Is It Over Now?

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"Is It Over Now?"
Single by Taylor Swift
from the album 1989 (Taylor's Version)
Written 2014
Released October 31, 2023 (2023-10-31)
Studio
Genre Electropop
Length 3:49
Label Republic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Taylor Swift
  • Jack Antonoff
Script error: The function "ucfirst" does not exist. singles chronology
"Slut!"
(2023)		 "Is It Over Now?"
(2023)
Music video
"Is It Over Now?" on YouTube

"Is It Over Now?"[lower-alpha 1] is a song by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. It is a previously unreleased "From the Vault" track from her fourth re-recorded album, 1989 (Taylor's Version) (2023). Republic Records released "Is It Over Now?" to US contemporary hit radio stations on October 31, 2023.

Written and produced by Swift and Jack Antonoff, "Is It Over Now?" is an electropop song built around energetic drums, retro synthesizers, sparse production elements and an idiosyncratic vocal sample. Rooted in storytelling, it chronicles a complex but misbegotten romance riddled with uncertainty and resentment using lyrical devices such as couplets, internal rhymes and rhetorical questions.

Upon the album's release, "Is It Over Now?" received acclaim from music critics, many of whom highlighted it as a standout track, emphasizing its engaging composition, blunt lyrical approach, and vocal cadence, whereas some considered it one of Swift's finest works, exemplary of her songcraft. A few reviews drew parallels between "Is It Over Now?" and Swift's 2016 single "Out of the Woods" and contrasted the songs. In the United States, the song replaced Swift's own "Cruel Summer" at the top spot of the Billboard Hot 100, making her the first soloist to dethrone herself on the chart twice;[lower-alpha 2] "Is It Over Now?" marked her 11th number-one song. Elsewhere, the song charted at number one in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom as well.

Background and development

"Is It Over Now?" was written by Swift and Jack Antonoff in 2014 for Swift's fifth studio album, 1989, which is considered her first pop music album. The song focuses on a past romance.[1] However, it did not make it to the final track-list of 1989, which consisted of 13 standard tracks and three bonus tracks.[1] Following Swift's 2019 masters dispute, she decided to re-record and release her first six studio albums with the subtitle Taylor's Version; the re-recordings included songs from her writing sessions she had eschewed from the original releases, called as "From the Vault" tracks. 1989 (Taylor's Version), the re-recording of 1989, features "Is It Over Now?" as one of its five vault tracks and the final song on the album.[2]

An introspective song, "Is It Over Now?" chronicles a romantic relationship after its end, with lyrics describing various moments, such as alleging mistakes committed by both partners, "feelings of unfinished business", memories, and confessions.[3][4][5] Musically, the song is a sparse electropop track[6] built around "an odd squawking sample" in the hook.[7] Swift's vocals follow a breathless melody emphasized by internal rhymes, enforcing a sense of urgency over steady drum beats.[5][8][7]

Upon the song's release, media outlets speculated that the lyrics discuss Swift's relationship with English singer Harry Styles, circa 2012,[9] which reportedly ended in January 2013 following a "doomed" vacation to the Caribbean.[10] Journalists purported that the details described in "Is It Over Now?" reference various publicized developments in the relationship.[11][12]

Critical reception

In the reviews of 1989 (Taylor's Version), "Is It Over Now?" received standout compliments from music critics. Insider Inc.'s Callie Ahlgrim, Ed Power of i and The Line of Best Fit's Kelsey Barnes ranked it as the best vault track. Ahlgrim praised the rhetorical and existential tone of the lyrics, Swift's fast-paced and "urgent" vocals, and Antonoff's production, and opined that Swift's lyric on suicidal ideation ("I think about jumping off of very tall somethings") was "real".[5] Power felt the song is a "spiritual sequel" to "I Knew You Were Trouble" (2012).[13] On the other hand, Jeff Nelson of People dubbed "Is It Over Now?" a cross between "Out of the Woods" (2016) and "Labyrinth" (2022), musically.[8] Barnes wrote, the song "truly is a paragon of Swift's knack for narrative building—perfectly encapsulating the essence of the original 1989 and weaving it through its rerecorded twin."[14]

According to The Guardian's Rachel Aroesti, the song "is a barbed and bitter rinsing of an unfaithful ex over sparse electropop, full of echoing drums and an era-specific alien-like vocal sample."[6] To Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph, "Is It Over Now?" is the vault track that can compete with the original 1989 singles. He called the song's chorus "masterful" and Swift a "world class lyricist" for her knack in writing "snappy couplets [that] never come at the expense of emotional truth".[7] Alex Berry of Clash called the song one of Swift's most introspective works to-date, featuring an "evocative and engaging" music production.[4] Billboard executive Jason Lipshutz described the song as a soaring "storytelling exercise" with "instantly relatable" characters and circumstances.[3] NME critic Hollie Geraghty said that the song "stings" with resentment and confessions to Swift's "toxic impulses".[15]

