reputation really turned people off. i still would've included look what you made me do as a single, but i think having it be the very first caused people to not give reputation a chance. i am so happy to find someone else who is not a lover stan lmao. i feel like everyone is obsessed with it, but most of the album feels beneath her and her skillset. when it comes to the singles, i don't get why she chose the ones she did. lover, sure, but otherwise i cannot begin to understand her choices. me! is not fun (like everyone says it was) and it being the first single feels like like a lost opportunity to show what her music would look like after leaving big machine, and the forced "wokeness" in the man and you need to calm down was a huge turn off for a lot of viewers. taylor deserves sympathy for what she's dealt with in the music industry, but i think people still struggled to sympathize with her when she's still a millionaire lmao.
For whatever reason, I also thought The Man would have been so much better in an acoustic version on one of her earlier albums. I think there were too many statements going on at once on that album. Like Reputation committed to its message, but Lover felt confused between female empowerment, lgbt rights, and then having a super romantic song like Lover. All of which were great narratives, but just rather confusing all together.
Hi, if we are going to talk serious… why she didn’t push as a lead sigle just “Lover” for lover? I get that she wanted to be the the moment, but lover would be the perfect choice for a lead single after LWYMMD… me! I didn’t get it, I remember talking to my friend like “she fall. She is the new flop Perry”.
Well she's revealed that CS was going to be the single for the summer before COVID said no. It's also possible that, (similar to what you said about hesitating to push Style to avoid overtly invoking Styles) she might've hesitated to push what people said references KW.
The fact that ME! and folklore/evermore were written by the same person is astounding to me 🤦♀️
SHOCKING.
It’s not only Me! It’s ME HEEHEE HUUHUU …..smh
Why do yall hate me
@@vidhi3697 heehee huuhuu
@@saima.nijhum any other reason
*cruel summer being brutally ignored for singles choices is the worst crime she committed since she broke up with Taylor Lautner*
that was her biggest crime ....
@@theswiftologist I think it WAS her biggest crime until she decided to pretend Evermore doesn't exist.
and now we have "featuring Lana Del Ray" without actually featuring her!
@@ssp4795 you can hear lana in the back and it’s a very lana song, though i agree i was hoping she’d have her own verse and that we’d be able to hear her more clearly
@@theswiftologist ppppppp
The entire Lover rollout and juvenile aesthetic give me “I am reaching 30 and having a crisis about it” vibes.
LMFAO
😂😂
It was exactly that. I am sure she will sooner than later realise this.
She has said she thought it was her last chance for pop success, and I guess she went for a very easily digestible type of aesthetic and single choices…. It’s a shame, its my lesst favorite record from hers
LMAO
When u said she sat down and wrote me-he-he hoo-hoo-hoo i DIED 😂😭
THE FACT CRUEL SUMMER COULD HAVE BEEN 2019'S BIG SUMMER HIT IS A CRUEL INJUSTICE AND I WILL NEVER FORGIVE HER FOR IT OFSJDKFHSKJFH
you are SO right about lover. i'm kinda realising listening to your explanation that the theme for this album instead of love could have been... summer love? which doesn't like change a lot but starting with cruel summer would've given the pastel 'i'm so in love let me tell you about it' vibe a much better platform for the rest of the album. like it's a hot night and we're in our little club outfits and with that vibe songs like DBATC and lover and london boy still all play into it? it's fun, it's free, it's chill.. and the public would've responded a LOT more to it.
can we also talk about how embarrassing it is that miss americana the doc has a whole section dedicated to the creation of me! like it's her magnum opus i don't think i could ever watch her talk about it again
yes totally agree, summer love! should've just kept it simple
I couldn’t agree more. This is still one of the biggest mysteries and injustices I have ever seen in the history of my life and I will be devastated forever
also that she didn’t release the music video
what a cruel summer…
Lead single for Lover - Cruel Summer
Follow up - Cornelia street
Title track - Lover
Ending - death by a thousand cuts
My listing of lover singles
oooh that's not bad....
