"Mean" is a song written and recorded by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift for her third studio album, Speak Now (2010). Big Machine Records released it to country radio in the United States as the album's third single on March 7, 2011. Produced by Swift and Nathan Chapman, "Mean" is a six-string banjo-led country and bluegrass track that incorporates fiddle, mandolin, hand claps, and multitracked vocals. In the lyrics, Swift addresses her detractors, recognizes her own shortcomings, and strives to overcome the criticism and achieve success.
Some music critics deemed "Mean" an anti-bullying anthem and praised the production as airy and catchy, while others considered the narrative ineffective. Several media publications have retrospectively listed it as one of the best country songs. "Mean" won Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance at the 2012 Grammy Awards, and also received other industry awards and nominations. The track reached the national charts of Australia, Canada, and the United States, peaking at number two on the country-music charts in the latter two countries. It received certifications in Australia, Brazil, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
The music video for "Mean" was directed by Declan Whitebloom, who wrote its treatment with Swift. Featuring themes of self-empowerment and anti-bullying, the video received a mixed response from critics, who generally criticized its viewpoint on bullying as stereotypical and deemed its concept confusing. The video received nominations at the MTV Video Music Awards, the Academy of Country Music Awards, and the Country Music Association Awards. Swift included "Mean" in the set lists of the Speak Now World Tour (2011–2012) and the Red Tour (2013–2014), and performed it on some dates of her later tours.
Taylor Swift began working on her third studio album, Speak Now (2010), two years prior to its release.[1] She conceived it as a loose concept album about the things she wanted to tell certain people but never had a chance to.[2] She was inspired by her detractors to write the album's sixth track, "Mean", explaining that although she acknowledged constructive criticism, she was bothered by critics who were "just being mean": "There's a line that you cross when you just start to attack everything about a person."[3][4]
In an interview on 60 Minutes in 2011, Swift said that the particular inspiration came from a critical review by Bob Lefsetz, who chastised her following her performance at the 2010 Grammy Awards. He questioned her vocal ability and thought that she "killed her career overnight" and was "too young and dumb to understand the mistake she made."[5][6] Remarking on Lefsetz, Swift said, "The things that were said about me by this dude, just floored me and like leveled me. I don't have thick skin. I hate reading criticisms. You never really, like, get past things hurting you."[5][7]
The musicologist James E. Perone commented that "Mean" is the only Speak Now track congruent with Swift's self-identity as a country musician, as opposed to the album's dominant mainstream pop and rock styles. Analyzing the song structure, Perone noted the instrumental sliding up a whole step in open fifths at the end of each refrain, and the whole-step slide up from the lowered-seventh scale-step to tonic, which evokes the Mixolydian mode typically found in Anglo-American folk music. According to Perone, the refrain uses a short melodic motive, which creates its catchiness.[23]
The lyrics address the critics who questioned Swift's vocal ability following her live performances in 2009 and 2010.[29][30] During the verses, she accuses them of pointing out the flaws that she is self-aware of, which makes her walk "with [her] head down" and feel "wounded".[23] In the refrain, Swift promises her detractors that she would achieve success to the point that their comments will no longer affect her; she asserts that she will move to a "big old city" one day, which Perone noted as congruent with a recurring theme in Appalachian music of poor people moving to big cities to escape poverty.[31]
Critical reception
Music critics praised "Mean" for its airy bluegrass and country production;[c] Mandi Bierly from Entertainment Weekly believed that it rendered Swift's emotions more authentic and emphasized the lyrical narrative.[29]The Village Voice's Theon Weber described the track as "huge, and hugely compassionate, and fearless".[26]Now's Kevin Ritchie and Entertainment Weekly's Seija Rankin picked it as the best Speak Now song,[34][35] and South China Morning Post's Finley Liu considered it one of the album's standout tracks.[36] Several journalists lauded "Mean" for its narrative and deemed it an anti-bullying anthem.[d] Some critics also praised the production as catchy;[e] Billy Dukes from Taste of Country highlighted the "irresistible" hook.[47]
