Swift says that Red as a whole is about heartbreak. “I’ve always said that the world is a different place for the heartbroken. It moves on a different axis, at a different speed,” she tweeted in June 2021. “Time skips backwards and forwards fleetingly. The heartbroken might go through thousands of micro-emotions a day trying to figure out how to get through it without picking up the phone to hear that old familiar voice. In the land of heartbreak, moments of strength, independence, and devil-may-care rebellion are intricately woven together with grief, paralyzing vulnerability and hopelessness.” She added, “Musically and lyrically, Red resembles a heartbroken person. It was all over the place, a fractured mosaic of feelings that somehow all fit together in the end. Happy, free, confused, lonely, devastated, euphoric, wild, and tortured by memories past." On her appearance on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon on Nov. 11, 2021, Swift opened up more dropping Easter eggs for her fans, noting that she first dropped hints in her first album and continued the process throughout her career, escalating it more in recent years. “I wanted to do something that incentivized fans to read the lyrics because my lyrics are what I’m most proud of out of everything I do, every aspect of my job, so I really wanted people to read the lyrics. When I was a kid I used to leaf through CD booklets and read the teeny, tiny print and just obsess over it.” Swift explained that she’d put her lyrics all in lowercase letters except the secret messages she hid in caps. “If they circled the capital letter and wrote them down, it spelled a secret code, a secret passage, sort of—it was really fun and it would tell them a story about the album, or a hint about what the song was about. That’s when it started,” she said. “When it got out of control was when I started to realize that it wasn’t just me that had fun with this, that they had fun with it too. And I never should have learned that, because then I couldn’t stop, and all I started thinking of was, ‘How do I hint at things? How far is too far in advance? Can I hint at something three years in advance? Can I even plan things out that far? I think I’m going to try to do it!’” Swift said the first time she really went all out with Easter eggs was with her “Look What You Made Me Do” music video from Reputation, which referenced a slew of her previous eras. Now that the re-release is finally out, here are all the Easter eggs and song meanings we’ve found hidden in Taylor Swift’s Red (Taylor’s Version).
“State of Grace (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
Swifties very easily deduced that “State of Grace” was about falling in love with Jake Gyllenhaal, who she dated from around October 2010 until early 2011: The song mentions “twin fire signs / four blue eyes.” Swift and Gyllenhaal both have blue eyes and share the astrological sign of Sagittarius. She previously told Good Morning Americawhen the song was originally released in 2012, “I wrote this song about when you first fall in love with someone, the possibilities, and you know kind of thinking about the different ways that it could go.” Even the instrumentation was key to getting her message across, with the feedback-filled, U2-esque guitars capturing the essence of being newly smitten. “It’s a really big sound to me,” she said. “This sounds like the feeling of falling in love in an epic way.”
“Red (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
In a 2013 VH1 Storytellers episode, Swift said of the title track, “I was writing this song, and I was thinking about correlating the colors to different feelings I was going through,” Swift said (viaThe New York Daily News). “Red is such an interesting color to me because you have the great part of red—like, the red emotions that are like, daring and bold and passion and love and affection. And then on the other side of the spectrum, you have jealousy and anger and frustration and ‘you didn’t call me back’ and ‘I need space.’” The needing space theme harkens back to “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” (see a few tracks below), so chances are it’s about the same relationship: Her romance with Gyllenhaal.
“Treacherous (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
Up to that point, “Treacherous” was Swift’s most overtly sexual song ever, and even then was merely peppered with allusions to physical intimacy: “And I’ll do anything you say/ If you say it with your hands.” Swifties have speculated that the “hands” line is a reference to John Mayerand his song “Your Body Is a Wonderland,” in which he sings “I’ll use my hands.” She also sings, “‘Til the gravity’s too much,” which fans have also assumed is a nod to Mayer’s hit ballad “Gravity.” She previously said of the track, “I think that for me, one of my favorite lines of that song is ‘Nothing safe is worth the drive.’ And I think it kind of defines why that song was written. Because I tend to feel like when you’re looking back on the things that have hurt you in life, I look back on them and think if it made you feel something, it was worth it.”
“I Knew You Were Trouble (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
Swift confirmed that “I Knew You Were Trouble” is about Harry Styles. When asked about her 2013 Brit Awards performance of the hit, she told the U.K. Times magazine (via E! News), “It’s not hard to access that emotion when the person the song is directed at is standing by the side of the stage watching.” Styles, then still in One Direction, was reportedly the gentleman standing by the side of the stage gazing at Swift.