@@theswiftologist It follows your formula - Upbeat song - emotional song - Album
btw LOVE YOU ❤
@@bilwa_pujitha_7_b589
Oh that’s actually a pretty good list! I may have to agree with you there!!🙌
I feel like i think he knows couldve been a single its literally perfect for a single cuz it repetetive but it gets better
"Reputation. Listen. This is a crisis." 😂😂
Rep was the album that first got me into Taylor's music (I bought the cd and listened to it in my car obsessively) and then I was SO BETRAYED by the singles/music videos after LWYMMD.
My dream Rep singles lineup:
LWYMMD + the original music video (no changes, already iconic, she is beauty she is grace)
Delicate + an actually good, not-cringey music video
Getaway Car + a cinematic, globetrotting music video, think Wildest Dreams but with more grand theft auto, a very famous male celebrity to co-star
Dress + a moody, mature, sexy music video, maybe in a crowded dive bar
Call It What You Want + a music video featuring Taylor being happy and dreamy in a castle that's crumbling down around her BUT SHE DOESN'T CARE because she's finally realized what's really important in life 🥰🥰 And maybe at the end she ends up living in a cottage in the woods
DRESS AS A SINGLE YOUR MINDDDDDDDD
Your Call it What You Want video but it’s for King of my Heart
@@shilohgoes5544 not today satan
Delicate is maybe my favourite music video of hers 😳 i love that she dances around like no one's watching, which is the whole point of the song
This is basically what he said
My single choices for Lover would have been as follows:
1. Cruel Summer
2. Lover
3. London Boy
4. Cornelia Street
5. Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince (Seriously we missed the perfect promotional single for the Miss Americana documentary
London boy is quite childish. But anyway is far superior better than Me!ss.
Forever and always is single material for sure. It shows the fun and angry side of that era and I love the song
SO TRUE!
That songs trash
Cruel Summer was too powerful I fear. I do wonder if maybe she didn’t feel like doing the promo having to sing that song everywhere because it gets quite crazy and energetic at the end. Maybe she finds it hard to sing live? Idk.
oh its gonna be impossible for her to sing live. I can't wait for that moment !!
Taylor is much better and skilled vocalist than people think, but she just needs that confidence to show it. And while performing it, she always can change the key + she can use her back-up singer or backing track for help. I don't think it was the vocal side of the song. Taylor just had a plan to keep it until Lover Fest.
@@theswiftologistbestie I think we need to have a talk...
Gurl no wayyy 👀💀@@theswiftologist
@@theswiftologist AND SHE DID
i deeply believe from the bottom of my heart that Cruel Summer could've been bigger than shake it off
Anti hero is now biggest hit dethroned shake it off. Although overall chsrt points, shake it off is still ahead, but Anti-Hero really cemented its legacy as Taylor's second biggest hit to date.
cruel summer is very close currently
She needs to hire you - you are spot on on every SINGLE point.
I think Death By A Thousand Cuts is mindblowingly good.
SAY IT LOUDER!
I always love hearing you foam at the mouth with anger at ME! It fills me with joy to know that I’m not the only one who hates that song to the deepest pits of hell. Satan won’t even listen to that “song”.
I agree that Holy Ground and State of Grace should have been singles. I honestly think that State of Grace being the lead single would have done a better job at telling listeners what the album was about, because it is the moral of the story of Red “love is a ruthless game unless you play it good and right” but that’s not to say that I don’t love We Are Never. The gag would be if she did a double lead single with both of these songs. That would have been perfect.
oooh a double lead....love that idea
I was yelling WITH YOU for this entire video because YES! I am a very recent swiftie, but if Forever and Always, Haunted, Dear John, State of Grace and All Too Well had been singles I would have been SO on board. As it was, I really didn't get the hype and thought her songs were shallow but I had NO idea that these other songs existed and I'm mad at myself lol
giving holy ground the respect it deserves as you should. that song is actually instant serotonin
i think for lover, paper rings could have also been a great single choice... it’s fun, happy, and has great production
one of my most hated Taylor songs but I see where ur coming from
@@theswiftologist paper rings is one of my favourite taylor songs and I don't see where ur coming from but I still respect your opinion
@@callumcartini he aswell hate I Know Places💀 but yeah I respect everyones opinion.
