You, with your words like knives
And swords and weapons that you use against me
You have knocked me off my feet again
Got me feeling like I'm nothing
You, with your voice like nails on a chalkboard
Calling me out when I'm wounded
You, pickin' on the weaker man
[Pre-Chorus]
Well, you can take me down
With just one single blow
But you don't know what you don't know
[Chorus]
Someday, I'll be livin' in a big, ole city
And all you're ever gonna be is mean
Someday, I'll be big enough so you can't hit me
And all you're ever gonna be is mean
Why you gotta be so mean?
[Verse 2]
You, with your switching sides
And your wildfire lies and your humiliation
You have pointed out my flaws again
As if I don't already see them
I walk with my head down, trying to block you out
'Cause I'll never impress you
I just wanna feel okay again
I bet you got pushed around
Somebody made you cold
But the cycle ends right now
'Cause you can't lead me down that road
And you don't know what you don't know
[Chorus]
Someday, I'll be livin' in a big, ole city
And all you're ever gonna be is mean
Someday, I'll be big enough so you can't hit me
And all you're ever gonna be is mean
Why you gotta be so mean?
[Bridge]
And I can see you years from now in a bar
Talking over a football game
With that same big, loud opinion
But nobody's listening
Washed up and ranting about the same old bitter things
Drunk and grumblin' on about how I can't sing
But all you are is mean
[Buildup]
All you are is mean
And a liar, and pathetic
And alone in life, and mean
And mean, and mean, and mean
But someday, I'll be livin' in a big, ole city
And all you're ever gonna be is mean
Yeah, someday, I'll be big enough so you can't hit me
And all you're ever gonna be is mean
Why you gotta be so mean?
Someday, I'll be livin' in a big, ole city
(Why you gotta be so mean?)
And all you're ever gonna be is mean
(Why you gotta be so mean?)
Someday, I'll be big enough so you can't hit me
(Why you gotta be so mean?)
And all you're ever gonna be is mean
Why you gotta be so mean?
About
Swift wrote “Mean” in response to music critic Bob Lefsetz, who gave her a cruel review after a February 2010 performance with Stevie Nicks. Lefsetz claimed that Swift “can’t sing” and that the performance “shortened her career,” but she ultimately proved him wrong.
Swift released the song as a single in March 2011, and its accompanying music video was directed by Declan Whitebloom, who also directed the music video for “Ours.” The video includes cameos from actress Joey King and singer-songwriter Presley Cash, who both play people experiencing bullying.
The song received positive reviews from outlets like Entertainment Weekly, and won two Grammy awards — Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
Swift shared on her website:
When you do what I do, which is you put yourself out there for a lot of people to say whatever they want about it, there are a million different opinions from a million different people.I get it that not everyone is going to like everything that you do, and I get that no matter what, you’re going to be criticized for something. But I also get that there are different kinds of ways to criticize someone. There is constructive criticism. There’s professional criticism. And then, there’s just being mean. There’s a line that you cross when you just start to attack everything about a person, and there’s one guy who just crossed the line over and over again. Just being mean, and saying things that would ruin my day. […] There’s always going to be someone who’s just mean to you. Dealing with that is all you can control about that situation, how you handle it. ‘Mean’ is about how I handle it, and sort of my mindset about this whole situation.