The song received favorable responses from contemporary music critics. "Breathe" was one of two songs featuring Caillat that was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals in 2010, the other being Jason Mraz's "Lucky", the winner of the award. "Breathe" peaked at number eighty-seven on the Billboard Hot 100 on November 28, 2008, and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). At the time, its appearance tied Swift with Hannah Montana (Miley Cyrus) for two records on the Billboard Hot 100. Swift performed the song live for the first time ever in Miami Gardens, Florida for the Reputation Stadium Tour.
Breathe
Taylor Swift Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
'Cause none of us thought it was gonna end that way
People are people,
And sometimes we change our minds
But it's killing me to see you go after all this time
Music starts playin' like the end of a sad movie,
It's the kinda ending you don't really wanna see
Now I don't know what to be without you around
And we know it's never simple,
Never easy
Never a clean break, no one here to save me
You're the only thing I know like the back of my hand,
And I can't,
Breathe,
Without you,
But I have to,
Breathe,
Without you,
But I have to
Never wanted this, never wanna see you hurt
Every little bump in the road I tried to swerve
People are people,
And sometimes it doesn't work out,
Nothing we say is gonna save us from the fall out
And we know it's never simple,
Never easy
Never a clean break, no one here to save me
You're the only thing I know like the back of my hand,
And I can't,
Breathe,
Without you,
But I have to,
Breathe,
Without you,
But I have to
It's two am
Feelin' like I just lost a friend
Hope you know it's not easy,
Easy for me
It's two am
Feelin' like I just lost a friend
Hope you know this ain't easy,
Easy for me
And we know it's never simple,
Never easy
Never a clean break, no one here to save me
I can't,
Breathe,
Without you,
But I have to,
Breathe,
Without you,
But I have to
Breathe,
Without you,
But I have to
Sorry (oh) sorry
Sorry sorry
Sorry sorry
In Taylor Swift's song Breathe, she explores the pain of a relationship ending and the struggle to move on. The first verse sets the scene for the song, with Swift seeing the face of her partner in her mind as she drives away. It's clear that the end of the relationship came as a surprise to both parties, and Swift expresses how difficult it is to let go of someone she has been with for so long. The image of a sad movie ending is used to describe the feeling of losing someone, and the fact that it's a tragedy only makes it harder to deal with.
The chorus of the song repeats the phrase "I can't breathe without you, but I have to" several times, emphasizing the importance of moving on even when it's painful. Swift acknowledges that the process of moving on is never simple or easy, but it's something that has to be done in order to move forward. She also recognizes that there's no one who can save her from this pain - this is something she has to go through alone.
The second verse reinforces the idea that relationships can be difficult and don't always work out. Swift shows empathy for her partner, saying that she never wanted to see them hurt. Despite this, however, there's nothing they can do to save the relationship and the fallout is inevitable. The repetition of the chorus shows the internal conflict Swift is facing between wanting to hold onto the past and knowing she needs to move forward.
Line by Line Meaning
I see your face in my mind as I drive away,
Leaving you is tough, and I can't help but remember you.
'Cause none of us thought it was gonna end that way
Our relationship unexpectedly came to an end.
People are people,
We all have our own thoughts and feelings.
And sometimes we change our minds
People's minds change, which can hurt relationships.
But it's killing me to see you go after all this time
It's hard to witness the ending of a significant relationship.
Music starts playin' like the end of a sad movie,
I'm reminiscing about our relationship in bittersweet memories.
It's the kinda ending you don't really wanna see
The end of our relationship is painful.
'Cause it's tragedy and it'll only bring you down,
The end of our relationship may lead to sadness.
Now I don't know what to be without you around
I'm unsure of how to proceed with life post-relationship.
Never a clean break, no one here to save me
Breaking up is always messy and never easy.
You're the only thing I know like the back of my hand,
I know you incredibly well.
But I have to
It's essential to move on.
Never wanted this, never wanna see you hurt
I never desired this breakup, and I don't want you to suffer.
Every little bump in the road I tried to swerve
I tried to avoid any issues or discomforts that emerged.
Nothing we say is gonna save us from the fallout
There's nothing we can do to prevent the inevitable end of our relationship.
Feelin' like I just lost a friend
I'm lonely and hurt due to the breakup.
Hope you know it's not easy,
I hope you understand that this breakup is hard for me.
But I have to
It's essential to move on.
Sorry (oh) sorry
I'm sorry for the pain caused by our breakup.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Taylor Swift, Colbie Caillat
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Tharfiny Santos
Taylor Swift is a complete artist, reasons: •Sings well
• Great actress
•Too pretty
• Know how to compose
•Charismatic
• Intelligent
• Pure goodness
• Plays various instruments
She and Michael J are the only ones who impacted the music industry.
Helios Deep
12 years had passed and I'm still listening to Taylor. Man, my relationship with Taylor's music is the longest I've ever had
Ευτυχία Λαμπρίδου
For me it's the only relationship I have ever had... and I regret NOTHING
Davianca Smith
Right!
bughead
@Ευτυχία Λαμπρίδου same 🙏🏻❤️
Srishti
Yep
nadine
ok i really dont mean to be rude but i kinda saw the exact same comment on the other video... but its probably just a coincidence
Lisa
“People are people and sometimes we change our minds“ really hit hard
Angeline Bena
Agree😭
Aman
Can you explain me this please
Ariyan Bista
@Aman we as people continue evolving.
Be it a friendship, a relationship or anything. We'll eventually get bored of it and attempt to move on to "better things"