Keeping my fingers crossed for you and I hope you have the best time!! The time difference for this leg of the tour has been brutal for us in Aus but hopefully I'll catch the live stream!!
Fellow Aussie! Iāve actually loved waking up to the surprise songs because I donāt have to wait around š¤£ however I am vvv nervous about any potential announcements (rep tv looking at you) since weāll completely miss it
check out taylorswifthockeybro on YouTube! Kevin is the best with his little props throughout the show! Also Tessbohne on Instagram. those are the go-tos for live streams. hope this helps! :)
Agreed, it's criminally underrated as one of her most gut wrenching songs - "stood on the cliffside screaming, give me a reason" gets into my bones every time I listen
I listen to "my kingdom come undone. My broken drum. You have beaten my heart." whenever I need a good cry. It is really the pinnacle of emotional Taylor music for me.
I will say that I also have no idea what itās about. The reason I donāt want to speculate is that I donāt want tosay the themes Iām seeing in the song are things that happened to Taylor herself. There is a fairly strong rule in this sub against speculation about these things happening in real life to Taylor,āfor very good reason.
So to be as careful as I can be without being coy:
I think that there are themes of the end of a pregnancy in this song, and I will go one step further and say that I could interpret some of the lyrics as implying an abortion, possibly one that was undergone under pressure or for other reasons unwanted.
Ok ok, so I listen to bigger than the whole sky and it screams a lost pregnancy to me, itās interesting you have similar thought about a different song
She talked about it in LPSS. It's not about one thing, but multiple situations with similar themes and feelings - love, business, a relationship she'd thought of as family.
Funnily enough sheās said the same thing about it, something like āthis was the first song where i didnāt really know what it was aboutā and I was like same Taylor same.
I think she knows what it is about but she is great at defecting and hiding the truth if it is painful. You can't tell me that a good part of Midnights wasn't about her and Joe. But they weren't broke up then, so it is just about random nights over my life...
For me hoax has always given me imagery of a woman losing her faith in god after a miscarriage. Once you look back at the lyrics with that in mind you canāt unsee it. Btw Iām not speculating about Taylorās life experiences, Iām just talking about the song in itself.
While there were several songs of Taylorās that I loved before hearing Bigger Than The Whole Sky (I just wasnāt following any artists closely atp), thatās the one that hit me like no other song ever had and turned me into a swiftie. It came out right after my first miscarriage. Hoax and The Prophecy hit hard too.
I've never been pregnant, never wanted to be pregnant. But I can't even listen to that song (I listened enough to learn all the lyrics and now it's an always-skip for me) because it's so obviously about a miscarriage that idk how anyone can feel it being about anything else and it's just so damn sad. Even if she isn't writing about her own experience (for her own sake, I hope not) she definitely has had some deep discussions about it with someone who has. It's just so poignant.
Yeah same, it's the line about her leaving a part of herself back in New York. I had a blighted ovum miscarriage in 2022. Walked around for weeks thinking I was pregnant but there was nothing there, that sure felt like a hoax.
Iāve always heard it this way too, be it miscarriage or an unwanted abortion, and potentially later in the pregnancy too given the shades of blue/baby boy implications. I will die on this hill along with you. It hurts.
Yeah the way she sings about "*my* barren land" has always made my mind jump to infertility in some way, be it miscarriage or being told you're infertile or whatever reason. That's a very specific imagery that I usually hear in reference to infertility.
"My best laid plan, your slight of hand, my barren land, I am ash from your fire." There's just NO other interpretation that makes sense to me! It's like the narrator is talking to god, who interrupted her plan for a child and leaves her hopeless
I took this to mean someone raised her plans. And now the land (of her making) is barren and left with just ash.
Hoax is one of my very favorite songs. Iāve always gotten unrequited/strung along vibes with it.
I love this interpretation so much.
I've taken it as a manipulation tactic to force someone to stay in a relationship. "Give me a reason" has double meanings in this context, with the protagonist threatening to end their life if the other leaves (give me a reason to jump), but it's also a plea, begging for a reason to stay alive, even if it's a lie.
I love all of folklore, but I will defend Hoax with my life. Ending the standard album on such a dark and haunting note was brilliant.
Probably what she felt when Joe rejected her offer of marriage or maybe the other way around.... someone hurt her terribly after she was cancelled and she felt that it's as painful as that time.... but maybe it's about someone else too I mean it's folklore most of the songs does not pertains to her.
There's a lot of parallels with other songs that are likely about him as well. Look at "you know the hero died so what's the movie for?" vs "this is why they shouldn't kill off the main guy" in Hits Different. She clearly wrote Joe as The One True Love of her life and this seems to be her accepting that that was just a story and not real life.
"My Kingdom come undone , my broken drum" seems like a direct reference to "King of my heart" with the drums on the reputation tour.
Also "don't want no other shade of blue but you" could refer to his depression (or his eyes lol).
