Released: November 10, 2017

Songwriter: Jack Antonoff Taylor Swift

Producer: Taylor Swift Jack Antonoff

[Verse 1]
It was so nice throwing big parties
Jump into the pool from the balcony
Everyone swimming in a champagne sea
And there are no rules when you show up here
Bass beat rattling the chandelier
Feeling so Gatsby for that whole year

[Pre-Chorus]
So why'd you have to rain on my parade?
I'm shaking my head and locking the gates

[Chorus]
This is why we can't have nice things, darling
Because you break them
I had to take them away
This is why we can't have nice things, honey (Oh)
Did you think I wouldn't hear all the things you said about me?
This is why we can't have nice things

[Verse 2]
It was so nice being friends again
There I was, giving you a second chance
But you stabbed me in the back while shaking my hand
And therein lies the issue
Friends don't try to trick you
Get you on the phone and mind-twist you
And so I took an axe to a mended fence

[Pre-Chorus]
But I'm not the only friend you've lost lately (Mm-mm)
If only you weren't so shady

[Chorus]
This is why we can't have nice things, darling (Yeah)
Because you break them
I had to take them away
This is why we can't have nice (Nice things) things (Baby), honey
Did you think I wouldn't hear all the things you said about me?
This is why we can't have

[Bridge]
Here's a toast to my real friends
They don't care about the he-said, she-said
And here's to my baby
He ain't reading what they call me lately
And here's to my mama
Had to listen to all this drama
And here's to you
'Cause forgiveness is a nice thing to do
Haha, I can't even say it with a straight face

[Chorus]
This is why we can't have nice things, darling (Darling)
Because you break them
I had to take them away
This is why we can't have nice (Uh-uh) things (Oh no), honey (Baby, oh)
Did you think I wouldn't hear all the things you said about me?
This is why we can't have nice things, darling
(And here's to my real friends)
Because you break them
I had to take them
(And here's to my baby)
Nice things, honey
(He didn't care about that he-said, she-said)
Did you think I wouldn't hear all the things you said about me?
This is why we can't have nice things

Taylor Swift

One of the defining artists of the 2010s, Taylor Alison Swift, born December 13th, 1989, is an American singer-songwriter and actress who has achieved success in both country and pop. Raised on a Christmas tree farm in Pennsylvania, Swift moved to Nashville, Tennessee at age fourteen to pursue a career in country music. Scott Borchetta signed Swift to his then-nonexistent label Big Machine Records after seeing her perform at the Bluebird Cafe in November 2004.

Swift debuted in June 2006 with “Tim McGraw,” an ode to a lover who would be leaving town. The song served as an introduction to her self-titled debut album, which touched upon topics like heartbreak and bullying Swift faced at school. Her honesty and relatability appealed to fans from all walks of life, and went on to become the longest-charting album of the 2000s, spending 227 weeks on the Billboard 200.

Swift’s sophomore effort, Fearless, came in November 2008 and cemented her status as a country superstar, while tracks like “Love Story” and “You Belong With Me” also garnered mainstream attention. Not only did the record become her first number one, but it also became the most-awarded country album of all time, winning accolades such as the Grammy award for Album of the Year. Until Billie Eilish’s 2020 win, then-20-year-old Swift was the youngest person to have ever received the honor.