“All Too Well (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
“All Too Well” describes Swift’s relationship with Gyllenhaal, which she confirmed in the liner notes with the hidden message “MAPLE LATTES,” which they were photographed grabbing together on Thanksgiving 2010. The song paints vivid pictures of a beautiful time in a relationship—and the heartbreaking aftermath when it ends, complete with Gyllenhaal keeping her old scarf (which she later went on to make merch about). Additionally, she mentions his “sweet disposition,” which is also the title of a song by Temper Trap, reportedly one of Gyllenhaal’s favorite bands. Swift told Rolling Stone of writing the song, “It was a day when I was just, like, a broken human, walking into rehearsal just feeling terrible about what was going on in my personal life… I just ended up playing four chords over and over again, and the band started kicking in.” She added, “People just started playing along with me… I think they could tell I was really going through it. I just started singing and riffing and ad-libbing this song that basically was ‘All Too Well.’” As far as the song becoming a favorite among Swifties, Swift herself was taken by surprise. “It wasn’t a single, and it didn’t have a video—all these ways that I was taught music permeated culture. I didn’t see that happening with that song.” She recalled performing the track at the 2014 Grammys, “I can’t believe it now when I play it live and everybody in the crowd knows every word. I’m truly astonished by it, and I think that’s one of the most beautiful things about this album for me when I look back on it. I really didn’t pick that one. I thought it was too dark, too sad, too intense. It’s fun when things surprise you like that.”
“22 (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
As far as Swift songs go, “22” is one of the most straightforward: It’s about embracing your youth and having fun with your girls, even if and when drama hits (“We’re happy, free, confused and lonely at the same time / It’s miserable and magical, oh yeah”) … and sometimes, as evidenced by “You look like bad news / I gotta have you,” enjoying the occasional dalliance with a bad boy. The hidden message in the lyrics of “22” in the original liner notes for Red was “ASHLEY DIANNA CLAIRE SELENA,” listing out Swift’s BFFs at the time: Ashley Avignone, former Gleestar Dianna Agron, Claire Callaway and Selena Gomez (with whom Swift is still close friends today).
“I Almost Do (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
Swifties generally agree that “I Almost Do,” in which Swift sings about wishing she knew how to quit someone, is likely about Gyllenhaal, who famously uttered those words in Brokeback Mountain.
“We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
“We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together (Taylor’s Version)”, the re-recording of 2012 Red’s first single, is reportedly yet another song about Gyllenhaal. She revealed the backstory of the song on Good Morning America at the time of its original 2012 release. “This guy walks in who is a friend of my ex’s and starts talking about how he’s heard we’re going to get back together. And that was not the case,” she said. “So I start telling them the story: break up, get back together, break up, get back together—just, ugh, the worst! And I picked up the guitar and [songwriting partner and producer Max Martin href=“https://parade.com/970328/jessicasager/best-songs-of-the-2010s/” target="_blank”] said, ‘This is what we’re writing.’"
“Stay Stay Stay (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
In the original Red liner notes, Swift wrote that “Stay Stay Stay” was about “DAYDREAMING ABOUT REAL LIFE.” Many Swifties think this track is about Conor Kennedy, who played football at Deerfield Academy, because of the lyric “This morning I said we should talk about it / ‘Cause I read you should never leave a fight unresolved / That’s when you came in wearing a football helmet.”
“The Last Time (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
The hint Swift gave for “The Last Time” in the original Red liner notes was “L.A. ON YOUR BREAK,” though that could be almost anyone. Swifties by and large think the song is about Gyllenhaal, and Swift hinted at an on-again-off-again relationship behind the track in an interview with NPR. “The idea was based on this experience I had with someone who was kind of this unreliable guy. You never know when he’s going to leave, you never know when he’s going to come back, but he always does come back,” she said. “My visual for this song is, there’s a guy on his knees sitting on the ground outside of a door. And on the other side of the door is his girlfriend, who he keeps on leaving—and he keeps coming back to her, but then he leaves again. He’s saying, ‘This is the last time I’m going to do this to you.’ And she’s saying, ‘This is the last time I’m asking you this: Don’t do this again.’ And she’s wondering whether to let him in, and he just wants her to give him another chance, but she doesn’t know if he’s going to break her heart again. It’s a really fragile emotion you’re dealing with when you want to love someone, but you don’t know if it’s smart to.”
“Holy Ground (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
“Holy Ground” is about Swift’s friendship with her ex, Joe Jonas. Swift recalled in a 2012 interview about Red, “The song ‘Holy Ground’ is a song that I wrote about the feeling I got after years had gone by and I finally appreciated a past relationship for what it was rather than being bitter about what it didn’t end up being. I was sitting there thinking about it after I had just seen him, and I just was like, ‘You know what? That was good. It was good, having that in my life.’”
