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Guilty as Sin?

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This article is about the Taylor Swift song. For the 1993 film, see Guilty as Sin.

"Guilty as Sin?"
Song by Taylor Swift
from the album The Tortured Poets Department
ReleasedApril 19, 2024 (2024-04-19)
Studio
Genre
Length4:14
LabelRepublic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Taylor Swift
  • Jack Antonoff
Lyric video
"Guilty as Sin?" on YouTube

"Guilty as Sin?" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift from her eleventh studio album, The Tortured Poets Department (2024). She wrote and produced the song with Jack Antonoff. It is a 1990s-tinged pop rock and soft rock track combining rock, country, and folk styles, accentuated by guitars and live drums. The lyrics see Swift's character sexually fantasizing about a man while being in a relationship.

In reviews of The Tortured Poets Department, the song received highly positive reviews, with critics generally praising the lyrics, production, and vocals of "Guilty as Sin?", with some picking it as an album highlight. The track peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Global 200 and charted within the top 10 in Australia, Singapore, and the United States and the top 20 in several other countries.

Background and release

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Swift started working on The Tortured Poets Department immediately after she submitted her tenth studio album, Midnights, to Republic Records for release in 2022. She continued working on it in secrecy throughout the US leg of the Eras Tour in 2023.[1] The album's conception took place when Swift's personal life continued to be a widely covered topic in the press.[2] She described The Tortured Poets Department as her "lifeline" album which she "really needed" to make.[3] Republic Records released it on April 19, 2024; "Guilty as Sin?" is ninth on the track list.[4][5] On May 18, Swift performed the song on guitar at the Stockholm stop of the Eras Tour; and as a mashup with "Untouchable" on July 4 in Amsterdam.[6] On October 20, Swift performed the song as a mashup with "Mirrorball" on piano in Miami.[7]

Music and lyrics

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"Guilty as Sin?"
"Guilty as Sin?" is a pop rock and soft rock song with live drums and guitars. In the refrain, Swift sings with melisma vocals.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

Swift wrote and produced "Guilty as Sin?" with Jack Antonoff, who programmed the song and played drums, bass, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, and Juno. The track was recorded by Oli Jacobs and Laura Sisk at Conway Recording Studios in Los Angeles and Electric Lady Studios in New York, while Swift's vocals were recorded by Sisk and Christopher Rowe at Electric Lady Studios in New York and Prime Recording in Nashville. The track's mixing was engineered by Bryce Bordone and conducted by Serban Ghenea at MixStar Studios in Virginia Beach.[8]

"Guilty as Sin?" is 4 minutes and 14 seconds long.[8] It is a 1990s-tinged soft rock[9][10] and pop rock track[11][12] combining stylings of rock, country, and folk,[13] accentuated by guitar[14] and live drums.[15] In the chorus, Swift sings using melisma.[11] Lyrically, the song is about desire[11] where Swift's character, while still in a relationship, longs for intimacy with another man.[16] The relationship in question has her feeling trapped ("My boredom's bone deep/ This cage was once just fine/ Am I allowed to cry?/ I dream of crackin' locks").[17] She questions whether she should be guilty about her sexual thoughts ("What if he's written 'mine' on my upper thigh / Only in my mind?")[18] and rationalizes them ("Without ever touching his skin, how can I be guilty as sin?").[13][18]

The track features extensive religious imagery,[19] with Swift singing, "What if I roll the stone away?/ They're gonna crucify me anyway",[15][20] showing that the narrator is aware of others' perception of her.[17] The lyrics, "These fatal fantasies/ Giving way to labored breath/ Taking all of me/ We've already done it in my head", were interpreted as an allusion to masturbation by journalists including The Guardian's Laura Snapes[21] and the BBC's Clare Thorp.[22] Mehera Bonner of Cosmopolitan commented that "Guilty as Sin?" is lyrically connected with Swift's 2022 song "Carolina", a track that features the phrase "guilty as sin" to describe "[sleeping] in a liar's bed".[23] Meanwhile, The Tennessean's Bryan West compared the theme of infidelity to "Gorgeous", a track from Swift's 2017 album Reputation.[24]

The song features a reference to the Scottish band the Blue Nile and their 1989 single "The Downtown Lights" in the lyrics ("Drowning in the Blue Nile/ He sent me 'Downtown Lights'/ I hadn't heard it in a while").[25] This led to an increase of 1,400% in streams of "The Downtown Lights" within four days of the release of The Tortured Poets Department,[26] and increase of vinyl sales for the band's albums.[27]

