"You Need to Calm Down" is the fourteenth track from American singer and songwriter Taylor Swift's seventh studio album, Lover, released on June 13, 2019, through Republic Records.
Background[]
In the Spotify storyline for this song, Swift said of the song: "I wrote this song about the energy and effort that some people put into spreading negativity. With all of the trolling, cancel culture, telling people how to live their lives, or pitting women against each other... you're being too loud. This is a song where I'm just saying, "You Need to Calm Down." Go outside, it's the summer."
Music video[]
The music video, filmed on a set in Santa Clarita, California, was released on June 17, 2019, as a premiere on Good Morning America and YouTube. It featured over 21 special guests, most of which are a part of the LGBT+ community.
Much of Taylorās new merchandise was featured in the video as part of the wardrobe and accessories worn by Taylor, like the Cat watch, sleeping mask that says "calm down", and her glittery phone case that reads "Lover".
Full list of who was in the video in order of appearance, not counting Swift herself:
- Dexter Mayfield
- Hannah Hart
- Laverne Cox
- Chester Lockhart
- Todrick Hall
- Hayley Kiyoko
- Jesse Tyler Ferguson
- Justin Mikita
- Ciara
- Queer Eyeās Fab Five:
- Tan France
- Bobby Berk
- Karamo Brown
- Antoni Porowski
- Jonathan Van Ness
- Adam Rippon
- Adam Lambert
- Ellen DeGeneres
- Billy Porter
- RuPaul
- Katy Perry
- Ryan Reynolds
Drag queens as female pop singers
- Tatianna as Ariana Grande
- Trinity The Tuck as Lady Gaga
- Delta Work as Adele
- Trinity K. Bonet as Cardi B
- Jade Jolie as Taylor Swift
- Riley Knox as BeyoncƩ
- Adore Delano as Katy Perry
- Aākeria C. Davenport as Nicki Minaj
Behind the scenes[]
Awards and nominations[]
| Year | Organization | Award | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Summer Song | Nominated | [1] |
| MTV Video Music Awards | Video of the Year | Won | [2] | |
| Song of the Year | Nominated | |||
| Video for Good | Won | |||
| Best Pop | Nominated | |||
| Best Direction | Nominated | |||
| Best Art Direction | Nominated | |||
| Best Editing | Nominated | |||
| Best Power Anthem | Nominated | |||
| Song of Summer | Nominated | |||
| BreakTudo Awards | International Clip of the Year | Nominated | [3] | |
| American Music Awards | Favorite Music Video | Won | [4] | |
| Telehit Awards | Best English Video | Nominated | [5] | |
| People's Best Video | Nominated | |||
| 2020 | Grammy Awards | Best Pop Solo Performance | Nominated | [6] |
| iHeartRadio Music Awards | Best Lyrics | Nominated | [7] | |
| Queerty Awards | Anthem | Runner-up | [8] | |
| Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards | Favorite Song | Nominated | [9] | |
| Berlin Music Video Awards | Best Cinematography | Nominated | [10] | |
| BMI Pop Awards | Award-winning Song | Won | [11] | |
| Publisher of the Year | Won |
Lyrics[]
[Verse 1]
You are somebody that I donāt know
But youāre taking shots at me like itās PatrĆ³n
And Iām just like, "Damn, itās 7 A.M."
Say it in the street, thatās a knock-out
But you say it in a Tweet, thatās a cop-out
And Iām just like, "Hey, are you okay?"
[Pre-Chorus]
And I aināt trying to mess with your self-expression
But I've learned the lesson
That stressinā and obsessin'
āBout somebody else is no fun
And snakes and stones never broke my bones
[Chorus]
So, oh-oh, oh-oh, oh-oh, oh-oh
You need to calm down
Youāre being too loud
And Iām just like
Oh-oh, oh-oh, oh-oh, oh-oh
You need to just stop
Like, can you just not step on my gown?
You need to calm down
[Verse 2]
You are somebody that we donāt know
But youāre coming at my friends like a missile
Why are you mad? When you could be GLAAD
(When you could be GLAAD)
Sunshine on the street at the parade
But you would rather be in the dark ages
Making that sign, mustāve taken all night
[Pre-Chorus]
You just need to take several seats
And then try to restore the peace
And control your urges to scream
About the people you hate
'Cause shade never made anybody less gay
[Chorus]
So, oh-oh, oh-oh, oh-oh, oh-oh
You need to calm down
Youāre being too loud
And Iām just like
Oh-oh, oh-oh, oh-oh, oh-oh
You need to just stop
Like, can you just not step on his gown?
