Summary

• Some of Taylor Swift’s most commonly misheard lyrics are from songs featured in The Eras Tour movie, such as “he looks so pretty like a devil” in “Cruel Summer” and “Starbucks lovers” in “Blank Space.”
• The actual words to Swift’s songs remain unchanged in The Eras Tour movie, but subtitles may reveal commonly misunderstood lyrics, adding surprise for fans.
• Some lyrics that even diehard Swifties still don’t know they’re singing wrong include “fake interview” in “Style” and “I touch my phone as if it’s your face” in “You’re On Your Own, Kid.”

Taylor Swift has a ton of misheard lyrics throughout her vast catalog of music, many of which are from songs featured in Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour. After an enormously successful theatrical run and a VOD extended cut, The Eras Tour movie finally hit streaming on March 14, 2024, as Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (Taylor’s Version) on Disney+. Along with all the songs from the theatrical version, this release also includes four previously cut songs and four bonus acoustic songs, making for a total of 48 songs in Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (Taylor’s Version).

Across all 10 eras in Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (Taylor’s Version), Swift performs the greatest hits from her lengthy music career, as well as some fan favorites and hidden gems. Although Swift makes some changes to her songs on The Eras Tour by condensing or simply singing them a little differently, she doesn’t actually alter any of the lyrics. However, viewers watching Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour on Disney+ with subtitles might still be surprised by what they read on the screen, since some of the songs from the concert movie contain some of her most commonly misheard lyrics.

Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (Taylor’s Version)
is available to stream on Disney+.

11 “He Looks So Pretty Like A Devil” – Cruel Summer

Real Lyric: “He Looks Up Grinning Like A Devil”

One of Swift’s most notoriously misheard lyrics in her whole discography can be heard very early on in The Eras Tour movie—in fact, it’s only the second song in the very first era. After opening the show with “Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince,” Swift greets the audience before jumping right into her late-stage hit, “Cruel Summer.” After the second chorus, Swift takes a beat before speaking directly to the audience. She informs them that they’ve “arrived at the very first bridge of the evening” and asks them to “prove” that they know the lyrics to the iconic bridge.

After she sings “I love you, ain’t that the worst thing you ever heard?” at the end of the bridge on “Cruel Summer,” Swift shouts out a line in which she compares her lover to “a devil.” When Lover was first released in July 2019, this lyric was widely misinterpreted as “he looks so pretty like a devil,” and many continued to believe that’s what Swift was saying here for a long time. However, what Swift actually says is “he looks up grinning like a devil.”

10 “Handsome, Did I Mention With A View?” – Delicate

Real Lyric: “Handsome, You’re A Mansion With A View”

During the reputation era in The Eras Tour movie, Swift performs the love song “Delicate,” which details a romance in the early stages back when Swift was persona non grata and her reputation had “never been worse.” Swift begins the second line of the second verse with the word “handsome” to describe her lover. There are many variations of what people think the full line is, such as “handsome, did I mention with a view?“ or the even more accurate “handsome, in a mansion with a view.”

Swift is actually referring to her “handsome” lover himself as the “mansion with a view,” a metaphor for his astounding good looks.

While most got the “handsome” and “view” part right, and some even got “mansion” right too, the correct line is “handsome, you’re a mansion with a view.” The confusion may stem from the preceding line, “third floor on the West Side, me and you,” as this directly refers to real estate in the literal rather than figurative sense. However, Swift is actually referring to her “handsome” lover himself as the “mansion with a view,” a metaphor for his astounding good looks.

9 “Roaring 20s, Tossing Panties In The Pool” – The 1

Real Lyric: “Roaring 20s, Tossing Pennies In The Pool”

In The Eras Tour movie, Swift begins the folklore era by singing the album opener, “the 1.” On the chorus of “the 1,” Swift reminisces about all the good times she had in her past relationship with the subject, whom she hoped would be “The One.” She begins the chorus by singing, “but we were something, don’t you think so?” followed by “roaring 20s, tossing pennies in the pool.” As indicated by the next line, “if my wishes came true,” this “tossingpennies” lyric is a reference to the act of throwing coins into a fountain to make a wish.

However, a lot of folklore listeners thought Swift said “panties” instead of “pennies,“ giving the lyric a much more suggestive connotation. “Pennies” does sound a lot like “panties” when sung, especially with a soft “t.” The presumed implication could just be that they were skinny-dipping, but either way, it changes the meaning and imagery of the lyric quite a bit.

