Is “ME!” the Worst Taylor Swift’s Lead Single?
After much hype, Taylor Swift’s newest single disappoints.
Two years after reputation (2017), we all know that another Taylor Swift album will be arriving soon, and together with it is a lead single that would be released in the summer. After numerous cryptic posts on Instagram, her new single, “ME!”, was released on April 26, much earlier than the usual August release date. Now the question is, does it measure up to her previous lead singles? The short answer is no.
Now, before I rant about how much of a dud it is, I have to admit that there’s one thing it does better than many of her previous singles, which is generating press and hype for her new materials. All eyes were on her, counting down until April 26 to see what’s her next step after the much-talked-about, drama-filled reputation. Merely 15 minutes after the video for the song was released, it was all over my social media. The video broke the Vevo record, as well as the YouTube record for most views in the first 24 hours for a lead female video. The easter egg-filled video also resulted in a countless number of articles and social media posts, detailing references and possible hints about the upcoming album.
However, this is also where the embarrassment that is “ME!” begins. It is more of a vessel for publicity rather than a song. Even the Brendon Urie feature feels like a stunt: it is the first time Swift features anyone in a lead single and the odd duo is sure to attract attention. Despite all the media interest, however, the single is not performing as well on the chart as her previous pop lead singles. It debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 100 with three days of airplay, which is surely a feat but pales in comparison to “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” (“WANEGBT”)(debuted at no. 72) or “Look What You Make Me Do” (“LWYMMD”) (no. 77). Of her pop lead singles, only “Shake It Off” did not make the chart in its first week, but the single debuted at no.1 in its first full week of tracking. In fact, “ME!” is the only one out of the bunch to miss out on the top position of the chart in its first full week of tracking, vaulting 100–2 on the week May 11.
More importantly, because Swift prioritizes style over substance, “ME!” lacks any of the characteristics that make a Taylor Swift song likable. Her lyrics used to be personal and substantive, qualities lacking in reputation that made it so arid. “ME!” is even more immaterial than reputation, with, hands down, the weakest lyrics from Swift. Lines like “‘Cause one of these things is not like the others” somehow end up right next to “Like a rainbow with all of the colors”, forcing a rhyme that makes no literal sense. “ME!” also has an over the top bridge like “WANEGBT”, “Shake It Off”, and “LWYMMD”, but while the bridges in these songs are whimsical and campy, the bridge in “ME!” is downright brainless. From the cringe-worthy “Hey kids! Spelling is fun!” to the questionable “there ain’t no I in ‘team’ but you know there is a ‘me’”, lyrics of this section of the song are the most eyebrow-raising lines to come out of either of the singers’ mouth.
Ironically, for a song that’s supposedly about embracing your individuality and celebrating it, ‘ME!’ is incredibly generic. From “Tim McGraw” to “Look What You Make Me Do”, there is always a narrative, which is delegated to the video in the case of “ME!”. Instead, the lyrics of “ME!” are a hodge-podge of contrived and non-sensical catchphrases delineated so that Swifties can quote them on social media. Hence, there are “one-line-fits-all” lyrics such as “I’m the only one of me” or “I promise that nobody’s gonna love you like me” that do not get expanded on. Instead, Swift uses non-words to fluff up the hook of the song, which is a clichéd and lazy move in song-writing.
That said, “ME!” is by no means a terrible song. The bouncy, cheerful bubblegum pop sounds like Swift stole it from Carly Rae Jepsen’s 2012 Kiss (and put appalling lyrics over it). The structure of the song, while rather formulaic for a Taylor Swift song, is surely better than some of her previous songs (looking at you, “…Ready for It?”). Still, weighing it against her previous lead singles, “ME!” does not fare too well. The only other one that received a significant amount of negative reviews is “LWYMMD”, but it is also her most polarizing single. Moreover, it neither feels forced and tacky like “ME!”, nor has hollow and pompous lyrics (the title is capitalized and has an exclamation point on top of that). Given that “LWYMMD” has not aged well, let’s hope that “ME!” does not face the same fate.
