"God rest my soul
I miss who I used to be
The tomb won't close
Stained glass windows in my mind
I regret you all the time"
\-"Would've, Could've, Should've"
Not the person you replied to but: IMO, it represents a one-sided relationship.
Red roses traditionally represent romantic love. Carnations can represent devotion and affection, but depending on the color, they can also have more negative meanings, like depression or rejection.
So here’s the metaphor: The other person thinks that the relationship is fine when it’s actually not. Or, they may feel that the relationship is deeper and more meaningful than the other person does.
I always thought of carnations as being cheap AF and uglier than roses. Like the love interest didn’t put in enough effort to tell the difference and gave her the shittier version of what she wanted.
Also not OP but love this lyric. Roses are generally described as original, sophisticated, and classic. Carnations are generally looked at as a cheap knock off that aren’t quite comparable.
Her partner thought they were meant to be together but they aren’t and they learned the hard way.
I have the same interpretation as most of the responses here. For me, it represents a relationship where two people have very different perspectives on the relationship. One person positive, the other… not so much. I found it to be such an incredible burn, especially as someone who has been in this type of relationship.
Yeah, the comments below have described it pretty well in terms of the meaning of that particular line.
Maroon is a fairly deep song, and a great example of her songwriting maturity. It's Red's older, wiser sister. She's overlaying metaphors on top of other metaphors, so untangling them is half the fun.
It's possible to interpret the song as being about more than one relationship. I've seen speculation that the 2nd verse is about one of her past 'friends' (if you know, you know), and the color(s) are context clues. The barefoot dancing in NY reference could apply to multiple people, it's so wonderfully ambiguous.
Even little subtleties like the synthesized and distorted voices in the background of the chorus that helps to sonically describe a relationship that is breaking up, both literally and figuratively. It's the rust that grows between telephones... what was once good is now a bad connection.
You would break your back to make me break a smile
"I've never seen someone lit from within
Blurring out my periphery"
"God rest my soul, I miss who I used to be
The tomb won't close, stained glass windows in my mind"
"Your picket fence is sharp as knives
I was dancing around, dancing around it"
"Something different bloomed
Writing in my room "
He was sunshine ; I was midnight rain
I drew curtains closed, drank my poison all alone
"Outside, they're push and shoving
You're in the kitchen humming
All that you ever wanted from me was sweet nothing"
Midnights may not be Folklore or Evermore but it has the best writing after those 2 albums - and powerful lines that pack a punch ! Cannot understand the criticism of the writing then.
"Do I really have to chart the constellations in his eyes?"
Very underappreciated, poetic line. It really fits the song's themes very well and really quite beautiful when you think about what it's communicating.
*"My knuckles were bruised like violets
Sucker punching walls, cursed you as I sleep-talked
Spineless in my tomb of silence
Tore your banners down, took the battle underground"*
*"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"*
*"Like waiting for a bus that never shows
You just start walkin' on
They say that if it's right, you know
Each bar plays our song
Nothing has ever felt so wrong"*
*"Every mornin', I glared at you with storms in my eyes
How can you say that you love someone you can't tell is dyin'?
I sent you signals and bit my nails down to the quick
My face was gray, but you wouldn't admit that we were sick"*
"Broken and blue so I called off the troops
That was the night I nearly lost you
I really thought I'd lost you
We can plant a memory garden
Say a solemn prayer place a poppy in my hair
There's no morning glory it was war, it wasn't fair
And we will never go back to that bloodshed"
The entire The Great War resonates to me because I had a way dramatic, very public breakup/but couldn't keep away messiness that it felt like a circus and too many people know about it and having opinions. It was war, it was definitely not fair. But 4 months after we got back together and now almost 1 year since then.
"Give me back my girlhood, it was mine first"
"Every thing you lose is a step you take"
"Remember this room, we loved it cause of the light, now I sit in the dark and wonder if it's time"
"My smile is like I won a contest and to hide that would be so dishonest"
*I've been under scrutiny. You handle it beautifully. All this shit is new to me* – Lavender Haze
*And I wake with your memory over me, that's a real fuckin' legacy to leave* – Maroon
*So I peered through a window, A deep portal, time travel, all the love we unravel. And the life I gave away. 'Cause he was sunshine, I was midnight rain* – Midnight Rain
*Ask me what I learned from all those years, ask me what I earned from all those tears, ask me why so many fade, but I'm still here* – Karma
*And maybe it's the past that's talkin'. Screamin' from the crypt. Tellin' me to punish you for things you never did. So I justified it* – The Great War
*Everything I touch becomes sick with sadness. 'Cause it's all over now, all out to sea* – Bigger Than The Whole Sky
*I can't let this go, I fight with you in my sleep, the wound won't close, I keep on waiting for a sign, I regret you all the time* – Would've, Could've, Should've
*You should find another guiding light, but I shine so bright* – Dear Reader
*Bet I could still melt your world, argumentative, antithetical dream girl* – Hits Different
*And the air is thick with loss and indecision. I know my pain is such an imposition. Now you're running down the hallway, and you know what they all say; 'you don't know what you got until it's gone'* – You're Losing Me
edit: formatting and added one I accidentally omitted.
