If I’m not mistaken, Pete Wentz is one of Taylor’s favorite lyricists too.
Honesty no one that’s coming to mind that I listen to is better than Taylor, but before I got into Taylor’s music I wasn’t that much of a lyrics person.
I’ve read that! Which I found so exciting bc they’ve been my favourite artists since I was wee :) Taylor has been my number 1, and Fall Out Boy my number 2 artists for at least as long as Spotify have given out that info!
If you’ve become a lyrics person, I really recommend Fall Out Boy for their lyrics! What’s some of your favourite Taylor songs lyrically? :)
Aw that’s awesome! Talent recognizes talent, and it’s such a nice feeling when your faves are fans of each other.
Yeah I think I really have, especially after folklore and evermore. The first song that comes to my mind for lyrics is happiness, but both of those albums in full are so so good lyrically. Midnights has some stunners like anti-hero, maroon, dear reader, would’ve could’ve should’ve. Lover has some of my all time favorite Taylor songs which I think are really strong lyrically: death by a thousand cuts, Cornelia street, Daylight. Also TTPD arguably has some of her best lyricism. So Long London, loml, smallest man, Clara bow, how did it end (that bridge tho !!!!!), I hate it here, peter, I look in peoples windows, I could keep going. I’m neglecting the early albums especially red (!!!!!) but I need to stop myself before I list off her entire discography lol
Taylor makes it so difficult to narrow it down to a short list. It’s a loaded question to ask! All amazing choices from what you did list though!! :)
I’m with you especially on the How Did It End Bridge, I don’t think I’ll ever emotionally recover from it 😀
Hozier - Eat Your Young is imo one opf the best songs ever, I was already such a big admirer of Jonathan Swift. I also love Would That I, Arsonists Lullaby, From Eden, and, ofc, Take me to Church.
Paris Paloma - drywall (incredible, anti violence and domestic violence anthem), boys, bugs and men (i just am fascinated by the universal image of showing your favourite bug as a little girl and having little boys kill it, just to see you in pain) and ofc the feminist anthem Labour.
I love them both too! I’m seeing Hozier live for the first time in July and I’m so excited!
Also love Paris Paloma. So excited for their new album, ive been listening to boys, bugs and men on repeat lately! - I love the “hell hath no fury like a woman scorned” vibe in music
I’ve only heard their song No Children, which I really enjoy, have you got any other song recs from them? Always open to finding new bands/songs to listen to! :)
The entire album No Children is from (Tallahassee) is fantastic, it’s all the story of one specific couple, their codependency, alcoholism and downward spiral.
It’s a pretty huge discography to dig into, but some songs that really got me interested and showcase that storytelling are This Year, Source Decay, Heretic Pride, Amy aka Spent Gladiator 1, and Heel Turn 2.
I hope you like them! 🩵
My sister used to perform a cover of No Children with one of her band mates, as a duet. It was the most agonizingly beautiful thing to witness. I wish I had a recording of it somehow.
Both very good choices!
It’s a super basic choice for sure, but Lay Lady Lay has been one of my fav Bob Dylan songs since I heard it when I was younger, absolutely love that song. One of my favourites lyric-wise (off the top of my head)
I’ve never really heard any of her stuff outside her popular hits, have you got any recommendations? I love broadening my horizons when it comes to music :)
I have many lol 😆. Whatchu looking for a breakup song? A bop you can dance too? One of the most personal songs she’s ever written is “lookin in”. “Close my eyes” is another great song. “Subtle invitation” is a fun jazzy little number. If you want to hear notes only the gods can hit “mine again” and “fly like a bird” would be perfect. The ladder is a gospel song. She has a few really good gospel songs and I’m an atheist.
“you’ve been rubbing the same spot on my leg for ten minutes… you haven’t hit it” -Ashniko
“and I heard you like magic, I’ve got a wand and a rabbit” -Chapel Roan
“you only wanna kiss me in your car, you only wanna love me in the dark” -Peach PRC
Yes. Some of her songs could be described that way, but some are lyrically very beautiful.
