Speak Now World Tour Arm Lyrics
Speak Now World Tour | 2011-2012
«One day at rehearsals I was having a rough day, and I wrote a lyric by my friend Selena Gomez on my arm: 'You’ve got every right to a beautiful life'. It looked cool, so now I put lyrics on my arm every night. It’s like a mood ring.»
Deciphering the references became a fandom activity. Of course, only Taylor knows what truly inspired the lyrics that she wrote on her arm each night of the tour. In hindsight, it is a well-known fact that she was working through her painful breakup with Jake Gyllenhaal at the time, but at some dates she also simply chose a lyric from one of her favorite songs or artists.
Speak Now World Tour Arm Lyrics
“You’ve got every right to a beautiful life”
Show: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: Selena Gomez and the Scene, “Who Says”
Taylor chose a lyric from her good friend Selena Gomez to kick off the 2011 “Speak Now Tour.” “Who Says” is a confidence booster to Selena’s fans, and perhaps to Taylor, as she was no doubting fighting butterflies as she prepared to embark on another massive headlining tour.
“You gotta keep your head up, but you can’t let your hair down”
Place: Omaha, Nebraska
Song: Andy Grammer, “Keep Your Head Up”
While this show was one week after the “Speak Now, Help Now” rehearsal in Nashville, Taylor chose another lyric meant to boost her self-esteem. She proved throughout this tour that she favors lyrics that address and rise above personal vulnerabilities.
“I recommend getting your heart trampled on to anyone”
Place: Omaha, Nebraska
Song: Alanis Morissette, “You Learn”
Quite the mood shift compared to the night before. Taylor would later cover this song during a tour stop in Toronto. So perhaps Taylor was only paying tribute to one of her favorite artists.
“Cinderella said to Snow White, ‘How does love get so off course?'”
Place: Des Moines, Iowa
Song: Faith Hill, “This Kiss”
Like her tribute to Alanis Morissette the night before, Taylor could have just been paying homage to a woman she admires in choosing to write a Faith Hill lyric on her arm. After all, “This Kiss” is one of her favorite songs. However, it’s difficult to ignore back-to-back breakup lyrics.
“And for one desperate moment, he crept back in her memory”
Place: Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
Song: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, “American Girl”
“American Girl” was also featured on Taylor’s pre-show playlist. Furthermore, she is a big fan of the song and has covered it multiple times over the years, one of them being a professional recording from 2009.
“It took a while to understand the beauty of just letting go”
Place: Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
Song: The Chicks, “Let Him Fly”
Once again, Taylor drew inspiration from one of her favorite bands. She sang the Chicks’ “Cowboy Take Me Away” at one of her four shows in Newark at a later stop on the tour.
“I guess we’re all one phone call from our knees”
Place: Orlando, Florida
Song: Mat Kearney, “Closer to Love”
Taylor proved the diversity of her iPod throughout this tour. Kearney is a Nashville based singer-songwriter, but most of his success has been on the Adult Top 40 chart. Interestingly enough, the lyric is similar to one of the lines in Taylor’s magnum opus “All Too Well“: And you call me up again just to break me like a promise.
“One life, you got to do what you should”
Place: Columbus, Ohio
Song: U2, “One”
As Taylor began her third week of the “Speak Now Tour,” the lyrics on her left arm began feeling more hopeful. If it was indeed heartbreak that struck some time around Omaha, then she now seemed to have found acceptance.
“I slept in castles and fell in love because I was taught to dream”
Place: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Song: Faith Hill, “Fireflies”
The “Speak Now World Tour” dropped the castle scenery from the previous “Fearless Tour,” but it still played into a fantasy that Taylor acted out during the course of the evening. If this line from ‘Fireflies’ didn’t send a personal message, it at least fit well into that imagery.
“You better lose yourself in the music”
Place: Detroit, Michigan
Song: Eminem, “Lose Yourself”
Taylor has been known to sprinkle Eminem songs into her set during the early stages of her career, so there’s no doubting her familiarity with this Detroit-born rapper. It’s fairly easy to find video of Taylor performing this song from as far back as 2007.