I know that I'm a handful baby uh!
@@o_MusicLover_o lmaoooo
And now, four years later, cruel summer is number one on the hot 100. 🎉
I truly agree on lover. The album has the weakest lead singles that makes the vibe of the album kind of a let down since many people didn't like ME! and yntcd some actually altered ones feelings and perception of the album. Really wish lover was more well thought out and not really rushed things out though it's clearly not rushed lmao lover deserves good management N2odhwidhwirjkwrhiwje
I know right. lover really was rushed and not in an inspired way like evermore
@@theswiftologist It really is disappointing. especially it being the album after one of her biggest comebacks. And also the vibe of the album was really saturated and it pulled you so high and bubbly from where it left you coming from reputation aside from that for me lover was really not a bad album :)
I didn't listen lover like 2 months after it cam out just becase I didn't like the singles and I thought I would hate the album
as a recently converted swiftie, I really love your videos and also really love your intellectual dragging of lover. I don't have the long-running attachment to taylor, nor anywhere near all the knowledge about her and her (publicized) personal and professional life, but I desperately want to analyze what happened with that era - and would absolutely watch you do the same
so happy you're here !!! that video is in high demand and it is on the list
ughhhhhhh i LOVE your thoughts. also the 1989 praise in this video fuelled me lol everytime you talk about lover it doeeees make me want the burn video in the future
oh its coming...we need to cover it on the pod first tho hahahah
I'm interested in videos about the weird events, gossip, and general ridiculousness in the early years of the fandom
yes please we need to see this!!!
noted !!
‘Reputation was a mismanaged album, and had it been in the right hands, my hands, it would have been appreciated’
Your chutzpah is absolutely sending me bestie
This aged INCREDIBLY well
Getaway Car should have been a music video. Period. Like I hate that it wasn’t.
Looking back to this video, I think she realized that Me was not the best to be the lead single, so she didn't even put this song into her lover section on tour. Instead, she finally chose Miss Americana and Cruel Summer, which, in my mind, should've be the first two singles to come out!
Maybe the other thing with Lover is that since it was the first album of hers that she owned, nobody wanted to tell her no they didn’t agree with her decisions…still being fired up from the Big Machine/masters situation 🤷♀️
The fact i hate shake it off more than ME!😭 I’m so sorry
Watching old zach videos and YES this has aged so well, your singles choice and order for Rep is perfection! I love You Need To Calm Down but I think if it was going to be a single it needs to be a way later single, or the first attention-grabber but quickly followed by a top quality leader like Cruel Summer. DBATC is also an iconic single choice and I guess I hadn’t realized it wasn’t because she played it on the Tiny Desk!
Couldn’t agree more with the cruel summer crime!!
its legend on legend crime
With Reputation I think she should have released in October and do Don’t Blame and I did something bad as singles.
With Lover I truly believe it is a summer album and she should have released it in late May. I would have dropped Lover in February and ended with Cruel summer as the the last single
omg i laughed so hard when you deadass said „she wrote me he he hohoho and thought this is going to be the first single“
you’re so right about all of lover, i agree with all of what you said
„everyone who told her it was good, you’re going to hell, because you lied, and liars go to hell“
im dying
completly agree, i lived for haunted back in the speak now era, and cruel summer and death by thousand cuts are bangers
I love ur videos and how honest you are. Thank you for this amazing content
Zachvoodoo did its thing 👁️
I love your Lover analysis! It’s a mix of critics thinking with a hint of, rightfully so, dragging.
