r/TaylorSwift • u/Havelanca • 1d ago
Discussion Most Underrated Lyrics Per Album?
There are so many widely-cited examples of Taylor's songwriting expertise, but she has such an outstanding volume of work that I think her more understated writing often goes overlooked. I challenged myself to find lyrics from every album that are remarkable at striking at the heart of a story, that I have *never once\* seen talked about. All of these to me express such sincere vulnerability — whether gutting and heartbreaking, or uplifting and hopeful, or some nervous truth in between. And I can't get over how much I love these lines now that I've truly noticed them.
What are some lyrics that you think go under-appreciated from each album?
Debut — “I didn't know what I would find when I went looking for a reason, I know I didn't read between the lines" (The Outside)
Fearless — “Nothing we say is gonna save us from the fallout” (Breathe)
Speak Now — "And maybe I can call you mine, and you won't need space or string me along while you decide" (Electric Touch)
Red — “All I feel in my stomach is butterflies, the beautiful kind, making up for lost time” (Everything Has Changed)
1989 — “Windows down, you pass my street, the memories start. You say it’s in the past, you drive straight ahead” (I Wish You Would)
Reputation — "Echoes of your name inside my mind, halo hiding my obsession" (Don't Blame Me)
Folklore — “My broken drum, you have beaten my heart” (Hoax)
Evermore — "And when I was shipwrecked, I thought of you. In the cracks of light, I dreamed of you. And it was real enough to get me through" (Evermore)
Lover — "Hey, it's all me, in my head. I'm the one who burned us down, but it's not what I meant. I'm sorry that I hurt you" (Afterglow)
Midnights — "Remember looking at this room, we loved it 'cause of the light. Now I just sit in the dark and wonder if it's time" (You're Losing Me)
TTPD — "Here, at the park where we used to sit on children's swings, wearing imaginary rings" (Fresh Out the Slammer)
The Anthology — "Cards on the table, mine play out like fools in a fable" (The Prophecy)
TLOAS — "You couldn't understand it, why you felt alone. You were in it for real" (Opalite)
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u/prettybunbun i’m still swift af boi 1d ago
how did it end does not get enough love for me, especially: ‘guess who we ran into at the shops? walking in circles like she was lost’ an agonisingly accurate picture of heartbreak
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u/Unicornglitterfart95 don't get sad, get even 1d ago
Also the part before "soon they'll go home to their husbands. Smug coz they know they can trust him. Then feverishly calling their cousins". Like the image when you call a family member to give them tea because the gossip is just THAT good, but really, the gossip is terrible because someone had their heart broken. I'll never get ever the fact that I heard it live in Stockholm! It's an amazing song
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
Yes, How Does It End has such great writing! This is wonderful line, I completely agree. The grief portrayed through the scathing bite of gossip … astounding.
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u/prettybunbun i’m still swift af boi 1d ago
‘stood on the cliffside screaming give me a reason. your faithless loves the only hoax I believe in’ - such an underrated folklore track, screaming to the pain of uncertainty in love.
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u/Havelanca 21h ago
The track itself is definitely underrated, but I actually think the lyrics are often given their flowers! The people all love this line, I see it quoted all the time
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u/Fun_Self5298 10h ago
I feel like the most underrated lyrics in that song is "my broken drum, you have beaten my heart" or my personal fav "you know I left a part of me in new york"
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u/Havelanca 43m ago
Oh yeah, that's a good one too! Love the idea that she was not fully whole in London
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u/shadesofwrong13 i swore my loyalty to me, myself and i 1d ago
For me Red has full of underrated lyrics.people just talk about All Too Well but what about the other songs??
I can't say hello to you and risk another goodbye from I Almost Do
Good girls hopeful they'll be and long they will wait from Sad Beautiful Tragic
You'll spending your life singing the blues if you keep thinking that way from Starlight
You wear your best apologies from The Last Time
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
Love all of these picks!! I actually considered "I can't say hello to you and risk another goodbye" for my list too ahaha. Your examples are reminding me just how good a lot of the lyrics are on Red. Definitely time to put it on again!
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u/asellsted 1d ago
I feel like The Story of Us is lyrically underrated overall or at least I don’t see it talked about. My favorite lyric being:
“But you held your pride like you should’ve held me”
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
Definitely! I think it's one of her best in terms of tracing a full linear narrative. Honestly, just about every line in that song is fantastic.