"I slept in castles and fell in love because I was taught to dream."
“Remember me in ribbons and curls, love your baby girl”
Place: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: Sugarland, “Baby Girl”
Taylor could have been speaking to the city of Nashville with this lyric, as she was somewhat of the Music City’s princess at the time. This was her CMA Music Festival performance, however Sugarland was not on the lineup. Taylor and the duo would later collaborate on the song “Babe” in 2018, which was written by Taylor and re-released on RED (Taylor’s Version) in 2021.
“Love has 1,000 faces”
Place: St. Paul, Minnesota
Song: Randy Montana, “1,000 Faces”
This lyric was no doubt a tip of the cap to the night’s opening act. Taylor must have really beeen a fan of the song, though, as she didn’t repeat the tribute for subsequent openers, aside from tour mainstays Needtobreathe in Knoxville.
“A moment, a love, a dream, a laugh, a kiss, a cry, our rights, our wrongs”
Place: St. Paul, Minnesota
Song: The Temper Trap, “Sweet Disposition”
Taylor is a big fan of the Australian rock band The Temper Trap. She met them at the 2012 ARIAs and asked them to write lyrics of “Sweet Dispostion” on paper and sign it as gift for her (ex) boyfriend Harry Styles’ birthday:
“She was like ‘Hey, you know, I’m a big fan’ blah, blah, blah. And she goes, ‘Ahh it’s my boyfriend’s birthday soon. I wanna give him a present – here’s a piece of paper, can you please write down the lyrics to ‘Sweet Disposition’ and sign it? I wanna give it to him.’”
Apparently she liked the handwritten lyrics herself too, since she has the original framed above her stove in her New York City apartment.
“Where I was born, where I was raised, where I keep all my yesterdays”
Place: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Song: Montgomery Gentry, “My Town”
Her actual hometown of Wyomissing doesn’t have a venue big enough to support 20,000 Taylor fans, so she compromised by calling Pittsburgh her homecoming. Technically, she grew up much closer to Philadelphia, though.
“I am just a dreamer, but you are just a dream”
Place: Buffalo, New York
Song: Neil Young, “Like a Hurricane”
Neil Young was a member of Buffalo Springfield, so it’s likey Taylor chose this lyric as an homage to him at this tour stop. Moreover, she could also have been speaking to the same person who seemed to break her heart at the beginning of the tour. Many of the next few lyrical tributes seemed to indicate she’d moved out of the eye of her emotional storm.
“‘Cause when I close my eyes, I’m somewhere with you”
Place: Hartford, Connecticut
Song: Kenny Chesney, “Somewhere with You”
Taylor grabbed lyrics from just about every genre, but was always careful to include music from the style that made her famous. When she did, it was a nice peek at the list of artists and songs on country radio that she found inspiring.
“She said, I think I’ll go to Boston”
Place: Foxboro, Massachusetts
Song: Augustana, “Boston”
Foxboro is just outside of Boston, making this left-arm lyric somewhat obvious. On the other hand, Augustana aren’t even from Boston; they’re a rock band from San Diego.
“Like love from a drunken sky, she’s confetti falling down at night”
Place: Foxboro, Massachusetts
Song: Tim McGraw, “She’s My Kind of Rain”
The previous night’s show in Foxboro proved Taylor’s mettle. During her infamous first “rain show” she pressed on despite a driving rain. This lyric may have been in appreciation of that storm.
“And we are just breakable, breakable, breakable girls and boys”e
Place: Greensboro, North Carolina
Song: Ingrid Michaelson, “Breakable”
This album cut from Ingrid Michaelson’s 2006 “Girls and Boys” album again showed that Taylor was digging deep to find great music. She is a noted fan of Ingrid’s. The lyric doesn’t make any connection to the venue, leaving one to guess it was another one of her personal messages to someone.
