The Man (Taylor Swift song)
"The Man" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift from her seventh studio album, Lover (2019). Swift wrote and produced the song with Joel Little. "The Man" is an uptempo synth-pop and electropop song with flashy harmonies, murky synths, and rumbling beats. In the lyrics, Swift imagines how she would be treated if she were a man. The song received a positive reception from critics, who praised its feminist message for the greater good.
"The Man"
January 27, 2020
2019
- Electric Lady (New York City)
- Golden Age West (Auckland, New Zealand)
3:10
- Taylor Swift
- Joel Little
- Taylor Swift
- Joel Little
The track peaked at number 23 on the US Billboard Hot 100 upon the album's release, and entered the top-forty in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Ireland, Malaysia, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Slovakia, and the United Kingdom. It impacted US adult contemporary and pop radio formats on January 27 and 28, 2020, as the fourth single from the album. On February 18, 2020, a live acoustic version of the song, titled "The Man (Live from Paris)", was released on all music platforms, accompanied by its live video.
An official music video for "The Man" was released on February 27, 2020, directed by Taylor Swift herself, marking her solo directorial debut. The satirical video sees Swift in her theoretical male alter-ego named "Tyler Swift", voiced by Dwayne Johnson, presenting several prevalent examples of sexist double standards in society, including objectification, sexualization of women, toxic masculinity, and patriarchy. The video received critical acclaim for its concept and Swift's transformation into a man. It was nominated for the Video of the Year, Video for Good, and Best Direction at the 2020 MTV Video Music Awards, winning the latter, making Swift the first solo female director in VMA history to win the category.
Critical reception[edit]
"The Man" received acclaim from music critics. The Atlantic's Spencer Kornhaber described "The Man" as "one of the most straightforwardly catchy songs" on Lover, and further called it Swift's "most explicit musical statement on sexism".[13] He opined that the Leonardo DiCaprio reference is the "most memorable" line of the song. Brittany Hodak of Forbes praised the song as "the most important song she's [Swift has] ever written". She also stated that the song is "a brilliant portrayal of the subtle and not-so-subtle sexism women face every day".[14] Time's Raisa Bruner labeled the song as "a bombastic, empowering bop" that is "an anthem for anyone who's felt blocked by sexist double standards".[15] Comparing the song to Swift's 2017 album, Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone described "The Man" as "a righteous feminist bombshell Reputation could have used".[16] Slate's Carl Wilson opined that the song "widens the lens and makes a more convincing case for her [Swift's] grievances than on any beefing track she's ever written". He further described the song as a "synth-strut mode very reminiscent of Haim" that "takes aim at sexist music industry and media double standards and just keeps firing bull's-eyes".[17]
Writing for Elite Daily, Sade Spence and Kristen Perrone stated that the lyrics of the song are "super bold and carry a powerful message about women". They further stated that the song is an addition to the "legendary canon of crafty takes on sexism" in music.[18] Allie Gemmill of Teen Vogue stated that the song "gives women permission to keep challenging sexist double standards, and fans are here for it", adding that the "fierce" song includes "many incredibly good lyrics".[19] Writing for Billboard, Jason Lipshutz called it "a complete jam" and ranked it as the 12th best track on the album, and further expanded that it "will draw attention for its searing subject matter, but it's also one of Lover's most complete productions".[11] The same magazine's Gab Ginsberg opined that "The Man" is "catchy-as-all-heck".[20] Writing for The New York Times, Jon Caramanica described the song as "excellent and pointed".[5] Jordan Sargent of Spin negatively compared the song to "You Need to Calm Down", stating that the lyric "If I was a man, then I'd be the man" doesn't really offer much insight.[21]
Release and commercial performance[edit]
On August 16, 2019, Swift announced the track listing of her seventh studio album, Lover, where "The Man" was unveiled.[22] One week later, the project was released, with "The Man" serving as the fourth track. Next year, the song was serviced to the US adult contemporary and pop radio formats on January 27 and 28, 2020, as the fourth single from Lover.[23] The following month, the track was issued by Universal Music Group to Italian radio airplay on February 14,[24] whilst the live version was made available to digital download and streaming worldwide four days later.[25]