You need to calm down
[Bridge]
And we see you over there on the internet
Comparing all the girls who are killing it
But we figured you out
We all know now
We all got crowns
You need to calm down
[Chorus]
So, oh-oh, oh-oh, oh-oh, oh-oh
You need to calm down
Youāre being too loud
And Iām just like
Oh-oh, oh-oh, oh-oh, oh-oh
You need to just stop
Like, can you just not step on my gown?
You need to calm down
Live performances[]
Swift performed the song live for the first time at the Amazon Prime Day Concert on July 10, 2019. It was also performed at the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards. Swift performed the song at the City of Lover concert in Paris, and it was performed multiple times while Swift was promoting Lover, including at Capital FM's Jingle Bell Ball 2019 in London, and at iHeartRadio's Jingle Ball in New York City. "You Need to Calm Down" is also on the main setlist for the Eras Tour.
Merchandise collection[]
For a full list of merchandise from the collection, visit You Need to Calm Down/Merchandise.
Trivia[]
- The scene featuring Ellen DeGeneres was shot 20 minutes before Taylor's interview on The Ellen Show.
- The song's lyric video was posted on Donald Trump's birthday.
Official lyric video[]
Promotional photos[]
Gallery[]
References[]
- ā "Teen Choice Awards: Full List of Winners". Billboard. August 11, 2019. https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/awards/8527134/teen-choice-awards-2019-winners-list.
- ā https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/mtv-vmas-2019-winners-list-updating-1229669/item/video-year-1229676
- ā "BreakTudo Awards 2019: Anitta e Ariana Grande lideram a lista de indicados com 5 indicaƧƵes cada" (in pt-br). BreakTudo. August 24, 2019. https://www.breaktudo.com/breaktudo-awards-2019-anitta-e-ariana-grande-lideram-a-lista-de-indicados-com-5-indicacoes-cada/.
"BreakTudo Awards 2019: Cardi B, Anitta, Carol Biazin, Shawn Mendes, LuĆsa Sonza e Luan Santana estĆ£o entre os vencedores das categorias de mĆŗsica" (in pt-br). BreakTudo. October 20, 2019. https://www.breaktudo.com/breaktudo-awards-2019-cardi-b-anitta-carol-biazin-shawn-mendes-luisa-sonza-e-luan-santana-estao-entre-os-vencedores-das-categorias-de-musica/. - ā "The American Music Awards Announces 2019 Nominees" (in en). October 24, 2019. https://www.theamas.com/2019/10/the-american-music-awards-announces-2019-nominees/.
- ā SolĆs, Erik (November 14, 2019). "Ā”Conoce a los ganadores de los Premios Telehit 2019!" (in es-MX). Telehit. https://www.telehit.com/premios-telehit/premios-telehit-lista-ganadores-2019.
- ā "2020 GRAMMY Awards: Complete Nominees List" (in en). November 20, 2019. https://www.grammy.com/grammys/news/2020-grammy-awards-complete-nominees-list.
- ā "2020 iHeartRadio Music Awards Nominees Revealed: See the Full List | iHeartRadio Music Awards | iHeartRadio". https://news.iheart.com/featured/iheartradio-music-awards/content/2020-01-08-2020-iheartradio-music-awards-nominees-revealed-see-the-full-list/.
- ā "The QUEERTIES 2020 / Anthem / Vote Now" (in en-US). https://www.queerty.com/Queerties2020/vote-2014.
- ā Dupre, Elyse (May 2, 2020). "Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards 2020 Winners: The Complete List". https://www.eonline.com/au/news/1147301/nickelodeon-kids-choice-awards-2020-winners-the-complete-list.
- ā "Berlin Music Video Awards Nominees 2020". https://www.berlinmva.com/main/bmva-nominees-2020/.
- ā "2020 BMI Pop Awards". https://www.bmi.com/award-shows/pop-2020/.
| Lover | ||
|---|---|---|
| "I Forgot That You Existed" ā¢ "Cruel Summer" ā¢ "Lover" ā¢ "The Man" ā¢ "The Archer" ā¢ "I Think He Knows" ā¢ "Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince" ā¢ "Paper Rings" ā¢ "Cornelia Street" ā¢ "Death By A Thousand Cuts" ā¢ "London Boy" ā¢ "Soon You'll Get Better" ā¢ "False God" ā¢ "You Need to Calm Down" ā¢ "Afterglow" ā¢ "ME!" ā¢ "It's Nice to Have A Friend" ā¢ "Daylight" | ||
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