Other critics regarded the narrative of "Mean" as ineffective. Slant Magazine's Jonathan Keefe stated that the song showcased Swift's "lack of self-awareness", criticizing her for focusing on the people who highlighted her vocal issues rather than improving her vocal pitch.[48] Scott Hansen of the Wausau Daily Herald described the track as "counterproductive" and similarly criticized it for "calling out bullies in a way that makes Swift a bully."[43] "Mean" appeared in rankings of Swift's discography by Variety's Chris Willman (13 out of 75),[39]Vulture's Nate Jones (18 out of 245),[33]NME's Hannah Mylrea (28 out of 161),[37]Rolling Stone'sRob Sheffield (66 out of 274),[49] and Paste's Jane Song (82 out of 158).[50]
Rolling Stone ranked "Mean" at number 24 on its 2014 list of the "100 Greatest Country Songs of All Time", the highest ranking for a song released in the 21st century.[51] In a 2024 update, the magazine placed the track at number 20 on its revised list of the "200 Greatest Country Songs of All Time".[52]Taste of Country ranked "Mean" as the 15th best country song of the 2010s,[41] and Parade considered it the 50th best country track of all time.[53]The Tennessean included the song in a 2019 unranked list of the 100 best country songs of all time.[54]
Commercial performance
In the United States, "Mean" debuted and peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart dated October 30, 2010, the highest debut of the week. This made Swift the first artist to have the Hot 100's highest chart entry in three consecutive weeks, following the debuts of "Speak Now" and "Back to December".[55][56] The track debuted at number 55 on the Hot Country Songs chart dated November 13, 2010, the highest entry of the week.[57][58] It reached number nine on the week ending May 14, 2011, making Swift the second female artist to have 13 singles reach the top 10 of the chart.[59][60] "Mean" reached its peak position of number two on the Hot Country Songs chart issued for June 25, 2011.[61]
In August 2011, "Mean" became Swift's thirteenth song to sell more than one million copies in the United States—more than any other country music artist in the digital history.[62] By the end of 2011, "Mean" had sold 1.2million digital copies[63] and reached number 24 on the year-end Hot Country Songs chart.[64] It was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America in August 2014.[65] As of November 2017, "Mean" had sold 2.5million digital copies in the United States, the best-selling Speak Now track.[66]
The music video for "Mean" was directed by Declan Whitebloom, who wrote its treatment with Swift.[75] It was filmed within two days at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles.[76] Swift wanted to convey the experience of being bullied by showcasing the stories of others rather than her own narrative, allowing a broader audience to connect with its message.[77] Whitebloom characterized the video as sketches that resemble Broadway performances and are influenced by various time periods, ranging from those reminiscent of the vaudeville era to those that recall the 2000 musical film O Brother, Where Art Thou?.[78] The music video, which stars Joey King and Presley Cash, premiered on Country Music Television on May 6, 2011.[75][79]Behind-the-scenes footage of the music video's production aired on Great American Country in July 2011[80] and was included on a Target-exclusive edition of Swift's live video album Speak Now World Tour – Live (2011), released on November 21, 2011.[81][82]
Synopsis
The music video begins with Swift playing a banjo in a theater alongside her band, all dressed in vintage-style outfits. The video then shows a young male who is being bullied by football team members for reading a fashion magazine. Swift is seen donning a white 1920s-inspired dress, tied to railroad tracks by an antagonist who mocks her with his friends. A young woman (played by Cash), earning money for college by wearing a costume to promote a fast food restaurant, is shown being bullied by her peers who throw food at her. Another young female (played by King) cannot join a group of girls during lunch because she is wearing a different colored ribbon around her waist and is forced to eat in the school bathroom.[76]
The theater stage transforms into a luxurious nightclub, with Swift wearing a sparkling flapper dress and performing with her band. The video then reveals that the male who was reading a fashion magazine is now a renowned fashion designer, the restaurant employee has become an executive, and the female with the unique-colored ribbon is the only audience member in the theater, watching and applauding as Swift finishes her performance.[76]
Reception
