You're on Your Own, Kid

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"You're on Your Own, Kid"
Song by Taylor Swift
from the album Midnights
ReleasedOctober 21, 2022
Studio
Genre
Length3:14
LabelRepublic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Taylor Swift
  • Jack Antonoff
Lyric video
"You're on Your Own, Kid" on
YouTube

"You're on Your Own, Kid" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, taken from her tenth studio album, Midnights (2022). Swift wrote and produced the song with Jack Antonoff. With a production combining alternative rock, pop rock, and synth-pop sounds, "You're on Your Own, Kid" is an upbeat song with muted guitars and synthesizers that gradually build up. In the lyrics, a narrator reflects on her coming of age, on how she dealt with an unrequited love and her career ambitions.

Music critics lauded the track for what they deemed a vulnerable yet hopeful message in its lyrics. They interpreted "You're on Your Own, Kid" as Swift's reflection of her celebrity and personal life, including an eating disorder she suffered. Commercially, it charted in the top 10 of the charts in Australia, Canada, Ireland, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and the United States, and peaked at number seven on the Billboard Global 200. Swift occasionally performed "You're on Your Own, Kid" on her Eras Tour
in 2023–2024.

Background and release

On August 28, 2022, during her acceptance speech for

TikTok, and thereafter revealed the title of one album track each episode.[4] The tenth episode was released a few days later, in which Swift revealed the fifth track from the album, "You're on Your Own, Kid".[5]

"You're on Your Own, Kid", alongside the thirteen announced tracks and additional surprise-released tracks for the 3am edition of Midnights, was released on October 21, 2022 under Republic Records.[6] The "Strings Remix" of the song was included on the CD version of the Lavender Edition of the album.[7] In 2023, Swift performed "You're on Your Own, Kid" as a "surprise song" on select dates of the Eras Tour, including Tampa, Florida (April 14), Los Angeles, California (August 5), Mexico City, Mexico (August 26) and in 2024, in Tokyo, Japan (February 10).[8][9] The song was also one of the surprise songs featured in the tour's accompanying concert film.[10] The "friendship bracelets" lyric in "You're on Your Own, Kid" prompted fans and concertgoers who attended the Eras Tour to make their own bracelets that spelled out the titles of Swift's songs and other colloquialisms.[11]

Composition

Production

Swift wrote and produced "You're on Your Own, Kid" with Jack Antonoff, who programmed the track and played instruments including percussion, Juno 6, Mellotron, Moog, electric guitars, and bass. Additional musicians were Evan Smith, who played synthesizers and recorded his performance at Pleasure Hill Recording, Portland, Maine; and Sean Hutchinson, who played drums and recorded his performance at Hutchinson Sound, Brooklyn. The track was recorded by Antonoff and Laura Sisk at Rough Customer Studio, Brooklyn, and Electric Lady Studios, New York City. It was mixed by Serban Ghenea, assisted by Bryce Bordone, at MixStar Studios, Virginia Beach, Virginia, and mastered by Randy Merrill at Sterling Sound, Edgewater, New Jersey. On the vinyl editions, the track was mastered by Evan Smith at Sterling Sound, Nashville, Tennessee.[12]

"You're on Your Own, Kid"
"You're on Your Own, Kid" begins with muted beats, plucked guitars, and subtle synths that gradually
build up. It incorporates pop rock, alternative rock, and synth-pop
.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

"You're on Your Own, Kid" lasts for three minutes and 14 seconds.

alternative pop,[15][20] alternative rock,[21] and pop rock.[22] The Rolling Stone critic Rob Sheffield, in a ranking of Swift's songs, called "You're on Your Own, Kid" a synth-pop track reminiscent of the music by rock band New Order.[23] Ilana Kaplan from the Alternative Press described the production as 1990s-alt-rock-tinged.[24]

Lyrical interpretation

The lyrics address a narrator's reflection on her

verse has her recalling an unrequited love in the past: "Summer went away / Still the yearning stays / I play it cool with the best of them / I wait patiently / He's gonna notice me / It's ok, we're the best of friends."[27] Time's Shannon Carlin found this to be in line with the theme of unrequited love in Swift's previous songs including "You Belong with Me" and "Hey Stephen" from Fearless (2008).[28] The second verse sees her moving on from the boy and chasing her career aspirations, just to realize; "My dreams aren't rare."[27] When she returns for a homecoming, her friends ignore her and have moved on with their lives.[18] Towards the end, the song concludes with a hopeful message of self-reflection. The narrator looks around in a "blood-soaked gown" and reckons that every misstep was a lesson learnt: "So make the friendship bracelets / Take the moment and taste it / You've got no reason to be afraid."[25][27][29] The Guardian critic Alexis Petridis wrote the "blood-soaked gown" imagery evokes the 1976 horror film Carrie.[30]