Critical reception

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"Guilty as Sin?" received highly positive reviews by music critics. Ken Tucker of NPR appreciated the song for showcasing Swift's vulnerable and weak sides compared to contemporary pop culture's saturation of "kick-butt, tough, perfect, independent women" and found the track to have "a cleverly retrograde image".[28] Reviewing the album for Vanity Fair, Erin Vanderhoff described the song as "charming and beguiling" and considered it the album's "emotional apex".[29] In a staff review of the album for The Spinoff, Alex Casey and Isaiah Tour picked the track as one of their favorites.[30] Similarly, Ross Horton off MusicOMH attributed its success to the ambivalent lyrical sentiments and saying that the track "would be a highlight on any of her records".[31]

The production and Swift's vocals also received praise. West described the song as a "catchy song with elongated, ethereal harmonies".[24] In the Irish Independent, John Meagher complimented the lyrics and Swift's singing for featuring "one of the loveliest vocals Swift has ever committed to tape".[32] John Wohlmacher from Beats Per Minute said that the track was one of the album's better songs, highlighting the "sensual" guitar alongside "seductive" and "lush" vocals.[14] In The Atlantic, Spencer Kornhaber opined that "Guilty as Sin?" is one of the album's best moments for its "perfect" combination of live drums, rock/country elements, and Swift's "keening" voice.[15] Jason Lipshutz of Billboard ranked "Guilty as Sin?" ninth out of the 31 tracks on the double album edition of The Tortured Poets Department, writing: "the real fireworks come from Swift’s vocal nuances."[11]

Mary Siroky in Consequence selected "Guilty as Sin?" as one of the album's "essential tracks" for showcasing a "personality",[33] and Anna Leszkiewicz from the New Statesman similarly picked it as one of the album's "bright pop tracks [that] shine through the fog".[34] Lindsay Zoladz of The New York Times appreciated the track for its 1990s soft rock production and Swift's vocals.[9] Giving the track four stars out of five, Will Hodgkinson of The Times wrote, "The earnest, thoroughly American delivery mars the eroticism somewhat, but it comes straight from the Fleetwood Mac school of pop-rock inspired by disastrous romance."[12] Maria Sherman from the Associated Press gave a negative review, saying that "Guilty as Sin?" is one of the album's "missteps" for its "mawkish" lyrics.[35]

Commercial performance

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When The Tortured Poets Department was released, tracks from the album occupied the top 14 of the US Billboard Hot 100, making Swift the first artist to monopolize the top 14; "Guilty as Sin?" opened at its peak of number 10 on the chart.[36][37] In Australia, the song reached number 10 on the ARIA Singles Chart and made her the artist with the most entries in a single week with 29.[38][39] Elsewhere, "Guilty as Sin?" peaked at number eight in Singapore[40] and charted within the top 20 on the Billboard Global 200 (11),[41] New Zealand (11),[42] the Philippines (12),[43] Canada (13),[44] Malaysia (17),[45] and Ireland (18).[46]

Personnel

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Charts

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Chart performance for "Guilty as Sin?"
Chart (2024) Peak
position
Argentina (Argentina Hot 100)[47] 96
Australia (ARIA)[38] 10
Brazil (Brasil Hot 100)[48] 75
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[44] 13
Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100)[49] 67
France (SNEP)[50] 103
Global 200 (Billboard)[41] 11
Greece International (IFPI)[51] 24
Ireland (Billboard)[46] 18
Lithuania (AGATA)[52] 66
Malaysia (Billboard)[53] 23
Malaysia International (RIM)[45] 17
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[42] 11
Slovakia (Singles Digitál Top 100)[54] 73
Philippines (Billboard)[43] 12
Portugal (AFP)[55] 28
Singapore (RIAS)[40] 8
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[56] 84
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[57] 49
Swiss Streaming (Schweizer Hitparade)[58] 32
UAE (IFPI)[59] 20
UK Streaming (OCC)[60] 16
US Billboard Hot 100[36] 10

