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Fifteen (song)

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"Fifteen"
Song
B-side"You Belong With Me (Radio Mix)"

"Fifteen" is a country pop song written and recorded by American singer-songwiter Taylor Swift. It originates from Swift's sophomore studio album, Fearless, which was released on November 11, 2008. "Fifteen" was released as the album's fourth single on October 9, 2009. The ballad was inspired by Swift's freshman year of high school and her best friend, Abigail Anderson. Lyrically, the song is a warning to high school girls to believe in their own potential and avoid placing too much importance on boys. The music video for "Fifteen", directed by Roman White, starred Swift and Anderson as themselves and was heavily accentuated with special effects.

The song was a critical success, with reviewers commending its thoughtful and effective lyrics concerning teenage relationships and virginity. "Fifteen" garnered average commercial outcomes for Swift in the United States, where it has thus far peaked at number 38 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Fifteen" will be released as a single internationally on November 23, 2009.[1][2]

Background

"Fifteen" is a ballad written in the key of G major.[3] The song is set in common time with a moderate tempo of 96 beats per minute. Swift's vocals span two octaves, from G3 to C5.[4] For the song's outro, Swift sings several bars of "la la la"[5] and repeats the opening line, "Take a deep breath and you walk through the doors".[4] Fifteen is the second track on Fearless and the eighth on the album's re-release, Fearless: Platinum Edition. At six seconds short of five minutes, it is the longest song on the standard edition,[6] and the second longest on the re-release, behind "Untouchable".[7]

"Fifteen"'s lyrics were inspired by Swift's eventful freshman year of high school, during which she met Anderson, experienced her first date and first kiss, and supported Anderson through a broken heart. Swift said, "I just decided I really wanted to tell that story about our first year of high school because I felt in my freshman year, I grew up more than any year in my life so far."[8] The highly personal song caused Swift to cry while recording it.[9] Swift says the song is sung "sort of as advice to another fifteen year old."[10] When writing the lyrics, she began with the line "And Abigail gave everything/She had to a boy/Who changed his mind", which eventually became the song's bridge.[5] "[I] wrote everything else from that point, almost backwards," said Swift.[9] While Swift has never explicitly explained the line, most critics interpret it to mean that Anderson lost her virginity to a boy who was not truly interested in her.[5][11][12] In summer 2008, before the album's release, the boy mentioned in "Fifteen" returned to Anderson's life with Swift's help; Swift brought her to a field where "the guy was standing in the center of this field in a big heart made of candles, holding a bunch of roses." Swift considered this action romantic and was pleased.[13]

Critical reception

Swift sings "Fifteen" in Columbia, Maryland.

"Fifteen" enjoyed generally positive critical reception, particularly for its thoughtful lyrics and meaning. Rolling Stone magazine's Jody Rosen wrote that "Swift is a songwriting savant with an intuitive gift for verse-chorus-bridge architecture" and that "Fifteen" seemed to have been "scientifically engineered in a hit factory — with confessions that are squirmingly intimate and true." Rosen compared Swift's songwriting to the talents of "Swedish pop gods Dr. Luke and Max Martin."[14] James Reed of The Boston Globe wrote that Fearless' "most interesting songs are the ones Swift wrote alone. You can practically see the lyrics for "Fifteen" scribbled in a diary, chronicling Swift's freshman year in high school."[15] Slant Magazine's Jonathon Keefe called the bridge "a great, revealing line about a friend's lost innocence" and considered it one of the nicer moments of the album, but was unimpressed with Swift's singing: "the "la la la" outro to "Fifteen" is just wretched".[5] Stephen Thomas Erlewine from Allmusic found "Fifteen" to be the most personable of songs on Fearless, in which Swift seems like "a big sister instead of a big star", and marked it as one of the best tracks from the album.[16] Billboard magazine called it an "insightful" song that would "connect with teens looking for hope and with adult women looking back."[17] The New York Times' Jon Caramanica believed "Fifteen" is "one of the best songs Taylor’s written".[18] Entertainment Weekly reviewer Leah Greenbelt stated, "When she sings about sexuality, she sounds like a real teen, not some manufactured vixen-Lolita".[11] Josh Love of The Village Voice called "Fifteen" the album's "standout" song and found it a refreshing contradiction to typical, idealistic country songs.[19] Rob Sheffield, reviewing for Blender magazine, said the song was the most mature featured on Fearless.[20] Alexis Petridis of The Guardian called "Fifteen" a "fantasticly good" song that broadened "her potential market from teenage girls to anyone who used to be a teenage girl." Petridis continued, "You applaud her skill, while feeling slightly unsettled by the thought of a teenager pontificating away like Yoda".[21] The United Methodist Church issued a review written by Steve Morley which called the song a "skillful" depiction of the scary transition to high school, with lyrics that offer "a thoughtful warning about the preciousness of virginity."[12]