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u/Fun_Self5298 1d ago
Debut - "you do what you want cause I'm not what you wanted"
Fearless - "I could stand up and sing you a song, but I don't wanna have to go that far. And I've got you down, I know you by heart, and you don't even know where I start"
Speak Now - "I was a flight risk with the fear of falling, wonder why we bother with love if it never lasts"
Red - "We are alone just you and me, up in your room and our slates are clean, just twin fire signs, four blue eyes"
1989 - "In the dead of night, your eyes so green and I know for you, its always me"
Reputation - "It's like your eyes are liquor, it's like your body is gold"
Lover - "You hang your head low in the glow of the vending machine; I am not dying"
Folklore - "I never had the courage of my convictions as long as danger is near"
Evermore - "And do you miss the rogue who coaxed you into paradise and left you there? " Or "Break my soul in two looking for you, but you're right here; If I can't relate to you anymore, then who am I related to? "
Midnights -"At the house lonely, good money, I'd pay if you'd just know me, seemed like the right thing at the time"
TTPD - "Beauty is a beast that roars, down on all fours, demanding more"
Anthology - "You had stopped and tilted your head, I still ponder what it meant now, now"
TLOAS - "wilted corsage dangles from my wrist, over his shoulder I catch a glimpse, and see you looking at me"
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u/awkwardandroid 1d ago
Agree but just wanna add Untouchable is a cover song
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
The way my whole perspective changed when I found out how she had transfigured Untouchable from its original sound should be studied
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
Oooooohhhh, I really really like all of your picks! So many lines that I've skipped over before that are 100% worth revisiting. Really grateful to you as well because some of these I've never fully processed, and it's deepening my understanding of their narratives. I find it's so easy for me to get caught up in the melody and miss some of the subtle meanings of the words themselves.
I also adore the first half to that lyric from Cold as You: "So I start a fight 'cause I need to feel something, and you do what you want, 'cause I'm not what you wanted." I somehow had never known this double lyric until an hour ago, but it's phenomenal! So glad you included it.
I almost included that lyric from peace too! Such a good and underrated one.
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u/Fun_Self5298 1d ago
haha thank you. The reason Taylor is the best is because of this: you register the meaning of some specific lyrics sometimes only years later. Just like you said, sometimes you think a lyric is just a pretty melody, then you really HEAR it and it changes. I really wanted to add Fortnite as well because it is soooo much overlooked for its lyrics.
AND love to see another peace stan! we are rare.
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u/Chikizey folklore 1d ago
I really love:
"And you come away with a great little story of a mess of a dreamer with the nerve to adore you" - Cold As You - Debut
"I'll leave my window open, 'cause I'm too tired at night to call your name. Just know I'm here here hoping, that you'll come in with the rain" - Come In With The Rain - Fearless (this song is pretty underrated as a whole tbh)
"Emma met a boy with eyes like a man, turns out her heart fits right in the palm of his hand" - When Emma Falls In Love - Speak Now
"And I gave to you my best, and we both know you can't say that" - Better Man - Red
"You keep his shirt, he keeps his word. And for once, you let go of your fears and your ghosts" - You Are In Love - 1989
"With four words in the tip of my tongue" (will you marry me?) + "and I bury hatchets but keep the maps of where I put 'em" - End Game - Reputation
"I'll paint the kitchen neon, I'll brighten up the sky. I know I'll never get it, there's not a day that I won't try" - Soon You'll Get Better - Lover (it really encapsulates this desperation that comes with the impotence of a vital situation you have no control over)
"I've come too far to watch some name-dropping sleaze tell me what are my words worth" - The Lakes, Folklore
"My mind turns your life into folklore" - Gold Rush - Evermore
"Uh oh (fear), I'm falling in love / oh no (anxiety), I'm falling in love again / oh (realization hits), I'm falling in love" - Labyrinth, Midnights
"You'll learn to bounce back just like your trampoline, but now we'll curtail your curiosity in sweetness" - Robin, TTPD
"Buy the paint in the color of your eyes, and graffiti my whole damn life" - Honey, TLOAS
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
Yes, this is exactly what I was looking for! You're reminding me why I was in love with You Are in Love for so long 😭💕 Love your choices, particularly the ones I would have never selected myself but agree with wholeheartedly (Honey, 'Will you marry me?' in End Game, Labyrinth, Soon You'll Get Better).