The music video was met with a mixed response from critics,[46] who generally criticized Swift's perspective on bullying.[83][84][85] Kyle Anderson of Entertainment Weekly deemed its narrative confusing and criticized her for likening a professional critic's review to bullying someone for being different.[32] Donna Kaufman of iVillage described the video's characters as "shallow stereotypes" and commented that Swift "doesn't seem at all vulnerable": "[Her] smirking to the camera about how successful she is, and how much of a loser her imaginary bully is, seems a bit like gloating."[46] In a more positive review, Ashley Lasimone of Taste of Country praised the video's vintage-style aesthetic for complementing its artistic direction.[45] The video's themes of self-empowerment and anti-bullying also received positive feedback within the LGBTQ community, specifically for the part where the young male character becomes a famous fashion designer and is seen presenting a runway fashion show with his designs of women's clothing.[31][86]
Swift included "Mean" in the set list of the Speak Now World Tour (2011–2012), where she performed it playing a banjo guitar and danced with a band member playing a fiddle.[107][108] The performance was recorded and released as part of Speak Now World Tour – Live.[81] She included the song in the set list of the Red Tour (2013–2014) and played it on a banjo.[109] She performed it on acoustic guitar at the 1989 World Tour in 2015 at concerts in Saint Paul,[110] Los Angeles,[111] Seattle,[112] and Houston.[113] Swift sang an acoustic rendition of "Mean" at the first Dublin show of the Reputation Stadium Tour in June2018; Rolling Stone's Andy Greene picked it as one of the ten best acoustic performances of the tour.[114][6] She performed the track on acoustic guitar at the Eras Tour (2023–2024) at the third Tampa show in April2023,[115] and as part of a mashup with her song "Thank You Aimee" (2024) at the second London show in June2024.[116]
Swift departed from Big Machine and signed with Republic Records in November2018.[117] She began re-recording her first six studio albums in November2020.[118] The decision followed a public dispute in 2019 between her and Scooter Braun, who acquired Big Machine including the masters of her albums which the label had released.[119][120] By re-recording the albums, Swift had full ownership of the new masters, which enabled her to control the licensing of her songs for commercial use and therefore substitute the Big Machine–owned masters.[121] The re-recorded version of "Mean", subtitled "Taylor's Version", was released as part of her third re-recorded album, Speak Now (Taylor's Version), on July 7, 2023.[122]
Production and composition
Swift produced the re-recording with Christopher Rowe, who recorded her vocals at Kitty Committee Studio in London. David Payne recorded the track at Blackbird Studio in Nashville; Derek Garten provided additional engineering at Prime Recording Studio in Nashville, assisted by Lowell Reynolds. It was mixed by Serban Ghenea at MixStar Studios in Virginia Beach, Virginia; engineered for mix by Bryce Bordone; and mastered by Randy Merrill at Sterling Sound Studios in Edgewater, New Jersey. Musicians who played instruments include Heller (bass guitar), Sidoti (acoustic guitar), Meadows (banjo, mandolin), Max Bernstein (acoustic guitar), Matt Billingslea (drums, percussion), and Jonathan Yudkin (fiddle). Heller, Meadows, and Billingslea provided handclapping, while Swift, Huett, and Evanson provided background vocals.[123] A country pop track,[124] "Mean (Taylor's Version)" is three minutes and fifty-eight seconds long.[125] The production has a few differences: the fiddle is mixed lower,[126] the vocal harmonies are softer,[127] and Swift sings without the country twang of the original version.[128]
Reception
Some critics, such as Amelia Eqbal from CBC.ca and Maura Johnston from Rolling Stone praised Swift's mature vocals as intriguing,[129][130] while The Daily Telegraph's Poppie Platt felt they "can seem jarring, at first, to hear".[131]The Guardian's Laura Snapes thought that the re-recording sounds "more conciliatory" compared to the original version due to its mature and softer vocals.[132] Mark Sutherland of Rolling Stone UK considered it one of the tracks from Speak Now (Taylor's Version) that retained the intensity that made Speak Now a standout album: "The wounded distress [...] still cuts every bit as deep."[133] Kate Solomon from the i stated that the re-recording made her appreciate the song's "silly satisfaction".[134]
"Mean (Taylor's Version)" debuted at number 33 on the Billboard Global 200 chart dated July 22, 2023.[135] In the United States, it reached number 17 on the Hot Country Songs chart[136] and number 39 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[137] The track charted in the Philippines (10),[138] Singapore (27),[139] New Zealand (28),[140] Australia (30),[141] and Canada (41).[142] In the United Kingdom, it peaked at number 57 on the Audio Streaming chart.[143]
Personnel
Credits shown below are adapted from the liner notes of Speak Now (Taylor's Version).[123]
Taylor Swift– songwriter, producer, lead vocals, background vocals
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