"Now That We Don't Talk" | |
---|---|
Song by Taylor Swift | |
from the album 1989 (Taylor's Version) | |
Released | October 27, 2023 |
Studio |
|
Genre | |
Length | 2:26 |
Label | Republic |
Songwriter(s) |
|
Producer(s) |
|
Lyric video | |
"Now That We Don't Talk" on YouTube |
"Now That We Don't Talk" [lower-alpha 1] is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. It was written by Swift for her 2014 studio album, 1989 , but did not make the final track-list. She re-recorded the song and produced it with Jack Antonoff for her 2023 re-recorded album, 1989 (Taylor's Version) . A synth-pop and disco song, "Now That We Don't Talk" features disco grooves, falsetto vocals, and thrumming synths. The lyrics are about contempt for an estranged ex-lover.
Music critics generally praised the production as catchy and the lyrics as witty. "Now That We Don't Talk" peaked at number two on song charts in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States, where it became Swift's record-extending ninth number-two song on the Billboard Hot 100. It also peaked at number two on the Billboard Global 200.
After signing a new contract with Republic Records, the singer-songwriter Taylor Swift began re-recording her first six studio albums in November 2020. [2] The decision followed a public 2019 dispute between Swift and the talent manager Scooter Braun, who acquired Big Machine Records, including the masters of Swift's albums which the label had released. [3] [4] 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 substituted the Big Machine–owned masters. [5] From July 2021 to July 2023, Swift released three re-recorded albums of her earlier releases: Fearless (Taylor's Version), Red (Taylor's Version), and Speak Now (Taylor's Version); each album also featured several unreleased "From the Vault" tracks that she had written but left out of the original albums' track listings. [6]
Republic Records released Swift's fourth re-recorded album, 1989 (Taylor's Version), on October 27, 2023, on the ninth anniversary of her fifth original studio album, 1989 (2014). [7] [8] The original album was Swift's first "official pop" album after she had marketed her first four albums to country radio, and it transformed her artistry and image from country to pop. [9] [10] As with her other re-recorded projects, 1989 (Taylor's Version) features five newly-recorded "From the Vault" tracks that Swift had written but left out of the original track listing. [11] Jack Antonoff co-wrote and co-produced four vault tracks with Swift. [1] [12] According to Swift, "Now That We Don't Talk" was late into the production of 1989 and was left out because the personnel "couldn't get [it] right at the time". [13] Officially titled "Now That We Don't Talk (Taylor's Version) (From the Vault)", it is track 19 out of 21 on the track-list of 1989 (Taylor's Version). [1] On November 24, 2023, Swift performed the song on acoustic guitar as part of the São Paulo stop of her sixth headlining concert tour, the Eras Tour. [14]
Swift and Antonoff wrote and produced "Now That We Don't Talk". Antonoff and the engineers Laura Sisk and David Hart, assisted by Jack Manning, Megan Searl, and Jon Sher, recorded the track at four studios: Conway Recording Studios, Sharp Sonics (Los Angeles), Electric Lady Studios, and Rough Customer (New York). Antonoff also programmed the song, played synthesizers and guitar, and provided background vocals. Zem Audu played additional synthesizers and recorded his part at Audu Studio (Brooklyn). Sean Hutchinson and Micchael Riddleberger played and recorded drums at Hutchinson Sound Studio (Brooklyn). Mikey Freedom Hart played bass, synthesizer, electric guitar, and Rhodes piano, which he recorded at Big Mercy Studio (Brooklyn). Evan Smith also played additional synthesizer and saxophone and recorded the instruments at Pleasure Hill (Portland). The track was mixed by Serban Ghenea at MixStar Studios (Virginia Beach, Virginia) and mastered by Randy Merrill at Sterling Sound (Edgewater, New Jersey). [1]
"Now That We Don't Talk" is a synth-pop [15] and disco song. [16] At 2 minutes and 26 seconds long, it is the shortest song in Swift's discography. [17] The production features disco grooves, [18] falsetto vocals in the chorus, and thrumming synths that drive the beats. [19] [20] Music critics compared the song's production to the sound of Swift's previous releases. Time critic Rachel Sonis deemed it the "most 1989-sounding" among the vault tracks. [20] Variety critic Chris Willman said the track has a "light pop-suspense feel" that resembled the song "Mastermind" from Swift's 2022 album Midnights . [21] In a review for NJ.com, Bobby Olivier said the vocals resembled Bleachers' 2014 song "Shadow" and the production's "high-gloss shimmer" evoked Swift's "Bejeweled" from Midnights. [15]
