Mean (song)
| "Mean" | ||||||||||
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| Single by Taylor Swift | ||||||||||
| from the album Speak Now | ||||||||||
| Released | March 13, 2011 | |||||||||
| Format | CD single | |||||||||
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| Length | 3:57 | |||||||||
| Label | Big Machine | |||||||||
| Writer(s) | Taylor Swift | |||||||||
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| Taylor Swift singles chronology | ||||||||||
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"Mean" is a song written and recorded by American country singer-songwriter Taylor Swift for her third studio album, Speak Now (2010). Produced by Swift alongside Nathan Chapman, the song was sent to country radio in the United States on March 13, 2011, as the third single from Speak Now. "Mean" garnered mixed reviews from critics for its lyrical detail and profound country sound. The song received commercial success in the United States and Canada, debuting at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number ten on the Canadian Hot 100. The song also appeared on the Australian Singles Chart at number 45.
The song's accompanying music video was directed by Declan Whitebloom, who developed the concept together with Swift. It received mixed reviews from critics who perceived ambivalent messages in the video, despite the prevalent self-empowerment and anti-bullying themes. "Mean" was performed for the first time by Swift at the 46th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards on April 3, 2011. The song won the Grammy Awards for Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance at the 54th Grammy Awards.Rolling Stone ranked "Mean" at #24 on their list of the 100 Greatest Country Songs of All Time, the highest ranking for a song released in the 21st century and only one of three to be released in 2010s.
In an interview with E! News, Swift said that "Mean" is a response to people who criticize whatever she does. She said, "there's constructive criticism, there's professional criticism, and then there's just being mean. And there's a line that you cross when you just start to attack everything about a person." In an interview with Dose.ca, Swift said that she wrote the song to get back at her critics, saying, "there's a song called 'Mean,' that I guess you could categorize it into feelings and or relationships but it's actually about a critic." In a later interview with 60 Minutes, Swift revealed that the critic was someone who attacked her performance with Stevie Nicks at the 52nd Grammy Awards, where she sang off-key. This critic is reputed to be Bob Lefsetz, who gave a critical review on his blog, The Lefsetz Letter.
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