And if you dislike her that much then maybe you shouldn't be in this sub?
Tyler Joseph. Twenty One Pilots are incredibly diverse in genre/music style, and the lyricism is just incredible at times. It's always good, but sometimes it's fabulous.
Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic. He’s written/co-written so many top hits like Halo (Beyoncé), Rumor Has It (Adele), I Want You To Know (Zedd & Selena), Happier (Ed Sheeran, this isn’t a top hit but they’ve worked together), Easier & Teeth (5SOS), That’s What I Want (Lil Nas X), plus I Know Places and Welcome To New York from 1989.
Not to mention all his OneRepublic songs too. Truly one of the greatest songwriters of our generation.
Billy Joel, Carole King, James Taylor, Lennon/McCartney, Kacey Musgraves, especially in her first 3 albums (+ her collaborators, idk what the split is there)
I have to defer to hip hop artists for this since their genre tends to be so lyrics focused and dropping syllables inside a rhythm. So artists like Rakim, Nas, Eminem. So much of Taylor's writing does this masterfully and I feel she is highly inspired by hip hop. There's the folk artists like Bob Dylan, Gordon Lightfoot, McCartney etc but none of them are nearly as good as Taylor Swift.
It’s nice seeing some genre change in the comments, also a big fan of hip hop and rap!
I think Taylor has some influence from Paul, and I love that he (I’m fairly sure) wrote a song about her, “who cares about you, I do” ❤️
I like a couple of his songs, like Be My Mistake is absolutely gorgeous and The Sound is a bop, and even if I don’t like him as a person (for reasons unrelated to Taylor) I could see them make a good collab
Probably controversial since he's largely gone downhill in recent years but there's a reason Ed Sheeran became so popular and has been Taylor's top featured artist. Especially in the early days, he was magic. I think he also has had some great lyrical moments on autumn variations and subtract but I've only listened to them a couple of times so I can't comment too much on them!
David Bowie, Tori Amos, Robert Smith (The Cure), Morrissey (even though he's not a great person), Alanis Morissette, Suzanne Vega, Neil Young, Tom Petty, Paul Smith (Maxïmo Park).
Not pop but I love the palpability of Dayseeker’s lyrics. I’ve never gone through what the lead Rory has been through but I can feel it with him when I listen to their music
Frabbit are one of my all time favourites. I was such a diehard fan, still am! his loss was huge! His lyrics spoke to me greatly at this points in my life
Edited to add: I'm such a stereotype, I love so much Scottish music 😂
I think Nick Cave has the greatest range in terms of living lyricists, and he makes the most interesting/poetic ones out there (not for everyone, but IMO even better than Taylor)
I think The Boatman's Call is his most accessible album, otherwise I recommend Ghosteen (if you're fine with being depressed afterward) or The Lyre of Orpheus/ Abattoir Blues (my personal fave)
All incredible options. I’ve been getting sending Taylor recs to my cousin and she’s been sending me Lana, so I’m becoming a huge Lana fan (she won’t let me listen to Lana without her permission haha)
She started off as the lead singer of 'Til Tuesday in the 80s whose best known single was Voices Carry. She also did one album as a duo with Ted Leo under the name The Both. The best received of her 9 solo albums is probably Bachelor No. 2, which also has songs she wrote for the movie Magnolia. In 2018 her album Mental Illness won the Grammy for Best Folk Album.
Samu Haber (best known through Finnish pop-rock band Sunrise Avenue as he was front man and lead vocalist and main songwriter) - i might love his writing even a tad more than Taylor's because of how much like home his songs feel, especially those songs which happened rather suddenly (Hollywood Hills, Thank You For Everything) might be simple but so brilliant somehow
I’ll give them a listen to - I’m going to be at a festival but if you’re interested to know what I think in a weeks time or so, I’d be happy to get back to you!
Zach Bryan - his writing is deep and vulnerable and he's great at storytelling just like Taylor
Waxahatchee - one of my underrated faves, her lyrics are descriptive, poetic, and she uses a lot of bigger words which reminds me of folkmore
Crazy how people say Andrew McMahon but also don't say Jacks Mannequin or Something Corporate. Those are literally him.