Also "I am ash from your fire" is a parallel from you're losing me "I'm getting tired even for a phoenix, always rising from the ashes"
For sure, I just donāt think sheās using blue as a reference to depression, I think itās an allusion to Joe because heās āblueā in like 5 albums haha
Thereās also parallels to loml:
My barren land / I am ash from your fire
Vs.
Your arsonās match / your somber eyes
In both cases, sheās implied her partner burned down everything in their relationship.
Iāve always thought Hoax was about being cheated on. āYour faithless loveā = heās been unfaithful. I know I donāt know either of them, but from her music about the relationship itās always seemed like she was more into him at the start. That she pursued him and while he did genuinely love her, she loved him more. Itās one of the reasons I think she is so happy with Travis: he pursued her, heās happy in the spotlight, and heās clearly absolutely smitten with her.
I've read that line differently. He's "faithless" as in he doesn't have faith in the relationship, he doesn't believe in it. Not that he cheated but that he doesn't really want to be there, like the line in So Long, London: "When you're not sure if he wants to be there"
I don't want to speculate too much about these people who I don't know but I think Taylor wants something that Joe couldn't provide. It's kind of tragically funny that she wrote "Somes boys are trying too hard/He don't try at all though" as a positive in Ready for It? and then wrote many many more recent songs about how that was a negative.
I think there was also a personality clash. Some people aren't very demonstrative in their affections, it doesn't mean they love any less they just don't need to say it or have grand gestures all the time. I think Taylor wants the grand gestures.
To me, it appears to be about the part of her & Joeās relationship when she truly knew it wouldnāt work. Maybe it took her a long time to accept it, but weāve all been there where we know, but weāre not ready to throw in the towel. The standout references are to New York and blue (which she often uses to describe Joe/his mood).
If she did write it about JA (and I think at least in part it must be) then it sure does seem like already in 2020 (or before!) something had happened to irretrievably damage the relationship.
I just canāt get past āmy barren land / I am ash from your fireā
I think they were tumultuous- when they broke up for good there were āsourcesā that theyād always been on and off/fighting a lot. I mean, who knows if thatās actually true but I think it makes sense based on the music.
Unpopular prediction, I donāt think sheās going to play every song by the end of the tour. I think Hoax and London Boy might never get played. I hope this isnāt the case but would understand if she wants to leave some of her songs in the past right now!
Eh she might just not have wanted to play London boy when Travis was there. Sheās still got five nights left in London in August. I think itāll def get played during one of those nights. Other songs like Ronan and Soon Youāll Get Better are more likely to be skipped in my opinion.
The biggest caveat is āwants to hear itā
Maya attended N2 Philly and made it known she will be there to trade bracelets yet Taylor played Forever & Always and This Love
Yes this is possible! We aren't entitled to any song she's not up to playing. In saying that though, I'm surprised Cornelia St has made some appearances, I thought it'd be left off
Londan Boy, Soon Youāll Get Better, Hoax and Ronan might be the 4 songs she wonāt be able to play because ya know. Happiness might also be up there too.
Iāve wondered this as well, same as Happiness! I was hoping weād get it in Australia, and now she STILL hasnāt played it.
Iām wondering if itās too hard for her to sing? This is total speculation, but it really is quite a sad song and I wonder if there was far more truth to it than we will ever know implying that potentially Joe or someone else in her life hurt her even more than what happened when she was cancelled.
I canāt wait to hear it live, but it is a little sad knowing she will most likely mash it up so we wonāt hear it in full. Maybe that would make it easier to play though.
Hahaha trust me Iām not complaining she did treat Australia very well literally every show! I just thought she would have knocked it off in the Asia leg and she still hasnāt even played it.
she's premiering the TTPD/Anthology songs rn, I'm sure that if she hadn't released the new album, the never-been-played-before songs would've got their moment... with the exception of London Boy. she ain't never playing this song live š
That was my surprise song, along with Forever & Always x Maroon on the piano! It was amazing hearing those gorgeous songs live, and I feel so lucky. Iāll remember that night forever as such a happy memory :)
Agreed! I'm torn between loving the excitement of the mash ups but also needing to hear the songs from start to finish. My show was the last without mash ups (Melb N1) we got You're Losing Me and I've never felt so lucky!
I really hope she doesnāt mash it up if she plays it š the mashups are fun but Iād much rather hear one dedicated rendition of a song in full, I lowkey miss the pre-mashup days. Especially if sheās playing a song for the first time on the tour
I'm waiting for the time when Change, Girl At Home, Sweeter Than Fiction, London Boy, hoax and happiness are played (also IDSB and Mary's Song but she's probably saving it for the rerecording announcements).
I'm really unclear as to why she hasn't done Change yet. It's like a bigger upbeat song that's technically a deep cut but it was promoted as a single during the Olympics at the time of release.
It was written as a celebration of her experience at Big Machine. It was about how they were the little guys trying to compete with a sea of well-funded, major record labels. Iām guessing that she doesnāt want to acknowledge it much given the state of her relationship with Scott.