"Now That We Don't Talk" has lyrics that ostracize an ex-lover. [22] In the song, Swift sings, "from the outside, it looks like you're trying lives on." [23] As Swift moves on from the ex-lover, she accepts that she and the ex-lover cannot remain friends ("I cannot be your friend so I pay the price of what I lost, and what it cost") [15] [24] and seeks advice from her mother. [25] She further mocks the ex-lover's lifestyle and taste, "I don't have to pretend I like acid rock / Or that I like to be on a mega-yacht / With important men who think important thoughts." [26] In the Los Angeles Times, Mikael Wood wrote that the lyrics criticizing the ex-boyfriend were reminiscent of Swift's 2010 song "Dear John". [26]
Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone said the song showcased Swift's "acerbic wit". [27] Paste critic Elizabeth Braaten described the song as "an inevitable instant classic in Swiftian lore", [18] and The Line of Best Fit critic Kelsey Barnes praised Swift's falsetto on the track as being "deliciously infectious". [28] NME 's Hollie Geraghty deemed "Now That We Don't Talk" the best "Vault" track from 1989 (Taylor's Version), praising Swift's vocals and the lyrics for showcasing a dry and youthful humor. [29] Uproxx writer Josh Kurp complimented the track's 1980s musical sensation and said it has a radio hit potential. [30] Olivier ranked it fourth among the five vault tracks from 1989 (Taylor's Version), deeming it a "windows-down ... banger". [15] Wood ranked it second and complimented it as a "hilarious take-down of a dude [Swift's] elated to have kicked to the curb". [26] On a less positive side, BBC Entertainment reporters deemed it and the other vault tracks inferior to the original 1989 album. [31] Alex Berry of Clash regarded "Now That We Don't Talk" as the weakest track on the re-recorded album because it is not as outstanding as the other tracks. [32]
After 1989 (Taylor's Version) was released, "Now That We Don't Talk" debuted at number two on the singles charts of Australia, [33] Canada, [34] New Zealand, [35] and the United Kingdom. [36] It debuted at number four in Ireland and number nine in the Philippines. [37] [38] The track also charted in the top 100 of singles charts in several European territories including Norway (number 33), [39] the Netherlands (number 35), [40] Lithuania (number 44), [41] and Sweden (number 51). [42] In the United States, "Now That We Don't Talk" debuted at number two on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart dated November 11, 2023, trailing behind the week's chart topper "Is It Over Now?", another track from 1989 (Taylor's Version). [43] This chart achievement extended Swift's record for the most top-10 songs (49) and most top-five songs (31) on the Billboard Hot 100 among women. [44] On the Billboard Global 200, it also debuted at number two behind "Is It Over Now?". [45]
Credits are adapted from the liner notes of 1989 (Taylor's Version). [1]
Chart (2023) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [33] | 2 |
Belgium ( Billboard ) [46] | 25 |
Canada (Canadian Hot 100) [34] | 2 |
Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100) [47] | 52 |
France (SNEP) [48] | 148 |
Global 200 ( Billboard ) [49] | 2 |
Greece International (IFPI) [50] | 7 |
Ireland (IRMA) [37] | 4 |
Latvia (LAIPA) [51] | 15 |
Lithuania (AGATA) [41] | 44 |
Malaysia ( Billboard ) [52] | 22 |
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [40] | 35 |
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) [35] | 2 |
Nigeria (TurnTable Top 100) [53] | 85 |
Norway (VG-lista) [39] | 33 |
Philippines ( Billboard ) [38] | 9 |
Poland (Polish Streaming Top 100) [54] | 57 |
Portugal (AFP) [55] | 26 |
Singapore (RIAS) [56] | 8 |
Slovakia (Singles Digitál Top 100) [57] | 48 |
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [58] | 75 |
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan) [42] | 51 |
UAE (IFPI) [59] | 18 |
UK Singles (OCC) [36] | 2 |
US Billboard Hot 100 [60] | 2 |
Vietnam (Vietnam Hot 100) [61] | 74 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [62] | Gold | 35,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
"New Romantics" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, who wrote it with the producers Max Martin and Shellback. The title is a reference to the New Romantic cultural movement of the 1970s and 1980s; the new wave musical style of those decades influenced the song's synth-pop production and pulsating synthesizers. The lyrics are about reigniting one's hopes and energy after emotional hardships.