Plus your take on the man is spot on!
thank you! xx
If i was in control of the roll out for Lover i would do the singles as follows:
1. Cruel Summer
2. Cornelia Street
3. I think he knows or London Boy
and finally
4. Lover
I'm a year late watching this. I just want to say how much I love your videos. As a fellow music enthusiast, I feel a sense of bonding hearing someone so eloquently put into words the rants in the back of my head. If you ever happen to read this, I wanted to bring up a theory that has been brewing in the back of my head ever since 1989 came out. Taylor drew a lot of inspiration from more indie type of artists like echo smith and Lorde during this time. She changed her melodic writing to fit into that punchy, moody suburban trend that was so big at the moment. Then, I don't know if its just me, but I feel like after Lover's mid success she found a more Lana Del Rey version of herself as far as the vintage timeless aesthetic mixed with stream of thought lyricism. I was pleasantly surprised to see them collaborate on Midnights later on. She has gone from a Lorde type of artist to a Lana type of artist, what's interesting to me is that Jack has worked with these artists around the same time Taylor was leaning into their lane, is there something there? No? Just me? Also, can we talk about the missed branding opportunity the "Taylor's Version" albums failed to capitalize on? It drives me insane how none of the album covers go together. We could have had some prime packaging designs. Instead we've gotten everything from the very forgettable sepia tone album cover to the cringey Aeropostale 1989 aesthetic. Who is not doing their job in Tay's camp??
you are GLOWING!!
omg THANKS
Looking back over Fearless, I wonder if Breathe might have done well on radio (as a radio edit, taking out the second verse before the first chorus and maybe ending at the low chorus after the bridge). It has a similar energy to White Horse, but I wonder if having Breathe as a single might have helped the public to see a more mature side to Taylor as an artist a bit sooner, as well as helped convey that Fearless wasn’t just a fluffy fairytale album, given Love Story and YBWM made such an impact. It would have made for good easy listening radio- the instrumentation is beautiful and the chorus melody for ‘breathe’ is an earworm.
All in all though, I think you’re correct that if Forever and Always had been added as a single, it would have landed well, and it probably would have been the best choice were there room for just one more single.
Whenever my brother would be upset, I would say "Alexa, play you need to calm down" and he would get so mad lmao
I’m Canadian but won’t on a road trip recently through the west coast of the US. Speak Now is the album that before I was a Swiftie, I knew the least about, and never really heard the songs on it. But when I was on the road trip, I only heard maybe 3 TS songs on the radio and 2 of them were Mean and Mine, which really surprised me and makes me think speak now is finally getting recognition now in 2023. I mean obviously since SNTV, but this road trip was before it was announced.
i just can’t comprehend why the story of us wasn’t an absolute hit! the music video is so tan colors but it’s so good 🫶🏼 personally think that’s her best music video i just love it
2 years later and nos it’s her 4th most listened song on Spotify
Just discovered your channel a few days ago, loving the videos I’ve seen so far!
I agree with you about Lover, despite loving the album I remembered vividly having high expectations when 1st & 2nd singles dropped (because of course), listening to them and be like… very underwhelmed to say the least 😅 with her hopes to be taken seriously by the music industry I don’t understand why ME! was her first choice.
I'm just forever thanking all higher powers that she didn't make Speak Now a single
god smiled that day
Your version of the lover era is so good ugh I wish thats what we got. I liked the album but gosh the single choices were so weird.
Forever and Always is THE best song on Fearless fight me
no need to fight I agree....
Reputation is my fav era from Taylor, also i got into her music in this era; love the music video from lwymmd, and love all her music videos from this era (except for delicade music video 😅), still can belive getaway car wasn’t a single, still cant belive we got me! As a single, instead of cruel summer/cornelia street/ day light/ afterglow/.
Kinda agree with Out of the Woods! The tour version is really great!