“You won’t be the songs that I could never write”
Place: Knoxville, Tennessee
Song: Needtobreathe, “Again”
The Christian rock band from South Carolina opened every date of the “Speak Now World Tour,” and in Knoxville she said thank you by inking their lyric on her arm.
"Like love from a drunken sky, she's confetti falling down at night."
“When you’re alone, you ain’t nothing but alone”
Place: Montreal, Québec (Canada)
Song: Bruce Springsteen, “When You’re Alone”
This deep cut from Bruce Springsteen’s “Tunnel of Love” album might have been part of Taylor’s childhood memories in Pennsylvania. It could also describe a homesick or still heartbroken 21-year-old.
“Money can’t buy you back the love that you had then”
Place: Toronto, Ontario (Canada)
Song: Feist, “1234”
This song from Canadian rock singer Feist became a hit after airing on a commercial for the iPod in 2007. Taylor once again tied geography into her arm lyrics, and there’s no doubt she was aware, if not a big fan of, this artist.
“Doing all the things that I neglected, I traded them all in to be in your arms”
Place: Toronto, Ontario (Canada)
Song: Mandy Moore, “Gardenia”
At this point it’s been almost 50 days since Taylor’s first forlorn lyric tattoo, and nothing of this suggested breakup had made the news, blogs or Twitter fodder.
“Belief builds from scratch, doesn’t have to relax, doesn’t need space”
Place: Newark, New Jersey
Song: Gavin DeGraw, “Belief”
There were plenty of New Yorkers at each of Taylor’s four New Jersey shows, and they no doubt appreciated her showing some love to an artist from their state. She consistently showed appreciation for well-written songs, no matter what her motivation was.
“You’re someone else’s baby, you’re someone else’s crazy now”
Place: Newark, New Jersey
Song: Matt Nathanson, “Queen of (K)nots”
A remorseful and bitter song, if there ever was one. Taylor again proved she’s a virtual Wikipedia of song lyrics.
“I was only there to sing your song, what were you protecting yourself from”
Place: Newark, New Jersey
Song: Jimmy Eat World, “Mixtape”
Another message, or just a tribute to one of her favorite rock bands? If it wasn’t Taylor, the theme wouldn’t be as obvious, but for a singer who wears her emotions on her sleeves this could have been much more literal than one would believe.
“It’s been a long hot summer and I’m still trying to leave you alone”
Place: Newark, New Jersey
Song: Mindy Smith, “Love Lost”
This lyric from a song on Mindy Smith’s recent album at the time could have been another indicator of Taylor’s emotional state that summer.
“We all learn to make mistakes and run from them”
Place: Grand Rapids, Michigan
Song: Paramore, “Misguided Ghosts”
Taylor is good friends with Hayley Williams of Paramore, and is a big fan of the rock band’s music in general. Hayley was also a special guest at a later show during the tour (she and Taylor performed “That’s What You Get” together), and Paramore was an opening act on “The Eras Tour” in 2023.
“He looked just like you’d want him to. Some kind of slick, chrome American prince”
Place: Indianapolis, Indiana
Song: The Killers, “A Dustland Fairytale”
Interestingly enough, this lyric has a similar sentiment as Taylor’s song “Mr. Perfectly Fine,” which she released as part of “The Vault” on Fearless (Taylor’s Version) in 2021.
“Don’t know why I’m so afraid, if you weren’t real I would make you up”
Place: Cleveland, Ohio
Song: Joseph Arthur, “Honey & the Moon”
Arthur is from Akron, Ohio, which makes this a likely geographical connection versus a personal statement.
"We all learn to make mistakes and run from them."
“I guess to build yourself up so high you had to take her and break her down”
Place: Washington D.C.
Song: Keith Urban, “Stupid Boy”
This Keith Urban lyric seemed to be continuing the narrative most sentences on Taylor’s arm had built since late May. However, she is also friends with Keith, ever since she was an opening act on his tour back in 2009.
