POP SONG REVIEW: "You Need to Calm Down" by Taylor Swift

Damn she went from number 2 to number 13 basically overnight. Idk man, your initial assessment (Taylor Swift heyday being over) might not be too far off. Here's hoping lol

Selkie Squirrel

.... What increased output? Todd for the last few years has strived for two videos a month which is what we've been getting. The only increased regularity is that for the last few months all the videos have been pop song reviews instead of alternating between one hit wonderlands and trainwreckord videos.

Neo Ultra Mike

I am pretty jaded with pop music at the moment. Taylor Swift has seemed really fake for a long time and that seems unlikely to change.

Your increased output of late has been noticed and is appreciated :)

Max Eliaser

my biggest problem as a gay is that the lyrics just seem so out of touch

Oh man, the beat. Blank Space, sweetie, I am so sorry that anyone ever accused you of ripping off Royals, because hot damn if YNTCD isn't a big ol' Royals retread. Same producer as well (Joel Little).

Grace

It's perfectly OK to like things (e.g. songs and lyrics). If you like the shade line, then go nuts.

Grace

For the record I like the song a lot more than I thought I would, and when I was young, a huge fan if Taylor swift and had just realized I was in the closet, this song would have meant a lot to me.

Nowhere Girl

Am I the only one who remembers that Taylor was donating to LGBT charities as far back as 2014? She may never have taken a real stance, but I did look into it at the time and she had been doing do for a while. The song may be in bad taste (though I think it's not), but I don't think theres any question about its sincerity.

Nowhere Girl

Nah I agree with you on the criticisms and how she’s making it about herself. And that in itself is toxic and harmful. It’s a nice gesture I guess but it does rub me the wrong way that she seems to think her being heckled online is the same as LGBT+ children being assaulted and bullied to the point of suicide.

Speaking as a gay, this song annoys me, but the video is even worse. Not only is the "homophobic redneck" cliche unhelpful, but dangit, not ALL of us are that fabulous. This stuff always makes me super aware of my schlubby ways. Meh, I prefer black to rainbows anyway. It's nice that she tried, I guess. But the song just isn't very good. The beat's boring and the lyrics are mostly bad. If she can combine gay rights with good music, then I'll be here for her next attempt.

J. Francis

Ha, yikes, that ending stinger is the first time I've heard that Katy Perry song and. Oof.

Shiny Skunk

Todd has noted Taylor's lyrical decline in other videos. How she used to be really good at coming up with little details that made the subject feel more authentic. Yeah, the more pop Taylor has gotten, the worse her lyrics seem to get.

I just listened to this song for the first time before watching this (haven't heard it on the radio yet). I thought it was... okay. It's fine. It reminds me of Lily Allen's "Fuck You", but with less bite. But in 2019, less bite might be better? There are a surprising about of people who still think "you told me to fuck off, that means you're mad and I'm not, therefore I win" - directly addressing it with "okay, you're wasting your time" is a burn that stings longer. (YMMV)

I rather do like the lyric ‘Shade never made anybody less gay,’ because, as you pointed out, it trivializes the bigots. I mean, comparing Jerry Fallwell’s oh-so-deeply-held religion beliefs to backstage drag-queen drama, DAMN that’s some serious shade right there! I’m gay, and mocking the bigots has been part of gay culture for a very long time. Hell, in 80s and 90s it seemed the only way to survive was with sass and glitter bombs! So, while I love how thoughtful and articulate you are, and you do raise many valid points, I’m just going to turn my brain off an enjoy the song :-)

Eric Mulder

Honestly, the only thing I liked about this song was the appearance by Katy. Most of the feud and then the makeup had them mostly separated. Maybe I missed some major appearances they did together but I never saw them together before or after the feud. So finally seeing them together was nice to see. All the awfulness and weird implications of the song aside, I thought that was kind of sweet, like Katy's literal olive branch.

I don't think she's that bad at it.

RedBedroomRecords

Same here, i'm only a casual Swift fan so I was completely unaware she ever did another song aimed at haters and honestly it's one of those subjects i'll never get tired of.

RedBedroomRecords

Nah that would be Morrisey.

RedBedroomRecords

That was a fucking awesome movie.

RedBedroomRecords

Je suis CALMA!

