In this song, Taylor Swift calls out her own tendency to plot grand schemes and drop subtle hints in all areas of her life.
She opens her pop hit with a classic fairy tale opening, which provides the listener with a fantasy vibe to go along with her mythological reference to the Fates.
Right off the bat, Taylor’s lyrics take a cosmic scale, referencing the alignment of the stars. But then in the last two lines of the verse, she brings it all back to earth in her signature way that only Taylor can pull off.
In this way, the lyrics retain their grandiose quality while still making it about a personal, one-on-one relationship – something everyone can relate to.
A well-known fact about Taylor Swift is that her favorite number is 13, so it’s no surprise to her Swifties that she chose this track for her first title reveal. Fans were then left to speculate endlessly until the album’s release what she could have possibly meant by “Mastermind” and what it could indicate for the rest of the lyrics.
The album Midnights is about 13 times she found herself unable to sleep at night at various points in her life. Like virtually all of her lyrics, the words to “Mastermind” create a raw and honest account of one of these sleepless midnights.
“We lie awake in love and fear, in turmoil and tears. We stare at walls and drink until they speak back. We twist in our self-made cages and pray that we aren’t, right this minute, about to make some fateful life-altering mistake. This is a collection of music written in the middle of the night, a journey through terrors and sweet dreams. The floors we pace and the demons we face. For all of us who have tossed and turned and decided to keep the lanterns lit and go searching, hoping that just maybe when the clock strikes twelve we’ll meet ourselves.”
For Taylor Swift, the writing implement makes a difference when she pens her lyrics. In her Nashville Songwriter Awards speech, she revealed, “It’s dorky, but also I have in my mid secretly established genre categories for lyrics I write.” These categories include Quill Lyrics, Fountain Pen Lyrics and Glitter Gel Pen Lyrics. “I came up with these categories based on what writing tool I imagine having in my hand when I scribbled it down, figuratively. I don’t actually have a quill. Anymore. I broke it once when I was mad.”
“What if I told you I’m a mastermind? / And now you’re mine / It was all by design / ‘Cause I’m a mastermind”
Anyone familiar with Taylor Swift knows her propensity to write about relationships – especially ones that haven’t worked out. This song is undoubtedly that, but it takes it several steps further.
Taylor has been called out for the way she drops hints in her public statements and career moves just as much as her lyrics. It’s as if every move she makes in her life and career is part of a game of chess. She is extremely deliberate in her actions: Not only is she highly successful but she also knows exactly what she’s doing, and it’s not happening to her by accident.
When she has a feud against someone, she’s loathe to let it go – for instance, the infamous Kanye West interruption in 2009 at the VMAs. After 13 years (her lucky number popping up again), she made a subtle but clear choice of dress for her music video that referenced the incident.
She drops these hints like a mastermind at work. She says she does it for the fans as much as it’s for herself, out of the sheer joy of it. Taylor loves to give them to opportunity to have fun and experience the thrill of discovery that happens when you’ve personally uncovered this tiny secret that the artist has hidden away, and in that moment you can feel a direct connection to them.
In an interview with the Washington Post, Swift said, “It’s really about turning new music into an event for my fans and trying to entertain them in playful, mischievous, clever ways. As long as they still find it fun and exciting, I’ll keep doing it.”
Lyrics
[Verse 1]
Once upon a time, the planets and the fates
And all the stars aligned
You and I ended up in the same room
At the same time
[Pre-Chorus]
And the touch of a hand lit the fuse
Of a chain reaction of countermoves
To assess the equation of you
Checkmate, I couldn’t lose
[Chorus]
What if I told you none of it was accidental?
And the first night that you saw me
Nothing was gonna stop me
I laid the groundwork, and then
Just like clockwork
The dominoes cascaded in a line
What if I told you I’m a mastermind?
And now you’re mine
It was all by dеsign
‘Cause I’m a mastermind
[Verse 2]
You see, all the wisеst women
Had to do it this way
‘Cause we were born to be the pawn
In every lover’s game
[Pre-Chorus]
If you fail to plan, you plan to fail
Strategy sets the scene for the tale
I’m the wind in our free-flowing sails
And the liquor in our cocktails
[Chorus]
What if I told you none of it was accidental?
And the first night that you saw me
I knew I wanted your body
I laid the groundwork, and then
Just like clockwork
The dominoes cascaded in a line
What if I told you I’m a mastermind?
And now you’re mine
It was all my design
‘Cause I’m a mastermind
[Bridge]
No one wanted to play with me as a little kid
So I’ve been scheming like a criminal ever since
To make them love me and make it seem effortless
This is the first time I’ve felt the need to confess
And I swear
I’m only cryptic and Machiavellian
‘Cause I care
[Chorus]
So I told you none of it was accidental
And the first night that you saw me
Nothing was gonna stop me
I laid the groundwork, and then
Saw a wide smirk on your face
You knew the entire time
You knew that I’m a mastermind
And now you’re mine
Yeah, all you did was smile
‘Cause I’m a mastermind
Listeners of Pop music, might also appreciate the song Viva La Vida by Coldplay
