Note: This content was originally in Lyric trends in Taylor Swift’s albums over time, but I chose to separate it so the original post can stay “evergreen”.

In doing this [Lyric trends in Taylor Swift’s albums over time] project, it's became clear to me that certain symbols were explored, even earlier than they appeared on albums. In some instances, I suspect the rerecordings also influenced her current music. Here were some of my favorites that I didn’t already notate in the other post:

Castles crumbling

Taylor uses the phrase "castles crumbling" most specifically in reputation's Call it What You Want. However, the idea of a castle falling has been present since Speak Now, evidenced by the recent debut of… Castling Crumbling.

Falling like snow

When we first hear about snow falling, it's in the Red vault tracks: I Bet You Think About Me and All Too Well (10 Minute Version). Both songs reflect on a recently ended relationship. We next hear about it in snow on the beach, where it's weird but fucking beautiful. This is probably the clearest example of the rerecords influencing her new music. Her sad associations with falling snow in Red, were recontextualized as she got older in snow on the beach.

I'd like to note that the one other time she mentions snow is in Lover, It's Nice to Have a Friend.

Pages turning/bridges burning

Taylor uses paper or pages as a metaphor for herself or for her love stories. She uses "bridges burn" 3 times (that I counted so far). The closest she got turn and burn together, without using pages and bridges was in right where you left me. It was used a metaphor to explain the passage of time and life moving on, even though she doesn't. So to see those rhymes show up in You're On Your Own, Kid is a natural progression, especially in context of all these songs.

1989 From the Vault tracks

Here are some insights for each of the vault songs:

“Slut!” has a lot of color mentions. It also marks her 2nd known usage of neon and 3rd known usage of orange.
Say Don’t Go is the second mention of a shot in the dark during this era. Sweeter than Fiction includes a similar phrase, and we see it again in Getaway Car.
Now That We Don’t Talk includes Taylor calling her mom. Mentions of a father are absent in 1989, reputation, and Lover.
Suburban Dreams is another instance of Taylor using school to describe her current social dynamic. She’s used it literally in Taylor Swift (Debut) and Fearless and as a metaphor in Lover.
Is It Over Now? has a few references to things we’ve heard before:
- Waves crash on the shore is similar to a line in evermore
- Flashing lights is a reference to fame, a metaphor she uses a lot after this, and notably in Paris (Let the only flashing lights be the tower at midnight)
- She talks about 300 coffees, which reminds me of Begin Again… Where on a Wednesday in a cafe… She watched it begin again. It’s not a direct reference, but it’s something to consider.

There are just some of the insights I gleaned, but I promise I have many, many, many more. I'm only one person, so this list isn't perfect or even complete(!), but I tried to be as comprehensive as possible.