- Taylor Swift talks politics on her song “Only the Young.”
- In the song, Taylor references the 2018 midterm elections, Donald Trump, and gun violence in the United States.
- Ahead of the 2020 election, Taylor let Joe Biden and Kamala Harris use the song in a campaign ad.
Taylor Swift is done being silent about politics, and she recently let it be known loud and clear in her documentary Miss Americana. In the past, Taylor was hesitant to share her views in the past because, as she’s stated before, she felt like she didn’t know enough about politics to contribute to the conversation surrounding it and possibly impact her fans’ views in the process.
“I don’t talk about politics because it might influence other people,” Taylor told Time magazine in 2012. “And I don’t think that I know enough yet in life to be telling people who to vote for.”
Since then, Taylor has changed significantly—she released her song “Only the Young” earlier this year and it’s her most political song to date. The song details Taylor’s feelings following the 2018 midterm elections and how heartbreaking it was for her to see young people fail at getting their choice candidates into the race.
“There were so many young people who rallied for their candidate, whether it was a senator or congressman or congresswoman,” Taylor said in an interview with Variety about her Miss Americana documentary. “It was hard to see so many people feel like they had canvassed and done everything and tried so hard. I saw a lot of young people’s hopes dashed.”
“I found that to be particularly tragic,” she added, “because young people are the people who feel the worst effects of gun violence and student loans and trying to figure out how to start their lives and how to pay their bills and climate change and are we going to war—all these horrific situations that we find ourselves facing right now.”
Now, four days ahead of the 2020 election, Taylor let Joe Biden and Kamala Harris use “Only the Young” in a campaign ad, making it the first time she’s ever had her music used to support political candidates.
Reminder: Taylor endorsed Biden/Harris for this year’s election.
Learn the lyrics to “Only the Young” before casting your vote in the election:
[Verse 1]
It keeps me awake
The look on your face
The moment you heard the news
You’re screaming inside
And frozen in time
You did all that you could do
The game was rigged, the ref got tricked
The wrong ones think they’re right
You were outnumbered this time
According to Genius, the last few lines of the first verse possibly reference our current president, Donald Trump. During the 2016 election, Trump frequently called the election process rigged…despite the fact that he won and Republicans (his party) were accused of manipulating the polls. “You were outnumbered this time” could see Taylor leaving her listeners with a glimmer of hope that Trump has a chance at being voted out of office in the 2020 election.
[Chorus]
But only the young
Only the young
Only the young
Only the young can run
Can run, so run
And run and run
[Verse 2]
So every day now
You brace for the sound
You’ve only heard on TV
You go to class, scared
Wondering where the best hiding spot would be
And the big bad man and his big bad clan
Their hands are stained with red
Oh, how quickly, they forget
Easily one of the most powerful lines in the song, this references the devastating number of mass shootings that occur in the United States—as of today, there have been a whopping 449 mass shootings in 2020.
[Pre-Chorus]
They aren’t gonna help us
Too busy helping themselves
They aren’t gonna change this
We gotta do it ourselves
They think that it’s over
But it’s just begun
[Chorus]
Only one thing can save us
Only the young (only the young)
Only the young (only the young)
Only the young (only the young)
Only the young
[Post-Chorus]
Only the young (only the young)
Only the young (only the young)
Only the young (only the young)
Only the young
Only the young (only the young)
(Don’t say you’re too tired to fight
It’s just a matter of time
Up there’s the finish line)
Only the young (only the young)
Only the young (only the young)
Only the young
Can run
Don’t say you’re too tired to fight
It’s just a matter of time (can run)
Up there’s the finish line
So run, and run, and run
Don’t say you’re too tired to fight
It’s just a matter of time (so run)
Up there’s the finish line
And run and run and run
[Outro]
Only the young
Only the young
Only the young
