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An Analysis of Taylor Swift' s "You ' re On Your Own Kid"

- Aya M

Welcome to the monthly Taylor swift song analysis! Today I'll be analyzing “You're On Your Own, Kid”, from Taylor’s new Album Midnights.

Midnights is Taylor Swift’s tenth studio album, released on October 21, 2022. It is a concept album regarding nocturnal contemplation, written and produced by Taylor Swift and Jack Antonoff. “You’re On Your Own, Kid'' is the album’s 5th song, a spot notorious for holding a particularly personal song, with vulnerable revelations about Swift's past, most of the time reflecting a certain relationship on emotion.

Verse 1:

Summer went away Still, the yearning stays I play it cool with the best of them I wait patiently He's gonna notice me It's okay, we're the best of friends Anyway

Verse 2:

I hear it in your voice You're smoking with your boys I touch my phone as if it's your face I didn't choose this town I dream of getting out There's just one who could make me stay All my days

Chorus:

From sprinkler splashes to fireplace ashes I waited ages to see you there I search the party of better bodies Just to learn that you never cared

You're on your own, kid You always have been

In this first verse of the song, Taylor sings about a crush she’s had over the summer that is still lingering on her, even as the seasons change. She is still waiting for that person to notice her, and as the sings: “we’re the best of friends'” , she alludes to the lines from her song “You are in love '' in her 1989 album. I believe this song retraces her journey as a world famous star, and she links the lyrics to each one of her albums, and talks about her life as a young adolescent.

Here, she expresses a longing for deeper connections, and for more time with the person she is in love with. This part could be linked to her Album Evermore, and her song “Mirrorball” , in which she longs to be herself and be able to create connections with people, deeper than a fan-star relationship. In the second part, Taylor Swift says that she wants to get out of her hometown, which could correlate to her young self leaving Reading, Pennsylvania, to go to the city with her family in search of a record label. Though, she admits that one person would have made her stay, which could have been her crush at the time.

This Chorus part is particularly relevant when talking about the links between her eras. “From sprinkler splashes to fireplace ashes” could represent the change from her debut album to her Fearless era. This Chorus part also shows how she learned that the one she loved never cared about her, and that she had to learn to overcome it and start anew.

This is the famous part of the song, where Taylor repeats extensively that we are, as she is on her own, we have to grow up ourselves and learn about the world. We must do it with no help, experiences and growth must be made by you, and you only.

Verse 3

I see the great escape So long, Daisy May I picked the petals, he loves me not Something different bloomed Writing in my room I play my songs in the parking lot I'll run away

Chorus:

From sprinkler splashes to fireplace ashes I called a taxi to take me there I search the party of better bodies Just to learn that my dreams aren't rare You're on your own, kid You always have been

From sprinkler splashes to fireplace ashes I gave my blood, sweat, and tears for this I hosted parties and starved my body Like I'd be saved by a perfect kiss The jokes weren't funny, I took the money My friends from home don't know what to say I looked around in a blood-soaked gown And I saw something they can't take away

Bridge

'Cause there were pages turned with the bridges burned Everything you lose is a step you take So make the friendship bracelets Take the moment and taste it You've got no reason to be afraid You're on your own, kid Yeah, you can face this You're on your own, kid You always have been

Here, Taylor Swift explains how she was finally able to “escape” her hometown, and accept the fact that the one she loved didn’t care about her. Indeed, it connotes the start of her music career, as she sings “writing in my room” and plays her songs in public. She also finishes this verse by saying that she will run away. This could regard the crush she’s had or her past life in Pennsylvania.

Again here is another very pungent and powerful chorus. In this passage, she again mentions the different eras but also

mentions her past eating disorder. On the show Miss Americana, Taylor once talked about her body image issues,

and how she would stop eating to lose weight. This phrase: “I searched the party of better bodies” , is very powerful in conveying the feeling of not fitting in and trying to change our appearance in order to feel better about ourselves and each other’s expectations about us.

Finally the bridge of the song is again very relevant when talking about how “You’re on your own, kid” is representative of Taylor’s journey through the years and Eras. "From sprinkler splashes to fireplace ashes" represents

Taylor's debut album to her Fearless era, while "I gave my

blood, sweat, and tears for this" is representative of Taylor's

Speak Now and Red eras.

"I hosted parties and starved my

body" showcases Taylor's 1989 era, where she threw

infamous parties at her Rhode Island mansion. Moreover, the lyrics "The jokes weren't funny, I took the money" reflect

the Reputation era while "I looked around in a blood-soaked

gown / And I saw something they can't take away" is from

her album Lover. Finally, the lyrics "'Cause there were pages turned with the bridges burned" indicate Folklore and Evermore. Here, Taylor Swift also explains that we should

enjoy every moment of life and make friends wherever we go,

“taste” the beauty of life, because there are “no reasons to be afraid” .

I believe that through this song, Taylor swift is trying to showcase an overview of her career, of her successes and failures. She’s showing her audience that fame, although rewarding, isn't as easy as they can imagine. Overall, we Swifties hope that through this song, she is alluding to the beginning of a whole new chapter ofher life and career. As most of us know, Taylor has recently been re-recording her past albums, like Fearless (Taylor’s version) album, or Red (Taylor’s version). This could further emphasize on this idea of going back to old chapters and making them anew. We can take away many things from this song. Humans have such a tendency to lookback at their life, especially their youth, and roll their eyes , feeling as if they’ve wasted somuch time beingpreoccupied with events insignificant in hindsight. What Taylor is saying here is that you don't need to live your life paranoid about whether what you're doing is contributing to some ultimate goal. She's saying all the events that feel like setbacks or distractions at the time are the things that get us to where we need to be. We are taught that there is no fear of being alone, as that's how you'll always be. And you will be fine, because all you need is yourself to face the world.