AUGUST - Taylor Swift - FIRST TIME REACTION

[@hayashaikh8159]

One of the things that we notice is how she keeps repeating lyrics in August because Augustine (the other girl) only knew him for a while and she only have these very few and repetitive memories of James while Betty actually knew him properly and that's why "Cardigan" isn't repetitive at all and Betty keeps sharing new details..

[@rissaannster]

Swifties thoroughly enjoy watching new fans listen and learn to love Taylor. Ask any questions and we will happily provide background. ❤️

[@nickforell1]

I will certainly do that

[@richmaxmchalliwchester1984]

Taylor is the main writer in all of her songs, she usually calls her co-writers and producers when she has already more than 80% or even 90% of the song done. Taylor is also producer and she produces her songs. Jack quite recently said how amazing songwriter and producer she is and that honestly she doesn't even need any producers or co-writers, he basically said she could make a whole album by herself without any help. Taylor is involved in absolutely every part of creating her music, she's also director and she's directing her music videos and she will direct her own feature film next year, she even wrote whole script by herself.

[@chichi3713]

Some fans have pointed out that the lyric "meet me behind the mall" may also be a play on word as it also sounds as "meet me behind them all" which is what august is about

[@nickforell1]

Ah, interesting catch! The innuendo of being in the shadows.

[@naamanvasquez8226]

one of the things Taylor is known for is her story telling. It not only is vague enough for it to be interpreted in many ways, the vaguenesses makes relatable to many if not most who are able to feel like they are living what is being told, even if it isn’t being specific to a situation in particular. Love ur videos man!

[@nickforell1]

Thanks Naaman, I appreciate you supporting the channel and your insight.

[@bobbyrw1398]

To broaden your perspective, I think it's important to be aware of the creative dynamic between Taylor, and Aaron Dessner and Jack Antonoff, her two producers, as shown throughout this series. Both Aaron and Jack are typically very minor contributors to the melodies and lyrics. Taylor takes their instrumental tracks and then writes the topline vocals and melodies. They contribute further with various vocal tweaks, but their main focus is on the underlying production values.

[@nickforell1]

Gotcha, so Taylor is the main writer and visionary behind her tracks. Props to her. Thanks Bobby

[@EricHolstege]

About 70% of her songs have a co-writer but it is almost always her producer. A big reason for this is that in the music industry producers don't get royalties. She doesn't think this is fair so shares the wealth by giving them a co-write. There are interviews with Jack Antonoff, Aaron Dessner, and Ryan Tedder (worked on 1989) that state she basically does all the lyrics and almost all of the melody. Her 30% solo-writes is about twice the fraction of the next highest major pop star. As a counter-example, Justin Bieber is a also listed as co-writer on all his songs but a solo writer on none. Some of his co-writes have 10 professional writers on them, so what did he really do (not to rag on him as such, just example).

[@brucebrown3837]

I love how animated Jack is during this song!

[@richardh776]

Taylor always changes the chorus, even if it is one word or line later on in the song. She writes most or all the song before she comes on to other people. Cardigan is Betty Older. August is from the other girls and Betty is from James perspective.

[@nickforell1]

Okay, good to know. I appreciate variation in choruses

[@NYandAZ]

I took the “are you sure” because he had someone else in his life. Although they were still young enough for it to have that dual meaning (as Taylor often does).

[@mamat8184]

Okay, Nick! That did it. The third of your reactions I've watched. This old Swiftie just had to join your Patreon because of the sincerity of your reactions and how observant and inciteful you are, as well as respectful, when it comes to Taylor's songwriting. Bravo and wishing you increased success with your channel. I'm hooked.

[@nickforell1]

Awesome, thank you that is so kind! Please always feel free to give me feedback or suggestions. Happy to have you here :)

[@Violet316]

One other tidbit, the names James, Inez, and Betty are the names of Ryan Renolds and Blake Lively's daughters. Taylor is friends with Blake and Ryan, they had their 3rd daughter a few months before this album came out, but never released her name. So, this is how they released Betty's name. Note: The name Inez will pop up in Betty.

[@madwoman_at.thelakes]

Yes, the names James and Inez are in the lyrics of the song, "Betty" (James is the guy who cheated on Betty with Augustine, and Inez is Betty's gossipy friend who told her about their summer fling). Since Blake recently gave birth to their 4th child (gender yet to be announced), Swifties have been speculating that the name could already be embedded in a Taylor song, perhaps Daisy May from "You're On Your Own Kid." I doubt it, but the fans love to speculate.

[@Violet316]

@@madwoman_at.thelakes I was thinking the same thing about Daisy May.

[@nickforell1]

Ah, context! Good to know about the real influences.

[@lauraventura1989]

This is my favorite song on the album🩶🪻

[@nickforell1]

i love it too Laura!

[@yasminahmed6970]

Beautiful

[@chelcbarnett]

You said Taylor's song writers, that is Taylor she writes all her own songs. She may work with others but they often speak out & say they didnt add much it was all Taylor. She also comes up with melodies, shes done interviews where ones popped in to her head & shes had to stop to quickly record it on her phone.

