Taylor Swift Finally Clarified That Polarizing Lyric In “Our Song”

Over the course of two decades, 12 studio albums, and nearly 300 (!!) songs, Taylor Swift has given fans plenty of lyrics to dissect and debate. The most fervent discussions tend to revolve around the subject matter behind her love songs and biting bridges. But there’s also a fairly innocuous lyric from Swift’s self-titled debut album that’s proven polarizing for Swifties to this day.

In “Our Song,” a teenage Swift sings about young love and the playful specifics of sneaking around to spend time together — like, as she describes in the rollicking chorus, “When we’re on the phone, and you talk real slow / ‘Cause it’s late, and your mama don’t know.”

It’s a very sweet and evocative line (one fans would still love to hear on a theorized re-record). But over the years, many Swifties have wondered why Swift opted for the word “slow” instead of “low,” rationalizing that if you’re trying to avoid being caught, the imperative would be to talk in a hushed (or low) voice, right?

However, there are just as many listeners who swear by the lyric as written, pointing out that it makes just as much sense to talk slowly in the middle of the night. After all, speaking with measured pauses gives you the chance to monitor the house for signs of a stirring parent — and your mom is less likely to be alerted to your late-night convo than if you rambled on at a constant, animated clip.

Now, in a new interview with The New York Times Magazine, which named Swift one of America’s 30 greatest living songwriters, the singer is shedding light on her lyrical thinking.

“I don’t like to have a word end with the same letter that the next word starts with,” she said, pointing to “Our Song” as an example. “It was supposed to be ‘when you’re on the phone and you talk real low,’ but I was like... I don’t like the ‘real low,’” she explained. “So it turned into, ‘when you talk real slow.’ Certain words just, like, fly for me.”

Indeed — and disclaimer, I’m a longtime defender of the “slow” lyric — that consonant change really helps the line flow in a fun, sliding way. But finally, team “low” can take heart in the fact that they’re aligned with Swift’s original intention as a songwriter.