I kind of like Me, it was a pretty obnoxious song on the radio but now that no one listens to it anymore I kind of enjoy it
I totally agree with your comments, especially the ones about reputation. I've been a swiftie since the beginning and honestly, after LWYMMD and ready for it I was like: omg I lost her. I decided to wait for the deluxe cd but we didn't get one... I listened to the full album months after it's released :( is sad cause it's a big gem that didn't get the recognition it deserves
No please! Out of the Wooods video waa totally worth it.. it's my most favorite Taylor Swift music video ever
Although both Swifties, we definitely have different music tastes, for Me and You Need To Calm down were the songs that actually lured me to listen to Taylor's songs in the 1st place (also why even now Lover's my favorite album) 🙋
U need Jesus
I love the song ME! Probably because I spent a lot of the time hating myself and blah blah blah and really upbeat songs can make me feel a lot better? kinda? I just love occasionally listening to it. Also I just love how happy she was in miss americana while making this song.
@@theswiftologist Their both a moment though. Like I see how Me! could be cringe, but it truly is fun for many people. I don't think it should've been the lead single but it isn't bad. You need to calm down was also a big moment and wasn't really trying to be "woke" in my opinion. She was just trying to show her support for something she actually believes in. Even if it felt forced to you, it was her true feelings. The man is also not about her personal experiences, its about Women in general. A lot of her singles are released for the sole purpose of being anthems for people to relate to. Cruel Summer is definitely the best song of the album and one of her best in general, it would've gotten me overhyped if it was a lead single. In my opinion, the singles should go like this.
1. Lover
2. Cruel Summer
3. You Need to Calm Down
4. Death By A Thousand Cuts
5. Afterglow
Same! Me!, Shake it Off, yntcd were the songs that made me discover her. I'm not obsessed with them as much as I was when they came out and I was 9/10, but I still love them so much and don't get why ppl hate them. Also- Swifties are so toxic. They don't like these songs because they're overplayed but then they like folklore and evermore when they're SO monotonous??! I do like a few songs off them but they're not at the same level of other albums.
@@theswiftologist u need it. They're just songs?? People can have a different opinion?? Plus, it's not just her.
I liked Me! a lot. I think it’s the very best follow up to the drama of Reputation which I also loved. I think she needed the public facing end of drama with a kick of self affirmation. I also love Panic! at the Disco. So for me this was the perfect follow up.
That said, I love love love your content.
Overall, I agree with you. I just think that I did something bad could have been a perfect second single to Reputation and yeah, Delicate the 3rd one just before the album release. Meanwhile for Lover, I always thought Cruel Summer should ‘ve been first, I think he knows second and Cornelia Street the last one because I think it could’ve had a beautiful music video 🫣
I’m binge watching your videos and loving them! Although i don’t agree with your evaluation of Speak Now. I remember Mine, Mean, and Back To December being played constantly on the radio. I heard her all the time when riding the bus! Country radio is huge so even if her song doesn’t become a “worldwide hit” doesn’t really mean it wasn’t a hit. If it wasn’t for radio I would have never heard her in the early days!
can you please work as a marketing team of taylor. she would've had lots of HITS by now. I AGREE WITH YOU
im trying....
That period when ME! and YNTCD were everywhere was a really testing period to be a Taylor Swift fan.
Especially for the survivors swifties that stan her during the cancel culture and rep era. Like shit really hit thr fan for far too long.. 😂
ur so right about reputation it’s literally what i’ve been saying this whole time
no one hears us
You should have spoken up about the ready for it video
WHY IS THIS COMMENT SO FUNNY TO ME SIDHSJDIEJRJDJ me to taylor in her living room: This is bad
@@theswiftologist you should have been like the songs great but what the f is this video
22:05 YOU ATE THIS PARTT
Love your videos, podcast and you so I’ve refrained from commenting about lover because I know we feel so differently about it (I honestly really love the aesthetic?? Not for everyone I know) but I think of The Man and YNCD in a way where I don’t really associate Taylor too much, like I love those songs for myself and for my friends who have faced those kinds of prejudices. There are some not relatable lines in the Man but there are some I feel to my coreeee idk if that makes any sense but sometimes I just distance blondie herself from the meanings
generally love your lover slander, even though i like many songs on the album, the singles were not it and i remember being seriously scared when the two singles came out back then i thought taylor’s prime was over lmao
justice for cruel summer, my fav song ever
I literally always thought singles were just the most popular songs on the album and not actually sent in by the artist 🤦♀️
question - are singles still relevant nowadays w less radio emphasis ?