“I dream of things that never were and ask why not”
Place: Washington D.C.
Quote from Robert F. Kennedy
Taylor was either quoting politician Robert F. Kennedy or Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw. Kennedy was actually quoting Shaw, but given that Taylor was in Washington D.C., she was likely paying tribute to the late politician. It was the first time on this tour an arm quote had come from somewhere other than a song lyric.
Notably, Taylor briefly dated Conor Kennedy during the summer of 2012.
“‘Cause I live and breathe this Philadelphia freedom”
Place: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Song: Elton John, “Philadelphia Freedom”
Taylor chose lyrics from Montgomery Gentry’s “My Town” for her show in Pittsburgh, although her hometown of Wyomissing is much closer to Philadelphia. As expected, she found a way to pay tribute to the city she grew up living and breathing with this classic Elton John lyric.
“And up in the air they would write your name there, but love would fall to pieces in the rain”
Place: Chicago, Illinois
Song: Patty Griffin, “Christina”
It’s rumored that Patty Griffin wrote this song about the tragic life of Christina Onassis.
“If you want to be somebody else, change your mind”
Place: Chicago, Illinois
Song: Sister Hazel, “Change Your Mind”
This was a different style of lyric than others Taylor had written on her left arm during the “Speak Now World Tour.” While a few had been geographically linked, most had been either angry, remorseful or reflected scorn or heartbreak. It was good to see her thinking positive thoughts once again.
“I got a really good heart, I just can’t catch a break”
Place: St. Louis Missouri
Song: Ryan Adams, “Two”
There may not be a better lyric to sum up Taylor’s love life at the time.
“And the hardest part was letting go, not taking part”
Place: St. Louis, Missouri
Song: Coldplay, “The Hardest Part”
Taylor chose another song about breaking up, or being broken up with or just general heartache. Since early June, the majority of her chosen lyrics had been of this brand.
“Find the grace in all the things that you can’t change, and help somebody if you can”
Place: Edmonton, Alberta (Canada)
Song: Van Zant, “Help Somebody”
Edmonton is a long ways away from the southern country-rocker’s homestate of Florida, so this lyric wasn’t chosen due to the geographical connection. This inspirational lyric fit in nicely with some of her more uplifting Sharpie stylings.
“Hey brother, we’re all learning to love again”
Place: Edmonton, Alberta (Canada)
Song: Mat Kearney, “Learning to Love Again”
Taylor first quoted Kearney in early June using the, “I guess we’re all one phone call from our knees” lyric from his “Closer to Love” song. Perhaps this song could have been the second bookend to an emotionally difficult time in her life.
“Don’t worry baby, everything will turn out all right”
Place: Los Angeles, California
Song: The Beach Boys, “Don’t Worry Baby”
Not including the George Bernard Shaw quote, this is the oldest lyric Taylor had drawn on her left arm. She has mentioned that she is a big fan of The Beach Boys. In this song, they sing about a lover learning to trust again.
"Find the grace in all the things that you can't change, and help somebody if you can."
“But my heart cried out for you, California”
Place: Los Angeles, California
Song: Joni Mitchell, “California”
Mitchell’s song, another geocentric choice, mixes politics and social awareness but at the end is just a love song for the state Taylor was spending a week or so visiting. She already had a home in LA in 2011, so like Mitchell, there’s no doubt she felt more and more at home with each return visit.
“Love Actually is all around”
Place: Los Angeles, California
Quote from the movie Love Actually
Taylor was quoting Hugh Grant’s character from this 2003 movie. It was the first time she had quoted a movie on tour. It is a well-known fact that Love Actually is one of Taylor’s favorite movies of all time.
“I wish that I could have this moment for life”
Place: Los Angeles, California
Song: Nicki Minaj feat. Drake, “Moment 4 Life”
The song is about two kids who share a dream, grow up, and realize they’ve achieved it together. Yet another uplifting lyric.
