“closure” is the fourteenth track on Taylor Swift’s second 2020 album ‘evermore.’ The song seemingly addresses a past relationship for which both lovers are attempting to find closure.
Taylor Swift announced her 9th studio album ‘evermore‘ in quick succession to her previous studio album ‘folklore‘ which was released in July 2020. Both albums follow a similar theme and Taylor called them ‘sister-records.’ “To try and put it more poetically, it feels like we were standing on the edge of the folklorian woods and had a choice: to turn and go back or to travel further into the forest of this music. We chose to wander deeper in,” said Taylor Swift announcing the album. The ‘evermore’ album releases on December 11, 2020.
The style of “closure” is quite different from that of the rest of the album. The music is a stripped-down version of select instruments with a focus on Drums. Taylor seems to pronounce some words with a British accent.
Listen to “closure” by Taylor Swift
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“closure” Lyrics Meaning and Song Review
Verse 1
Taylor Swift sings that seeing this ex’s name still hurts her today. This is a sign that she has not found complete closure with this relationship. She might have moved on, but not found closure. The relationship was not meant to be and Taylor decided to walk out. He might have tried to force the relationship to ensue. But Taylor says he would have realized that it was not meant to be by now.
Chorus
Taylor received a letter from him some time back. She did not respond. Had she replied, it would have lead to a conversation, which is something she would have regretted later on. In the song, she replies to her question “Yes, I’m doing better.” Taylor recalls how hurt she was in this relationship, trying and trying. So, she does not want to start something again now. The lyrics suggest that the ex wrote about finding ‘closure’ in the letter. However, writing a letter to an ex would be the wrong approach for finding closure of the same relationship.
Verse 2
In the second verse of the song, Taylor Swift sings that she does not want to talk to her to find closure from their relationship. Instead, she would rather sulk herself in her sorrows with “my tears, and my beers and my candles.”
Bridge
In the bridge of the song, Taylor sings that being friends, as far away from each other as possible, will be the best form of closure that she can find right now. She is scared she might relapse into his arms if she sees him again. Taylor puts herself down comparing to his ‘new life,’ which we have no further information about. There is so much space between them now, and she would prefer to keep it that way. Taylor calling this space ‘fake’ is further evidence that there is little to no closure for her in this relationship. She better keep her distance from him if she ever wants to move on.
Let us hear what you think about this song in the comments below. Check out the complete lyrics and further meaning breakdown on Genius.