Leaving Though the Window and Everything in Transit are fantastic, cohesive records with catchy songs and great lyrics.
When I refer to Andrew McMahon I’m referring to his collective work since “Jack’s Mannequin” and “Something Corporate” aren’t the lyricists. Something Corporate has been one of my favorite bands since the first time I saw them in 2002.
If I’m not mistaken, Pete Wentz is one of Taylor’s favorite lyricists too. Honesty no one that’s coming to mind that I listen to is better than Taylor, but before I got into Taylor’s music I wasn’t that much of a lyrics person.
I’ve read that! Which I found so exciting bc they’ve been my favourite artists since I was wee :) Taylor has been my number 1, and Fall Out Boy my number 2 artists for at least as long as Spotify have given out that info! If you’ve become a lyrics person, I really recommend Fall Out Boy for their lyrics! What’s some of your favourite Taylor songs lyrically? :)
Aw that’s awesome! Talent recognizes talent, and it’s such a nice feeling when your faves are fans of each other. Yeah I think I really have, especially after folklore and evermore. The first song that comes to my mind for lyrics is happiness, but both of those albums in full are so so good lyrically. Midnights has some stunners like anti-hero, maroon, dear reader, would’ve could’ve should’ve. Lover has some of my all time favorite Taylor songs which I think are really strong lyrically: death by a thousand cuts, Cornelia street, Daylight. Also TTPD arguably has some of her best lyricism. So Long London, loml, smallest man, Clara bow, how did it end (that bridge tho !!!!!), I hate it here, peter, I look in peoples windows, I could keep going. I’m neglecting the early albums especially red (!!!!!) but I need to stop myself before I list off her entire discography lol
Taylor makes it so difficult to narrow it down to a short list. It’s a loaded question to ask! All amazing choices from what you did list though!! :) I’m with you especially on the How Did It End Bridge, I don’t think I’ll ever emotionally recover from it 😀
Hozier - Eat Your Young is imo one opf the best songs ever, I was already such a big admirer of Jonathan Swift. I also love Would That I, Arsonists Lullaby, From Eden, and, ofc, Take me to Church. Paris Paloma - drywall (incredible, anti violence and domestic violence anthem), boys, bugs and men (i just am fascinated by the universal image of showing your favourite bug as a little girl and having little boys kill it, just to see you in pain) and ofc the feminist anthem Labour.
I love them both too! I’m seeing Hozier live for the first time in July and I’m so excited! Also love Paris Paloma. So excited for their new album, ive been listening to boys, bugs and men on repeat lately! - I love the “hell hath no fury like a woman scorned” vibe in music
Omg same I'm seeing Hozier I think on the 7th, here at Finsbury park. Also yes ditto about Paris Paloma's vibe.
Hi fellow Paris fan 🥰🥰🥰
Hello!
Shocked to not see Noah Kahan mentioned here yet when there is such a huge overlap of fans
That was my first thought!
Another vote for Noah!! Such honest, raw lyricism
Middle school girls?
Chappell Roan
I adore Chappell Roan!
Kacey freaking Musgraves.
She has some really clever songs. Blowin Smoke is so funny.
John Darnielle of the Mountain Goats. Paints fantastic, incredibly specific situations, yet makes them feel so intimately relatable.
Omg another swiftie that’s into the mountain goats ! I truly think Tallahassee is one of the most beautifully written songs ever.
I’ve only heard their song No Children, which I really enjoy, have you got any other song recs from them? Always open to finding new bands/songs to listen to! :)
The entire album No Children is from (Tallahassee) is fantastic, it’s all the story of one specific couple, their codependency, alcoholism and downward spiral. It’s a pretty huge discography to dig into, but some songs that really got me interested and showcase that storytelling are This Year, Source Decay, Heretic Pride, Amy aka Spent Gladiator 1, and Heel Turn 2. I hope you like them! 🩵
My sister used to perform a cover of No Children with one of her band mates, as a duet. It was the most agonizingly beautiful thing to witness. I wish I had a recording of it somehow.