“Sad Beautiful Tragic (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
Swift told fans before a live performance of “Sad Beautiful Tragic”—on the last night of her Red tour—that the song was about a relationship that ended. “On the last night of the Red tour I kind of want to play a song from Red that I never really play, but it’s a song that really means a lot to me because a lot of the time when you think about love, you think about how it has to have a happy ending for it to count,” she said. “This is a song that I wrote about a love that didn’t have a happy ending, but it was still worth writing about, and it’s worth singing about.” The liner note clues for this track on the original Red read, “WHILE YOU WERE ON A TRAIN.” This may point to her romance with Gyllenhaal, a New Yorker who may well ride the subway occasionally (and who joined Mumford and Sons on a train at one point).
“The Lucky One (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
The liner note hint for “The Lucky One” in the original Red was “WOULDN’T YOU LIKE TO KNOW.” Yes, we would! But we also sort of do already: The song, which tells of a superstar who left the spotlight, is widely believed to be about iconic singer Joni Mitchell, who Swift was at one point reportedly in talks to play in a biopic—before Mitchell herself squashed the idea.
“Everything Has Changed (feat. Ed Sheeran) (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
“Everything Has Changed” is an ode to Swift’s then-love Conor Kennedy, as evidenced by the “HYANNIS PORT” hint in the liner notes and the mention of “green eyes and freckles,” both of which the American Camelot heir possesses.
“Starlight (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
Swift’s muses for “Starlight” were Ethel and Bobby Kennedy. The liner note hint in the original Red says “FOR ETHEL,” and Swift herself has spoken about being fascinated by Ethel’s life and romance. “I get a lot of style inspiration from the 1960s, so I’ll go and look at black and white pictures, and look at [photos from the] ’50s and ’60s, and I came across this picture of these two kids dancing at a dance. It immediately made me think of like, how much fun they must have had that night. It was back in the late ’40s. I ended up reading underneath that it was Ethel Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy,” Swift told The Wall Street Journal. “And they were like 17. So I just kind of wrote that song from that place, not really knowing how they met or anything like that. And then her daughter Rory ended up coming to a show a couple weeks later and I told her about the song and she was like, ‘You have to meet my mom. She would love to meet you.’ So that was kind of what that song was about.”
“Begin Again (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
The muse behind “Begin Again” is likely Conor Kennedy, who’s quite tall—and that would fit, because the hidden message in the original liner notes is “I WEAR HEELS NOW.” She told Yahoo! Music of the tune in 2012, “I had many different opinions of love over the course of the last two years. And the song ‘Begin Again’ came after the dust kind of settled on one of those situations I was in. it’s an interesting feeling when you kind of look up from it,” she continued. “For the past year, you’ve been looking back and recounting everything, just writing about it and kind of going back in time. Then all of a sudden you have this moment where you look up and look around and realize that there’s something else out there for you, clearly. And I think that that kind of thing that happens where you all of a sudden have this epiphany that there’s hope, that it starts over, that there’s rebirth in that whole horrible crash-and-burn end of a relationship, I think that’s a pretty wonderful moment. And for me, that moment inspired the song ‘Begin Again.’”
“The Moment I Knew (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
Originally a Target Deluxe Edition bonus track, “The Moment I Knew” is about an ex missing Swift’s birthday party, with many Swifties pointing fingers at Gyllenhaal once more. “‘The Moment I Knew’ was a song about my 21st birthday party, which was the worst experience ever,” she told Yahoo! Music. Swift turned 21 in December 2011, which would make Gyllenhaal the likely culprit.
“Come Back…Be Here (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
Some Swifties speculate that “Come Back…Be Here” is about Styles, thanks to the “I guess you’re in London today” lyric. However, others believe the song is actually about Zac Efron, her co-star in The Lorax. For her part, Swift says, “There’s a song I wrote with Dan Wilson called ‘Come Back… Be Here,’ which I wrote about falling for someone and then they have to go away for work. They’re traveling, you’re traveling, and you’re thinking about them, but you’re wondering how it’s gonna work when there’s so much distance between you.”
“Girl at Home (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
Swift says that “Girl at Home” was about a guy with a girlfriend who was flirting with other ladies, but not necessarily her. “there’s a song called ‘Girl at Home,’ which was about a guy who had a girlfriend,” she told Yahoo! Music in 2012, “and I just felt like it was disgusting that he was flirting with other girls.”