8 “Fake Interview, Oh/It’s Been A While Since I Have Even Heard From You” – Style

Real Lyric: “Fade Into View, Oh/It’s Been A While Since I Have Even Heard From You”

Yet another era opener with a (few) misheard lyric(s), “Style” kicks off the 1989 era in The Eras Tour movie. On the very first verse, Swift sets the scene of the timeless relationship that serves as the subject of the song. On the last line before the pre-chorus, Swift sings, “fade into view, oh/it’s been a while since I have even heard from you (heard from you).” However, the “fade into view” part is commonly misheard as “fake interview,” completely changing the function and meaning of the lyric.

This is one of those lyrics that many wouldn’t even think to question unless it was brought to their attention, so it’s likely that most misinterpreters never stopped to consider the meaning.

Since “Style” is widely believed to be about Swift’s famous ex-boyfriend and fellow pop star, Harry Styles (hence the title), it makes sense that he might give an interview about their relationship. What a “fake interview” would entail is less clear, but this is one of those lyrics that many wouldn’t even think to question unless it was brought to their attention, so it’s likely that most misinterpreters never stopped to consider the meaning. Maybe the assumption was that he lied in an interview, or that someone was trying to interrogate Styles about Swift under the guise of an interview.

7 “And I Got That Good Girl Thing” – Style

Real Lyric: “And I Got That Good Girl Faith”

“Style” is once again the scene of the crime of another frequently misheard lyric, although in this case, it’s only a one-word difference that doesn’t change the general meaning of the line as much. On the chorus of “Style,” Swift lists aesthetic attributes about her and her lover that “never go out of style.” For herself, she says, “andI got that red lip classic thing that you like” followed by “and I got that good girl faith and a tight little skirt.”

The misheard lyric may be a much more vague descriptor (not to mention lazy songwriting), but it still makes logical sense.

Instead of “faith,” though, a lot of people thought she was just saying “thing” again after “good girl.“ Even though “faith” and “thing” sound nothing alike when spoken, the one-syllable words are easy to mix up when sung in a busy pop song. The misheard lyric may be a much more vague descriptor (not to mention lazy songwriting), but it still makes logical sense, which is probably why many still may not realize they’ve been singing this line wrong since 1989 was released in 2014, even after seeing The Eras Tour movie.

6 “All The Lonely Starbucks Lovers” – Blank Space

Real Lyric: “Got A Long List Of Ex-Lovers”

In The Eras Tour movie, the very next song after “Style” in the 1989 era is “Blank Space,” which contains, without a doubt, her most commonly misheard lyric ever. “Blank Space” serves as a satire that leans into the media’s portrayal of her as boy-crazy with an overactive love life and pokes fun at this image. In the spirit of this, Swift notes on the chorus that she’s “got a long list of ex-lovers/they’ll tell you I’m insane.”

“Starbucks lovers” became a cultural phenomenon and remains her most absurd and nonsensical misheard lyric to date, which is partially what makes it so iconic.

When “Blank Space” was first released in 2014, it seemed like the majority of listeners heard some variation of “all the lonely Starbucks lovers” instead of “got a long list of ex-lovers.“ Some did hear the “got a long list” part correctly, but the common denominator was “Starbucks lovers,” which caused a lot of confusion, because why would enthusiasts of the popular coffee chain be calling Swift “insane“? Although Swift quickly set the record straight, “Starbucks lovers” became a cultural phenomenon and remains her most absurd and nonsensical misheard lyric to date, which is partially what makes it so iconic.

5 “He’s So Dull And Handsome As Hell” – Wildest Dreams

Real Lyric: “He’s So Tall And Handsome As Hell”

It’s almost as if the shock of Swift’s official transition into pop music threw everybody off, considering just how many lyrics from 1989 still get misinterpreted. Although “Wildest Dreams” was one of the songs cut from Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour movie in theaters, it was thankfully restored in the Disney+ release in its proper placement on the set list. Not only was it a welcome addition, but the inclusion of “Wildest Dreams” in The Eras Tour (Taylor’s Version) was also a reminder of one of Swift’s funniest misheard lyrics that accidentally insults the song’s subject.

“Wildest Dreams” describes a fleeting romance that Swift hopes her lover will still look back on and remember fondly, even if it’s only while he sleeps. At the top of the pre-chorus of “Wildest Dreams,” Swift fawns over her lover’s good looks, stating that “he’s so tall and handsome as hell.” However, many thoughtshe was actually emphasizing how “dull” he is rather than “tall,” making the subject sound like a pretty face with not much else to offer.