“After all that we’ve been through, I know we’re cool”
Place: San Jose, California
Song: Gwen Stefani, “Cool”
There were reports that Joe Jonas and Taylor were becoming friends again around this time. He attended one of her “Speak Now Tour” shows.
“For what it’s worth, it was worth all the while”
Place: San Jose, California
Song: Green Day, “Good Riddance”
The Green Day lead singer says he wrote this song after a difficult break up with a girl who was moving to Ecuador. He was trying to make peace with the separation. Perhaps Taylor was now at that stage with the guy she split from at the beginning of the year.
“Tell me everything I want to hear like that was your favorite year”
Place: Sacremento, California
Song: The Chicks, “Favorite Year”
Yet another song about saying Goodbye to lover.
“You’re just somewhere that I’ve been, and I won’t go back again”
Place: Portland, Oregon
Song: Selena Gomez and the Scene, “Ghost of You”
Three songs in a row about getting over an ex, this time by one of her best friends. Taylor seemed to have been in the phase of “break up, get back together, break up, get back together etc…” Which was, after all, the inspiration for her 2012 hit song “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together.”
“You are the ever-living ghost of what once was”
Place: Tacoma, Washington
Song: Band of Horses, “No One’s Gonna Love You”
Taylor threw a curveball in the narrative. This song is about a troubled relationship, but the chorus goes, “No one’s gonna love you more than I do.”
“There was always something that meant more to you than me”
Place: Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada)
Song: Jessica Andrews, “There’s More to Me Than You”
Andrew’s song is a kiss-off to a guy that didn’t appreciate her. Taylor certainly had a target to fire that sort of song at.
“Where were you when the world stopped turning”
Place: Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada)
Song: Alan Jackson, “Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)”
Taylor was in Canada on the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. She played this song for her Vancouver audience, but the song didn’t have nearly as much influence on Canadian fans as it would have American. It was still a nice thought, and an obvious choice for her left arm. For the record, Taylor was in fifth grade, at school “When the World Stopped Turning.”
"After all that we've been through, I know we're cool."
“Be a best friend, tell the truth and overuse ‘I love you’”
Place: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: Lee Brice, “Love Like Crazy”
From time to time one figures Taylor ignored any personal stuff happening in her life and chose a song to scribble down her left arm just because it’s a really good song. This might have been one of those occasions.
“This one’s for the girls who love without holding back”
Place: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: Martina McBride, “This One’s For the Girls”
This song is similar to the one Taylor penned on her arm the previous night. It’s notable that three of the four arm lyrics from Nashville shows on this tour were from country songs. The other was from Selena Gomez, back when this project wasn’t fully formed on the “Speak Now Tour”‘s first night.
“Love, save the empty and save me.”
Place: Bossier, Lousiana
Song: Erin McCarley, “Love, Save the Empty”
McCarley’s song from her 2009 album of the same name was used during an episode of Grey’s Anatomy, which is one of Taylor’s favorite TV series. It seems likely she just picked a good lyric from a great song.
“Do you realize that you have the most beautiful face”
Place: Tulsa, Oklahoma
Song: The Flaming Lips, “Do You Realize?”
Most likely this was a geographical tribute. This song from 2002 was chosen as the official rock song of Oklahoma. The Flaming Lips are from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
“I hope you know that even if I don’t, I wanted to.”
Place: Kansas City, Oklahoma
Song: Rachel Yamagata, “Even If I Don’t”
This song begins with, “I miss you most in the morning / Most every morning / I wake up thinking / I could call / I could come visit / I could come running / We could relive it.” Taylor was feeling blue again. The lyrics seem to be connected to her own song “I Almost Do,” released in 2012.
“But it flew away from her reach, so she ran away in her sleep and dreamed of paradise.”
Place: Denver, Colorado
Song: Coldplay, “Paradise”
This was one of the longest arm lyrics. As far as content, the Coldplay song could have been a theme for Taylor. It’s about a girl with romantic dreams who keeps getting her heart broken by various people.