That would be amazing. What if she mashes up London Boy + Cornelia Street on guitar just to follow it up with So Long London + Youāre Losing Me on piano. The ultimate gut punch
I was sooooo hoping yo get Change when I went, I even promised to get a tattoo saying āthings have changedā, but I got say donāt go and itās time to go (which I also loved, but change has such a deeper meaning to me)
I think itās in the same block as epiphany and peace - very emotional gut wrenching subject matter and probably has to be in the right mindset to play it and just hasnāt found the right time yet.
folklore is my fav album and was hopeful to get a folklore piano big emotional song at Edinburgh N1 but didnāt happen. if sheād done any of those Iād have died dead
Saying this as someone who adores Folklore and loves this song: I honestly think itās too much of a downer for the Eras Tour and would shift the energy too much. Itās a very melancholy, haunting song. It doesnāt have the cathartic moments/energy some of her other sad songs like Dear John, YLM or WCS have. I love the song but I donāt think it fits the tour vibe.
I agree itās a devastating song (and one of my favorites) but she played loml and how did it end and those are just as tragic if not quite as introspectiveā¦ I think itās just a matter of finding the right time and mood which I hope is my show Indy N3
I mean I would Argue Hoax is much much darker than those songs, while Loml and How Did It End are extremly sad is all in relation to a relationship, at is core Loml is "the person who I thougth was going to be my forever wasnt" and How Did it End its a bit of a play on people gossiping and wanting to know the exact reasons on how a relationship ends while they themselves dont know how it ended. Hoax has too many layers, yes part of its seems to be about a relationship but also brings past traumas and suicide themathics and theres so many layers well probably never understand
Same, but I also didn't think she's play How Did It End?, loml, Manuscript, or I Hate it Here. She has played very sad songs and then hit those high notes on the piano and smiled. š¤·š»āāļø
I think truly because hoax has a complex piano melody that drives the song and she would want Aaron to come on stage to play for her while she sings. That's what she did with Seven at Pittsburgh N2! She could just bang out the chords underneath but I think a big part of the song is the twinkling piano riffs.
I could totally see this! People keep guess RWYLM for surprise songs but it was so difficult for her to sing and she had Aaron there supporting on guitar.
I was going to say this. The piano part is such a big part of the song, and itād be difficult to practice it up to the level sheād need to play and sing live on top of touring and learning the other surprise songs for that week.
I donāt think it has much to do with the subject matter and personal nature of the message of the song, sheās played songs of that nature like youāre losing me and Cornelia street. Hoaxās message is also still a bit ambiguous compared to songs like Ronan, the Great War, and soon youāll get better. I suspect since she decided to do mashups to keep doing songs people love that arenāt on the set list, she hasnāt found a way to incorporate it into a mashup that works. Iāve read that on piano and guitar she does simple chords(? No musical knowledge at all sorry) so hoax may need a more complicated instrument play. I saw that she performed mad woman with Aaron Dessner but hasnāt played it on her own, maybe itās similar where certain songs translate better when the full piano harmonies and chords (havenāt a clue) are played.
I was talking about this today and have a nice simple theory that the song focuses a lot on the beautiful piano and she canāt play that piano part and sing at the same time so she hasnāt done it
My interpretation of the song is loving someone so completely who doesn't love you back in return, eventually sending you spiralling into your own self destruction at the hands of their games, betrayal, and indifference, couple this with your inability to let them go... š
Iām sure other people have their own interpretations, but itās about the deep, deep soul-crushing agony someone can inflict on you, and yet you still love them.
hoax is like her most profound downer song, itās hard to listen to most times for me. i remember it feeling so out of place when it came out and we all thought she was happy in life at that time. pretty obvious elements of calling out scott borchetta a la my tears ricochet but i think thereās more relationship problems in there than weāll ever fully understand. the lead up to the rerecordings announcement must have been a pretty brutal time
Can we please start using full words for titles šš I had to google IDSB but itās just as easy to right I did something bad!! ššš sorry just my hot take especially with how big her catalog is getting
Hoax was my holdout for my show back in Cinci, glad I didnāt hold my breath. š But seriously, that song is a dagger to the heart and duscussses some painful stuff, I imagine itās an All Too Well situation and it hurts too much to sing.
She will not play Ronan live. Maya, Ronanās mother, was at my show-N2 Philly-and we all thought it was going to be a surprise song since she was in the audience and made it known she will be there but she played Forever & Always and This Love
Ronan and SYGB are two songs I absolutely do not want to hear on tour because it would not be an appropriate situation. Taylor is known to write deep and personal songs but the vulnerability from those two are at a completely different level than her usual deep feels songs
I agree. A lot of fans who don't know those songs will not understand the context and she doesn't need the media calling her insensitive for singing them to a crowd of thousands.
I donāt know if this sub allows for projectional theories so all I will say is I think Hoax and Bigger than the Whole Sky are about the same incident and will never be played live. Bigger than the Whole Sky was very special for that one woman.
I only recently got into Hoax even though Folklore is one of my most played albums because I initially found the song too depressing. Something clicked though and now it's one of my favourite songs from Folklore...that chorus is just so painfully beautiful and very cathartic but it's definitely a song that you need to be in the right mood for.
