“Ivy” by Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift’s “Ivy” uses a lot of heavy-handed imagery which, if not for the third verse, may be lost to the listener. For it is during the said passage that it becomes apparent that the singer is addressing a lover. More specifically it is an illicit lover as the vocalist is committed to someone else, apparently even a husband. And literally, what the title alludes to is the concept of rapid and deep plant growth. But metaphorically what it points to is the vocalist saying that her extramarital beau has grown on her. Or as she puts it, she is “covered in” him. So now she finds herself in the unenviable and potentially-dangerous position of being completely in love with someone else besides her husband.

“Ivy” came out on 11th December of 2020, being a part of Taylor Swift’s 2020 project entitled “Evermore”. But this is a song Taylor reportedly teased some 2-3 weeks prior.  However, since “Evermore” was in fact a surprise release, Swifties were, at that particular time, totally unaware of its forthcoming.

Taylor penned “Ivy” with two others, namely Jack Antonoff and Aaron Dessner. And it was also Dessner, a member of the rock band The National, who produced the track.