Rolling Stone ranked the song #46 on their annual year end 100 Best Singles list in 2008.[22]

Chart performance

Due to the release of Fearless, "Fifteen" appeared on the U.S. Hot Digital Songs chart and eventually peaked there at number 15.[23] The song debuted at number 79 on the U.S. singles chart Billboard Hot 100 for the week ending November 29, 2008 due to the album release. "Fifteen" reappeared on the chart for the week ending February 28, 2009, when it reached a peak at number 65.[24] "Fifteen" fell off the chart again the following week and did not appear again until October, when the song was released as a single. For the week ending October 03, 2009, the song re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 94.[25] It ascended from 89 to 77 between the week ending October 10, 2009 to October 24, 2009. "Fifteen" rose to number 62 for the week ending November 7, 2009, defeating its previous peak set nine months earlier.[26] The song also appeared on the U.S. Hot Country Songs chart, on which it debuted at number 41 for the week ending September 12, 2009 and has thus far peaked at number 9 in the week ending November 14, 2009.[26] On the Canadian Hot 100, the single debuted at number 63 before falling off the chart. It re-entered at number 93 in the week ending October 24, 2009.[27] Following the re-release of Fearless, "Fifteen" rose to 46 the week of November 14, 2009. Combined with "Jump Then Fall", "You Belong with Me", "Untouchable", "The Other Side of the Door", "Superstar", "Come in with the Rain", and "Forever & Always", "Fifteen" helped Swift break the record for the highest number of charting Hot 100 songs for any female artist in history.[28] When the song reached #38 on the chart week of November 21, 2009, it became her thirteenth Top 40 single from Fearless and also surpassed Beyonce for the most Top 40 singles in the 2000's with nineteen.

@15

Swift partnered with electronics retailer Best Buy for @15, a program that allows teens to help decide how Best Buy's "@15 Fund" will be distributed among various charities. Swift taped a Public Service Announcement, called a "Teen Service Annoucement" by Best Buy, for @15. Within the PSA, which was released on on February 9, 2009, scenes of Swift encouraging reminiscing on high school and encouraging originality and uniqueness were intercut with scenes of her singing "Fifteen".[29] In June 2009, @15 became a partner for Swift's Fearless Tour. The Swift's PSA was shown at each North American stop of the tour. At 15 stops, @15 donated 40 concert tickets and a guitar autographed by Swift to local teen-focused charity groups, such as chapters of Boys & Girls Clubs of America and Big Brothers Big Sisters.[30]

Music video

The music video for "Fifteen" was directed by Roman White, who had previously directed the music video for Swift's "You Belong With Me". White began with the intention of making the video distinct from anything Swift had done before and taking the video "outside of high school"[31] He explained the concept to CMT:

"The idea is that there's a place where you can go back and revisit your memories. She's in this void and memories are manifesting around her. The story evolves and she walks across this dream world. When she walks through those doors and people fade in and out, she just has this amazing sense of innocence."[31]

The video was shot using a green screen. Elaborate special effects, such as the animated flowers, were then digitally added.[31][32] The video stars Swift and Anderson as themselves.[33][34]