“Little girl, you’re in the middle of the ride.”
Place: Salt Lake City, Utah
Song: Jimmy Eat World, “The Middle”
This is the second Jimmy Eat World lyric Taylor had scribbled down her arm. This 2002 hit was the band’s biggest, and it’s mostly words of encouragment to a girl who’s down on her luck. They actually wrote it about their professional situation at the time, but Taylor certainly wasn’t having troubles there.
“Just as free, free as we’ll ever be.”
Place: Atlanta, Georgia
Song: Zac Brown Band, “Free”
This is a geographical nod to the Georgia based country rockers.
“No telling where it’ll take you, just live your life.”
Place: Atlanta, Georgia
Song: T.I. feat. Rihanna, “Live Your Life”
T.I. surprised Taylor’s audience by making a cameo on Oct. 2, with her singing Rihanna’s parts, he performed this hit from 2008. Previously, Taylor had invited hip-hop star Usher on stage with her in Atlanta.
“It’s easy saying nothing when there’s nothing to say.”
Place: Little Rock, Arkansas
Song: K.T. Tunsall, “Fade Like a Shadow”
Another song about a relationship that has run its course. Taylor continued with the trend of choosing songs about either heartbreak, getting over a lover or being spurned by one.
"But it flew away from her reach, so she ran away in her sleep and dreamed of paradise."
“She’s out there on her own and she’s alright.”
Place: New Orleans, Lousiana
Song: Shawn Colvin, “Sunny Came Home”
This song is Shawn Colvin’s biggest hit, winning a Grammy in 1998. The lyrics are destructive, to say the least. Colvin talks about burning a house down.
“A little voice inside my head said, ‘Don’t look back. You can never look back'”
Place: Dallas, Texas
Song: Don Henley, “Boys of Summer”
This is a geographic tribute to Henley as he was born in Gilmer, Texas. More likely Taylor chose the song because of the lyrical content. “I thought I knew what love was what did I know / Those days are gone for ever / I should just let them go,” he sings. Who ever hurt Taylor a couple of months ago really scarred her.
“Through autumn’s advancing we’ll stay young, go dancing.”
Place: Louisville, Kentucky
Song: Death Cab For Cutie, “Stay Young, Go Dancing”
An unusually happy song from Death Cab For Cutie, and an unusually optimistic choice for an arm lyric by Taylor.
“Can you still feel the butterflies? Can you still hear the last goodnight?”
Place: Lubbock, Texas
Song: Jimmy Eat World, “For Me This is Heaven”
This is a more introspective Jimmy Eat World song. It was also the third song by the band Taylor had scribbled on her arm during the “Speak Now Tour.”
“I hope to god I would’ve done something good with my life.”
Place: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Song: Doc Walker, “My Life”
Taylor chose a song from Canadian country group Doc Walker. It’s a song of independence, choosing your own path and taking responsibility for the choices you make.
“Memories fade like looking through a fogged mirror”
Place: San Diego, California
Song: MGMT, “Kids”
The song was a huge hit for alt-rockers MGMT in 2008. The message has to do with controlling impulses or being told to control impulses.
“May angels lead you in. Hear you me my friends.”
Place: Phoenix, Arizona
Song: Jimmy Eat World, “Hear You Me”
This song is about saying thank you to someone who you’re no longer able to say thank you to. Exactly one year earlier, one of Taylor’s best friends sadly passed away. She mentioned that this song was played at his funeral.
“You know you’re doing better on your own, so don’t buy in.”
Place: Phoenix, Arizona
Song: Jimmy Eat World, “The Middle”
It’s the third time in five nights Taylor had chosen Jimmy Eat World to decorate her arm, and it was the second time during the “Speak Now World Tour” she’d chosen “The Middle.” The band is from Mesa, Arizona, so she was no doubt paying tribute to the boys’ hometown. Alas, it’s another geographical reference. However, it’s clear Taylor is a huge fan of the alt-rock band.
