"Red" Series: "I Knew You Were Trouble"

Hey Everybody,

     So, since I am going in order, the next song on "Red" is "I Knew You Were Trouble". This was the second of her two big hit singles from this album, the first being "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together".
     As we all know, Taylor's love life is not a private thing and her songs about those relationships are rather easy to decipher. This one however could be for one of two people. The first being John Mayer and the second being Harry Styles of One Direction. Though there are some flaws with that theory because the song was out and written before they ever broke up (maybe before they even started dating), so I personally think this one is about John.
     This song is the story of a good girl falling for a bad guy and she gets her heart broken. She regrets the relationship because it was one of those "I should have seen that one coming" moments. Taylor has described it as a "toxic relationship". She's said this about the song's inspiration:

"I had just gone through an experience that made me write this song about like knowing the second you see someone like, 'Oh, this is going to be interesting. It's going to be dangerous, but look at me going in there anyway... I think that for me, it was the first time I ever kind of noticed that in myself, like when you are curious about something you know might be bad for you, but you know that you are going to go for it anyway because if you don't, you'll have greater regrets about not seeing where that would go, but I think that for me it all went along with this record that was pushing boundaries, like the sound of this record pushes boundaries, it was writing about something I hadn't written before."

     And like she says, this song's sound pushes boundaries especially for Taylor's usual style. She experiments in this song with some dubstep. Personally, I think it worked well for her. It was nice to hear something that different from her and I'm glad she pushed the boundaries. I think that the sound really adds a lot to the song itself.
     Now for the lyric analysis! Click here for the lyrics. In the music video for this song, she has this spoken part as a confessional voice-over and it really shows her feelings in this situation. The first verse here shows that she liked his carefree nature and when she fell in love with him, the feelings were not returned. That can sometimes be a crushing feeling. And sometimes you have the hope, "Well, maybe if he just spends more time with me, he will start to feel the same way." I can tell you from experience that if they have their mind made up about you, there is nothing you can do to change it. And you know when you're with that person that they aren't really with you. They're off somewhere else in their head, perhaps even thinking about someone else. And here, Taylor blames herself because she knew it would happen, but she went for it anyway. He made her feel different than any other guy had, hence, "Flew me to places I've never been". And then he just left. In the second verse she realizes he feels no guilt about it at all. And in the second pre-chorus, she sees that that's just how he is and there is no way she'd ever be able to change him. And that little bridge part is actually really powerful. Because if this person she's singing about can make any girl fall for him but drop them all in the dust, you have to wonder if he truly feels anything for any of them. But that's the thing- we'll never know.

     Although this is a really sad experience and one that is difficult to go through, it is one we must all experience. I think all girls dream of having the "bad boy" who is sweet only to her. But that's the problem. He won't be. If he was, he wouldn't really be a bad boy. And it will only end in heartbreak. When you get the feeling that something isn't good for you, it probably isn't. But sometimes you just have to go for it. You don't know why, you just fly. And that's all right sometimes. The only real issue is when you blame yourself. Know that there is nothing you can do to change a person's mind or who they are if they are set in their ways. So do not blame yourself for those things. There is someone out there who is perfect for you. I'm not saying they'll be perfect, but they'll be perfect for you. And they won't leave you. So hold on for that.

Love to you all,

-Autumn the Music Girl