Some of my favorites are:
* Snow On The Beach (Till The Dawn Edition): This scene feels like what I once saw on a screen, I searched "aurora borealis green", I've never seen someone lit from within
* Bigger Than The Whole Sky: Did some force take you because I didn't pray?
* Vigilante Shit: She don't start shit, but she can tell you how it ends
I completely misread the title, I rush read it and thought it said least favourite.. so I’m scrolling and seeing some of my favourite lyrics, thinking wow y’all really hate Midnights 😂
I made you my world, have you heard? I can reclaim the land.
Don't you know that cash ain't the only price? It's coming back around
You don't have to answer just cause they asked you.
“Bet I could still melt your world/Argumentative antithetical dream girl”
“Ladies always rise above/Ladies know what people want/Someone sweet and kind and fun/The lady’s simply had enough”
“Picture me, thick as thieves, with your ex-wife”
“High infidelity/Put on your records and regret me (AND) put on your headphones and burn my city”
“No one wanted to play with me as a little kid, so I’ve been scheming like a criminal ever since, to make them love me and make it seem effortless..” (Mastermind)
The entire bridge of YOYOK.
“It turned into something bigger, somewhere in the haze got a sense I’d been betrayed..” (The Great War)
“How long, could we be a sad song? Til we were too far gone to bring back to life…” (You’re Losing Me)
“Ladies always rise above, ladies know what people want, someone sweet and kind and fun, the lady simply had enough…” (Vigilante Shit)
“Ask me what I learned from all those years, ask me what I earned from all those years, ask me why so many fade, but I’m still here..” (Karma)
“If clarity’s in death then why won’t this die? Years of tearing down our banners, you and I..Living for the thrill of hitting you where it hurts, give me back my girlhood it was my first.” (WCS)
- YOYOK could mean "You're On Your Own, Kid", a track from *Midnights* (2022) by Taylor Swift.
---
^[/u/lunastrange99](/u/lunastrange99) ^(can reply with "delete" to remove comment. |) ^[/r/songacronymbot](/r/songacronymbot) ^(for feedback.)
"Everything you lose is a step you take"
"Living for the thrill of hitting you where it hurts,
Give me back my girlhood it was MINE FIRST"
"And the voices that implore, 'you should be doing more'
To you I can admit, that I'm just too soft for all of it"
"Putting someone first,
only works when you're in their top 5"
"And I keep my side of the street clean,
You wouldn't know what I mean"
I’ve been under scrutiny they’re bringing up my history but you weren’t even listening
When my depression works the graveyard shift all of the people I’ve ghosted stand there in the room
"I'm getting tired even for a phoenix
Always risin' from the ashes
Mendin' all her gashes
You might just have dealt the final blow"
"And I wouldn't marry me either
A pathological people pleaser
Who only wanted you to see her"
"Living for the thrill of hitting you where it hurts
Give me back my girlhood, it was mine first"
"Flexing like a goddamn acrobat
Me and karma vibe like that"
"Ask me what I learned from all those years
Ask me what I earned from all those tears
Ask me why so many fade, but I'm still here"
"Sweet like justice, karma is a queen
Karma takes all my friends to the summit
Karma is the guy on the screen
Coming straight home to me"
"I'm damned if I do give a damn what people say"
"Get it off your chest,
Get it off my desk"
"Carnations you had thought were roses, that's us"
"And I wake with your memory over me
That's a real fucking legacy to leave"
"Laughing with my feet in your lap
Like you were my closest friend"
"The mark you saw on my collarbone, the rust that grew between telephones
The lips I used to call home, so scarlet, it was maroon"
"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"
"I gave my blood, sweat, and tears for this"
"If I was some paint, did it splatter
On a promising grown man?
And if I was a child, did it matter
If you got to wash your hands?"
"She needed cold hard proof so I gave her some
She had the envelope, where you think she got it from?"
