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I Did Something Bad

reputation (2017)

“I Did Something Bad” is the third track on Taylor’s sixth studio album, reputation (2017). The song reflects her response to the media narrative surrounding her at the time, adopting the voice of the villainous persona the public and press had cast her as. Through its bold production and unapologetic lyrics, Taylor leans into that dark, fictional character, turning public scrutiny into defiant empowerment.

Background

Taylor released her fifth studio album, 1989, in October 2014, marking a deliberate shift from country to synth-pop. The album was both a critical and commercial success and played a key role in establishing her as a global pop artist. By 2016, however, she was facing intense public scrutiny. Amid widespread media attention and disputes with figures such as Scooter Braun, Kanye West, and Justin Bieber, a wave of backlash took hold. In response, Taylor stepped back from the public eye for nearly a year. During this time, she reduced her social media presence and avoided press engagements, reflecting on her role in the spotlight and even contemplating stepping away from music entirely. In her “Person of the Year” interview with Time in 2023, she said:

«You have a fully manufactured frame job, in an illegally recorded phone call, which Kim Kardashian edited and then put out to say to everyone that I was a liar. That took me down psychologically to a place I’ve never been before. I moved to a foreign country. I didn’t leave a rental house for a year. I was afraid to get on phone calls. I pushed away most people in my life because I didn’t trust anyone anymore. I went down really, really hard.»

Taylor Swift

In a 2019 interview with Rolling Stone, Taylor had previously reflected on the emotional toll of that time period, explaining how difficult it was to process her feelings: “I wrote a lot of really aggressively bitter poems constantly. I wrote a lot of think pieces that I knew I’d never publish, about what it’s like to feel like you’re in a shame spiral. And I couldn’t figure out how to learn from it. Because I wasn’t sure exactly what I did that was so wrong.”

To begin healing, she turned to what she knew best—her songwriting. In September 2016, she returned to the studio and began channeling her pain into the early stages of what would become reputation. The record offered a pointed response to the controversies and shifting public perception, exploring themes of identity, privacy, and the complexities of fame.

The inspiration for “I Did Something Bad” came to Taylor in a dream during the fall. She began developing the song on piano at her Nashville apartment, capturing the core melody and concept. Thirteen days later, she brought the idea into a studio session with producers Max Martin and Shellback, where the track began to take full shape.

Lyrical Theme

“I Did Something Bad” stands out as one of the most unexpected and sonically daring songs in Taylor’s discography. At the time of its release, both the aggressive production and unapologetic lyrics marked a sharp departure from the polished, confessional artistry she was known for. In the track, she adopts the persona of a scorned yet empowered woman—furious, unbothered, and boldly defiant in the face of criticism. It served as a response to the intense media scrutiny surrounding her personal life and public image. Speaking to Rolling Stone in 2019, Taylor explained the deeper meaning behind the track:

«I kind of grew up thinking, 'If I’m nice, and if I try to do the right thing, maybe I can just ace this whole thing [life].' And it turns out I can’t. It’s something I’ve had to reconcile within myself in the last couple of years—that sort of 'good' complex. Because from the time I was a kid I’d try to be kind, be a good person. Try really hard. But you get walked all over sometimes. And how do you respond to being walked all over? You can’t just sit there and eat your salad and let it happen. 'I Did Something Bad' was about doing something that was so against what I would usually do.»

Taylor Swift

As she shared with media outlets in 2019, Taylor also partly drew lyrical inspiration for the song from the season seven finale of Game of Thrones—one of her favorite television series. In the episode, titled “The Dragon and the Wolf,” sisters Sansa and Arya Stark join forces to outwit and execute Littlefinger for his betrayal. The theme of calculated revenge and female empowerment resonated with her and helped shape the defiant tone of “I Did Something Bad.”