[@nickforell1]

Thank you for the correction. It's even more impressive!

[@siriuswarren6764]

August is a bop 🎸🍷🧡

[@nickforell1]

It is, and I'm here for it. Thank you for tuning in

[@sarahshank6876]

i love all of the live versions of folklore, i think it’d be cool if you would also listen to the regular version cause i feel like there is some really cool sounds that don’t come across in these long pond versions. love the videos!

[@nickforell1]

I had a number of people request the live version because it comes with context about the song beforehand but I may go back later and listen to her studio versions. Thank you Sarah :)

[@FernandoAlbertoGall]

@@nickforell1 yeah you definitely should, it's gonna be good, trust me

[@laur12530]

best song on folklore

[@nickforell1]

really enjoyed it!

[@madwoman_at.thelakes]

I'm really enjoying your thoughtful analysis and appreciation of Taylor's work. I make it a hobby to watch reactions of people discovering her genius in real time, but it seems you have a background in music that makes your experience that much more meaningful. As you're learning, Taylor is a songwriter first and foremost, she is unrestrained by genre, sound, or melody. She began as a country singer because that is where she believed the best storytelling could be expressed, but after experimenting a bit with her 4th album, the inspiration started coming to her in the form of pop melodies, so she went with it. Folklore and Evermore were completely unplanned products of covid lockdown where she created her own imaginary forest world to escape to and tried her hand at telling fictional stories for the first time (her songs had always been autobiographical up to that point, with a few based on people she knew). Many of the songs started as instrumentals that Aaron sent her, and she created the melody and lyrics based on those instrumentals. They built the elements of these songs separately in their own home studios during lockdown, so these Long Pond Studio Sessions were the first time they had performed them live together in person. Taylor actually did some writing for Evermore while at Long Pond ('Tis the Damn Season in the middle of the night while drunk, to be specific). I'm so glad you are able to access the intro convos now, I can't wait for Mad Woman, that is the discussion that I find most meaningful.

[@nickforell1]

That's kind of you to say. I have a little background in music, but my background is mainly founded in writing. I'm piecing together and understanding of her background and how she approaches creating her albums. So far, I find it very impressive that she's managed to appease a fanbase over so many years while reinventing herself with different styles. Thanks again for supporting!

[@madwoman_at.thelakes]

@@nickforell1 If you are a writer yourself and are focusing on her lyricism, you are in for a treat, my friend. I sincerely hope more and more Swifties discover your channel to help you find the multiple layers of meaning in so many of her lyrics (Genius is a helpful website for this as well). Folklore and Evermore certainly contain some of her most poetic lyrics, but even some of her more mainstream hits have a good deal of symbolism. You may be interested to watch her acceptance speech for Songwriter of the Decade in Nashville where she explains how she categorizes her lyrical styles into 3 genres based on the hypothetical writing instrument used to compose them: Quill Lyrics, Fountain Pen Lyrics, and Glitter Gel Pen Lyrics. kzbin.info/www/bejne/pYi0mGVuodKXp5o

[@whatsgiureading]

One of my interpretations of this song: the lyrics are constantly repeated in "august" because Augustine only had a month with James and didn't make many memories with him--whereas on the other side, in the song "cardigan", the choruses are constantly changing because Betty (who writes this song after 20 years with James) knows him by heart and has created more memories. Augustine repeats the same thing over and over again because she doesn't have enough moments with James to write about. I think this is done on purpose, Taylor is a genius! I also find it funny that the line "meet me behind the mall" sounds like "meet me behind them all," showing that James was always trying to keep her a secret. Love your videos :)

[@ZosiaDabrowski]

Nick won't know the context of this, but hearing her talk again about sympathising with the "other woman"'s perspective and how it's a myth about a woman stealing someone's man, it really struck me what a glow-up she's had since her days of 'Better Than Revenge'.

[@nickforell1]

Thank you for that insight though Zosia!

[@celinelovell4725]

He’s her producer , he is in a lot of demand and he’s said no one would give him a chance till Taylor

[@panduindrabaskara1625]

This song hurts me so much like a kick to the chest 😂😂😂

[@nickforell1]

It's a beautiful one though

[@panduindrabaskara1625]

@@nickforell1 it is beautiful

[@andysartz]

Just found your reacting to Taylor videos and now I'm obsessed, binge watching them, haha! Can't wait to see you react to Mr. Perfectly Fine, that's a favorite of mine. That wasn't supposed to rhyme, but there it goes, I just did it again lol

[@nickforell1]

Oh thank you Andy! I really appreciate that. She’s so talented lyrically and has such a great voice. Been such a pleasure to watch her

[@catemc2323]

🌈💚🍀

[@neensbal13]

You look so much like Andrew Garfield, even sounds like him

[@nickforell1]

Oh well that’s a new one! Never heard that

[@bloo.cheese]

I like to think of it like Taylor is telling us it’s ok to be messy 😂

[@kittyss2371]

hello hello.. Cheers fm Malaysia...i am new subscriber here.. Will you be doing reaction vid for Styles? I live this song so much... the lyrics she wrote just blew me away.. Im so amazed with her ability to form meaningful poetic words.. Love her..