"Picture me thick as thieves with your ex-wife
And she looks so pretty
Driving in your Benz"
"The lady simply had enough"
"While he was doing lines
And crossing all of mine
Someone told his white-collar crimes to the FBI"
"And I miss you
But I miss sparkling"
"What's a girl gonna do?
A diamond's gotta shine"
"I pictured you with other girls in love
Then threw up on the street"
"Freedom felt like summer then on the coast
Now the sun burns my heart and the sand hurts my feelings"
"You were the one that I loved
Don't need another metaphor, it's simple enough"
"I heard your key turn in the door down the hallway
Is that your key in the door?
Is it okay? Is it you?
Or have they come to take me away?"
"I'm so in love that I might stop breathing"
"Privacy sign on the door
And on my page and on the whole world
Romance is not dead if you keep it just yours"
"I wanna brainwash you
Into loving me forever"
"Let the only flashing lights be the tower at midnight"
"The greatest of luxuries is your secrets"
"Burn all the files, desert all your past lives
And if you don't recognize yourself
That means you did it right"
"So I wander through these nights
I prefer hiding in plain sight
My fourth drink in my hand
These desperate prayers of a cursed man
Spilling out to you for free
But darling, darling, please
You wouldn't take my word for it
If you knew who was talking"
"You were more than just a short time"
"And I've got a lot to pine about
I've got a lot to live without
I'm never gonna meet
What could've been, would've been
What should've been you"
"Do I really have to chart the constellations in his eyes?"
"You know there's many different ways that you can kill the one you love
The slowest way is never loving them enough
Do you really want to know where I was April 29th?
Do I really have to tell you how he brought me back to life?"
"God rest my soul I miss who I used to be The tomb won't close Stained glass windows in my mind I regret you all the time" \-"Would've, Could've, Should've"
"Living for the thrill of hitting you where it hurts Give me back my girlhood it was MINE FIRST!!"
" I pictured you with other girls, in love, then trew up on the street" from Hits Diffrent
So underrated…. Obsessed
“Carnations you had thought were roses, that's us.” “To you, I can admit that I'm just too soft for all of it.”
Constantly misunderstanding or not paying attention. Definitely not a positive metaphor
This is how I interpret it too.
How do you interpret the first lyric ??
Not the person you replied to but: IMO, it represents a one-sided relationship. Red roses traditionally represent romantic love. Carnations can represent devotion and affection, but depending on the color, they can also have more negative meanings, like depression or rejection. So here’s the metaphor: The other person thinks that the relationship is fine when it’s actually not. Or, they may feel that the relationship is deeper and more meaningful than the other person does.
I always thought of carnations as being cheap AF and uglier than roses. Like the love interest didn’t put in enough effort to tell the difference and gave her the shittier version of what she wanted.
Also not OP but love this lyric. Roses are generally described as original, sophisticated, and classic. Carnations are generally looked at as a cheap knock off that aren’t quite comparable. Her partner thought they were meant to be together but they aren’t and they learned the hard way.
I have the same interpretation as most of the responses here. For me, it represents a relationship where two people have very different perspectives on the relationship. One person positive, the other… not so much. I found it to be such an incredible burn, especially as someone who has been in this type of relationship.
Yeah, the comments below have described it pretty well in terms of the meaning of that particular line. Maroon is a fairly deep song, and a great example of her songwriting maturity. It's Red's older, wiser sister. She's overlaying metaphors on top of other metaphors, so untangling them is half the fun. It's possible to interpret the song as being about more than one relationship. I've seen speculation that the 2nd verse is about one of her past 'friends' (if you know, you know), and the color(s) are context clues. The barefoot dancing in NY reference could apply to multiple people, it's so wonderfully ambiguous. Even little subtleties like the synthesized and distorted voices in the background of the chorus that helps to sonically describe a relationship that is breaking up, both literally and figuratively. It's the rust that grows between telephones... what was once good is now a bad connection.
Agree 100%
You would break your back to make me break a smile "I've never seen someone lit from within Blurring out my periphery" "God rest my soul, I miss who I used to be The tomb won't close, stained glass windows in my mind" "Your picket fence is sharp as knives I was dancing around, dancing around it" "Something different bloomed Writing in my room " He was sunshine ; I was midnight rain I drew curtains closed, drank my poison all alone "Outside, they're push and shoving You're in the kitchen humming All that you ever wanted from me was sweet nothing" Midnights may not be Folklore or Evermore but it has the best writing after those 2 albums - and powerful lines that pack a punch ! Cannot understand the criticism of the writing then.
I agree, I think the writing is top notch
But diesel is desire you were playing with fire
The great war has some of her best lyricism.
