Taylor Alison Swift is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans mult… Read Full Bio ↴Taylor Alison Swift is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her narrative songwriting, which is often inspired by her personal life, has received widespread media coverage and critical praise.

Born in West Reading, Pennsylvania, Swift relocated to Nashville, Tennessee in 2004 to pursue a career in country music. She broke into the country music scene with her eponymous self-titled debut studio album, Taylor Swift in 2006, which included the singles "Teardrops on My Guitar" and "Our Song". Swift also released the holiday album, Sounds of the Season: The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection, later titled as The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection in October 2007.

Swift rose to mainstream prominence with her sophomore studio album, Fearless (2008), a country pop record with crossover appeal. Aided by the top-five singles "Love Story" and "You Belong with Me", Fearless was certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Swift's third studio album, Speak Now (2010), blended country pop with elements of rock and featured the top-ten singles "Mine" and "Back to December".

Drawing inspiration from various pop, rock, and electronic genres, Swift's fourth studio album Red (2012) saw her transcending her country roots. She completely moved to pop with her synth-pop fifth studio album, 1989 (2014), and expanded the electropop sound on her next two studio albums, reputation (2017) and Lover (2019), which respectively embraced urban and retro styles. The four albums spawned a string of international top-five singles, including "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together", "I Knew You Were Trouble", "Shake It Off", "Blank Space", "Bad Blood", "Look What You Made Me Do", "ME! (feat. Brendon Urie of Panic! at the Disco)", "You Need to Calm Down", and "Lover".

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Swift experimented with folk and alternative rock on her eighth and ninth studio albums, folklore and evermore (both 2020), whose lead singles "cardigan" and "willow" topped charts around the world. She also released the critically acclaimed documentaries Miss Americana and Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions that year. Swift's tenth studio album, Midnights (2022), marked her triumphant return to pop after two folk albums. The album set the record for biggest first day and first week ever on Spotify, spawned the hits Anti-Hero and Lavender Haze, and sold over 1.5 million copies in its first week becoming not only the biggest debut of the decade but also Swift's biggest debut ever. She would make history by becoming the first artist to occupy the entire top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 with tracks from Midnights.

Additionally, Swift began re-recording her back catalog in November 2020 as a result of a publicized dispute with talent manager Scooter Braun and her former label Big Machine, regarding the acquisition of the masters of her back catalog. In April 2021, Swift released a re-recorded issue of her 2008 album Fearless, titled Fearless (Taylor's Version). It debuted at number one in the US. Swift continued releasing re-recorded versions of her back catalog in November, 2021 with the release of Red (Taylor's Version), a 30 track re-issue of her 2012 critical smash. The album debuted at #1 in the US, spawned the #1 hit All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor's Version) (From the Vault), and broke the record at the time for biggest first day for a female album on Spotify. Red (Taylor's Version) was a critical and commercial hit, and proved that Swift's ambitious plan to re-record her first 6 albums was well worth it.

Along with the release of Red (Taylor's Version) came All Too Well: The Short Film (2021), Swift's filmmaking debut. The 15 minute romantic drama was based on the lyrical content from Swift's 2012 fan favorite "All Too Well" starring Sadie Sink and Dylan O'Brien. It had a limited theatrical release in major cities, and Swift held special screenings of the film throughout 2022 at various film festivals. In December, 2022 Taylor announced that she would be making her feature directorial debut with Oscar-winning studio Searchlight Pictures.

Following the release of Midnights, Swift would embark on her first tour in five years, The Eras Tour.

