Taylor Swift is days away from releasing her re-recorded Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) album. Obviously, fans are excited. They are also wondering if her updated version of “Better Than Revenge” will be a little different — after initially spotting it was three seconds longer when the song lengths dropped.
Many first thought that the added length would be Swift opening the track with the “Leave a message, make it hot” lyric that she used when performing it during the Speak Now World Tour. However, fans now are suspecting that Swift changed one of the song’s controversial lyrics: “She’s better known for the things that she does on the mattress.”
When searching for the lyric right before it, “She’s not a saint and she’s not what you think / She’s an actress,” it registers as “Better Than Revenge (Taylor’s Version)” on iTunes. However, the first lyric about the mattress does not — taking fans only to the original. (I also tested this myself to confirm.)
‼️ | Fans are speculating @TaylorSwift13 changed the lyrics of “Better Than Revenge” on “Taylor's Version”. pic.twitter.com/14Bkg6J29K
— Taylor Swift Facts (@blessedswifty) July 5, 2023
Given the song was first released in 2010, the way it has aged has been questionable — with internalized misogyny and shaming toward Joe Jonas’ girlfriend at the time. Despite this, many Swifties enjoy the chaos of the original.
While we won’t fully know if Swift changed the line (or what the swap will be) until tomorrow night, fans still have a lot of thoughts. Find some reactions below.
feminism girl power WHATEVER i don’t care i just want the original song https://t.co/WneYbD5gy7 pic.twitter.com/r6ZpGxi4uU
— amy is suffering (@folkloreamy) July 5, 2023
she probably didn't, but if she did i'm gonna be real skeptical as to why she made this decision
— yz⸆⸉ is slightly inactive (@everhero13) July 5, 2023
i feel like it’s gonna be the intro to what she had on the Speak Now tour for the song
— elissa 🫶 echo era 🤟 (@marvelswift30) July 5, 2023
If Hayley switched back to OG Misery Business, Taylor can keep Better Than Revenge the same https://t.co/slJImETCWC
— Laurel Feakes (@whatthefeakes) July 5, 2023