32 min listen
E18: Deep Dive - Death By a Thousand Cuts
FromAP Taylor Swift
ratings:
Length:
40 minutes
Released:
Jan 10, 2024
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
My, my, my, my. We get deep into our feelings on this deep dive today with “Death By a Thousand Cuts,” from Lover. With a title referencing an imperial form of torture, what is this Taylor Swift song really about? As always, our hosts look at the lyrics from very different perspectives based on our own personal experiences, from moving out of a childhood home (“chandelier still flickering here”) to a breakup (“You said it was a great love”) to Spiderman (“I see you everywhere”). We talk about idioms, loss, grief, the emotional burden of pain, and how asking the traffic lights for answers maybe isn’t as far-fetched as some of us originally thought. Will we ever hear this song the same way again? “I don’t know!”
Mentioned in this episode:
The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald
“Death By a Thousand Cuts,” Lover (2019)
“Death By a Thousand Cuts” Tiny Desk Concert
Wikipedia definition of “death by a thousand cuts”
Tom Holland’s Umbrella Lip Sync Battle
Finding Nemo
Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
The Notebook
Moby Dick, Herman Melville
Love Again
Someone Great
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone, Lori Gottlieb
***
Episode Highlights:
[02:15] Defining “death by a thousand cuts”
[08:18] My, my, my, my: What is this opening?
[15:50] United we stand: The things shared in a relationship
[20:03] Paper thin plans: Connecting this song to “Paper Rings”
[22:11] Trying to find a part of me you didn't take up: Why this love is so hard to get over
[28:11] I ask the traffic lights: Looking anywhere for answers
[34:00] It's just a thousand cuts: The purpose of the song
Subscribe to get new episode updates: aptaylorswift.substack.com/subscribe
Follow us on social!
TikTok → tiktok.com/@APTaylorSwift
Instagram → instagram.com/APTaylorSwift
YouTube → youtube.com/@APTaylorSwift
Link Tree → linktr.ee/aptaylorswift
Bookshop.org → bookshop.org/shop/apts
This podcast is neither related to nor endorsed by Taylor Swift, her companies, or record labels. All opinions are our own. Intro music produced by Scott Zadig aka Scotty Z.
Mentioned in this episode:
The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald
“Death By a Thousand Cuts,” Lover (2019)
“Death By a Thousand Cuts” Tiny Desk Concert
Wikipedia definition of “death by a thousand cuts”
Tom Holland’s Umbrella Lip Sync Battle
Finding Nemo
Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
The Notebook
Moby Dick, Herman Melville
Love Again
Someone Great
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone, Lori Gottlieb
***
Episode Highlights:
[02:15] Defining “death by a thousand cuts”
[08:18] My, my, my, my: What is this opening?
[15:50] United we stand: The things shared in a relationship
[20:03] Paper thin plans: Connecting this song to “Paper Rings”
[22:11] Trying to find a part of me you didn't take up: Why this love is so hard to get over
[28:11] I ask the traffic lights: Looking anywhere for answers
[34:00] It's just a thousand cuts: The purpose of the song
Subscribe to get new episode updates: aptaylorswift.substack.com/subscribe
Follow us on social!
TikTok → tiktok.com/@APTaylorSwift
Instagram → instagram.com/APTaylorSwift
YouTube → youtube.com/@APTaylorSwift
Link Tree → linktr.ee/aptaylorswift
Bookshop.org → bookshop.org/shop/apts
This podcast is neither related to nor endorsed by Taylor Swift, her companies, or record labels. All opinions are our own. Intro music produced by Scott Zadig aka Scotty Z.
Released:
Jan 10, 2024
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (37)
E4: Deep Dive - “Wonderland” from 1989: Going Down the Rabbit Hole. Today we’re doing a deep dive on Taylor Swift’s song, “Wonderland,” from the album 1989. This episode builds on Episode 3 focused on Taylor Swift’s lyrical influences from the book “Alice in Wonderland.” In this episode, w... by AP Taylor Swift