Swift has released several songs for film soundtracks. She co-wrote two songs for the Hannah Montana: The Movie soundtrack— "You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home" and "Crazier", and contributed two songs to the Valentine's Day soundtrack, including the single "Today Was a Fairytale", which was her first number one on the Canadian Hot 100, and peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100. She also contributed two original songs to The Hunger Games soundtrack album: "Safe & Sound - from The Hunger Games Soundtrack", co-written and recorded with The Civil Wars and T-Bone Burnett, and "Eyes Open". "Safe & Sound" won the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media and was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. In 2013, Swift recorded "Sweeter than Fiction", a song she wrote and produced with Jack Antonoff for the One Chance film soundtrack, which received a Best Original Song nomination at the 71st Golden Globe Awards. Swift and English singer Zayn Malik, mononymously known as Zayn, released a single together, "I Don't Wanna Live Forever", for the soundtrack of the film Fifty Shades Darker (2017). She also recorded an original song called "Beautiful Ghosts", which she wrote with Andrew Lloyd Webber for the Cats's soundtrack (2019). In 2020, Swift's documentary Miss Americana featured the song "Only the Young" which was written after the 2018 United States elections. In 2022, she released an original song titled "Carolina" for Where The Crawdads Sing (2022) inspired by the novel written by Delia Owens.

With sales of over 200 million records worldwide, Swift is a best-selling music artist. Her accolades include 12 Grammy Awards (including three Album of the Year wins), two Brit Awards (including a Global Icon award), an Emmy Award, 28 [https://guinnessworldrecords.com/]Guinness World Records, 32 American Music Awards (the most wins by an artist), and 23 Billboard Music Awards (the most wins by a woman). She ranked eighth on Billboard's Greatest of All Time Artists Chart (2019) and was listed on Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time (2015). Swift has been included in various power rankings, such as Time's annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world (2010, 2015 and 2019) and Forbes Celebrity 100 (placing first in 2016 and 2019). She was named Woman of the Decade (2010s) by Billboard and Artist of the Decade (2010s) by the American Music Awards.

Mary's Song
Taylor Swift Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Interesting Facts ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

She said
"I was seven, and you were nine
I looked at you like the stars that shined
In the sky, the pretty lights"
And our daddies used to joke about the two of us
Growing up and fallin' in love
And our mamas smiled and rolled their eyes
And said, "Oh, my, my, my"

Take me back to the house in the backyard tree
Said you'd beat me up, you were bigger than me
You never did, you never did
Take me back when our world was one block wide
I dared you to kiss me and ran when you tried
Just two kids, you and I
Oh, my, my, my, my

Well, I was sixteen when suddenly
I wasn't that little girl you used to see
But your eyes still shined, like pretty lights
And our daddies used to joke about the two of us
They never believed we'd really fall in love
And our mamas smiled and rolled their eyes
And said, "Oh, my, my, my"

Take me back to the creek beds we turned up
Two AM, ridin' in your truck
And all I need is you next to me
Take me back to the time we had our very first fight
Slammin' of doors 'stead of kissin' goodnight
You stayed outside 'til the morning light
Oh, my, my, my, my

A few years had gone and come around
We were sittin' at our favorite spot in town
And you looked at me, got down on one knee

Take me back to the time when we walked down the aisle
Our whole town came and our mamas cried
You said, "I do," and I did too
Take me home where we met so many years before
We'll rock our babies on the very front porch
After all this time, you and I

And I'll be eighty-seven, you'll be eighty-nine

I'll still look at you like the stars that shine in the sky
Oh, my, my, my

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Taylor Swift’s “Mary’s Song” tell the story of a young couple’s love, from childhood to old age. The song begins with Mary, the singer, reminiscing about her childhood with her lover, who was two years older than her. The two children grew up together, with Mary looking up to her older love interest “like the stars that shined,” as their parents joked about them growing up and falling in love. Despite their parents’ teasing, the two kids were just that - innocent kids who liked to play and spend time together. They had their first kiss when Mary dared her older crush to kiss her and then ran away.

The lyrics then fast forward to their teenage years when Mary was 16 when she realizes that she has grown up and is no longer a little girl. Nevertheless, she still loves the boy with the same intensity as before, and their parents still do not believe that their friendship can turn into a relationship. The song continues to tell the love story of the couple from their first fight to their wedding day, and finally to their old age when they sit on their front porch after having raised their children.

Overall, the song tells the story of a love that has endured through the years, starting as innocent childhood crush and growing into a lifetime of love and commitment.