The video begins with Swift, barefoot and clad in a little white dress, approaching a tall, arched doorway which materializes in the middle of a barren landscape. Swift looks at a photograph of herself and Anderson tucked into the arch and then passes through the doors. On the other side of the arch, animated flowers and vines grow across the scenes. People and objects from Swift's high school fade in and out of view, creating a surreal montage of scenes from Swift's freshman year. Swift walks through the memories and begins to play her guitar beneath a tree. The video transitions to Abigail sitting at a desk before a chalkboard in the field of flowers. Swift sits down beside her and two begin to whisper and laugh to each other. In the next scene, Swift plays her guitar while Anderson goes on her first date. Anderson kisses her date, but pushes him away when he tries to go further. The boy, his car, and the animated background dissolve to Abigail sitting alone on a stone bench. Swift approaches her and hugs her tightly as the field around them turns dark and stormy. The video then alternates between Swift singing in the rain and hugging her friend. Abruptly, the storm clouds merge over the scene, clearing to reveal the tops of several dark grey umbrellas. Swift finds herself in the real world, wearing a black rain coat and standing in the rain across the street from a high school. With a look of concern, she watches a fifteen year old about to enter her own freshman year speaking to her friend outside the school. Swift tells CMT that the song "is kind of sung as advice to [...the] fifteen year old."[10]

The music video premiered on October 7, 2009 through Country Music Television. It first became available for streaming on its website, CMT.com, at 7:00 AM EST. The video then premeriered on television the same day within a 90 minute special titled CMT Fifteen Swiftly-Made Videos which aired at 8 AM EST on CMT.[35]

Live performances

Swift performs "Fifteen" acousticly in the middle of a crowd on her Fearless Tour.

Swift selected "Fifteen" to perform at the 51st Grammy Awards,[13] where she sang it as a duet with Miley Cyrus. The act was first announced through Ryan Seacrest's Twitter.[36] Swift and Cyrus' performance began at 8:53 P.M. on February 8, 2009, shortly after the announcement of Song of the Year.[18] The duo sat on simple bar stools for the acoustic performance with Swift, wearing a baggy white dress layered over a tight black outfit, playing the guitar.[37][18]

"Fifteen" is featured in the set list of Swift's Fearless Tour, which commenced on April 23, 2009, and is expected to last until June 2, 2010.[38] During the tour performances, Swift walks into the audience to play the guitar and sing the song acousticly atop a platform positioned in the midst of the crowd.[39] She performs in a short pastel colored dress and cowboy boots. After finishing, Swift hugs the fans closest to the platform before beginning "Tim McGraw".[40][39]

On October 13, 2009, Swift played the guitar and sang "Fifteen" at the Sommet Center in Nashville, Tennessee for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum benefit concert, "We’re All For The Hall". She wore a wearing a glittery belted purple dress and was accompanied by three harmony singers.[41][42]

Charts and peaks

Chart (2009) Peak
position
Australian ARIA Singles Chart[43] 73
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs[26] 9
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[26] 38
U.S. Billboard Pop 100[23] 55
Canadian Radio & Records Country Singles[citation needed] 4
Canadian Hot 100[26] 63