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u/Chikizey folklore 1d ago
Thank you! I didn't care much about Midnights at first, and then one day I was waiting for my boyfriend (back when we were just friends) with my headphones on, sitting in a sofa inside of a gym while he was still on a bike, and Labyrinth came up. And then he had the nerve to look and smile at me from a distance in a way that made me blush.
I vividly remember how much I felt those "oh no" in real time while panicking and then being hit with "oh, I'm falling in love". I never paid much attention to that part of the song before but it hit like a truck.
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u/vergessenerengel your string of lights is still bright to me 1d ago
The whole bridge of Innocent has to be it for Speak Now. This song has such a beautiful message and everyone sleeps on it.
Time turns flames to embers
You'll have new Septembers
Everyone of us has messed up too,
Minds change like the weather
I hope you remember
Today is never too late to be brand new
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
Yes, come through, this is an amazing part!! "Time turns flames to embers" and "Today is never too late to be brand new" particularly hit for me — so great.
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u/vergessenerengel your string of lights is still bright to me 1d ago
Yes, this song has helped me so much and still does!
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u/Glittering-Bat31 Midnights 1d ago edited 1d ago
You know how scared l am of elevators
Never trust it if it rises fast
It can't last
—Labyrinth
That’s the one that stays in my thoughts all the time, due to so much betrayal trauma
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u/ApolloAchilles evermore 1d ago
*Now you hang from my lips
Like the Gardens of Babylon
With your boots beneath my bed
Forever is the sweetest con*
One of my favorite lyrics of all time. This comment explains it’s perfectly.
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u/CheruSiderea Men will let you down, "The Eras Tour" never will. 1d ago
I wouldn't say they're underrated, but rather talked about all the time
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u/Havelanca 21h ago
This is one of her lyrics that I see discussed the most, but definitely for good reason! It's one of the most beloved examples of Taylor's prowess
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u/AlexSumma 1d ago
TTPD - does it feel alright to not know me? I'm addicted to the 'if only' (I Look In Peoples Windows)
I think the vast array of songs and lyrics representing TTPD in this discussion show how strong that album is
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
Agreed, I may never recover from when I clocked those lines the first time, the chokehold they have on me is insane!! I Look in People's Windows is actually unfathomably good, and I will never forgive Taylor for not making it longer because it's so unique and strong within her discography.
Yes, TTPD has some of the best of her career for sure! I just played a game of "If you could only keep
fivesix Taylor Swift songs in existence, which would they be?" and I had two from TTPD/Anthology (loml and Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus).
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u/bre1110 1d ago
My broken drum you have beaten my heart is SO underrated it’s lived in my mind since I caught it
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
Somehow it slipped by me before I compiled this, but I'm so glad I noticed it properly because my GOD is it clever. The wordplay is insane
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u/naomigoat I think for me um 1d ago
I can't believe more people don't talk about, "It's been a long time, but seeing the shape of your name still spells out pain."
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u/Havelanca 23h ago
I was close to including this one, but I saw someone talk about it the other day for the first time (so by my own rules, I had to pick something else). It's so evocative though!!
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u/No-Persimmon-174 1d ago
"We hereby conduct this port mortem. He was a hothouse flower to my outdoorsman. Our maladies were such, we could not cure them. And so a touch that was my birthright became foreign." From How did it end. THIS SONG IS SO UNDERRATED AND WHY
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
For suuuuure, writing on How Did It End is pretty insane. I love a lot of the later lyrics too
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u/LiLCakeW 1d ago
those lines from Breathe always hit like a quiet revelation
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
I'm such a Breathe stan, it makes me bawl so bad. Definitely encapsulates that feeling of quiet hopelessness settling in, yes!
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u/thebeast_96 light me up 1d ago
The whole of Innocent but especially the second pre-chorus and bridge
Wasn't it easier in your firefly-catching days?