Some interesting facts about this song are:

Interesting Facts
Note: This section uses generative AI, which can be inaccurate.

Line by Line Meaning

She said
The singer is relaying a conversation she had with someone else.

"I was seven, and you were nine
The singer and the other person first knew each other when they were very young children.

I looked at you like the stars that shined
The singer saw the other person as a beacon of hope and admiration.

In the sky, the pretty lights"
The other person was looked up to as a radiant figure.

And our daddies used to joke about the two of us
The artist and the other person were close enough that their fathers commented on their relationship.

Growing up and fallin' in love
The fathers entertained the idea of the singer and the other person falling in love as they grew up together.

And our mamas smiled and rolled their eyes
The mothers were tolerant of the playful interactions between the singer and the other person.

And said, "Oh, my, my, my"
The mothers found the artist and the other person's relationship amusing.

Take me back to the house in the backyard tree
The artist wants to revisit a specific memory from their childhood.

Said you'd beat me up, you were bigger than me
The other person had teased the artist in the past, but never hurt her.

You never did, you never did
The teasing was ultimately harmless and never escalated to actual violence.

Take me back when our world was one block wide
The artist wants to go back to a time when their surroundings were small and uncomplicated.

I dared you to kiss me and ran when you tried
The singer and the other person engaged in playful teasing during their childhood friendship.

Just two kids, you and I
Despite growing up, the singer and the other person remained close by heart.

Well, I was sixteen when suddenly
The singer experienced a shift in her relationship with the other person when she reached the age of sixteen.

I wasn't that little girl you used to see
The other person's perception of the artist changed as she grew up.

But your eyes still shined, like pretty lights
Despite the change in their relationship, the other person still held a special place in the artist's heart.

And our daddies used to joke about the two of us
The fathers continued to tease the singer and the other person about their relationship, now with a different undertone.

They never believed we'd really fall in love
Despite the fathers' jovial teasing, they did not actually believe that the singer and the other person would one day fall in love.

And our mamas smiled and rolled their eyes
The mothers' reaction to the artist and the other person's shifted relationship was one of playful acceptance.

And said, "Oh, my, my, my"
The mothers still found their children's relationship amusing.

Take me back to the creek beds we turned up
The artist wants to revisit a specific memory from her teenage years.

Two AM, ridin' in your truck
The memory involves the other person driving the singer around late at night.

And all I need is you next to me
The artist felt content and safe with the other person by her side in the memory.

Take me back to the time we had our very first fight
The singer wants to revisit a significant moment in their love story.

Slammin' of doors 'stead of kissin' goodnight
The significant moment involved the singer and the other person arguing instead of expressing affection.

You stayed outside 'til the morning light
Despite the argument, the other person was committed and stayed by the singer's side through the night.

Oh, my, my, my, my
The artist reflects on the various memories with fondness.

A few years had gone and come around
The artist and the other person had grown older together.

We were sittin' at our favorite spot in town
The singer and the other person have a special place that they enjoy together.

And you looked at me, got down on one knee
The other person proposed to the singer.

Take me back to the time when we walked down the aisle
The artist wants to revisit the day that she married the other person.

Our whole town came and our mamas cried
The wedding was a big event that was significant to the artist and their families.

You said, "I do," and I did too
The artist and the other person confirmed their commitment to one another through their wedding vows.

Take me home where we met so many years before
The singer wants to revisit the place where she first met the other person as a child.

We'll rock our babies on the very front porch
The artist imagines growing old with the other person, starting a family, and spending time together on their front porch.

After all this time, you and I
Despite growing older, the singer and the other person have remained committed to one another and their love has endured.

And I'll be eighty-seven, you'll be eighty-nine
The singer imagines growing very old together with the other person.

I'll still look at you like the stars that shine in the sky
The other person will always be a radiant figure to the singer, even in old age.

Oh, my, my, my
The artist reflects on the powerful love story that she shares with the other person.

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Brian Dean Maher, Elisabeth Wagner Rose, Taylor Alison Swift

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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