Oddly, when 17-year-old Taylor Swift sang “I laugh, ‘cause it’s so damn funny” on her 2006 self-titled album, she delivered the most convincing swear she would pull off for a decade. It’s been a long road since then, but with Swift’s latest album Midnights, released today, one thing is clear: She has gotten better at cursing.
Until recently, Swift’s attempts at cursing — “He’s so tall, and handsome as hell,” “If a man talks shit then I owe him nothing,” for example — have come off a bit … off. Not like when a child accidentally says a curse they heard a parent say, exactly; more like when a teenager smokes their second cigarette ever in front of a group of older teenagers while attempting to convey that they’re actually a seasoned smoker. (I say this with love.) But with the release of Midnights, it is my opinion that she finally (basically) has gotten comfortable with the art of the swear.
Swift took a break from cursing altogether for a few albums after her debut, but really amped it up once she severed her relationship with indie label Big Machine ahead of the 2019 release of Lover. With an assist from this chart someone on reddit made and this YouTube video, here is a record of all of her pre-Midnights curses. And yes, I am counting “hell.” There are children listening.
Taylor Swift (2006)
- “I laugh ‘cause it’s so damn funny.” — “Teardrops on My Guitar”
- “You never did give a damn thing, honey.” — “Cold As You”
Red (Taylor's Version) (2012/2021)
- “Was when none of that shit mattered 'cause you were with me.” — ”I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor’s Version)”
- “They say ‘all’s well that ends well,’ but I’m in a new hell.” — ”All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version)”
1989 (2014)
- “He’s so tall, and handsome as hell.” — “Wildest Dreams”
- “Loose lips sink ships all the damn time.” — “I Know Places”
Reputation (2017)
- “If a man talks shit then I owe him nothing.” — “I Did Something Bad”
- “Oh damn, never seen that color blue.” — “Delicate”
- “I pretend you’re mine all the damn time.” — “Delicate”
Lover (2019)
- “I’m just like, damn. It’s seven a.m.” — “You Need to Calm Down”
- “Raking in dollars and getting bitches and models.” — “The Man”
- “I’d be a bitch not a baller.” — “The Man”
- “Hell is when I fight with you.” — ”False God”
folklore (2020)
- “I’m doin’ good, I’m on some new shit. “ — “The 1”
- “I have this dream you’re doin’ cool shit.” — “The 1”
- “Even on my worst day did I deserve, babe, all the hell you gave me?” — “My Tears Ricochet”
- “And you know damn well, for you I would ruin myself.” — “Illicit Affairs”
- “Flew in all her bitch pack friends from the city.” — “The Last Great American Dynasty”
- “Does she mouth ‘fuck you forever’?” — “Mad Woman”
- “Would you tell me to go fuck myself?” — “Betty”
- “Hell was the journey but it brought me heaven.” — ”Invisible String”
- “I talk shit with my friends.” — “Peace”
evermore (2020)
- “‘Tis the damn season.” — “‘Tis the Damn Season”
- “I pulled your body into my every goddamn night now I get fake niceties.” — “Happiness”
- “And damn, Dorothea. They all wanna be ya.” — “Dorothea”
- “Oh, goddamn. My pain fits in the palm of your freezin’ hand.” — “Ivy”
- “It’s a goddamn blaze in the dark.” — “Ivy”
- “It’s the goddamn fight of my life.” — “Ivy”
- “At dinner parties I call you out on your contrarian shit.” — ”Gold Rush”
- “Lay the table with the fancy shit.” — “Tolerate It”
- “All the years I’ve given is just shit we’re dividing up.” — ”Happiness”
- “‘What a shame she’s fucked in the head,’ they said.” — “Champagne Problems”
- “And the skeletons in both our closets plotted hard to fuck this up.” — ”Cowboy Like Me”
- “How you took the money and your dignity, and got the hell out.” — ”The Lucky One”
They range from “ehh” to “slay,” of course, and we all have our own opinions, but I think she’s made clear progress with both curse delivery and range of curses used. For me, hearing “I’m doin’ good I’m on some new shit” open folklore made me roll my eyes, but ultimately I think she handles the curses on that album pretty well — including the debut of “fuck.” (My favorite curse there is “I talk shit with my friends,” because you know what, I do too.) And evermore is basically 100 percent curses, as you can see (my favorite there is, “ooo-oo-ooh ohh! goddamn!”).
Which brings us to today. With an assist from no one except myself (and command-F on a lyrics website) (“hell” “damn” “shit” “fuck” “bitch”), here are the curses in Midnights:
Midnights (2022)
- “I'm damned if I do give a damn what people say.” — ”Lavender Haze”
- “All this shit is new to me.” — ”Lavender Haze”
- “The 1950s shit they want from me.” — “Lavender Haze”
- “How the hell did we lose sight of us again?” — ”Maroon”
- “Ain't that the way shit always ends?” — “Maroon”
- “That's a real fucking legacy.” — “Maroon”
- “‘She's laughing up at us from hell’”— ”Anti-Hero”
- “Weird, but fucking beautiful.” — “Snow on the Beach”
- “Another fuckin' situation, circumstances.” — ”Question…?”
- “Fuckin’ politics and gender roles.” — ”Question…?”
- “I don't start shit, but I can tell you how it ends.” — “Vigilante Shit”
- “On my vigilante shit again.” — “Vigilante Shit”
- “You're talking shit for the hell of it.” — “Karma”
- “Flexing like a goddamn acrobat.” — “Karma”
“It was one drink … after … another … fuckin’ … politics and gender roles, and you’re not sure, and I don’t know.” Whether you agree with whatever she is saying here in “Question…?” about politics and gender roles (seems negative), I think you have to admit the way she says “fuckin’” is basically natural. It’s almost like she says it in her real life. I actually love it. You’re doing great, Taylor. Keep “fucking” (singing) that “chicken” (curses), in my opinion. On the next album, maybe you can say cunt!