“State of Grace (Acoustic Version) (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
The acoustic rendition of “State of Grace” has, obviously, the same meanings as the original—just with a softer vibe. She previously said of the acoustic bonus track, “It’s really sweet and slowed down and it completely changes the song.”
“Ronan (Taylor’s Version)” Song Meaning
Swift co-wrote “Ronan” with Maya Thompson, who kept a blog about her young son Ronan’s battle with cancer. Ronan tragically passed away in 2011 from neuroblastoma. Swift reportedly asked for Thompson’s blessing to include the track on Red (Taylor’s Version). Thompson shared a letter Swift sent her, in which the singer wrote, “I’ve recently completed the re-recording of my 4th album, Red. It’s really exceeded my expectations in so many ways, and one of those ways is that I thought it would be appropriate to add ‘Ronan’ to this album. Red was an album of heartbreak and healing, of rage and rawness, of tragedy and trauma, and of the loss of an imagined future alongside someone. I wrote Ronan while I was making Red and discovered your story as you so honestly and devastatingly told it. My genuine hope is that you’ll agree with me that this song should be included on this album. As my co-writer and the rightful owner of this story in its entirety, your opinion and approval of this idea really matters to me, and I’ll honor your wishes here.” When “Ronan” was first released, the heartbreaking track was only available for purchase on iTunes, and Swift donated all the proceeds from the song to Stand Up to Cancer.
“Better Man (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” Song Meaning
Swift sold the wistful “Better Man” to Little Big Town, about wishing an ex hadn’t done her so dirty, who released it in 2016. Little Big Town singer Karen Fairchild said of the song, “Everybody has a better man. It might have been a lover, or a parent that disappointed you. I think the beauty of that storytelling is that we can all relate to being disappointed in someone and still loving them, but saying ‘Enough is enough.’ This would have been amazing if you would have gotten your act together. That’s kind of a fun song to sing.”
“Nothing New (feat. Phoebe Bridgers) (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault) Song Meaning
Phoebe Bridgersguests on Swift’s “Nothing New,” singing a full verse. The song is a cutting take on the sexism young women face if they dare to live their lives in a way that makes them happy—and the heartbreaking realization that to many people (and audiences), women’s desirability is tied to their youth and beauty, neither of which last forever. Back in 2020, Bridgers hilariously revealed that she’d love to collaborate with Swift. More recently, Bridgers gushed about her feature on the track to Billboard. “I just am so excited to have people take it at face value the day that it comes out, because I got teary recording it. I just couldn’t be more excited.” She added of Swift, “I think that she is an incredible business person and an incredible writer. What she’s been able to build just from writing adeptly from a young age is insane.” As far as Swift’s re-recording her back catalog, Bridgers was 100% supportive. “It’s really inspiring for me and a lot of musicians,” Bridgers said. “I think a lot of people make a couple of records [and are] like, ‘Oh wow, I hit the top, I’m great now,’ and the fact that she just has always wanted more from the world—like, ‘No, no, no, f**k you, I’m going to make it again, I’m going to make it better, and it’s going to belong to me’—is the coolest.” During an appearance on Late Night With Seth Meyers just after Red (Taylor’s Version) dropped, Swift told her version of events that led up to the duet. “I’ve dug up those songs from the crypt they were in, and I reached out to artists that I love and said, ‘Do you want to sing this with me?’” she recalled. “Phoebe Bridgers is one of my favorite artists in the world. If she sings it, I will listen to it.” Swift revealed that she wrote “Nothing New” when she was 22 and coping with the feeling of not being the “shiny new artist” anymore as she worked on her fourth album, which she said is a “very female artist perspective.” She said she sent Bridgers a very long text along with the song to ask for a duet, to which Bridgers replied, “I’ve been waiting for this text my entire life.”
“Babe (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” Song Meaning
Swift sold her song “Babe” toSugarland, and the Texas-based country stars kept Swift’s background vocals on their 2018 version of the track. Swift co-starred in the original “Babe” video as a redheaded mistress to singer Jennifer Nettles’ onscreen husband, played by Superman Returnsstar Brandon Routh. In the updated version, Swift harmonizes with herself, adding a refrain of “What about your promises, promises?”
“Message In a Bottle (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” Song Meaning
Is the poppy, 1989-esque “Message In a Bottle” Swift’s way of going meta? In 2012, Swift told The Daily Beast, “I take these songs and these people who inspire these songs on a case-by-case basis. If there were someone who was a good person, I’m not going to write something bad about them. But if they handle a situation in a way that really messed up my life for a while, that’s what I’m going to write about. For me, I’ve never changed the reason I write a song. Songs for me are like a message in a bottle. You send them out to the world and maybe the person who you feel that way about will hear about it someday.”
