Taylor Swift knows how to say goodbye in the most devastating way. Ever since The Tortured Poets Department was announced in February, fans have been waiting for the latest addition to her fifth-track classic, "Goodbye, London." As the title promises, Swift's new song is an emotional farewell that alludes to her six-year relationship with Joe Alwyn.
In the song, Swift delivers a solemn send-off to a lover whom she has been unable to help through his own struggles as their relationship has weathered many storms. "Every time he floats away, pull him tighter," she sings. “It cracked my spine carrying us up the mountain.”
Swift went on to hint that her mental health would suffer if she didn't leave. "I stopped trying to make him laugh, stopped trying to get into the safe, I was like, 'How much sadness do you think I have inside me?'" she sings. When she reaches the bridge, she even sings about feeling unloved and waiting for the affirmation that never comes.
"You swear you love me, but where are the clues?" she asked. “I die on the altar waiting for proof/You dedicated us to the gods of your darkest years.”
Of course, her haunting final words were fitting for a funeral. "Goodbye, London/Tear down the stitches/Two graves, a gun/You'll find someone," she sings.
Many fans consider "London Goodbye" to be a farewell ode to her London native ex-boyfriend Alvin, whom she reportedly split from in March 2023 after six years of dating. Fans believe he also inspired her 2019 song "London Boy," which has the same reference as the new song's title.
In "London Goodbye", Swift says that her ex-lover "left me in a house on the edge of the moor", which may be a reference to Hampstead Moor, which she also wrote in the lyrics of "London Boy" There are references to this community ("Like a Tennessean" in Stella McCartney's In the Badlands). She was rumored to be house-hunting in Hampstead Heath in March 2023, just days before she was reported to have split from Alvin.
"Goodbye London" Lyrics
Read the full lyrics to the song below.
I see in my mind's eye the lights of the ferry through the mist
I stay calm and bear the weight of the rift
Every time he drifts away, pull him tighter
Carrying us up the mountain my spine cracked.
The clothes are soaked, and the tired bones feel the cold
I stopped trying to make him laugh, I stopped trying to get into the safe
Thinking about how sad you think I am, how sad you think I am?
Oh, what a tragedy
Goodbye London
you will find someone
I didn't choose to be your weirdo
I founded the club she heard about
I left everything I knew and you left me in a house on the edge of the wilderness
I stopped CPR, it was of no use after all
The spirit is gone and we will never come again
I'm angry that you asked me to give you all my youth for free
For a long time, London
Remove sutures
Two graves, one gun
I will find someone
You said I abandoned the ship, but I let it sink
The tense death grip of my knuckles clings to your silent resentment
My friends say it’s wrong to be afraid of falling in love every day
When you're not sure he wants to be there, every breath feels like the rarest air
So how much sadness do you think I have, how much sadness do you think I have inside me?
How much tragedy?
How low do you think I'll go before I collapse on myself?
“What if I have to be free?
You swear you love me, but where are the clues?
I died on the altar waiting for evidence
You dedicated us to the gods of your darkest days
My complexion has just recovered
I'm going crazy because I love this place
Goodbye London
ran well
Instant warm sunshine
But I'm not that person
Goodbye London
Remove sutures
Two graves, one gun
you will find someone