Critics interpreted "You're on Your Own, Kid" as Swift's self-reflection on her past and journey to celebrity.[28][31][32] In Vulture, Craig Jenkins thought Swift's "lilting" vocals and references to her early-career days harken back to her 2008 album Fearless, both stylistically and thematically.[33] PopMatters's Matthew Dwyer considered the song Swift's contemplation about her legacy in the music industry, citing the lyric, "I gave my blood, sweat, and tears for this."[34] John Wohlmacher from Beats Per Minute found the lyrics dark but the musical composition somewhat brighter, and so "it feels like Swift is using pop music to cast a shadow over the brightly illuminated truths within her lyrics".[18] For Atwood Magazine's Nic Nichols, "You're on Your Own, Kid" shares similar themes with Swift's 2008 song "Fifteen".[35] The lines, "I hosted parties and starved my body / Like I'd be saved by a perfect kiss", were deciphered as her mentioning her eating disorder, which is also documented in Miss Americana (2020).[29][36]

Critical reception

The song received unanimous and universal acclaim from critics. Stephen Thompson of NPR praised the lyrics' specificity and imagery, and the "gorgeous" melody that showcases Swift's talents as a great songwriter.[37] Attard considered "You're on Your Own, Kid" one of the Midnights tracks that best display the "matured temperament and the stark intimacy of Swift's songwriting",[19] and Petridis selected it among the songs that are "filled with subtle, brilliant touches".[30] In Slate, the critic Carl Wilson dubbed "You're on Your Own, Kid" one of the album tracks that showcase emotional acuity.[38] Kate Solomon from i praised the track as the album's most emotionally affecting.[39] Paste's Ellen Johnson complimented it for a rich narrative that avoids being "overly wordy or sappy", which she found superior to mainstream pop songs.[21] In Variety, Chris Willman ranked "You're on Your Own, Kid" at number 49 on his list of the best 50 songs from Swift's repertoire, specifically praising the lyrics.[40] Alex Hopper of American Songwriter viewed the song as a fan-favorite and picked it as one of Midnights' best tracks.[41]

Commercial performance

Following the release of Midnights, tracks of the album occupied the entire top 10 of the US

UK Singles Chart and received a silver certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).[45][46]

Elsewhere, "You're on Your Own, Kid" debuted on numerous territories, and peaked within the top 40 of Australia (6),[47] Ireland (6),[48] the Philippines (6),[49] Singapore (6),[50] Malaysia (7),[51] Iceland (13),[52] Portugal (13),[53] Vietnam (13),[54] Croatia (18),[55] India (19),[56] South Africa (19),[57] New Zealand (20),[58] Luxembourg (22),[59] Lithuania (24),[60] the Czech Republic (26),[61] Sweden (27),[62] Switzerland (27),[63] Slovakia (32),[64] Norway (34),[65] Hungary (36),[66] Spain (39),[67] and Denmark (40),[68] and further reaching Italy (82),[69] Argentina (98),[70] and France (107).[71] The song ultimately debuted and peaked at number seven on the Billboard Global 200.[72]

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of Midnights.[12]

  • Taylor Swift – vocals, songwriter, producer
  • bass
    , background vocals, recording
  • Evan Smith – synths, recording, mastering for vinyl
  • Laura Sisk – recording
  • Sean Hutchinson – drums, percussion, recording
  • Megan Searl – assistant engineer
  • Jon Sher – assistant engineer
  • John Rooney – assistant engineer
  • Serban Ghenea – mix engineer
  • Bryce Bordone – assistant mix engineer
  • Randy Merrill – mastering engineer

Charts

Chart performance for "You're on Your Own, Kid"
Chart (2022–2023) Peak
position
Argentina (Argentina Hot 100)[70] 98
Australia (ARIA)[47] 6
Belgium (Billboard)[73] 15
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[43] 6
Croatia (Billboard)[55] 18
Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100)[61] 26
Denmark (Tracklisten)[68] 40
France (
SNEP)[71]
 107
Global 200 (Billboard)[72] 7
Greece International (IFPI)[74] 10
Hungary (Stream Top 40)[66] 36
Iceland (Plötutíðindi)[52] 13
India International Singles (IMI)[56] 19
Italy (FIMI)[69] 82
Ireland (IRMA)[48] 6
Lithuania (AGATA)[60] 24
Luxembourg (Billboard)[59] 22
Malaysia (Billboard)[75] 11
Malaysia International (RIM)[51] 7
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[58] 20
Norway (VG-lista)[65] 34
Philippines (Billboard)[49] 6
Portugal (AFP)[53] 13
Singapore (RIAS)[50] 6
Slovakia (Rádio Top 100)[64] 32
South Africa (RISA)[57] 19
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[67] 39
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[62] 27
Swiss Streaming (
Schweizer Hitparade)[63]
 27
UK Singles (OCC)[45]
 65
US Billboard Hot 100[76] 8
Vietnam (Vietnam Hot 100)[54] 13

Certifications

Certifications for "You're on Your Own, Kid"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[77] Platinum 70,000‡
Canada (Music Canada)[44] Platinum 80,000‡
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[78] Gold 30,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[46] Gold 400,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

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