In December 2025, Taylor updated parts of her discography on major streaming platforms, including Apple Music, where her first six studio albums were made available in Dolby Atmos. Alongside the audio upgrades, she made subtle lyrical revisions to select tracks. In “I Did Something Bad,” the first-verse line “I don’t regret it one bit ’cause he had it comin.” was updated to “And if he calls me a bitch, then he had it coming.” A lyric in “Delicate” was also altered.

Production

Regarding the song’s production, Taylor noted that “I Did Something Bad” was the first track she, Max Martin and Shellback wrote where they truly felt they had broken away from the sound of 1989. One of its most distinctive elements—the unusual “ratatatata” sound that follows the chorus—came to her in a dream. Unable to replicate it with a traditional instrument, they manipulated her voice using a vocoder to create the effect. This vocal distortion technique would go on to become a defining feature of the reputation album. Reflecting on the studio session for the song, Taylor said:

«I wrote this song on piano. It's not going to sound like it, though. It's not that kind of song. So, I brought it to them [Max Martin & Shellback] and I was trying to explain the production. I had had a weird dream and I had woken up with this sound in my head. It was a sound that was so hooky and so catchy that I knew it had to be in a song because it was that annoying. It wouldn't stop going around in my head. Like, 'After the chorus, that's what I wanna hear, but I don't want it to be my voice, I want it to be an instrument. What instrument is that?' So, I was playing the voice memo to Max, and he's like, 'Oh no, there's not an instrument that can do that. But what we can do is, we can take your voice doing it and pitch it down, so that it sounds like an enchantress or a dude.' So, that's what you're hearing after the chorus. This is when we first kinda knew we might be onto something with the album.»

Taylor Swift

“I Did Something Bad” is notable as the first song in Taylor’s career to include profane language, featuring the word “shit.” But despite containing explicit lyrics, neither the track nor the reputation album carries an explicit content label.

Live Performances

During the “reputation Stadium Tour” in 2018, Taylor introduced a remix of “I Did Something Bad” featuring new lyrics in the bridge. This version emphasizes how society often seeks to tear down famous figures simply for the thrill of watching them fall from grace (a theme she would go on to explore in other songs, such as “Cassandra“).

They’re burning all the witches
Even if you aren’t one
They got their pitchforks and proof
Their receipts and reasons

They’re burning all the witches
Even if you aren’t one
And it’s just for fun

They’re burning all the witches
Even if you aren’t one
They got pitchforks and proof
They don’t need their reasons

Taylor also performed this remix during her opening act at the 2018 American Music Awards—her first televised performance since the 2016 Grammys. On “The Eras Tour” (2023–2024), she revisited “I Did Something Bad” in various arrangements: performing an acoustic version in London on August 17, 2024; pairing it with “Should’ve Said No” (2006) during the Miami show on October 19, 2024; and combining it with “Cassandra” (2024) and “mad woman” (2020) in Toronto on November 22, 2024.

Critical Reception

“I Did Something Bad” received mixed reviews from music critics upon release. Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly cited the track as an example of Taylor’s new defiant persona on reputation, highlighting its focus on “seduction, alcohol, and the soul-numbing isolation of fame.” However, she felt the song didn’t fully showcase Taylor’s strength as a songwriter. Jordan Bassett of NME echoed this sentiment, noting that the track encapsulated the album’s overarching themes.

On a more positive note, Raisa Bruner of Time praised the song’s “blazing imagery,” while New York Time’s Nate Jones argued that “I Did Something Bad” would have made a stronger lead single than “Look What You Made Me Do,” writing: “Not only does ‘Something Bad’ sell the lack of remorse much better, it bangs harder than any other song on pop radio this summer except ‘Bodak Yellow.’”

Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone also saw its live potential, stating: “This is just waiting for her to turn it into a head-banging live guitar monster.”

Commercial Performance

Despite not being released as a single, “I Did Something Bad” has sold multiple million copies in the United States alone. It further managed to chart on several extension charts. In the US, it reached No. 14 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100, which serves as an extension to the main Hot 100 chart. Internationally, the song peaked at No. 5 on the New Zealand Heatseeker Singles chart, a component chart of the official New Zealand Singles chart.