“I Bet You Think About Me (feat. Chris Stapleton) (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” Song Meaning
“I Bet You Think About Me” is about a girl who grew up on a farm who didn’t fit in with her ex’s old money, elitist crowd. Chris Stapletonharmonizes with Swift in this harmonica-heavy track, in which Swift relishes in her wealthy former lover missing her after letting her go. Swift grew up on a Christmas tree farm, but it’s unclear whether the rest of the song is autobiographical.
“Forever Winter (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” Song Meaning
Swift co-wrote “Forever Winter” with Mark Foster of Foster the People. The song references a man who doesn’t believe in love and gets pulled “down by gravity,” which may point to John Mayer, especially when she sings, “Too young to know it gets better”—they dated when she was 19 and he was 32.
“Run (feat. Ed Sheeran) (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” Song Meaning
“Run,” another duet with Swift’s platonic BFF Ed Sheeran, is a beautiful ballad. The themes echo “Begin Again” to a degree, especially when she sings, “So you laugh like a child / And I’ll sing like no one cares.”
“The Very First Night (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” Song Meaning
“The Very First Night,” about missing an ex’s better times, could fit on Speak Now thanks to its country-tinged instrumental arrangements but pop sensibility. Like “All Too Well,” it references dancing in the kitchen, but has a much happier vibe than the crushing heartbreak of the ballad.
“All Too Well (1o Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” Song Meaning
“All Too Well (10 Minute Version)” has the same meaning as the original, but obviously goes into significantly more detail about Swift’s view of her ill-fated relationship with Gyllenhaal, insinuating he kept it clandestine: “You kept me like a secret / I kept you like an oath.” It also touches further on their nine-year age difference (which she hints was his reason for breaking things off), his penchant for coffee, the time they spent together in Brooklyn, and how he allegedly skipped her 21st birthday party—even after charming her father—and leaving an unnamed actress (who many Swifties believe to be Jennifer Aniston) to ask her what happened. The song structure is vastly different, with numerous more verses and bridges, instrumental arrangements, and a fading outro refrain of various lyrics ending in “I was there, I was there.” Swift also drops an F-bomb in the track, but not in the way you’d expect: Instead of cussing her ex, she says, “F**k the patriarchy” in a reference to a keychain. She also shades the song’s subject for growing older while his lovers stay the same age. (For what it’s worth, Gyllenhaal’s currently dating model Jeanne Cadieu, who’s 25 to his 40; they’ve been together about three years.) “It literally just was that song, but it had probably seven extra verses and it included the f-word,” Swift previously told Rolling Stone. “My sound guy was like, ‘Hey, I burned a CD of that thing you were doing in case you want it,’” she recalled of the jam session that turned into the fan-favorite breakup song. “I ended up taking it home and listening to it, and I was like, ‘I actually really like this, but it definitely is like 10 minutes long and I need to pare it down, so I’m going to call [co-writer] Liz Rose.’” Swift revealed on Late Night With Seth Meyers that the 10-minute version of “All Too Well” is the one she loves the best, especially since she didn’t have to leave some of her favorite lines “on the cutting room floor.” “This is the original thing that I wrote,” she said. “There’s a song called all too well it was never a single, it never had a video and somehow the fans turned it into the song from this album. I used to get so sad when I would sing it that I could barely get through the song.” Swift said that her beloved Swifties singing along to it at live shows transformed it from heartbreaking to “joyful,” adding, “I think this version is the version of the song that’s meant to be heard.” Swift also released a 13-minute “All Too Well” short film at 7 p.m. ET on Friday, Nov. 12 that she wrote, directed and starred in alongside Sadie Sink and Dylan O’Brien—and that will presumably play out like a mini-movie about her romance with Gyllenhaal packed with more Easter eggs all its own. The film will have a premiere in New York City the day it drops on YouTube, and Swift revealed on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon that she’ll perform the 10-minute version of “All Too Well” on Saturday Night Live on Nov. 13, 2021. Swifties were quick to notice that Swift dropped an Easter egg for the extended “All Too Well” lyrics in a recent TikTok in which she celebrated fall: Here, you can see her writing the line, “Just between us, did the love affair maim you too?” “I used to get so sad when I would sing it that I could barely get through the song,” Swift told Meyers. The fans singing along has transformed it from heartbreaking to “joyful,” she noted. “I think this version is the version of the song that’s meant to be heard.”
Taylor Swift “All Too Well (Taylor’s Version)” Lyrics
Next, find out Taylor Swift’s net worth—and exactly how she earned it.