“Where love is just a lyric in a children’s rhyme, a sound bite”
Place: San Antonio, Texas
Song: Keane, “Is it Any Wonder?”
This Grammy nominated hit from 2006 was actually about the war in Iraq. Just days before this show President Obama announced all American troops were leaving Iraq. This explanation is such a variant from the normal Taylor arm-lyric, that it almost sounds unbelievable.
“And I never saw blue like that before across the sky around the world”
Place: Austin, Texas
Song: Shawn Colvin, “Never Saw Blue Like That”
Perhaps more interesting than the lyric Taylor chose for her arm are the words that follow in Colvin’s song. “I can’t believe a month ago / I was alone, I didn’t know you / I hadn’t seen or heard you’re name / And even now, I’m so amazed / It’s like a dream, It’s like a rainbow, it’s like the rain.”
“Can you still feel the butterflies? Can you still hear the last goodnight?"
“’Cause happiness throws a shower of sparks”
Place: Lexington, Kentucky
Song: The Fray, “Happiness”
The title of this song is misleading (just like Taylor’s own song “happiness“) because it’s all about chasing, and rarely finding happiness.
“But darling, I wish you well on your way to the wishing well”
Place: Memphis, Tennessee
Song: Patti Griffin, “Nobody’s Cryin'”
Many think this song is about death, which would be a perfect topic for the night before Halloween. However, it seems more likely Taylor just had a fondness for this great songwriter.
“It’s love’s illusions that I recall, I really don’t know love at all.”
Place: Houston, Texas
Song: Joni Mitchell, “Both Sides, Now”
Taylor first discovered Joni Mitchell’s classic album Blue in 2011. She was still a woman healing from a break up, which would lead to her own classic, RED, just one year later.
“Birds flying high, you know how I feel”
Place: Jacksonville, Florida
Song: Nina Simone, “Feeling Good”
Taylor won the CMA Award for “Entertainer of the Year” less than 24 hours before this show. There’s no doubt that is why she was feeling good. Credit Taylor for digging deep into her iPod to find a lyric that captured her spirit.
“I could rest my head just knowing that you were mine”
Place: Tampa, Florida
Song: Guns N’ Roses, “November Rain”
While this could be a lyric dedicated to a love she’d lost and wanted back, it could also have been a sweet ode to her new kitten Meredith. Not too many people would dedicate a hard-rock song to a kitten, but Taylor is indeed unlike many people.
“Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a butterfly”
Place: Miami, Florida
Anonymous
A very good week wrapped up for Taylor in Miami, and it’s possible she was viewing her good fortune at the CMA Awards as a turning point in what seemed to have been a difficult year. She was ready to write a new chapter.
“I feel lost again but this time for the best”
Place: Charlotte, North Carolina
Song: Gregory & the Hawk, “For the Best”
This song by singer-songwriter Meredith Godreau is about pining for someone from afar. It’s a happier, more upbeat lyric; a stark contrast to many of the melancholy messages Taylor had chosen prior to her wins at the CMA Awards. It may have been an indicator as to where she was at emotionally.
“We learned more from a 3 minute record than we ever learned in school”
Place: Raleigh, North Carolina
Song: Bruce Springsteen, “No Surrender”
Springsteen showed up at this show in Raleigh. The rock legend has a daughter who attended nearby Duke University and he brought her and a few friends to the show since they’re huge Swifties. Before Taylor went on stage Springsteen appeared backstage and strummed a few chords on her acoustic guitar. She posted a picture of the encounter on Twitter.
“Where would we be today If I never drove that car away”
Place: Columbia, South Carolina
Song: Darius Rucker, “Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It”
This is another lyric that serves as a thank you note to an artist who was nice enough to take time to appear with Taylor on stage. Rucker and her sang “Alright,” much to the delight of his hometown crowd.