In the United States, following the release of its parent album Lover, "The Man" debuted at number four on the Billboard Streaming Songs chart, number 23 on the Billboard Hot 100, and number 32 on the Billboard Digital Song Sales chart, all dated September 7, 2019.[26][27] "The Man" The song peaked at number 20 and 10 on Billboard Pop Songs and Billboard Adult Pop Songs charts. In Europe, "The Man" charted at number 16 in Ireland,[28] 62 in the Netherlands,[29] 24 in Norway,[30] 82 in Scotland, 63 in Sweden and 80 in Switzerland.[31][32][33] It reached number 21 on the UK Singles Chart.[34] It was also commercially successful in Oceania, peaking at number 17 in Australia and 15 in New Zealand.[35][36]
Live performances[edit]
City of Lover[edit]
Swift performed "The Man" for the first time at the "City of Lover" one-off concert at L'Olympia in Paris, France, on September 9, 2019.[65] On February 17, 2020, the singer announced on her social media platforms the release of that live version under the title "The Man (Live from Paris)". The song was released the next day along with the live video of its performance.[25][66] It was later included on C side of limited live album Lover (Live from Paris) released on 2023 Valentine's Day.[67]
Billboard commented that the "glorious" live video is a "work of beauty", that sees Swift playing acoustic guitar, with her looking "relaxed and confident as the audience sings back every word of the song".[68] E! News stated that the video "will empower you to conquer all", where "the superstar once again proved her unbelievable talent". They added that Swift "lit up" the stage, with just a single spotlight, "as she plays the acoustic guitar, the audience cheers along to the feminist anthem".[69] Calling the video "intimate yet grand", Uproxx opined that the song "retains its earworm qualities in the acoustic rendition", despite the original version being "a catchy, synth-led tune".[70]
Other[edit]
An acoustic version of "The Man" was performed at a Tiny Desk Concert for NPR Music on October 11, 2019.[71] During the 47th Annual American Music Awards, held on November 24, 2019, in Los Angeles, Swift performed a medley of her hits which began with an excerpt of "The Man", when she was joined by a group of young girls.[72] She wore white shirt with the titles of her first six studio albums written on it, which she unbuttoned and progressed to "Love Story".[73][74] The song was included on the set list of her sixth headlining concert tour, the Eras Tour (2023–2024), with the singer wearing an oversized Versace business sequin jacket.[75][76] Architectural Digest's Katherine McLaughlin wrote that the stage "uses scaffolding and office props to emulate a corporate environment", with Emily Yahr of The Washington Post noticing the resemblance to the office seen in the music video.[77][78]
Impact[edit]
In honor of International Women's Day in 2020, "The Man" was added to playlists on streaming platforms such as Apple Music, Spotify, and Tidal. Public figures such as Malala Yousafzai and Kristin Chenoweth added the song to their International Women's Day playlists.[79] Furthermore, Swift included the song in her Apple Music "Playlist by ME!", which was updated to spotlight songs from female artists such as Beabadoobee, Clairo, Phoebe Bridgers, Caroline Polachek, Celeste, Charli XCX, Daya, Grimes, Haim, Halsey, Léon, H.E.R., Kesha, King Princess, Marina Diamandis, MUNA, Oh Wonder, Brittany Howard, Margaret Glaspy, Princess Nokia, Selena Gomez, Låpsley, Yebba, and more.[80]
In March 2020, British politician Liz Truss, the Secretary of State for International Trade and Minister for Women and Equalities of the United Kingdom, quoted the song's lyrics during a special International Women's Day debate in the British parliament, while talking about the need for gender equality across the workforce and greater protection for women against domestic violence. Truss stated: "And so that, in the words of the brilliant Taylor Swift in her new song, 'women are left running as fast as they can, wondering if they'd get there quicker if they were a man'."[81]
American journalist Jody Rosen, writing for The New York Times, listed "The Man" as one of the "25 songs that matter now". Describing Swift as "pop's best humblebraggart", Rosen termed "The Man" as a "sly protest song", explaining that Swift "has been pop's top bellyacher, turning a now-familiar set of grievances into great songs". He added that Swift "channels that indignation into a broader protest against the sexism and skepticism that all women face". Rosen also opined that the song's "most hard-hitting line is a plaintive rhetorical question that calls to mind a #MeToo movement slogan: #BelieveWomen".[82]
Naming "The Man" as the "most important" song Swift has ever written, Brittany Hodak of Forbes, commended that "the magic of "The Man" is not just that it captures a complex (and often misunderstood) issue so brilliantly and simply, but also that it conveys to Swift's female fans that even she isn't above the BS that so many of us are regularly subjected to". Hodak concluded that she is "hopeful that Swift's spotlight on the issue will spark a national conversation about sexism, power, and equality".[14]