"Do I really have to chart the constellations in his eyes?" Very underappreciated, poetic line. It really fits the song's themes very well and really quite beautiful when you think about what it's communicating.
and its a great play on a cliche... something taylor does a lot! (the cliche is he has stars in his eyes)
While he was doing lines and crossing all of mine Someone told his white-collar crimes to the FBI
*"My knuckles were bruised like violets Sucker punching walls, cursed you as I sleep-talked Spineless in my tomb of silence Tore your banners down, took the battle underground"* *"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"* *"Like waiting for a bus that never shows You just start walkin' on They say that if it's right, you know Each bar plays our song Nothing has ever felt so wrong"* *"Every mornin', I glared at you with storms in my eyes How can you say that you love someone you can't tell is dyin'? I sent you signals and bit my nails down to the quick My face was gray, but you wouldn't admit that we were sick"*
“So make the friendship bracelets, take the moment and taste it” makes me choke up every single time. Just writing it out hit me.
“It’s a real fuckin’ legacy”
“Carnations you had thought were roses, that’s us” It just hits so hard.
"Broken and blue so I called off the troops That was the night I nearly lost you I really thought I'd lost you We can plant a memory garden Say a solemn prayer place a poppy in my hair There's no morning glory it was war, it wasn't fair And we will never go back to that bloodshed" The entire The Great War resonates to me because I had a way dramatic, very public breakup/but couldn't keep away messiness that it felt like a circus and too many people know about it and having opinions. It was war, it was definitely not fair. But 4 months after we got back together and now almost 1 year since then.
I miss who I used to be…I regret you all the time I made you my world…have you heard? I can reclaim the land
"Give me back my girlhood, it was mine first" "Every thing you lose is a step you take" "Remember this room, we loved it cause of the light, now I sit in the dark and wonder if it's time" "My smile is like I won a contest and to hide that would be so dishonest"
“I’ll stare directly at the sun but never in the mirror “ I have a lot but that one popped in my head first
*I've been under scrutiny. You handle it beautifully. All this shit is new to me* – Lavender Haze *And I wake with your memory over me, that's a real fuckin' legacy to leave* – Maroon *So I peered through a window, A deep portal, time travel, all the love we unravel. And the life I gave away. 'Cause he was sunshine, I was midnight rain* – Midnight Rain *Ask me what I learned from all those years, ask me what I earned from all those tears, ask me why so many fade, but I'm still here* – Karma *And maybe it's the past that's talkin'. Screamin' from the crypt. Tellin' me to punish you for things you never did. So I justified it* – The Great War *Everything I touch becomes sick with sadness. 'Cause it's all over now, all out to sea* – Bigger Than The Whole Sky *I can't let this go, I fight with you in my sleep, the wound won't close, I keep on waiting for a sign, I regret you all the time* – Would've, Could've, Should've *You should find another guiding light, but I shine so bright* – Dear Reader *Bet I could still melt your world, argumentative, antithetical dream girl* – Hits Different *And the air is thick with loss and indecision. I know my pain is such an imposition. Now you're running down the hallway, and you know what they all say; 'you don't know what you got until it's gone'* – You're Losing Me edit: formatting and added one I accidentally omitted.
Some of my favorites are: * Snow On The Beach (Till The Dawn Edition): This scene feels like what I once saw on a screen, I searched "aurora borealis green", I've never seen someone lit from within * Bigger Than The Whole Sky: Did some force take you because I didn't pray? * Vigilante Shit: She don't start shit, but she can tell you how it ends
All of The Great War and Labyrinth
“I hosted parties and starved my body like I’d be saved by a perfect kiss.” Hits me SO hard.
Thank you for these!! Taylor is something else!!!!
“He wanted a bride I was making my own name, chasin that fame” “Picture me thick as thieves with your ex wife” “She’s laughing up at us from Hell”
\*A deep portal, time travel / All the love we unravel\*
I completely misread the title, I rush read it and thought it said least favourite.. so I’m scrolling and seeing some of my favourite lyrics, thinking wow y’all really hate Midnights 😂
I made you my world, have you heard? I can reclaim the land. Don't you know that cash ain't the only price? It's coming back around You don't have to answer just cause they asked you.