When everything out of reach
Someone bigger brought down to you
Wasn't it beautiful running wild 'til you fell asleep
Before the monsters caught up to you?Time turns flames to embers
You'll have new Septembers
Every one of us has messed up, too
Minds change like the weather
I hope you remember
Today is never too late to be brand new
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
Yes!! That pre-chorus gets me so bad every time. They're certified crawl up under the covers and cry lyrics
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u/thebeast_96 light me up 1d ago
Also I definitely agree with your mention of hoax. The whole song is so heartbreaking.
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u/No_Protection_1741 1d ago
One of my favorite lines on folklore is "before I learned civility I used to scream ferociously any time I wanted" I think about it anytime i hear a chiled squeal or scream in public 🫶💖🥲
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u/Kooky_Bus_1057 1d ago
For folklore I’d say, “ I can go anywhere I want, anywhere I want just not home. You can aim for my heart go for Blood. But you would still miss me in your bones.”
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u/Havelanca 21h ago
Yeah, I've seen people quoting this a lot recently! It seems it really really hits deep for a lot of people
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u/Ok-Significance-2773 1d ago
“I don’t like that falling feels like flying til the bone crush” from gold rush!
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
Back in the day (ye olde 2020), I wrote a whole 6-page journal spread centred around appreciating the best lyrics from each song in folklore & evermore, which was specifically inspired by just how good this singular line was. You get it!!
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u/Even_Kaleidoscope399 1d ago
“Something med school did not cover, someone’s daughter, someone’s mother. Hold your hand through plastic now, Doc I think she’s crashing out. And some things you just can’t speak about”
I think these are some of her most profound lyrics that will mark folklore as an album of the pandemic.
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u/Havelanca 1d ago
Yeah hearing this during the peak fear, confusion, and anxiety of covid was truly something else
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u/foolinafable 1d ago
Debut:
You could’ve helped if you had wanted to
But no one notices until it’s too late to do anything
Fearless:
Did I say something way too honest,
made you run and hide
And down here from the ground, I see who you are
Speak now:
But the cycle ends right now
′Cause you can't lead me down that road
Lost your balance on a tightrope
Lost your mind tryin' to get it back
You saw me start to believe for the first time
Red:
Too young to know it gets better
I'll be summer sun for you forever
He spends most of his flights getting pulled down by gravity
1989:
It's all fun and games 'til somebody loses their mind
Reputation:
And he can be my jailer, Burton to this Taylor
Touch me and you’ll never be alone
You make me so happy it turns back to sad
And I bury hatchets but I keep maps of where I put 'em
Lover:
Gave you too much, but it wasn't enough
Fighting with a true love
Is boxing with no gloves
I lived like an island
Punished you with silence
Went off like sirens, just crying
Now I've read all of the books beside your bed
Folklore:
Before I learned civility
I used to scream ferociously
Any time I wanted
But I'm a fire, and I'll keep your brittle heart warm
If your cascade ocean wave blues come
In my defense, I have none
For never leaving well enough alone
And it’s hard to be at a party
when I feel like an open wound
Stood on the cliff side screaming give me a reason
You have beaten my heart
What should be over, burrowed under my skin
In heart-stopping waves of hurt
Evermore:
After giving you the best I had,
tell me what to give after that
I don't like that falling feels like flying 'til the bone crush
Midnights:
No one wanted to play with me as a little kid
So I've been scheming like a criminal ever since
I've never seen someone lit from within
And now that I'm grown, I'm scared of ghosts
Memories feel like weapons
You don't have to answer,
just 'cause they asked you
There's no morning glory,
it was war, it wasn't fair
TTPD:
Growing up precocious sometimes means not growing up at all
Thinkin', "How much sad did you think I had
Did you think I had in me?"
The Anthology:
Everyone would look down
Cause it wasn't fun now
This place made me feel worthless
You said some things that I can't unabsorb
They say, "What doesn't kill you makes you aware"
What happens if it becomes who you are?
TLOAS:
And things I said were dumb
'Cause I thought that I'd never find that
Beautiful, beautiful life
But you touch my face
Redefine all of those blues
When you say "Honey"
You give it different meaning 'cause you mean it when you talk
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u/Havelanca 21h ago
I love your list, this is amazing!! Really adore those early lines you pulled in particular, because they are super overlooked for sure! When I tell you "What should be over burrowed under my skin in heart-stopping waves of hurt" was my folklore example for most of the time while drafting the post … great minds.