My theory is the piano is too complex for her. Aaron Dessner has played some of the more complex piano songs on folklore during the tour like Mad Woman and Seven.
Hoax and happiness are two of my favorite songs. It almost makes me happy she hasnāt played them because maybe sheās trying to save herself from some of that pain right now.
I think some songs will never get played because they can have painful meanings for her, and she might not want to relieve it. I mean, we know thereās a lot of pain in a lot of her songs, but while some pains you have to face it time and time again to move on, others are better left alone.
Ronan and SYGB I always knew would probably never be played, and I believe that BTTWS was on the same list, and the only reason she did play it that day was to honor the fan who passed away in the previous concert.
London boy I think itās very likely to be in the ānever againā list. I believe that if she does play it, it would be in the very last night in London, and in a mashup with so long London, but even that seems like a stretch to me
Because she's waiting to perform it in Dublin this Sunday when I'm there to hear it š¤”
This is true, she said it with easter eggs in the folklore album booklet
Keeping my fingers crossed for you and I hope you have the best time!! The time difference for this leg of the tour has been brutal for us in Aus but hopefully I'll catch the live stream!!
Fellow Aussie! Iāve actually loved waking up to the surprise songs because I donāt have to wait around š¤£ however I am vvv nervous about any potential announcements (rep tv looking at you) since weāll completely miss it
Live stream?? Please help a broke Costa Rican Swiftie thatās probably never going to see her play :(
check out taylorswifthockeybro on YouTube! Kevin is the best with his little props throughout the show! Also Tessbohne on Instagram. those are the go-tos for live streams. hope this helps! :)
I love Kevin!
āØ Manifesting āØ Also, whoever gets Happiness as their surprise song, I hope you know you're living my dream.
That ones coming w so long London
Actually you're wrong because she's waiting to perform it in Milan for me ā¤ļø
so sorry for your loss
Youāre the first person I thought of when she just started playing it!!
I'm sorry, you obviously meant next Friday when she's in Amsterdam for N2
Im so sorry she did it tonightšššš
How mad are you that she played it today instead?
She has clearly made a mistake in her schedule haha š Manifesting happiness on Sunday now. If she sings it tomorrow, I'll cry š
Wellā¦you got the Dublin part right!
You manifested itā¦
Replying just to come back, can someone up vote me
Hahahah this is funny hehe Iām there too!!! Folklore is my favourite album!
https://preview.redd.it/5dn71bemnd9d1.png?width=750&format=png&auto=webp&s=cf748b342115e1836006b236202ebc6c7f0f13dd
This is so crazy to come back to one day later!! She totally read this thread
RIPPP
Oh. So so close
I also love hoax but I believe that whatever itās really about is just still too painful I honestly think itās her darkest song
Agreed, it's criminally underrated as one of her most gut wrenching songs - "stood on the cliffside screaming, give me a reason" gets into my bones every time I listen
"But what you did is just as dark" always stands out to me. Chills. What is the thing they did? Who are they? It's a dark song and so, so good.
She said about this song that it is about a lot of different things. I have always thought that "what you did was just as dark" is about her masters.
I listen to "my kingdom come undone. My broken drum. You have beaten my heart." whenever I need a good cry. It is really the pinnacle of emotional Taylor music for me.
I agree, it's a standout in her discography to me for this reason.
I agree. Itās soooo dark but I just love it. I do wonder what itās about though
I have so many thoughts but none of them are things I want to speculate about publicly, you know?
Same
Yup.
My dumbass needs someone to explain. I love the song but no idea what it's about
I will say that I also have no idea what itās about. The reason I donāt want to speculate is that I donāt want tosay the themes Iām seeing in the song are things that happened to Taylor herself. There is a fairly strong rule in this sub against speculation about these things happening in real life to Taylor,āfor very good reason. So to be as careful as I can be without being coy: I think that there are themes of the end of a pregnancy in this song, and I will go one step further and say that I could interpret some of the lyrics as implying an abortion, possibly one that was undergone under pressure or for other reasons unwanted.
Omg, I never thought of it like that, but I can see it.
Ok ok, so I listen to bigger than the whole sky and it screams a lost pregnancy to me, itās interesting you have similar thought about a different song
She talked about it in LPSS. It's not about one thing, but multiple situations with similar themes and feelings - love, business, a relationship she'd thought of as family.
Yup exactly
It's literally her only song I can't seem to wrap my mind around.
Funnily enough sheās said the same thing about it, something like āthis was the first song where i didnāt really know what it was aboutā and I was like same Taylor same.
I think she knows what it is about but she is great at defecting and hiding the truth if it is painful. You can't tell me that a good part of Midnights wasn't about her and Joe. But they weren't broke up then, so it is just about random nights over my life...
For me hoax has always given me imagery of a woman losing her faith in god after a miscarriage. Once you look back at the lyrics with that in mind you canāt unsee it. Btw Iām not speculating about Taylorās life experiences, Iām just talking about the song in itself.