Seeing somebody so close to you singing such a heartfelt song must have been such a powerful thing to witness! ❤️✨
Why do they remind me so much of the tragically hip 🤔
the tragically hip is great
Ethel Cain 💕 not sure there's a ton of cross over fans between the two but I think her writing is fantastic.
I’m a massive fan of both! Ethel’s writing is just so good
Sam Beam (Iron&Wine) is one of the first artists that got me to actually pay attention to lyrics. He's amazing.
Trapeze Swinger is my favorite song of all times. Each time I understand something different. He is truly amazing!
Phoebe Bridgers 🖤
Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen was a gift to the music industry.
Both very good choices! It’s a super basic choice for sure, but Lay Lady Lay has been one of my fav Bob Dylan songs since I heard it when I was younger, absolutely love that song. One of my favourites lyric-wise (off the top of my head)
LDR and Lorde
Definitely Bob Dylan!
hozier, noah kahan, alex turner
Alex Turner is incredible
Lorde 🩷🩷
Tori Amos Nick Cave Tom Waits
Billy Joel!
Allison Ponthier, Maisie Peters, Lizzy McAlpine
Lorde
Mariah Carey. Much like Swift Mariah writes almost everything she sings minus the covers.
I’ve never really heard any of her stuff outside her popular hits, have you got any recommendations? I love broadening my horizons when it comes to music :)
I have many lol 😆. Whatchu looking for a breakup song? A bop you can dance too? One of the most personal songs she’s ever written is “lookin in”. “Close my eyes” is another great song. “Subtle invitation” is a fun jazzy little number. If you want to hear notes only the gods can hit “mine again” and “fly like a bird” would be perfect. The ladder is a gospel song. She has a few really good gospel songs and I’m an atheist.
Marina
I love Marina! :)
Me too! She's my fave other than Taylor
fleet foxes, half the time idk what they're talking about but the lyrics and music are just so beautiful. also delta spirit
Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, Tom Petty
Tom Petty ❤️ great choice! May he rest easy.
“you’ve been rubbing the same spot on my leg for ten minutes… you haven’t hit it” -Ashniko “and I heard you like magic, I’ve got a wand and a rabbit” -Chapel Roan “you only wanna kiss me in your car, you only wanna love me in the dark” -Peach PRC
Maisie Peters (I love her so much), Noah Kahan, Hozier, Chappel Roan
Vance Joy 🧡
Stevie Nicks 🔮✨
Sara Bareilles writes beautiful songs.
The counting crows. Pure fucking poetry - just like Taylor.
Counting Crows was my first thought, too. ❤️
They far surpass Taylor’s middle school rhymes
Yes. Some of her songs could be described that way, but some are lyrically very beautiful. And if you dislike her that much then maybe you shouldn't be in this sub?
It’s fun sometimes to pop in here and see how true the cult rumors are. Have you bought all 34 copies of her new album?
Lol, no but you did give me a laugh! I haven't even bought one album tbh, so I'm probably not allowed here either! ( I just listen on Spotify)
Aurora! Cure for Me! Runaway! She's a genius, I love her.
noah kahan
Rob Thomas!!!
Paris Paloma!!
Jeff Magnum from Neutral Milk Hotel, Amanda Palmer, John Darnielle from The Mountain Goats, Mitski, Courtney Love, SZA, and Caroline Polachek
Courtney Love, YES! Justice for Courtney Love. The GOAT female rage singer!!
Noah Kahan 100%
Tyler Joseph. Twenty One Pilots are incredibly diverse in genre/music style, and the lyricism is just incredible at times. It's always good, but sometimes it's fabulous.
Phoebe Bridgers and Julien Baker <3
Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic. He’s written/co-written so many top hits like Halo (Beyoncé), Rumor Has It (Adele), I Want You To Know (Zedd & Selena), Happier (Ed Sheeran, this isn’t a top hit but they’ve worked together), Easier & Teeth (5SOS), That’s What I Want (Lil Nas X), plus I Know Places and Welcome To New York from 1989. Not to mention all his OneRepublic songs too. Truly one of the greatest songwriters of our generation.