“Bet I could still melt your world/Argumentative antithetical dream girl” “Ladies always rise above/Ladies know what people want/Someone sweet and kind and fun/The lady’s simply had enough” “Picture me, thick as thieves, with your ex-wife” “High infidelity/Put on your records and regret me (AND) put on your headphones and burn my city”
"and the voices that implore, you should be doing more. To you I can admit, that I'm just too soft for all of it"
“I search the party for better bodies just to learn that my dreams aren’t rare”
“No one wanted to play with me as a little kid, so I’ve been scheming like a criminal ever since, to make them love me and make it seem effortless..” (Mastermind) The entire bridge of YOYOK. “It turned into something bigger, somewhere in the haze got a sense I’d been betrayed..” (The Great War) “How long, could we be a sad song? Til we were too far gone to bring back to life…” (You’re Losing Me) “Ladies always rise above, ladies know what people want, someone sweet and kind and fun, the lady simply had enough…” (Vigilante Shit) “Ask me what I learned from all those years, ask me what I earned from all those years, ask me why so many fade, but I’m still here..” (Karma) “If clarity’s in death then why won’t this die? Years of tearing down our banners, you and I..Living for the thrill of hitting you where it hurts, give me back my girlhood it was my first.” (WCS)
- YOYOK could mean "You're On Your Own, Kid", a track from *Midnights* (2022) by Taylor Swift. --- ^[/u/lunastrange99](/u/lunastrange99) ^(can reply with "delete" to remove comment. |) ^[/r/songacronymbot](/r/songacronymbot) ^(for feedback.)
"I don't start Sh*t but Se can tell you how it ends"
You’re on you’re on kid, you always have been
The whole You're on Your Own Kid song basically. The lyrics are amazing!
"Everything you lose is a step you take" "Living for the thrill of hitting you where it hurts, Give me back my girlhood it was MINE FIRST" "And the voices that implore, 'you should be doing more' To you I can admit, that I'm just too soft for all of it" "Putting someone first, only works when you're in their top 5" "And I keep my side of the street clean, You wouldn't know what I mean"
everything from the bridge of Dear Reader, verses of Paris, the whole The Great War, the entirety of Maroon
I’ve been under scrutiny they’re bringing up my history but you weren’t even listening When my depression works the graveyard shift all of the people I’ve ghosted stand there in the room
"I'm getting tired even for a phoenix Always risin' from the ashes Mendin' all her gashes You might just have dealt the final blow" "And I wouldn't marry me either A pathological people pleaser Who only wanted you to see her" "Living for the thrill of hitting you where it hurts Give me back my girlhood, it was mine first" "Flexing like a goddamn acrobat Me and karma vibe like that" "Ask me what I learned from all those years Ask me what I earned from all those tears Ask me why so many fade, but I'm still here" "Sweet like justice, karma is a queen Karma takes all my friends to the summit Karma is the guy on the screen Coming straight home to me" "I'm damned if I do give a damn what people say" "Get it off your chest, Get it off my desk" "Carnations you had thought were roses, that's us" "And I wake with your memory over me That's a real fucking legacy to leave" "Laughing with my feet in your lap Like you were my closest friend" "The mark you saw on my collarbone, the rust that grew between telephones The lips I used to call home, so scarlet, it was maroon" "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" "I gave my blood, sweat, and tears for this" "If I was some paint, did it splatter On a promising grown man? And if I was a child, did it matter If you got to wash your hands?" "She needed cold hard proof so I gave her some She had the envelope, where you think she got it from?" "Picture me thick as thieves with your ex-wife And she looks so pretty Driving in your Benz" "The lady simply had enough" "While he was doing lines And crossing all of mine Someone told his white-collar crimes to the FBI" "And I miss you But I miss sparkling" "What's a girl gonna do? A diamond's gotta shine" "I pictured you with other girls in love Then threw up on the street" "Freedom felt like summer then on the coast Now the sun burns my heart and the sand hurts my feelings" "You were the one that I loved Don't need another metaphor, it's simple enough" "I heard your key turn in the door down the hallway Is that your key in the door? Is it okay? Is it you? Or have they come to take me away?" "I'm so in love that I might stop breathing" "Privacy sign on the door And on my page and on the whole world Romance is not dead if you keep it just yours" "I wanna brainwash you Into loving me forever" "Let the only flashing lights be the tower at midnight" "The greatest of luxuries is your secrets" "Burn all the files, desert all your past lives And if you don't recognize yourself That means you did it right" "So I wander through these nights I prefer hiding in plain sight My fourth drink in my hand These desperate prayers of a cursed man Spilling out to you for free But darling, darling, please You wouldn't take my word for it If you knew who was talking" "You were more than just a short time" "And I've got a lot to pine about I've got a lot to live without I'm never gonna meet What could've been, would've been What should've been you" "Do I really have to chart the constellations in his eyes?" "You know there's many different ways that you can kill the one you love The slowest way is never loving them enough Do you really want to know where I was April 29th? Do I really have to tell you how he brought me back to life?"