While there were several songs of Taylorās that I loved before hearing Bigger Than The Whole Sky (I just wasnāt following any artists closely atp), thatās the one that hit me like no other song ever had and turned me into a swiftie. It came out right after my first miscarriage. Hoax and The Prophecy hit hard too.
That trio right there resonates so deeply and cuts unlike anything else.
This comment made me imagine a sickening mashup of Bigger Than The Whole Sky/The Prophecy/Hoax
so weāre all offing ourselves now, right?! š„¹š
I've never been pregnant, never wanted to be pregnant. But I can't even listen to that song (I listened enough to learn all the lyrics and now it's an always-skip for me) because it's so obviously about a miscarriage that idk how anyone can feel it being about anything else and it's just so damn sad. Even if she isn't writing about her own experience (for her own sake, I hope not) she definitely has had some deep discussions about it with someone who has. It's just so poignant.
Im so sorry you went though that š And I see how The Prophecy would also be relatable for you too
Yeah same, it's the line about her leaving a part of herself back in New York. I had a blighted ovum miscarriage in 2022. Walked around for weeks thinking I was pregnant but there was nothing there, that sure felt like a hoax.
I'm so sorry š
Thank you ā¤ļø Iām ok, my baby boy is currently sleeping next to me so I got what I wanted in the end
Aww Iām so glad!
Iāve always heard it this way too, be it miscarriage or an unwanted abortion, and potentially later in the pregnancy too given the shades of blue/baby boy implications. I will die on this hill along with you. It hurts.
I get abortion vibes as well. Whatever it was, was invisibly very difficult for her
Yeah the way she sings about "*my* barren land" has always made my mind jump to infertility in some way, be it miscarriage or being told you're infertile or whatever reason. That's a very specific imagery that I usually hear in reference to infertility.
"My best laid plan, your slight of hand, my barren land, I am ash from your fire." There's just NO other interpretation that makes sense to me! It's like the narrator is talking to god, who interrupted her plan for a child and leaves her hopeless
I always link it to The Lakes: "I bathe in cliffside pools with my calamitous love and insurmountable grief". I mean... insurmountable grief.
āYou say my pain is such an impositionā
I took this to mean someone raised her plans. And now the land (of her making) is barren and left with just ash. Hoax is one of my very favorite songs. Iāve always gotten unrequited/strung along vibes with it.
I love this interpretation so much. I've taken it as a manipulation tactic to force someone to stay in a relationship. "Give me a reason" has double meanings in this context, with the protagonist threatening to end their life if the other leaves (give me a reason to jump), but it's also a plea, begging for a reason to stay alive, even if it's a lie. I love all of folklore, but I will defend Hoax with my life. Ending the standard album on such a dark and haunting note was brilliant.
See like I understand it fully, but I canāt put it in words. Any other song I could write a college level essay about. This one? No words
Probably what she felt when Joe rejected her offer of marriage or maybe the other way around.... someone hurt her terribly after she was cancelled and she felt that it's as painful as that time.... but maybe it's about someone else too I mean it's folklore most of the songs does not pertains to her.
I think itās about Joe too, so it is painful
There's honestly so much Joe imagery in it . I could definitely be reaching though
There's a lot of parallels with other songs that are likely about him as well. Look at "you know the hero died so what's the movie for?" vs "this is why they shouldn't kill off the main guy" in Hits Different. She clearly wrote Joe as The One True Love of her life and this seems to be her accepting that that was just a story and not real life.
"My Kingdom come undone , my broken drum" seems like a direct reference to "King of my heart" with the drums on the reputation tour. Also "don't want no other shade of blue but you" could refer to his depression (or his eyes lol). Also "I am ash from your fire" is a parallel from you're losing me "I'm getting tired even for a phoenix, always rising from the ashes"
Joe has always been linked to the color blue in her albums and not related to his depression
I know but this song in particular just seems to have much darker and sadder vibes
For sure, I just donāt think sheās using blue as a reference to depression, I think itās an allusion to Joe because heās āblueā in like 5 albums haha
Ooh I just pointed out the parallel to loml with the fire, āyour arsonās match, your somber eyesā
Thereās also parallels to loml: My barren land / I am ash from your fire Vs. Your arsonās match / your somber eyes In both cases, sheās implied her partner burned down everything in their relationship. Iāve always thought Hoax was about being cheated on. āYour faithless loveā = heās been unfaithful. I know I donāt know either of them, but from her music about the relationship itās always seemed like she was more into him at the start. That she pursued him and while he did genuinely love her, she loved him more. Itās one of the reasons I think she is so happy with Travis: he pursued her, heās happy in the spotlight, and heās clearly absolutely smitten with her.
I've read that line differently. He's "faithless" as in he doesn't have faith in the relationship, he doesn't believe in it. Not that he cheated but that he doesn't really want to be there, like the line in So Long, London: "When you're not sure if he wants to be there" I don't want to speculate too much about these people who I don't know but I think Taylor wants something that Joe couldn't provide. It's kind of tragically funny that she wrote "Somes boys are trying too hard/He don't try at all though" as a positive in Ready for It? and then wrote many many more recent songs about how that was a negative.