Certifications

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Certifications for "Guilty as Sin?"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[61] Platinum 70,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[62] Silver 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ Blistein, Jon (February 7, 2024). "Taylor Swift Reveals Tortured Poets Department Back Up Plan In Case She Didn't Win a Grammy". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on February 7, 2024. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  2. ^ Sisario, Ben (April 19, 2024). "Taylor Swift's Tortured Poets Arrives With a Promotional Blitz". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  3. ^ Bonner, Mehera (February 16, 2024). "Taylor Swift Reveals Bonus Track Title and New Album Cover for The Tortured Poets Department". Cosmopolitan. Archived from the original on February 16, 2024. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  4. ^ "As The Tortured Poets Department drops, here's all Taylor Swift's albums ranked by sales". Music Week. April 19, 2024. Archived from the original on April 19, 2024. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  5. ^ Corcoron, Nina (February 6, 2024). "Taylor Swift Unveils Tracklist for The Tortured Poets Department". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on February 29, 2024. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
  6. ^ Iasimone, Ashley (May 19, 2024). "All the Surprise Songs Taylor Swift Has Performed on The Eras Tour (So Far)". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 20, 2024. Retrieved May 20, 2024.
  7. ^ "Taylor Swift's surprise songs from Night 3 of the Eras Tour in Miami, including a 1989 double mashup". For The Win. October 21, 2024. Retrieved October 21, 2024.
  8. ^ a b Swift, Taylor (2024). The Tortured Poets Department (CD liner notes). Republic Records.
  9. ^ a b Zoladz, Lindsay (April 19, 2024). "Taylor Swift's New Album, The Tortured Poets Department, Could Use an Editor: Review". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 20, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  10. ^ "The Best Songs of 2024 So Far". Rolling Stone. June 12, 2024. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  11. ^ a b c d Lipshutz, Jason (April 19, 2024). "Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department: All 31 Tracks Ranked". Billboard. Archived from the original on April 20, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  12. ^ a b Hodgkinson, Will (April 19, 2024). "Love, Men and the Story Behind Each Song on Taylor Swift's New Album". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Archived from the original on April 19, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
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  15. ^ a b c Kornhaber, Spencer (April 19, 2024). "Taylor Swift Is Having Quality-Control Issues". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
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  18. ^ a b "Taylor Swift Fans Left Shocked Over Meaning Behind Spicy 'Guilty As Sin?' Lyrics". Capital. April 28, 2024. Archived from the original on April 28, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
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  22. ^ Thorp, Clare (April 20, 2024). "But Daddy I Love Him: Taylor Swift takes aim at critics with new track". BBC. Archived from the original on April 21, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
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  24. ^ a b West, Bryan (April 19, 2024). "Filing Tortured Poets into Taylor Swift's card catalog, track by track". The Tennessean. Archived from the original on May 9, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  25. ^ Pilley, Max (April 19, 2024). "Taylor Swift namedrops The Blue Nile on Tortured Poets Department track 'Guilty As Sin?'". NME. Archived from the original on May 2, 2024. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
  26. ^ Lipshutz, Jason (April 24, 2024). "New Taylor Swift Album Boosts Streams for The Starting Line, The Blue Nile & Other Honorary Tortured Poets". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 3, 2024. Retrieved April 28, 2024.
  27. ^ Franklin, Beth (April 29, 2024). "The Blue Nile sell out of vinyl records after Taylor Swift name-drop". STV News. Archived from the original on May 2, 2024. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
  28. ^ Tucker, Ken (April 24, 2024). "Taylor Swift's confessional Tortured Poets would have benefitted from an edit". NPR. Archived from the original on April 29, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  29. ^ Vanderhoff, Erin (April 19, 2024). "On The Tortured Poets Department, Taylor Swift Is Still Rejecting Your Judgment". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on April 19, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  30. ^ "What do we make of The Tortured Poets Department?". The Spinoff. April 22, 2024. Archived from the original on April 29, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
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  32. ^ Meagher, John (April 19, 2024). "Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department review: fans going to Dublin gigs have a new wealth of riches to look forward to". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on April 19, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  33. ^ Siroky, Mary (April 19, 2024). "Taylor Swift Gets Lost in Her Own Shadow on The Tortured Poets Department". Consequence. Archived from the original on April 20, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  34. ^ Leszkiewicz, Anna (April 19, 2024). "The Tortured Taylor Swift". New Statesman. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  35. ^ Sherman, Maria (April 19, 2024). "Music Review: Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department is great sad pop, meditative theater". Associated Press News. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
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  37. ^ Trust, Gary (April 29, 2024). "Taylor Swift Claims Record Top 14 Spots on Billboard Hot 100, Led by 'Fortnight' with Post Malone". Billboard. Archived from the original on April 29, 2024. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
  38. ^ a b "ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. April 29, 2024. Archived from the original on May 9, 2024. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
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  45. ^ a b "TOP 20 Most Streamed International Singles In Malaysia Week 17 (19/04/2024-25/04/2024)". RIM. May 4, 2024. Archived from the original on May 9, 2024. Retrieved May 4, 2024 – via Facebook.
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  55. ^ "Taylor Swift – Guilty as Sin?". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  56. ^ "Taylor Swift – Guilty as Sin?" Canciones Top 50. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  57. ^ "Veckolista Singlar, vecka 17". Sverigetopplistan. Archived from the original on April 26, 2024. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
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  62. ^ "British single certifications – Taylor Swift – Guilty As Sin". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 10, 2024.
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