References

  1. ^ Wilson, Benji (2009-10-25). "Taylor Swift - the meteoric rise of pop's brightest new star". Mail Online. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  2. ^ "Fifteen". CDonline.com. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  3. ^ "Taylor Swift's Sophomore CD, Fearless, to Arrive in Stores on November 11th". Reuters. 2008-08-08. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  4. ^ a b "Digital Sheet Music - Taylor Swift Fearless". Alfred Publishing Company. Retrieved 2009-10-12.
  5. ^ a b c d Keefe, Jonathan (2008-11-16). "Taylor Swift: Fearless". Slant. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  6. ^ "Fearless: Taylor Swift: MP3 Downloads". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  7. ^ "Fearless Platinum Edition: Taylor Swift: MP3 Downloads". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  8. ^ "Cut by Cut". Big Machine Records. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  9. ^ a b Roznovsky, Lindsey (2008-11-10). "Taylor Swift's Fascination With Fairy Tales Comes Through on New Album". Country Music Television. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  10. ^ a b "Taylor Swift - "Fifteen"". Country Music Television. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  11. ^ a b Greenbelt, Leah (2008-11-04). "Music Review Fearless (2008) Taylor Swift". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  12. ^ a b Morley, Steve. "Music Review: Taylor Swift, Fearless". United Methodist Church. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  13. ^ a b "The Very Pink, Very Perfect Life of Taylor Swift" (Press release). Rolling Stone. 2009-02-14. Retrieved 2009-11-04.
  14. ^ Rosen, Jody (2008-11-13). "Taylor Swift: Fearless: Music Reviews: Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  15. ^ Reed, James (2008-11-10). "Rise and Shine". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  16. ^ Erlwine, Stephan Thomas. "Allmusic (((Fearless > Overview)))". Allmusic. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  17. ^ "Review: Taylor Swift's 'Fearless'". Billboard. 2008-11-10. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  18. ^ a b c Caramanica, Jon and Itzkoff, Dave (2009-02-08). "Live Blogging the Grammy Awards". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-11-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) Cite error: The named reference "liveblog" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  19. ^ Love, Josh (2008-11-18). "Taylor Swift's Teenage Country-Star Tales, Spiked With Actual Wisdom". The Village Voice. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  20. ^ Sheffield, Rob (2008-11-11). "Fearless- Blender". Blender. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  21. ^ Petridis, Alexis (2009-03-06). "Taylor Swift: Fearless". The Guardian. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  22. ^ "The 100 Best Singles of 2008 : Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. 2008-12-25. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  23. ^ a b "allmusic ((( Taylor Swift > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles )))". Allmusic. Retrieved 2009-11-04.
  24. ^ "Hot 100 Week of February 28, 2009". Billboard. 2009-02-28. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  25. ^ "Hot 100 Week of October 03, 2009". Billboard. 2009-10-03. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  26. ^ a b c d e "Fifteen-Taylor Swift". Billboard. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  27. ^ "Canadian Hot 100 Week of November 07, 2009". Billboard. 2009-11-07. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  28. ^ "Taylor Swift Breaks Another Chart Record With New Fearless Tracks". MTV. 2009-11-05. Retrieved 2009-11-05.
  29. ^ "Taylor Swift Lends Support to @15" (Press release). Best Buy. 2009-02-09. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  30. ^ "@15 Named Official Charitable Partner of the Taylor Swift Fearless 2009 Tour" (Press release). Best Buy. 2009-06-22. Retrieved 2009-11-04.
  31. ^ a b c Bonaguro, Alison (2009-10-09). "Roman White Makes Country Music Come to Life". Country Music Television. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  32. ^ Gicas, Peter (2009-10-09). "Taylor Swift Brings Sweet "Fifteen" Video". E!. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  33. ^ Vena, Jocelyn (2009-10-09). "Taylor Swift Relives High School In New Video For 'Fifteen'". MTV. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  34. ^ Spence, Josh (2008-07-08). "Swift friendship". The Washburn Review. Retrieved 2009-11-04.
  35. ^ "Taylor Swift's New Video, "Fifteen," Debuts Friday on CMT". Country Music Television. 2009-10-08. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  36. ^ "Grammys Confirm Kanye West Performing With Estelle, Taylor Swift With Miley Cyrus". Rolling Stone. 2009-02-03. Retrieved 2009-11-04.
  37. ^ "Rate the Grammy Bit: Cyrus & Swift's Acoustic Antics". E!. 2009-02-08. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  38. ^ Vena, Jocelyn (2009-10-08). "Taylor Swift Announces New Leg Of Fearless Tour". MTV. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  39. ^ a b Frehsee, Nicole (2008-08-28). "Taylor Swift Performs a "Fearless" Set at Madison Square Garden". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  40. ^ Vena, Jocelyn (2009-10-12). "Taylor Swift Hugs Taylor Lautner At Chicago Concert". MTV. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  41. ^ "Taylor Swift: From 'Fifteen' To Country Queen!". Getty Images. Country Music Television. 2009-10-13. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  42. ^ Shelburn, Craig (2009-10-14). "Keith Urban Surrounds Himself With Famous Friends at We're All for the Hall Concert". Country Music Television. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  43. ^ http://www.ariacharts.com.au/pages/chartifacts.htm

"Fifteen" lyrics hosted by MTV
"Fifteen" music video hosted by CMT
"Fifteen" at @15


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