The name “Taylor Swift” is world-renowned, as she is most known for her self-written songs and extravagant performances, followed by her enormous fanbase. Often the notion of relationships and boyfriends is associated with Swift’s music, but under those labels of her masterpieces, the momentous lyrics of her songs dive much deeper than most think. Swift’s album, “Folklore,” which was released in July 2020, contains 16 tracks, all embodying different emotions and meanings. Of the many songs she released, one of my personal favorites is her ninth track, “This is Me Trying.” This song, and the overall album, symbolize a genre of music that most do not associate with the pop artist. “Folklore,” as a whole, is recognized for its indie, alternative pop songs, which comes as a large shift from her previous pop songs. “This is Me Trying” is Swift’s interpretation of admitting to mistakes, struggles, and obstacles one must overcome in life.

In an interview, Swift states that while writing her ninth track, she focused on people who are suffering from mental illnesses, addiction, and other everyday struggles. While battling their own challenges, support is not something they receive every step of the way while recovering, and they make many mistakes during their journeys — ones they must admit. By acknowledging these mistakes, they recognize that they are trying their best. The song captures the idea of once being on the perfect track and living up to every expectation, then suddenly facing struggles, thus, becoming set back and losing motivation.

The song begins with Swift admitting that these new adjustments are not easy, as change is difficult for many people. Further into the song, Swift states, “They told me all of my cages were mental / So I got wasted like all my potential.” In my perspective, the impact and meaning of these lyrics go so deep, contributing to the effects Swift’s music has on a person. The idea of facing a struggle and then believing that all your potential has suddenly disappeared into the air is one that many people can resonate with.

The next lyric in the song is, “And my words shoot to kill when I’m mad / I have a lot of regrets about that.” This portion of the song strongly affects my perspective, as this lyric embodies the theme of being stuck in a moment of rage and saying things that you often regret later on. In a broader view, this is another example of Swift incorporating the idea of one admitting their mistakes, which is one of the first steps to rediscovering oneself. Once again, Swift uses the idea of lost potential to impact her listeners, stating, “I was so ahead of the curve, the curve became a sphere / Fell behind on my classmates, and I ended up here.” The triumph and tragedy in these lyrics elevate the song’s meaning, as these two ideas — exceptional and then suddenly falling apart — are not often put side-by-side.

The talented art behind Swift’s extraordinary lyrics is that, although while writing these songs she may have a specific theme or character in mind, the lyrics shift meaning for each person listening, with everyone having their own takeaways from these individual songs. The example she uses in this particular song of being a strong, well-rounded student — one who is ahead of all their classmates and then suddenly falls behind everyone — is what makes these lyrics so personal, especially to her younger audience. In a broader view, the lyrics of her various songs contain many different aspects of life, ones that most individuals can relate to.

Toward the end of the track, Swift states, “And it’s hard to be at a party when I feel like an open wound.” As one of the final ideas represented in this song, Swift uses the notion of being so lost and regretful that it feels like an open wound — a lyrical masterpiece. I believe that the reason behind such brilliant lyrics is that Swift is not afraid to be vulnerable in her music and takes everyday struggles as inspiration, all within a three-minute song.