i love that your videos aren’t just non stop praise “everything is incredible” no criticism. because that’s so boring lmao. people should let people have opinions more without telling them they’re “ungrateful” or whatever
NOT YT RECOMMENDING THIS AFTER CRUEL SUMMER JUST BECAME THE SINGLE 😭😭
I am so sorry Zac but I disagree on what you have said about Taylor swift’s Lover album. I like all the songs on Lover. They are so much fun to listen to. I also think that Lover is a romantic song.
lover had SO MUCH single potential. she had 4 *universal* flops (i know you hate daylight and paper rings but it’s not like a universal flop) and those flops were the man, iftye, yntcd, and me… AND 3 OF THOSE WERE SINGLES + HAD MUSIC VIDEOS???
so here are my single choices AND how i think lover should’ve been done
LEAD SINGLE
cruel summer
SECOND SINGLE
lover
THIRD SINGLE
i think he knows
PROMOTIONAL SINGLES:
dbatc, miss americana
and how i would’ve done lover
1 cruel summer
2 i think he knows
3 false god
4 lover
5 cornelia street
6 death by a thousand cuts
7 miss americana
8 paper rings
9 need
10 the archer
11 afterglow
12 soon you’ll get better
13 it’s nice to have a friend
14 daylight
PLUS MY MUSIC VIDEO ROLLOUTS
Cruel summer mv first
keeping lover mv the same
(no mv for i think he knows)
death by a thousand cuts mv
and i would’ve done an afterglow / daylight mv combo
Love this video's concept!
Hey, I'd like to know your opinions on what I think Lover could have been -
Lead Single :
CRUEL SUMMER
Followed by :
LOVER
Then :
PAPER RINGS
Which follows :
CORNELIA STREET
To wrap things up :
DBATC
no to paper rings forever
@@theswiftologist oH :(
getaway car should’ve been the last single from reputation and cruel summer the lead single for lover
do you think right where you left me has single potential if folklore/evermore would have been more single-driven records?
1 MILLION PERCENT !!!!!!!!
Sorry but you’re wrong that the average person doesn’t relate to The Man. My friends and I are engineers working in male dominated industries. That song and video completely sums up day to day struggles we face. How our ideas are overlooked when we say them but when a man says them it’s genius. Maybe you don’t relate to this song but this song is hands up gospel to me.
if its relatable to you then go off queen, happy for you! I stand by my thought that her experiences in this song don't translate universally, the way some of her other writing does
yh I really liked the song and it was a relatable song during times of sexism and misogyny that i faced and was like a motivational feminist anthem . I'm glad that Taylor released this song for us to enjoy and to feel empowered every time we listen to it. No offence with all due respect but Swiftologist - idk what gender they identify - but they appear as a cis male, and maybe that's why they didn't identify with the song?
P.S. why is no one talking about Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince? I loved that song; it's one of my favs and I feel should have been a single.
Cruel summer is her best song IMO- this is after hearing midnights and loving it. By best I’m not talking about the lyrics (obv great) as much as the music, melody, and CHORUS in particular. Like, this huuuge and powerful rush of serotonin. Love your videos- you’re fun, definitely smart, and know all there is to know about Queen Swift!
I was waiting for your opinion about Folklore and Evermore.. what would be the singles? I mean we only got 1 each album, we got the MVs then nothing follows..
The fact that Cruel Summer was not a single is something I think about almost daily even when I don't hear the song. It haunts me to this day.