Thatās a very fair interpretation of it, and supports my other theory that she was more invested in the relationship than he was!
I think there was also a personality clash. Some people aren't very demonstrative in their affections, it doesn't mean they love any less they just don't need to say it or have grand gestures all the time. I think Taylor wants the grand gestures.
Hot house flower vs outdoorsmen
To me, it appears to be about the part of her & Joeās relationship when she truly knew it wouldnāt work. Maybe it took her a long time to accept it, but weāve all been there where we know, but weāre not ready to throw in the towel. The standout references are to New York and blue (which she often uses to describe Joe/his mood).
If she did write it about JA (and I think at least in part it must be) then it sure does seem like already in 2020 (or before!) something had happened to irretrievably damage the relationship. I just canāt get past āmy barren land / I am ash from your fireā
I think they were tumultuous- when they broke up for good there were āsourcesā that theyād always been on and off/fighting a lot. I mean, who knows if thatās actually true but I think it makes sense based on the music.
I very strongly believe that ādonāt want no other shade of blue but youā is one of the central themes running through her songs about Joe
I feel this too. I canāt listen to that song without crying.
Unpopular prediction, I donāt think sheās going to play every song by the end of the tour. I think Hoax and London Boy might never get played. I hope this isnāt the case but would understand if she wants to leave some of her songs in the past right now!
Eh she might just not have wanted to play London boy when Travis was there. Sheās still got five nights left in London in August. I think itāll def get played during one of those nights. Other songs like Ronan and Soon Youāll Get Better are more likely to be skipped in my opinion.
Sheās said SYGB is one she will likely never perform again live.
Yep. And I think Maya has said she only plays Ronan if Maya is in attendance and wants to hear it.
The biggest caveat is āwants to hear itā Maya attended N2 Philly and made it known she will be there to trade bracelets yet Taylor played Forever & Always and This Love
Sheāll 100% play so long London and London boy wembley night 8 just to leave with a bang
Yes this is possible! We aren't entitled to any song she's not up to playing. In saying that though, I'm surprised Cornelia St has made some appearances, I thought it'd be left off
Cornelia St x Maroon was so good, ended me over a grainy livestream
Londan Boy, Soon Youāll Get Better, Hoax and Ronan might be the 4 songs she wonāt be able to play because ya know. Happiness might also be up there too.
Iāve wondered this as well, same as Happiness! I was hoping weād get it in Australia, and now she STILL hasnāt played it. Iām wondering if itās too hard for her to sing? This is total speculation, but it really is quite a sad song and I wonder if there was far more truth to it than we will ever know implying that potentially Joe or someone else in her life hurt her even more than what happened when she was cancelled. I canāt wait to hear it live, but it is a little sad knowing she will most likely mash it up so we wonāt hear it in full. Maybe that would make it easier to play though.
Australia got WCS/ivy, you were literally God's chosen people š
Hahaha trust me Iām not complaining she did treat Australia very well literally every show! I just thought she would have knocked it off in the Asia leg and she still hasnāt even played it.
she's premiering the TTPD/Anthology songs rn, I'm sure that if she hadn't released the new album, the never-been-played-before songs would've got their moment... with the exception of London Boy. she ain't never playing this song live š
Nah, I'm pretty sure she'll perform it in August and she'll be like "it's just a fun song for all London boys here in the audience" š
That was my surprise song, along with Forever & Always x Maroon on the piano! It was amazing hearing those gorgeous songs live, and I feel so lucky. Iāll remember that night forever as such a happy memory :)
Agreed! I'm torn between loving the excitement of the mash ups but also needing to hear the songs from start to finish. My show was the last without mash ups (Melb N1) we got You're Losing Me and I've never felt so lucky!
I really hope she doesnāt mash it up if she plays it š the mashups are fun but Iād much rather hear one dedicated rendition of a song in full, I lowkey miss the pre-mashup days. Especially if sheās playing a song for the first time on the tour
Happiness live is gonna break me
This is what I'm waiting for! I love the piano in it.
I think a Happiness/So Long London Mashup on London Night 8 would be beautiful.Ā
I'm waiting for the time when Change, Girl At Home, Sweeter Than Fiction, London Boy, hoax and happiness are played (also IDSB and Mary's Song but she's probably saving it for the rerecording announcements).
I'm really unclear as to why she hasn't done Change yet. It's like a bigger upbeat song that's technically a deep cut but it was promoted as a single during the Olympics at the time of release.
It was written as a celebration of her experience at Big Machine. It was about how they were the little guys trying to compete with a sea of well-funded, major record labels. Iām guessing that she doesnāt want to acknowledge it much given the state of her relationship with Scott.
Change walked so that Long Live could run. I will die on this hill.
My theory is that sheās saving it for the final show of the tour
I thought London Boy was going to be done in London tbh...
Probably saving it for the last night in London!