Castleknackers

I don't think she's being insincere either. I did at first, when she just dropped the lyric video - but it's pretty clear from the full music video that she means what she says. That said, I do wonder if this is as good as it's going to get when it comes to allyship by someone like Taylor - sincere ineptitude. I don't think she's in touch enough with the average person to get it. She's been so huge, both in fame and money, for such a long time, it'd be amazing if she could still get it. I think if I had been 16 or however young she was, when I got turned into an icon, I'd be pretty clueless, too. I think most people would be. She wasn't like Perry or Gaga, either. She started in country. It's not really strong on allyship. The first time I heard about Gaga, she was playing Perez Hilton's b-day party. This was before she dropped an album. Perry's first big song was I Kissed a Girl. Both of them had a head start over Taylor, so it makes sense they have a better handle on speaking to that part of their audience. This is not a defense of the song, more of the weird, awkward way she's going about being an ally. I do think she's trying. She's just very bad at it. I guess it doesn't hurt anything that she's made this public stance, either. And if she continues to encourage people to vote - an actual powerful thing - then it's a net positive.

Megan Johnson

My biggest problem with this song is how basic the lyrics are. My favourite thing about Taylor's songs is usually the lyrics, but this and "Me" have just been so lyrically unimpressive.

Carla Viz

Lesbian here. Not a fan of tswift but I did like a lot of 1989. This song is in incredibly poor taste and really misses the root of the problem of homophobia. It's not that people say nasty things online, but the fact that I can be fired for being gay where I live. It's not counter protesters at pride, but LGBT people being beaten and killed and raped.

And now both Macklemore and Gaga have gotten demoted to B-listers it seems. Even if why Taylor is doing is no different it feels less sincere.

All the big companies donning the rainbow comes across as insincere slacktivism. Though I did get a laugh out of Skittles going monochrome for the occasion.

You need to calm down, Todd.

Matt Whitaker

Somewhere there's a monkey's paw with one less uncurled finger.

Charles Arthur

Some people owe Lady Gaga and Macklemore enormous apologies. When I think of how hard they got shat on (especially the latter) while Taylor Swift didn't get nearly as much flack... it really pisses me off.

Grace

yeah im gay and this song comes across the same as corporations making everything rainbow for pride month and then doing nothing for the rest of the year: lazy and too little too late. nice to see your take on it!

Kamu

Je suis calm. Even if Taylor is a sincere ally (or even part of the community) the song's message is so messily handled it feels insincere. Also, was that Con Calma as the ending theme?

I love Taylor (and am LGBT) but I always love Todd's reviews of her songs. And I think he articulated the problem with this song - it's not insincere, it's just misjudged. And musically I find it less impressive than some songs on Rep, which is saying something.

I don't know anything Taylor's personal life, I have seen the gay rumors, but even if she wasn't straight, I think the song would still sound tacky.

Oh yey, I was really hoping you'd review this song! I'm also queer so I'll give my opinion after watching :D

It's strange how I agree with most of the song but ultimately don't care. The awkward sincerity endears it to me, and I suspect it helps that outside of 1989 I haven't paid that much attention to her so I'm not exhausted by the mere idea of another anti-hater anthem from her.

Ryan Rowekamp

Oh my god, Taylor Swift is the Michael Scott of the music industry

James Wymer

I actually thought it was a damn good remake

RedBedroomRecords

"Shade" can also be an insult. Anyways I think this is a pretty good song.

RedBedroomRecords

Huh, see I never made it past the first verse of this song (mostly because the chorus gets on my nerves) so I didn't know about any of the political parts until watching this... I'm still not all that impressed. I support music with a message and the LGBTQ community, but I still find the production on this song unlistenable.

AstarothLuLz

The Roxy/Velma in Chicago comparison is very accurate. It's the Batman v Superman moment of 2019.

And you include Katy's "Informer" remake for the lols.

Josh Spicer

Hey, non-straight person here. Completely agree with you here, it seems like it comes from a sincere place however she somehow still tries to make it about herself.

Say what you will about Taylor, but I actually hear her songs on like radio and gym and shit. I'm not active on social media or spotify so I don't even know half the songs you cover on this show it's kind of nice to see you take on a song I've actually formed an opinion on.

Congrats Todd you got your wish, pop music is more interesting this year.