Speak Now is the third studio album by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, released on October 25, 2010, through Big Machine Records. Swift wrote the album entirely herself within two years while touring to promote her second studio album, Fearless (2008).
Jack Michael Antonoff is an American singer, musician, songwriter, and record producer. Antonoff is the lead singer of rock band Bleachers, and was the guitarist and drummer in the pop rock band Fun. He was previously the lead singer of the indie rock band Steel Train. Aside from his work with Bleachers and Fun, Antonoff has worked as a songwriter and record producer with various artists, including Taylor Swift, The 1975, Lorde, St. Vincent, Florence and the Machine, Lana Del Rey, Fifth Harmony, Kevin Abstract, Carly Rae Jepsen, The Chicks, Tegan and Sara, and Clairo. Antonoff has often been credited with having a significant impact on the sound of contemporary popular music since the mid-2010s.
"Sweeter than Fiction" is a song by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift for the British film One Chance (2013). Written and produced by Swift and Jack Antonoff, it was released through Big Machine Records as a promotional single from the soundtrack album on October 21, 2013. A re-recorded version of the song appears as a bonus track on the Tangerine Edition of 1989 (2023).
1989 is the fifth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, released on October 27, 2014, by Big Machine Records. Inspired by 1980s synth-pop, Swift conceived 1989 to recalibrate her artistry to pop after critics disputed her status as a country musician when she released the cross-genre Red (2012) to country radio. She titled 1989 after her birth year as a symbolic artistic rebirth and enlisted Max Martin, who produced Red's electronic-influenced pop tracks, as co-executive producer.
"Out of the Woods" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift from her fifth studio album, 1989 (2014). Swift wrote and produced the song with Jack Antonoff. With lyrics inspired by a failed relationship and the ensuing anxieties that Swift experienced, "Out of the Woods" is a synth-pop song with elements of Eurodance and indietronica and features heavy synthesizers, looping drums, and layered background vocals.
"Bad Blood" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift from her fifth studio album, 1989 (2014). Swift wrote the song with the producers Max Martin and Shellback, and it is a pop song with prominent drums and keyboards. The lyrics are about betrayal by a close friend; many media publications interpreted that the American singer Katy Perry was the subject. A remix featuring the American rapper Kendrick Lamar, with additional lyrics by Lamar and production by Ilya, was released to radio as the fourth single to promote 1989 on May 17, 2015, by Big Machine and Republic Records.
"This Love" is a song written and recorded by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift for her fifth studio album, 1989 (2014). Swift produced the song with Nathan Chapman. An atmospheric ballad, "This Love" combines soft rock and synth-pop. Its lyrics use oceanic imagery to describe the revival of a faded romance.
"Better Man" is a song by American country group Little Big Town. It was released on October 20, 2016, as the lead single from the group's eighth studio album, The Breaker (2017). American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift wrote the song, intending to include it on her fourth studio album, Red (2012), but the song did not make the final track list. She passed the song to Little Big Town in 2016, believing the group's vocal harmonies suited it.
"Enchanted" is a song written and recorded by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift for her third studio album, Speak Now (2010). Produced by Swift and Nathan Chapman, the song is a power ballad combining pop, rock, and country. The production begins with gentle acoustic guitars and crescendos after each refrain, leading to dynamic electric guitars, a steady drum beat, and a vocal harmony-layered coda. In the lyrics, a narrator is infatuated with someone after meeting them for the first time, and she worries about whether the initial feeling will be reciprocated.
