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Ours

Single | Bonus Track | Speak Now (2010) | Speak Now (Taylor's Version) [2023]

“Ours” is track fifteen on the deluxe edition of Taylor’s third studio album, Speak Now (2010). It tells the story of a love frowned upon by others, but Taylor reassures her boyfriend that despite the criticism they are getting, she loves him. Originally a bonus track, “Ours” was later made the sixth single from the album. The re-recording of the song, “Ours (Taylor’s Version)”, was released on July 7, 2023, on Speak Now (Taylor’s Version).

Background and Lyrical Theme

“Ours” is a country ballad that was solely written by Taylor. She also co-produced the song along with her frequent collaborator Nathan Chapman. Taylor told VH1 in 2012:

«I’m excited about telling the beginnings of stories, like the story of this song called ‘Ours,’ where I wrote it about this guy nobody thought I should be with. So I wrote this song specifically just to play it for him, just to show him, ‘I don’t care what anyone says. I don’t care that you have tattoos. I don’t care that you have a gap between your teeth. I love you for who you are.’ And that song ended up actually making it on Speak Now and becoming a No. 1 song.»

Taylor Swift

“Ours” was first released as a promotional single from Speak Now by Big Machine Records on November 8, 2011. It was later made the sixth official single from the album, and was released to country radio on December 5, 2011.

Music Video

The music video for “Ours” was filmed in early November 2011, and was released in December 2011. It is the second video of Taylor’s for which she wrote the concept for and was directed by Declan Whitebloom, who was also responsible for Taylor’s video for “Mean.” The story of “Ours” finds Taylor as a frumpy-dressed office worker getting through a difficult day by watching various videos of herself and her boyfriend who is played by Zach Gilford. The actor is best known for his role as Matt Saracen on the NBC television drama series “Friday Night Lights.” Whitebloom expressed: “When Taylor says, ‘I’ve got an idea,’ you listen to what she’s gonna say. And so I did, and it was a great idea—and I loved it!” To promote the video, Taylor released thirteen behind-the-scenes “webisodes” on her official website. The video received praise from music critics. Erin Strecker of Entertainment Weekly wrote, “I’ll admit it: I gasped at the twist ending with Swift rushing off from work not home, but to an airport to meet her military beau, presumably returning from overseas. Sweet, with just the right tinge of bittersweet sadness for the country-infused pop story.”

Live Performances

Taylor performed “Ours” at the 2011 Country Music Association Awards on November 9, 2011. During the performance she “donned a simple pink sweater and plopped down on a couch.” The Target exclusive of the live album, Speak Now: World Tour Live (2011), contains the bonus performance of “Ours” on the “Speak Now World Tour” (2011-2012), since it was added to the main setlist for the 2012 leg of the tour. “Ours” was also performed on some dates of “The RED Tour” (2013-2014). Taylor sang the song on select dates of her later tours, including the “reputation Stadium Tour” (Foxborough, July 28, 2018), and “The Eras Tour” (Arlington, March 31, 2023, and Dublin, June 29, 2024).

Critical Reception

“Ours” received acclaim from music critics. Billy Dukes of Taste of Country gave the song a four-and-a-half out of five stars and wrote that “Lyrically, ‘Ours’ is similar to ‘Our Song‘ in that it’s cheesy and delicious.” He added that the lyrics were “sharply written” and that the “production was welcomed respite from the shine and polish Swift has coated previous hit songs with.” Allen Jacobs of Roughstock claimed “‘Ours’ may be her best single since ‘White Horse.'”

Commercial Performance

The song appeared on the US iTunes Top 100 and debuted at No. 5 on the Hot Digital Songs and No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100, charting for a total of 20 weeks on the latter. Internationally the song appeared at No. 68 in Canada, and at No. 181 in United Kingdom. The song also charted at No. 91 in Australia. On the week ending March 3, 2012, “Ours” became Taylor’s 15th consecutive song to hit the top ten on Hot Country Songs. This made her the first woman to begin her chart history with 15 consecutive Top Tens dating to the survey’s 1944 launch. On the week ending March 31, 2012, “Ours” topped the Billboard Country Songs chart, making it Taylor’s sixth chart-topper, following “Our Song” in 2007–2008, “Should’ve Said No” in 2008, “Love Story” in 2008, “You Belong with Me” in 2009, and “Sparks Fly” in 2011.

Taylor's Version

The re-recording of the song, “Ours (Taylor’s Version)”, was released on July 7, 2023. Upon the release of Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), the re-recording of the song debuted and peaked at No. 68 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, the week ending July 13, 2023.

Lyrics

[Verse 1]
Elevator buttons and morning air
Strangers’ silence makes me wanna take the stairs
If you were here we’d laugh about their vacant stares
But right now, my time is theirs

[Verse 2]
Seems like there’s always someone who disapproves
They’ll judge it like they know about me and you
And the verdict comes from those with nothing else to do
The jury’s out, but my choice is you

[Chorus]
So don’t you worry your pretty little mind
People throw rocks at things that shine
And life makes love look hard
The stakes are high, the water’s rough
But this love is ours

[Verse 3]
You never know what people have up their sleeves
Ghosts from your past gonna jump out at me
Lurking in the shadows with their lip gloss smiles
But I don’t care, ’cause right now you’re mine
And you’ll say

[Chorus]
Don’t you worry your pretty little mind
People throw rocks at things that shine
And life makes love look hard
The stakes are high, the water’s rough
But this love is ours

[Bridge]
And it’s not theirs to speculate if it’s wrong, and
Your hands are tough but they are where mine belong, and
I’ll fight their doubt and give you faith with this song for you
‘Cause I love the gap between your teeth
And I love the riddles that you speak
And any snide remarks from my father about your tattoos will be ignored
‘Cause my heart is yours

[Final Chorus]
So don’t you worry your pretty little mind
People throw rocks at things that shine
And life makes love look hard
Don’t you worry your pretty little mind
People throw rocks at things that shine
But they can’t take what’s ours
They can’t take what’s ours

[Outro]
The stakes are high, the water’s rough
But this love is ours