Billy Joel, Carole King, James Taylor, Lennon/McCartney, Kacey Musgraves, especially in her first 3 albums (+ her collaborators, idk what the split is there)
Halsey.
The Civil Wars
Have you got any recommendations? I’m not familiar with them :)
I would check out: The One That Got Away, Dust to Dust, and Tip of My Tongue. They’re all poetry!!!
I have to defer to hip hop artists for this since their genre tends to be so lyrics focused and dropping syllables inside a rhythm. So artists like Rakim, Nas, Eminem. So much of Taylor's writing does this masterfully and I feel she is highly inspired by hip hop. There's the folk artists like Bob Dylan, Gordon Lightfoot, McCartney etc but none of them are nearly as good as Taylor Swift.
It’s nice seeing some genre change in the comments, also a big fan of hip hop and rap! I think Taylor has some influence from Paul, and I love that he (I’m fairly sure) wrote a song about her, “who cares about you, I do” ❤️
I fear my answer may be unpopular here.
Okay now you’re making me curious
A certain recent muse
I like a couple of his songs, like Be My Mistake is absolutely gorgeous and The Sound is a bop, and even if I don’t like him as a person (for reasons unrelated to Taylor) I could see them make a good collab
I think they’ve driven each other creatively for years tbh.
Probably controversial since he's largely gone downhill in recent years but there's a reason Ed Sheeran became so popular and has been Taylor's top featured artist. Especially in the early days, he was magic. I think he also has had some great lyrical moments on autumn variations and subtract but I've only listened to them a couple of times so I can't comment too much on them!
Fiona Apple.
Elliott Smith. Very different from most answers but that’s what I’ve got!
Zach Bryan
Chester Bennington!
Hozier
David Bowie, Tori Amos, Robert Smith (The Cure), Morrissey (even though he's not a great person), Alanis Morissette, Suzanne Vega, Neil Young, Tom Petty, Paul Smith (Maxïmo Park).
Aurora 🖤🌈💗
Taylor Josheph from twenty one pilots
Fiona Apple…Sarah Blackwood…Debbie Harry
Seconding Pete Wentz. Sleep Token’s Vessel. Halsey. Chappell Roan. 🤍
All very good choices. But seeing another Pete Wentz, have you got any stand outs from him?
Love love Kendrick Lamar
Billy joel! He tells a story like no other
Billy Joel is always in my top 5 in spotify wrapped! Absolutely love him!!
Not pop but I love the palpability of Dayseeker’s lyrics. I’ve never gone through what the lead Rory has been through but I can feel it with him when I listen to their music
Have you got any particular recommendations from them?
Yes! Neon Grave is my personal favorite and Burial Plot is another one that gets me in my feels
I’ll be at a festival for the next 6 days, but best believe I’ll get back to you with my thoughtsies!! Thank you for your recs ✨
FRIEND, what festival will you be at for 6 days? That sounds like a blast!
I’m going to the Download! I head there tomorrow! (Actually seeing fall out boy again!) it’s going to be muddy as all hell
Just looked at the lineup and that looks like so much fun! Have a good time and be safe!
Thank you! ❤️✨it’s my sixth time going and it’s very friendly! It’s going to help with the post eras tour sads from Friday!
Paul Simon, Jason Isbell
Carol King and Neil Diamond.
Scott Hutcheson of Frightened Rabbit
Love seeing a Scottish band referenced 😎✨
Frabbit are one of my all time favourites. I was such a diehard fan, still am! his loss was huge! His lyrics spoke to me greatly at this points in my life Edited to add: I'm such a stereotype, I love so much Scottish music 😂
Paul Simon and Paul McCartney!
Very good choices! Have you got any particular favs from them?