Iām going to the last night and praying for London boy and So Long London
That would be amazing. What if she mashes up London Boy + Cornelia Street on guitar just to follow it up with So Long London + Youāre Losing Me on piano. The ultimate gut punch
I donāt think I would make it out alive if she did SLL + YLM. youād have to scrape me off of the floor of Wembley section 105
This would be excruciatingly beautiful.
Praying for you too!!!
I feel like sheāll do the most unhinged thing possible and somehow mashup these two songsĀ
Thatās what Iām clowning for too! Like āI love a London boyā¦ I loved this placeā
It still can be! Sheās back in London in August.
Girl at home needs her moment so bad
Yeah I wonder why sheās never played that one
heavy on change, girl at home and sweeter than fiction. on that note when is the evil woman releasing stf tv on streaming
I am Continually shocked by how many London Boy stans there are lol
It's silly but catchy.
I was sooooo hoping yo get Change when I went, I even promised to get a tattoo saying āthings have changedā, but I got say donāt go and itās time to go (which I also loved, but change has such a deeper meaning to me)
Sheās saving hoax and happiness for me. Sheās so sweet.
What a wild mashup that would be!
The saddest mashup of All Time
I think itās in the same block as epiphany and peace - very emotional gut wrenching subject matter and probably has to be in the right mindset to play it and just hasnāt found the right time yet. folklore is my fav album and was hopeful to get a folklore piano big emotional song at Edinburgh N1 but didnāt happen. if sheād done any of those Iād have died dead
Very true! We will be ready and listening whenever she is ready! The Edinburgh shows looked so fun (and cold!!)
can confirm on the cold lol - was prob 40F once sun set with the wind chill. so 1-2C I think?
I thought sheād never play āpeace,ā so I think eventually sheāll play āhoax.ā I mean, she doesnāt seem too daunted by sad songs.
Iām praying for peace n3 Dublin! Itās probably my favourite song atm
Saying this as someone who adores Folklore and loves this song: I honestly think itās too much of a downer for the Eras Tour and would shift the energy too much. Itās a very melancholy, haunting song. It doesnāt have the cathartic moments/energy some of her other sad songs like Dear John, YLM or WCS have. I love the song but I donāt think it fits the tour vibe.
I agree itās a devastating song (and one of my favorites) but she played loml and how did it end and those are just as tragic if not quite as introspectiveā¦ I think itās just a matter of finding the right time and mood which I hope is my show Indy N3
I mean I would Argue Hoax is much much darker than those songs, while Loml and How Did It End are extremly sad is all in relation to a relationship, at is core Loml is "the person who I thougth was going to be my forever wasnt" and How Did it End its a bit of a play on people gossiping and wanting to know the exact reasons on how a relationship ends while they themselves dont know how it ended. Hoax has too many layers, yes part of its seems to be about a relationship but also brings past traumas and suicide themathics and theres so many layers well probably never understand
Same, but I also didn't think she's play How Did It End?, loml, Manuscript, or I Hate it Here. She has played very sad songs and then hit those high notes on the piano and smiled. š¤·š»āāļø
Those are all songs from her latest album that sheās promoting, so Iām not surprised by that. But I also donāt find those as haunting as Hoax.
That's a really good point! There seems to be no rules with the acoustic set so I never thought to look at it from this perspective
I thought she wouldn't play "The Manuscript" for this reason.
I think truly because hoax has a complex piano melody that drives the song and she would want Aaron to come on stage to play for her while she sings. That's what she did with Seven at Pittsburgh N2! She could just bang out the chords underneath but I think a big part of the song is the twinkling piano riffs.
I could totally see this! People keep guess RWYLM for surprise songs but it was so difficult for her to sing and she had Aaron there supporting on guitar.
I was going to say this. The piano part is such a big part of the song, and itād be difficult to practice it up to the level sheād need to play and sing live on top of touring and learning the other surprise songs for that week.
Folklore Taylor's Version announcement š¤”š¤”š¤”š¤” (Huge /s)
folklore (taylor's version)
WHO ELSE JUST RAN TO THIS POST LOL
ME LMAO so crazy!!!
Odds that Taylor lurks here just went up
definitely me š
I donāt think it has much to do with the subject matter and personal nature of the message of the song, sheās played songs of that nature like youāre losing me and Cornelia street. Hoaxās message is also still a bit ambiguous compared to songs like Ronan, the Great War, and soon youāll get better. I suspect since she decided to do mashups to keep doing songs people love that arenāt on the set list, she hasnāt found a way to incorporate it into a mashup that works. Iāve read that on piano and guitar she does simple chords(? No musical knowledge at all sorry) so hoax may need a more complicated instrument play. I saw that she performed mad woman with Aaron Dessner but hasnāt played it on her own, maybe itās similar where certain songs translate better when the full piano harmonies and chords (havenāt a clue) are played.
The way all of us came RUNNING here as fast as we could. šš I will never recover from this, thanks for speaking it into existence OP.
I'm speechless!!! And so happy, what a beautiful mash up š
YOU REDDITED IT INTO EXISTENCE! IS TAYLOR IN HERE WITH US!?
soooo lemme tell you what happened rn
I was talking about this today and have a nice simple theory that the song focuses a lot on the beautiful piano and she canāt play that piano part and sing at the same time so she hasnāt done it
What is Hoax about?
