It's been a week since Red (Taylor's Version)was released,video sex japan and TikTok — and the world at large —have yet to move on. Fans were, uh, swiftto turn several key songs on the album into major trends on the app, and, of course, Taylor Swift couldn't stop herself from joining in on the fun.
These kinds of trends are a case study in the crucial role TikTok now plays in the music industry. And as Taylor takes back control over her early catalogue, TikTok users are also vying for their own sense of ownership over the material, utilizing the platform to ruminate on their favorite lyrics and create original trends.
The kind of radiance you only have at 17
"Nothing New (feat. Phoebe Bridgers)" is one of the "from the vault" tracks on Red (Taylor's Version), and now TikTokkers have turned the somber song into the latest trend. Users have been posting current images of themselves alongside images of their 17-year-old selves, a reference to the lyric, "I know someday I'm gonna meet her / It's a fever dream / The kind of radiance you only have at 17."
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So far, nearly 10,000 videos have been posted using this sound — and it's started a discourse on the app over what that lyric means to different fans.
Taylor Mills, a 23-year-old Taylor Swift fan who participated in the trend, loves how the trend allows people to express their different interpretations of the lyric. "People never talk about high school, and 17 is probably the worst age, so seeing pictures of all these people when they were 17 is so surreal," Mills tells Mashable. "It's incredible to see how much happier and more confident people look now."
Mills is right: 17 can be a tough age for a lot of reasons. You're on the cusp of adulthood. It's an age where young people, especially young women, are taught to hate themselves, and this trend gives users the opportunity to look back with compassion for their younger selves. They can admire just how far they've come.
TikTok user @ceskis used the trend to talk about how they've since abandoned conventional beauty and femininity. Their video garnered over 90,000 views and 10,000 likes. The caption reads, "there's maybe 2 pics where i felt truly beautiful & it took abandoning this person to realize that i was reaching 4 the unattainable."
An example of the trend. Credit: TikTok / ceskis This trend has also sparked conversation about society's obsession with youth. TikTok user @virgotherachel added to the trend with a video that reads, "[this song] is about how society is obsessed with women's youth to the point where we feel 'old' and undesirable at 23. how 17 is the ideal age for women even though we're still children."
This song has started lots of discourse on the app. Credit: TikTok / virgotherachel It's inspiring to see how young people on the app are using the song to have important, and sometimes uncomfortable, conversations.
I've had too much to drink tonight
"The kind of radiance you only have at 17" isn't the only TikTok trend inspired by the song "Nothing New."
On Nov. 19, Taylor Swift herself started a trend around the track's lyric, "I've had too much to drink tonight." The pop star posted images of herself, well, super drunk. Her video has nearly 2 million likes, and Blondie (as she's referred to on the app) has since inspired fans to post their own videos of them wasted. In less than 24 hours, over 2,500 videos have been made to the sound.
Despite the fact that there are definitely a lot of underaged Swifties out there, we know that Blondie is a fan of wine — just listen to her music or watch the Miss Americanadocumentary on Netflix.
Still, there's something to be said for the fact that Swift and her fans created two entirely different trends around the same song. It's almost like the song resonated with fans beyond the obvious allure of alcohol.
I bet you think about me
Another SwiftTok trend that's breaching the mainstream is set to the song "I Bet You Think About Me," another previously unreleased track off Red (Taylor's Version). Here, users post a list of things that they think remind people of them. The sound itself has over 19,000 videos attached to it. The trend itself is a classic twist on a familiar trend that it allows users to define themselves through a handful of select interests.
An example is this video posted by @fratarryluvr. It reads, "I bet you think about me when you see butterflies and someone mentions being a libra." We have a psychological need to categorize ourselves, and this trend checks off that desire swiftlyand efficiently.
An example of the "I Bet You Think About Me" trend on TikTok. Credit: TikTok / fratarryluvr You were tossing me the car keys
By far, the most entertaining trend inspired by Red (Taylor's Version)finds TikTok users acting out a controversial verse from the 10-minute version of "All Too Well." Specifically, the line in which Taylor suggests that her former flame owned a "fuck the patriarchy" keychain.
The sound currently has over 48,000 videos, and the best ones are acting out the scene in question with real fervor.
Users have been isolating the lyrics in the third verse, starting with "you were tossing me the car keys," and doing a dramatic enactment of it. This trend makes the heartbreaking song just a bit more playful — and it perfectly demonstrates that, sometimes, Taylor herself is in on the joke. (She's funny!)
A joyful take on this trend comes from @nouraabdi_, where a whole group of friends comes together to act out the lyrics in tandem.
A fun example of this trend. Credit: TikTok / nouraabdi_ But the real question is: Will Adele's 30usurp Red's reign on the app next week? Because "Cry Your Heart Out" is primed and ready for its time in the TikTok sun.