Shaad D'Souza of Pitchfork wrote that lyrics such as "You dream of my mouth before it called you a lying traitor" are "an instant addition to Swift’s already-heaving canon of perfect last words."[16] Ludovic Hunter-Tilney, in the Financial Times, noted that "Is It Over Now?" has the heavy 1980s drums and synthesizers characteristic of 1989 and interpreted the final lyrics of the song ("But no") as an indication that the "misbegotten relationship" ultimately failed.[17] Adam White of The Independent considered the song's lyrics as "classic bits of Swift melodrama".[18] Alyssa Bailey of Elle thought Swift was "at her most blunt, and most savage" on the track.[19] Lauren Huff at Entertainment Weekly and Dylan Kickham of Elite Daily saw the track as the answer to the questions asked in "Out of the Woods", "providing insight" into the "ill-fated" romance.[10][20]

Release

1989 (Taylor's Version) was released on October 27, 2023, with "Is It Over Now? (Taylor's Version) (From the Vault)" as the 21st and final track on the album.[2] Republic Records, Swift's record label since 2019, released "Is It Over Now?" to the United States contemporary hit radio format on October 31 as the first American single from the album.[21]

Commercial performance

In Australia, "Is It Over Now?" entered the ARIA Singles Chart at the top spot, marking Swift's tenth number-one single in the country.[22] In Ireland, the song debuted at the second spot of the Irish Singles Chart.[23] In the US, it debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100, marking Swift's 11th career number-one on the chart and the fourth number-one single off 1989. She became the first woman to replace herself at number one for a second time as "Is It Over Now?" dethroned "Cruel Summer", a feat she first achieved with "Shake It Off" and "Blank Space" in 2014, and the first female and solo artist to earn three different chart-topping songs from three different albums in a single year.[24] "Is It Over Now?" debuted at number one on the Billboard Global 200; becoming a record-extending fourth number one for Swift, the most for a female artist, and her third song to debut atop the chart.[25]

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of 1989 (Taylor's Version).[26]

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  • Taylor Swift – vocals, songwriter, producer
  • Jack Antonoff – producer, songwriter, recording engineer, synthesizer, programming, background vocals
  • Serban Ghenea – mixing
  • Bryce Bordon – mix engineer
  • Laura Sisk – recording
  • David Hart – recording
  • Jack Manning – assistant recording engineer
  • Jon Sher – assistant recording engineer
  • Megan Seral – assistant recording engineer
  • Zem Audu – synthesizer, synthesizer recording
  • Michael Riddleberger – drums, drum recording
  • Sean Hutchinson – drums, drum recording
  • Evan Smith – saxophone
  • Mikey Freedom Hart – synthesizer
  • Randy Merrill – mastering

Charts

Chart performance for "Is It Over Now?"
Chart (2023) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[27] 1
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[28] 18
Belgium (Billboard)[29] 21
Brazil (Brasil Hot 100)[30][31] 71
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[32] 1
Croatia (Billboard)[33] 16
Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100)[34] 43
France (SNEP)[35] 129
1
Iceland (Plötutíðindi)[36] 24
2
Italy (FIMI)[37] 93
Latvia (LAIPA)[38] 8
Lithuania (AGATA)[39] 20
Luxembourg (Billboard)[40] 21
Malaysia (Billboard)[41] 18
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[42] 23
Netherlands (Tipparade)[43] 11
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[44] 1
Norway (VG-lista)[45] 11
Philippines (Billboard)[46] 6
Singapore (RIAS)[47] 4
Slovakia (Singles Digitál Top 100)[48] 38
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[49] 15
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[50] 1
US Billboard Hot 100[51] 1
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[52] 38

Release history

Release dates and formats for "Is It Over Now?"
Region Date Format Label(s) Ref.
United States October 31, 2023 Contemporary hit radio Republic [53][21]

Notes

  1. ↑ Officially titled "Is It Over Now? (Taylor's Version) (From the Vault)"
  2. ↑ In 2014, Swift's "Blank Space" replaced "Shake It Off" from number one on the Hot 100.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  26. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  27. ↑ "Australian-charts.com – Taylor Swift – Is It Over Now?". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
  28. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  29. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  30. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  31. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  32. ↑ "Taylor Swift – Chart history" Canadian Hot 100 for Taylor Swift.
  33. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  34. ↑ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 202344 into search.
  35. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  36. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  37. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  38. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  39. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  40. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  41. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  42. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Taylor Swift – Is It Over Now?" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  43. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  44. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  45. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Taylor Swift – Is It Over Now?". VG-lista.
  46. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  47. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  48. ↑ "SNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 202344 into search.
  49. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Taylor Swift – Is It Over Now?". Singles Top 100.
  50. ↑ "Archive Chart: 20231103" UK Singles Chart.
  51. ↑ "Taylor Swift – Chart history" Billboard Hot 100 for Taylor Swift.
  52. ↑ "Taylor Swift – Chart history" Billboard Pop Songs for Taylor Swift.
  53. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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