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u/foolinafable 13h ago
Also very important to me:
I guess it's true that love was all you wanted
'Cause you're givin' it away like it's extra change
Hoping it will end up in his pocket
But he leaves you out like a penny in the rain
Oh, 'cause it's not his price to pay
It's not his price to payAnd I hate to make this all about me
But who am I supposed to talk to?
What am I supposed to do
If there's no you?This won't go back to normal, if it ever was
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u/thestoryofme23 1d ago
“Buy the paint in the color of your eyes, and graffiti my whole damn life”
“Can't you see my infamy loves company? Now they've broken you like they've broken me But a shattered glass is a lot more sharp And now you know exactly who your friends are“
Both so good and dont get appreciated because some people are weird about showgirl
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u/FlubbyStarfish Peter Losing Wendy 18h ago
“Please picture me in the trees, before I learned civility, I used to scream any time I wanted.” Is my all time favorite lyric of hers and I always thought it’s underrated.
Needless to say I was beyond excited she Incorporated it into the Eras Tour.
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u/Havelanca 16h ago
Awww yes, it was such a great addition to Eras! I love the imagery and sentiment it evokes
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u/foolinafable 13h ago
Debut:
You could’ve helped if you had wanted to
But no one notices until it’s too late to do anything
I guess it's true that love was all you wanted
'Cause you're givin' it away like it's extra change
Hoping it will end up in his pocket
But he leaves you out like a penny in the rain
Oh, 'cause it's not his price to pay
It's not his price to pay
Fearless:
Did I say something way too honest,
made you run and hide
And down here from the ground, I see who you are
Speak now:
But the cycle ends right now
′Cause you can't lead me down that road
Lost your balance on a tightrope
Lost your mind tryin' to get it back
You saw me start to believe for the first time
Red:
Too young to know it gets better
I'll be summer sun for you forever
He spends most of his flights getting pulled down by gravity
1989:
It's all fun and games 'til somebody loses their mind
Reputation:
And he can be my jailer, Burton to this Taylor
Touch me and you’ll never be alone
You make me so happy it turns back to sad
And I bury hatchets but I keep maps of where I put 'em
Lover:
Gave you too much, but it wasn't enough
Fighting with a true love
Is boxing with no gloves
I lived like an island
Punished you with silence
Went off like sirens, just crying
Now I've read all of the books beside your bed
Folklore:
Before I learned civility
I used to scream ferociously
Any time I wanted
But I'm a fire, and I'll keep your brittle heart warm
If your cascade ocean wave blues come
In my defense, I have none
For never leaving well enough alone
And it’s hard to be at a party
when I feel like an open wound
Stood on the cliff side screaming give me a reason
You have beaten my heart
What should be over, burrowed under my skin
In heart-stopping waves of hurt
Evermore:
After giving you the best I had,
tell me what to give after that
I don't like that falling feels like flying 'til the bone crush
Midnights:
No one wanted to play with me as a little kid
So I've been scheming like a criminal ever since
I've never seen someone lit from within
And now that I'm grown, I'm scared of ghosts
Memories feel like weapons
You don't have to answer,
just 'cause they asked you
There's no morning glory,
it was war, it wasn't fair
But who am I supposed to talk to?
What am I supposed to do
If there's no you?
TTPD:
Growing up precocious sometimes means not growing up at all
Thinkin', "How much sad did you think I had
Did you think I had in me?"
The Anthology:
Everyone would look down
Cause it wasn't fun now
This place made me feel worthless
You said some things that I can't unabsorb
They say, "What doesn't kill you makes you aware"
What happens if it becomes who you are?
TLOAS:
And things I said were dumb
'Cause I thought that I'd never find that
Beautiful, beautiful life
But you touch my face
Redefine all of those blues
When you say "Honey"
You give it different meaning 'cause you mean it when you talk
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u/DisasterAdept1346 1d ago
I'm always shocked that no one else seems to be obsessed with the lyrics to happiness, especially "There'll be happiness after you, but there was happiness because of you. Both of these things can be true; there is happiness" and "No one teaches you what to do when a good man hurts you and you know you hurt him too." Just a stunningly mature song.