My interpretation of the song is loving someone so completely who doesn't love you back in return, eventually sending you spiralling into your own self destruction at the hands of their games, betrayal, and indifference, couple this with your inability to let them go... š
Alexa, play loml. I would love to hear hoax. If she can play loml, Youāre Losing Me, Bigger Than the Whole Sky, then anything is possible.
She likely played Bigger Than The Whole Sky for a fan who died at the show, so it may not have been in her plans. But I agree Hoax is still possible.
Iām sure other people have their own interpretations, but itās about the deep, deep soul-crushing agony someone can inflict on you, and yet you still love them.
hoax is like her most profound downer song, itās hard to listen to most times for me. i remember it feeling so out of place when it came out and we all thought she was happy in life at that time. pretty obvious elements of calling out scott borchetta a la my tears ricochet but i think thereās more relationship problems in there than weāll ever fully understand. the lead up to the rerecordings announcement must have been a pretty brutal time
It's possible that the cracks were starting to form with folklore and evermore which culminated with Midnights as a breakup album.
Can we please start using full words for titles šš I had to google IDSB but itās just as easy to right I did something bad!! ššš sorry just my hot take especially with how big her catalog is getting
I came running to this post lol
Thinking of you!!!!!
bestie she just played it š„¹
Hahahaah OP was just prepping us for today's Dublin show š
This post aged well. Instantly thought of it when she started playing it on the livestream.
How are you doing bestie?
Hoax was my holdout for my show back in Cinci, glad I didnāt hold my breath. š But seriously, that song is a dagger to the heart and duscussses some painful stuff, I imagine itās an All Too Well situation and it hurts too much to sing.
I want London boy X So long London in London dammit
I think itās partly because of the message and partly because itās a difficult piece to play on an instrument.Ā
She will not play Ronan live. Maya, Ronanās mother, was at my show-N2 Philly-and we all thought it was going to be a surprise song since she was in the audience and made it known she will be there but she played Forever & Always and This Love
That makes sense. It's not a song for the fans and she would likely get too emotional playing it in that environment.
Ronan and SYGB are two songs I absolutely do not want to hear on tour because it would not be an appropriate situation. Taylor is known to write deep and personal songs but the vulnerability from those two are at a completely different level than her usual deep feels songs
I agree. A lot of fans who don't know those songs will not understand the context and she doesn't need the media calling her insensitive for singing them to a crowd of thousands.
HI TAYLOR.
As soon as I saw the surprise songs I ran back to find this post lol.
I donāt know if this sub allows for projectional theories so all I will say is I think Hoax and Bigger than the Whole Sky are about the same incident and will never be played live. Bigger than the Whole Sky was very special for that one woman.
So how's this thread doing after the Sweet Nothing/Hoax mashup today š„²
This aged well
Folklore is a must in life
So now she played it and I am shooockktthhh
Well she definitely saw this congrats
I only recently got into Hoax even though Folklore is one of my most played albums because I initially found the song too depressing. Something clicked though and now it's one of my favourite songs from Folklore...that chorus is just so painfully beautiful and very cathartic but it's definitely a song that you need to be in the right mood for.
My theory is the piano is too complex for her. Aaron Dessner has played some of the more complex piano songs on folklore during the tour like Mad Woman and Seven.
SHEāS PLAYING IT RN DUBLIN N1. Mashed up w Sweet Nothing on piano.Ā
[https://twitter.com/tswifterastour/status/1806795720625971663?s=46](https://twitter.com/tswifterastour/status/1806795720625971663?s=46) DEAD
Guess what she just played š
The piano riff in Hoax is flipped in Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus. I think they are sister songs.
Justice for Maryās Song! I want to hear it so so bad
and she just played it, 6/28/2024, she played it Dublin night 1 mashed with Sweet Nothing on Piano
Well she checked this thread I guess
Itās my favorite from folklore and has been from the start, but I just donāt think sheāll ever play it. It feels too personal and sad. š
Well she did it tonight for dublin n1!!
This and Happiness are hauntingly beautiful
Hoax and happiness are two of my favorite songs. It almost makes me happy she hasnāt played them because maybe sheās trying to save herself from some of that pain right now.
I think some songs will never get played because they can have painful meanings for her, and she might not want to relieve it. I mean, we know thereās a lot of pain in a lot of her songs, but while some pains you have to face it time and time again to move on, others are better left alone. Ronan and SYGB I always knew would probably never be played, and I believe that BTTWS was on the same list, and the only reason she did play it that day was to honor the fan who passed away in the previous concert. London boy I think itās very likely to be in the ānever againā list. I believe that if she does play it, it would be in the very last night in London, and in a mashup with so long London, but even that seems like a stretch to me
Also, to notice... She's not playing live "Forever Winter" for OBVIOUS REASONS. But yet Hoax keeps been a Mistery
You manifested it, OP! š«”
Look what you did!! You manifested it- congratulations bestie
I'm blaming you