4 “I Touch My Phone As It Fits Your Face” – You’re On Your Own, Kid

Real Lyric: “I Touch My Phone As If It’s Your Face”

Of the three surprise songs she played on piano while filming The Eras Tour movie, Swift chose to include her performance of the Midnights track, “You’re On Your Own, Kid,” for the acoustic set in the film. This musical retrospective chronicles Swift’s journey as a songwriter and all the “blood, sweat, and tears” that went into building her successful career. On the first verse, Swift recalls a crush from her youth who, it later turns out, “never cared” about her.

Since “You’re On Your Own, Kid” plays twice in Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (Taylor’s Version) movie, this auditory illusion can be heard again in the new post-credits section called “The Acoustic Collection.”

To emphasize how strong her feelings were, Swift sings “I touch my phone as if it’s your face” during a phone call with him. Because of how the syllables bleed into the next in this line, it was a common misconception that Swift was actually singing, “I touch my phone as it fits your face.“ Since “You’re On Your Own, Kid” plays twice in Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (Taylor’s Version) movie, this auditory illusion can be heard again in the new post-credits section called “The Acoustic Collection.”

3 “I Miss You, But I Miss Spider-Man” – Bejeweled

Real Lyric: “I Miss You, But I Miss Sparkling”

The 1989 era may be the worst culprit of misheard lyrics in The Eras Tour movie, but including “You’re On Your Own, Kid” from the acoustic set, Midnights as an album gives 1989 a run for its money. Although the Disney+ release contains a new post-credits section called “The Acoustic Collection,” Midnights is the final era in The Eras Tour movie on the regular set list, so naturally, it contains more songs than most eras. One of the songs that Swift performs is the fun-filled “Bejeweled,” which includes a wildly misinterpreted lyric right before the second chorus.

After reminding her lover that she can “reclaim the land” of love she gave him, Swift admits that while she does miss him, she misses something else even more. Believe it or not, more than a handful of people thought Swift was saying, “I miss Spider-Man“ in this line. However, she’s actually saying, “I miss sparkling,” which fits the theme of “Bejeweled” a lot more than the Marvel superhero. This wasn’t nearly as common of a misinterpretation as “Starbucks lovers,” but it falls under a similar category and makes about as much sense, too.

2 “Poncho En Fiesta For You It’s Not” – Karma

Real Lyric: “Aren’t you envious that for you it’s not?”

One of the lyrics on Midnights was so misleading that people thought it was in a completely different language. To close out the Midnights era and The Eras Tour as a whole, Swift performs the upbeat track “Karma.” The song is all about how the subject will face the consequences of their actions, including their mistreatment of Swift and overall bad behavior, soon enough. Essentially, their karmic debt will cost them in the end, but Swift can’t relate, since her karma’s never been better.

On the chorus, Swift lists all the ways good karma has manifested in her life. “Karma’s a relaxing thought,” she sings, “aren’t you envious that for you it’s not?” Because of the production, high-pitched vocals, unconventional phrasing, and the emphasis Swift puts on “vious” in “envious,” the second part of this line is admittedly hard to decipher. In fact, it was so deceiving that some listeners heard the partially Spanish phrase “poncho en fiesta for you it’s not.“ This doesn’t make much sense in context, but in strictly auditory terms, it’s actually not that much of a reach.

In Swift’s more recent shows on The Eras Tour, she’s been changing the lyric
“karma is the guy on the screen coming straight home to me
” to ”
karma is the guy on the Chiefs
” as a nod to her boyfriend Travis Kelce, who plays for the Kansas City Chiefs.

1 “My Panties Made Your Ground” – Karma

Real Lyric: “My Pennies Made Your Crown”

“Karma” is similar to “Style” in that it contains multiple auditory illusions. However, it’s even more similar to “the 1,” one lyric in “Karma” is also commonly misheard thanks to the word “pennies.” “Karma” is widely thought to be about Swift’s feud with Scooter Braun, who purchased her masters in 2019, which propelled her to re-record every Taylor Swift album he owns to reclaim ownership of her work. On the second verse of “Karma,” Swift sings, “my pennies made your crown,” which would apply to Braun.

However, even Swifties who knew about the song’s suspected subject’s history with Swift didn’t pick up on the “pennies” part. Instead, just like in “the 1,” many mistook “pennies” for “panties,” and some even thought she was saying “my panties made your ground” instead of “crown.” Like many of the misheard lyrics from songs in Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, this wouldn’t make much sense if it was the real lyric, but it goes to show that some words are just bound to sound like a different word in song form.