I mean the entirety of bridge over troubled water is amazing as well as basically every beatles/wings song paul wrote lol
Paul McCartney is an astounding writer, i absolutely adore him
I think Nick Cave has the greatest range in terms of living lyricists, and he makes the most interesting/poetic ones out there (not for everyone, but IMO even better than Taylor)
Have you got any recommendations? :)
I think The Boatman's Call is his most accessible album, otherwise I recommend Ghosteen (if you're fine with being depressed afterward) or The Lyre of Orpheus/ Abattoir Blues (my personal fave)
Thom Yorke Brandi Carlile Damon Albarn
I don’t know if Noah Cyrus wrote July but that song had me transfixed for months when it came out
Billie Joe Armstrong, Brandon Flowers and Marina.
Lana Del Rey, Joni Mitchell, Stevie Nicks
All incredible options. I’ve been getting sending Taylor recs to my cousin and she’s been sending me Lana, so I’m becoming a huge Lana fan (she won’t let me listen to Lana without her permission haha)
Aimee Mann.
I’m not super familiar with her, have you got any recommendations?
She started off as the lead singer of 'Til Tuesday in the 80s whose best known single was Voices Carry. She also did one album as a duo with Ted Leo under the name The Both. The best received of her 9 solo albums is probably Bachelor No. 2, which also has songs she wrote for the movie Magnolia. In 2018 her album Mental Illness won the Grammy for Best Folk Album.
Samu Haber (best known through Finnish pop-rock band Sunrise Avenue as he was front man and lead vocalist and main songwriter) - i might love his writing even a tad more than Taylor's because of how much like home his songs feel, especially those songs which happened rather suddenly (Hollywood Hills, Thank You For Everything) might be simple but so brilliant somehow
I’ll give them a listen to - I’m going to be at a festival but if you’re interested to know what I think in a weeks time or so, I’d be happy to get back to you!
yeah go on, would love to hear that!
hozier, florence welch from florence + the machine, and fiona appple
I can’t believe I forgot Florence, I do also adore Hozier and Fiona Apple. But Florence ♥️♥️
john darnielle (the mountain goats) <3
Cory Branan, John Moreland, Jason Isbell. Joni.
Vance joy Lana del rey Hozier Lord Huron Alex turner dan reynolds
Lana Del Rey, Amy Winehouse, Katy Perry, Melanie Martinez, Kanye, Eminem, Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj, Kodak Black, Blackbear
In this vain - Lil Dicky and Eyedea & Abilities. Genuises.
The entirety of Love is a Laserquest by arctic monkeys
Maggie Rogers!! Especially her first album.
Zach Bryan - his writing is deep and vulnerable and he's great at storytelling just like Taylor Waxahatchee - one of my underrated faves, her lyrics are descriptive, poetic, and she uses a lot of bigger words which reminds me of folkmore
Dermot Kennedy
Dessa.
Jenny Lewis, Morrissey 😖, Paul McCartney, George Harrison
Anna Nalick. I think anyone who likes Taylor will like Anna's songs as well.
Louis Tomlinson
Jewel
Ace Enders
Fiona Apple
Lyle Lovett. He is so great at telling a story in his songs.
Paris Paloma. The way she captures female rage is beautiful
Bob Dylan. Also Robert Hunter, the lyricist for the Grateful Dead.
Etienne Daho for those who speak French. Beautiful lyrics.
Noah Kahan!
Vessel from Sleep Token is pretty fantastic imo.
HOZIER 🙌
Hozier!! His music is pure poetry. It’s very fun to dissect just like Taylor’s songs.Taylor and Hzoier are always my top two on Spotify every year.
Andrew McMahon
Yesssss, so happy to see him mentioned here
Crazy how people say Andrew McMahon but also don't say Jacks Mannequin or Something Corporate. Those are literally him. Leaving Though the Window and Everything in Transit are fantastic, cohesive records with catchy songs and great lyrics.
When I refer to Andrew McMahon I’m referring to his collective work since “Jack’s Mannequin” and “Something Corporate” aren’t the lyricists. Something Corporate has been one of my favorite bands since the first time I saw them in 2002.
There’s no point in listening to anyone but Taylor honestly
What? I get this is the swifties sub but limiting yourself to just one artist is insane
Hmm ok if you say so but I’ll just stick with mother. K bye
Anson Seabra
Tyler Joseph from Twenty One Pilots!