"You All Over Me" is a song by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift featuring American singer Maren Morris. Swift wrote the song with Scooter Carusoe in 2005 and intended to include it in her second studio album, Fearless (2008). Although the track did not make the cut, it was produced by Swift and Aaron Dessner for Swift's first re-recorded album, Fearless (2021), which is the re-recording of Fearless. Republic Records released "You All Over Me" for download and streaming on March 26, 2021, via Republic Records.
"That's When" is a song by Taylor Swift featuring Keith Urban. Swift wrote the song with the Warren Brothers when she was 14, and she recorded it with Urban for her first re-recorded album, Fearless (2021), the re-recording of her 2008 studio album Fearless. Produced by Swift and Jack Antonoff, "That's When" is one of the six unreleased "From the Vault" tracks on Fearless .
Fearless (Taylor's Version) is the first re-recorded album by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, released on April 9, 2021, by Republic Records. It is part of Swift's re-recording projects following the 2019 dispute over the ownership of her back catalog released by Big Machine Records. Fearless (Taylor's Version) comprises re-recordings of the tracks on Swift's second studio album, Fearless (2008), the soundtrack single "Today Was a Fairytale" for the 2010 film Valentine's Day, and six previously unreleased "From the Vault" tracks.
Red (Taylor's Version) is the second re-recorded album by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. Released via Republic Records on November 12, 2021, as a part of Swift's countermeasure against the purchase of the masters of her back catalog, the album is the re-recording of Swift's fourth studio album, Red (2012), and follows the first re-recording, Fearless (Taylor's Version) (2021).
"Nothing New" is a song by the American singer-songwriters Taylor Swift featuring Phoebe Bridgers. Swift wrote the song in March 2012 and produced it with Aaron Dessner for her second re-recorded studio album, Red , which was released in 2021 through Republic Records. The track is a guitar-led folk and alternative rock tune about anxieties over romance and growing up.
"Message in a Bottle" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. Written by Swift, Max Martin, and Shellback, it was intended for, but left out of, her fourth studio album, Red (2012). Shellback and Elvira Anderfjärd produced the track for Swift's re-recorded album, Red (2021). "Message in a Bottle" is a dance-pop and electropop song with a 1980s-influenced production featuring synthesizers and a pulsating bass.
1989 (Taylor's Version) is the fourth re-recorded album by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. It is a re-recording of Swift's fifth studio album, 1989 (2014), and was released on October 27, 2023, by Republic Records. The album is part of Swift's ongoing response to a 2019 dispute regarding the masters of her back catalog. It was announced at the final Los Angeles show of the Eras Tour on August 9, 2023.
"Say Don't Go" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. She wrote the track with Diane Warren in 2013 for her fifth studio album, 1989 (2014), but left it out of the final track-list. Swift re-recorded the song and produced it with Jack Antonoff for 1989's re-recording, 1989 (2023). "Say Don't Go" is a new-age and pop rock power ballad with a production featuring 1980s-inspired drum beats, pizzicato arpeggios, and isolated vocal patterns. The lyrics are about a narrator attempting to maintain her unfruitful relationship.
"'Slut!'" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, who wrote and produced it with Jack Antonoff and Patrik Berger. The song was intended for but ultimately left out of Swift's fifth studio album, 1989 (2014). Following a 2019 dispute regarding ownership of Swift's masters, the song was produced for Swift's re-recording of 1989, titled 1989 (2023). "'Slut!'" was released for streaming and download on October 27, 2023, via Republic Records; the same day, Universal Music released the song to Italian radio. An acoustic version was released for limited-time download as part of a deluxe digital release of the album.
"Is It Over Now?" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. Written by Swift and Jack Antonoff, the song was intended for but ultimately left out of Swift's fifth studio album, 1989 (2014), but was released as part of the 2023 re-recording, 1989 . "Is It Over Now?" is an electropop power ballad composed of dense reverb, synthesizers, and an echoing drum machine. Republic Records released the song to US contemporary hit radio on October 31, 2023.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)