“May these memories break our fall”
Place: New York City, New York
Song: Taylor Swift, “Long Live“
It was the perfect song for Taylor to close the “Speak Now World Tour” with. She has said that this song is about her band, producer and all of the fans that helped her “build this brick by brick.” It’s a thank you note to finish what was arguably the year’s best tour.
“Bring on all the pretenders, one day, we will be remembered”
Place: New York City, New York
Song: Taylor Swift, “Long Live“
The last two shows in New York City were the only ones in which Taylor chose lyrics from her own song to scroll down her arm. While often the lyrics she chose felt like reactions to something happening in her personal life, it’s likely she had this song in mind to close the tour for quite awhile.
"It's love's illusions that I recall I really don't know love at all."
“I am on a lonely road and I am traveling, traveling, traveling.”
Place: Perth, Western Australia (Australia)
Song: Joni Mitchell, “All I Want”
Taylor was still heavily inspired by Blue at this time, having just played Joni’s song “A Case of You” on guitar on her flight to Perth, according to one of her journal entries included in the Lover Diaries.
“We sleep underneath the same big sky at night. And dream the same dream we can fly.”
Place: Adelaide, South Australia (Australia)
Song: Chantal Kreviazuk, “In This Life”
One of Taylor’s happier and more optimistic arm lyrics.
“She said watch your back, I’m nobody’s girlfriend”
Place: Brisbane, Queensland (Australia)
Song: Matt Nathanson, “Modern Love”
Taylor seemed to be moving on from the heartbreak of last year.
“The war outside your door keeps raging on. STOP KONY 2012”
Place: Brisbane, Queensland (Australia)
Song: Taylor Swift feat. the Civil Wars, “Safe & Sound“
Taylor had released her acclaimed folk song for The Hunger Games soundtrack back in December, but the movie premiered around this time in March.
“Go cut through the noise so you can know what love sounds like.”
Place: Sydney, New South Wales (Australia)
Song: Natasha Bedingfield, “Neon Lights”
Another sign that Taylor might have been ready to look for love again.
“If things go right we can frame it, and put you on a wall.”
Place: Sydney, New South Wales (Australia)
Song: Ed Sheeran, “Lego House”
Taylor first heard an Ed Sheeran song on the Australian leg of the “Speak Now Tour.” Soon after, the two would meet up and write a couple of songs together (“Everything Has Changed” and “Run“). Which in turn was the beginning of “Sweeran,” a very close friendship.
“We love our lovin’ but not like we love our freedom”
Place: Melbourne, Victoria (Australia)
Song: Joni Mitchell, “Help Me”
Taylor had now chosen to write down one of Joni Mitchell’s lyrics more than three times.
“Last time I talked to you, you were lonely and out of place.”
Place: Melbourne, Victoria (Australia)
Song: Our Lady Peace, “Somewhere Out There”
Taylor seemed to be reflecting on one of her past relationships.
“All romantics meet the same fate somehow.”
Place: Melbourne, Victoria (Australia)
Song: Joni Mitchell, “The Last Time I Saw Richard”
Taylor was deep in the writing process for RED, and Joni Mitchell’s Blue was one of her main inspirations.
“Keep your feet ready, heart beat steady, keep your eyes open”
Place: Auckland, New Zealand
Song: Taylor Swift, “Eyes Open“
“Eyes Open” is Taylor’s second contribution to the Hunger Games soundtrack. The song was released a few days prior.
“Every lesson forms a new scar”
Place: Auckland, New Zealand
Song: Taylor Swift, “Eyes Open“
Another nod to “Eyes Open.” Taylor also performed the song acoustically at the end of the show.
“You know wherever I am, I’ll come running to see you again”
Place: Auckland, New Zealand
Song: Carole King, “You’ve Got A Friend”
A song written and performed by one of Taylor’s biggest idols, Carole King. The lyric for the farewell show of the “Speak Now World Tour” was surely carefully chosen. Taylor promised her fans in New Zealand and around the world that it wouldn’t be too long until they would meet again.
“You know wherever I am, I’ll come running to see you again”
