New Year's Day

**New Year's Day** is the 15th and final track on Taylor Swift's sixth studio album Reputation.

## Lyrics

[Verse 1]

There's glitter on the floor after the party

Girls carrying their shoes down in the lobby

Candle wax and Polaroids on the hardwood floor

You and me from the night before, but

[Chorus]

Don't read the last page

But I stay when you're lost and I'm scared and you're turning away

I want your midnights

But I'll be cleaning up bottles with you on New Year's Day

[Verse 2]

You squeeze my hand three times in the back of the taxi

I can tell that it's gonna be a long road

I'll be there if you're the toast of the town, babe

Or if you strike out and you're crawling home

[Chorus]

Don't read the last page

But I stay when it's hard or it's wrong or we're making mistakes

I want your midnights

But I'll be cleaning up bottles with you on New Year's Day

[Post-Chorus]

Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you

Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you

Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you

And I will hold on to you

[Bridge]

Please don't ever become a stranger

Whose laugh I could recognize anywhere

Please don't ever become a stranger

Whose laugh I could recognize anywhere

[Verse 3]

There's glitter on the floor after the party

Girls carrying their shoes down in the lobby

Candle wax and Polaroids on the hardwood floor

You and me forevermore

[Chorus]

Don't read the last page

But I stay when it's hard or it's wrong or we're making mistakes

I want your midnights

But I'll be cleaning up bottles with you on New Year's Day

[Post-Chorus]

Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you

Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you

Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you

And I will hold on to you

[Outro]

Please don't ever become a stranger

*(To the memories, they will hold on to you)*

Whose laugh I could recognize anywhere

*(Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you)*

Please don't ever become a stranger

*(Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you)*

Whose laugh I could recognize anywhere

*(I will hold on to you)*

## Commentary

* "It was the quickest [song to record]. If you listen to the piano on that record, you can hear me moving around. You hear things clicking. Those are the ‘scratch takes’ — we did that very quickly. It came out in that sort of goofy Hollywood version of how music is written, where it comes out of moments of inspiration. Part of the process is you do that [scratch take], and then you do it for real. But we just sat there: That’s the song. You want a song to sound like itself. You don’t want to get the perfect tune. You don’t want to get the absolute perfect vocal take or the perfect panning or compression. You just want it to sound like itself. You want to feel like you’re home within the song. […] I don’t know what we would be thinking if we tried to fuck with it. I’m so proud of it because, personally, I think it’s some sort of hint at the future." - Jack Antonoff in an interview with *Entertainment Weekly*

## Trivia

* Taylor used to mashup this song with "Long Live" on the Reputation Stadium Tour.
* Olivia Rodrigo's song "1 step forward, 3 steps back" interpolates NYD, so Rodrigo gave Jack and Taylor songwriting credits on the track.

## References

1. ↑ https://ew.com/music/2017/12/28/jack-antonoff-taylor-swift-lorde-interview/
2. ↑ https://genius.com/Olivia-rodrigo-1-step-forward-3-steps-back-lyrics