Me and yntcd was actually good I liked me that's only my opinion but cruel summer was great but I also love these songs lover it's like a heart shaped album all of the songs are close to me heart
Delicate was my fave song off Rep
Me was a social experiment that made me question my reality 😵💫
Lover and Reputation singles were a truly confusing series of mistakes and it all could have been so different. My preferred singles/order is slightly different from yours, but here goes:
-Look What You Made Me Do
-I Did Something Bad
-Getaway Car
-Delicate
-King of my Heart
-Cruel Summer
-I think he knows
-Lover
-Death By a Thousand Cuts
I do think You Need to Calm Down was important for her to do because she was trying to do activism for the Equality Act which was a sincere attempt on her part at fighting for change. There were a few places lyrically, however, where she opened herself to criticism and diluted her message/came across as self-involved, and it all read very…Clueless movie, Cher donating her skis to fight poverty, or like Russell Brand’s “Little African Child” lol.
So I guess I would have asked her to rewrite that song and try it again without the internet troll verse haha.
eh, idk....what kind of impact did that legislation made? it was very calculated tbh. she wanted to be seen as being a good person. keep in mind this was after years of getting roasted for being a closet republican. it wasn't made in good faith imo
@@theswiftologist What impact? Maybe criminilzing discriminatory behavior? JUST MAYBE
@@saradhachadalavada1837 she didn't criminalize discriminatory behavior what are you even talking about you lettuce
Look i like me but i was a child when it came out 9 to be specific which proves the argument that is me is a kidsbop song
To be fair me and yntcd would’ve been #1 if Old town road didn’t exist that song had everyone in a chokehold
i want to keep gatekeeping holy ground
Style is my favorite Taylor Swift song.
Cruel Summer got its justice!
O m g ready for it vídeo is fucking amazin! Can’t believe u think otherwise 😢
First four albums the singles were the correct choice I think. 1989 is correct except I’d switch bad blood with I know places. Rep should have had: I did something bad, then delicate, getaway car, king of my heart. Lover should have had: cruel summer, I think he knows, lover, Cornelia street, and then folklore and evermore chose fine
video idea: ranking taylor swift self written songs
Just started listening to the podcast today! Oooooooh the roasting out of love lol
hope you're loving it so far!!
i think having look what you made me do as the lead single for reputation really did it a disservice. i understand the shock factor (which i do think was effective), but i also think that having it as the first taste of reputation really turned people off. i still would've included look what you made me do as a single, but i think having it be the very first caused people to not give reputation a chance.
i am so happy to find someone else who is not a lover stan lmao. i feel like everyone is obsessed with it, but most of the album feels beneath her and her skillset. when it comes to the singles, i don't get why she chose the ones she did. lover, sure, but otherwise i cannot begin to understand her choices. me! is not fun (like everyone says it was) and it being the first single feels like like a lost opportunity to show what her music would look like after leaving big machine, and the forced "wokeness" in the man and you need to calm down was a huge turn off for a lot of viewers. taylor deserves sympathy for what she's dealt with in the music industry, but i think people still struggled to sympathize with her when she's still a millionaire lmao.
For whatever reason, I also thought The Man would have been so much better in an acoustic version on one of her earlier albums. I think there were too many statements going on at once on that album. Like Reputation committed to its message, but Lover felt confused between female empowerment, lgbt rights, and then having a super romantic song like Lover. All of which were great narratives, but just rather confusing all together.
I love watching your videos you're really funny 🤣
Cruel summer is one of her best songs.
Forever and always and holy ground truly deserve there moment.
The only fun thing about ME is the version where she screams “SPELLING IS FUN” in the middle. I’ll keep the song for just that unhinged moment lmao
idk about R u ready for it..cuz i liked that the song had a contrasting visual narrative.
Hi, if we are going to talk serious… why she didn’t push as a lead sigle just “Lover” for lover? I get that she wanted to be the the moment, but lover would be the perfect choice for a lead single after LWYMMD… me! I didn’t get it, I remember talking to my friend like “she fall. She is the new flop Perry”.
cause its a little slow for a lead single from a pop album that's full of upbeat numbers imo
Well she's revealed that CS was going to be the single for the summer before COVID said no.
It's also possible that, (similar to what you said about hesitating to push Style to avoid overtly invoking Styles) she might've hesitated to push what people said references KW.
literally just pressed the play button and already agreeing w u😭 no but fr ME! was really not it