"End Game" is a song by the American singer-songwriterTaylor Swift featuring the English singer-songwriterEd Sheeran and the American rapperFuture. Written alongside producersMax Martin andShellback, it was released on November 14, 2017, as the third single from her sixth studio album,Reputation. "End Game" is an incorporation ofpop rap,boom bap, andR&B. It features loose vocalcadences andhip-hop-influenceddrums that createtrap beats. The lyrics are about finding true love amidst the gossip on ones' perceived reputations.
Contemporary critics received "End Game" with mixed reviews; some praised the hip-hop experimentation and Future's appearance and hailed the production as catchy, but others found the track and Sheeran's appearance uninteresting. The single reached the top 40 on the singles charts and received platinumcertifications in Australia, Canada, and the US.
A music video for the single, directed byJoseph Kahn, was released on January 12, 2018. The video depicts Swift partying with Future in Miami, with Sheeran in Tokyo, and with other friends in London. Swift performed "End Game" at the 2017Jingle Ball and on her 2018Reputation Stadium Tour. She performed it as a "surprise song" twice onthe Eras Tour (2023–2024).
"End Game" was produced byMax Martin andShellback. The two also co-wrote the song withTaylor Swift,Ed Sheeran andFuture. Swift is credited as the main singer, while Sheeran and Future are credited as featured artists.[1] It was recorded for Swift's sixth studio album,Reputation (2017). The song is the only song onReputation that features guest artists.[2] For his songwriting, Sheeran came up with the inspiration while attending aFourth of July party at Swift's residence inRhode Island. At that party, Sheeran encountered Cherry Seaborn, a girl who went to the same school with him. They reconnected and ultimately became married. Hisverse includes a reference to the filmBorn on the Fourth of July (1989), a symbol of the beginning of his relationship with Seaborn.[3] The song was recorded at three studios:MXM Studios in Los Angeles andStockholm, Seismic Activities Studios inPortland, Oregon, and Tree Sound Studios in Atlanta. It wasmixed bySerban Ghenea at MixStar Studios inVirginia Beach, Virginia; andMastered by Randy Merrill atSterling Sound Studios in New York.[2]
"End Game" incorporatesboom bap,[4]pop rap,[5] andR&B,[6] with elements ofpop andhip-hop.[7][8] Its production features loosecadences,trap beats, and hip hop-influenceddrums;Pitchfork's Meaghan Garvey described the production elements as representative of contemporary hip-hop and R&B trends of 2017.[7][9] In the lyrics, the three artists talk about their true love amidst the gossip about their perceived reputations.[10] At the song's beginning, Swift asserts that she and her lover both have "bad" and "big reputations".[7] Future then echoes this perspective, saying that he has a "bad boy persona, that's what they like".[10] In his part, Sheeran raps about how his love interest was "born on the Fourth of July".[10][9] For Swift's part, she channels half-singing, half-rapping delivery found in hip hop,[11] making fun of the media gossip on her image: "I swear I don't love the drama / It loves me."[12][13] The chorus finds Swift singing "I wanna be your endgame" to her lover.[9]
On November 7, 2017, Swift announced track listing ofReputation, where "End Game" was unveiled.[14] Three days later, the album was released with "End Game" being its second track.[1] The song was picked as the third single promoting the project.[15] On November 14,Mercury Records issued the song to Frenchradio airplay,[16] while in the United States,Republic Records pushed the track tocontemporary hit radio panels.[17]
Critics praised the verse byFuture(left), but were less favorable toward the verse byEd Sheeran(right).
The song received mixed reviews from critics.Kitty Empire fromThe Observer selected "End Game" as an example for Swift's experimentation with R&B onReputation, noting that it "isn't very good".[22] In a review byPitchfork, Meaghan Garvey was not impressed by the guest appearances of Future and Sheeran, the former of which was seemingly a means to help Swift stay relevant with contemporary hip hop trends. Garvey also criticized the production as bland, feeling that the song is an "uninspired" attempt at the authentic hip hop sound: "The decisions here feel measured to the point of lifelessness; preoccupied by the end game, risks become liabilities."[7] Brian Josephs fromSpin praised Future's verse, feeling that the rapper "fully owned it, making him a bizarrely good fit for a modern day Swift song". Josephs however was disappointed with Sheeran's appearance, and considered the song's overall theme of "attempting to find love in spite of real or perceived enemies" similar to previous "far better" songs by Future.[10]
Writing forPopMatters, Evan Sawdey picked "End Game" as one ofReputation's "misguided" songs, alongside "Look What You Made Me Do" and "This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things".[13] Though complimentary of Future's appearance and Swift's lyrics, Lindsay Lozadz fromThe Ringer panned Sheeran's verse as "rapping so hard that you can practically smell the sweat he breaks trying to keep up with Future", which blemished the whole song.[9] Michelle Da Silva fromNow was critical of Swift's lyrics about drama and vengeance, deeming it inauthentic to her persona.[23]
On a positive side,New York's Frank Guan lauded "End Game" as one of the best songs onReputation, mostly thanks to the verse of Future and Swift's witty lyrics about her perceived image, and said that the song had potentials to be a chart success.[24] Raise Bruner fromTime considered the song to be Swift at her peak: "emotionally open, but ready and willing to have some fun with the hype around her own persona".[25] Spencer Kornharber fromThe Atlantic called the song "maddeningly catchy" and compared its styles to music byRihanna.[26]Rob Sheffield fromRolling Stone was similarly positive, calling it "deeply weird, wildly funny", praising the chemistry of the three artists and Swift's witty lyrics.[8]
"End Game" was one of the award-winning songs at the 2019BMI Awards.[27] It also won Pop Award at the 2019 BMI London Awards, in honor of songwriters and producers.[28]
"End Game" was the only non-single song fromReputation to debut on the USBillboard Hot 100 upon the release of the parent album.[32] It debuted on the chart dated December 9, 2017, at number 86, earning Swift her 75th Hot 100 entry.[33] "End Game" debuted at number 32 on theMainstream Top 40, before rising to number 26 the following week.[34] It debuted at number 38 on theAdult Top 40, eventually peaking at number 13.[33] In its third charting week, "End Game" rose to number 39, giving Swift her 55th Hot 100 top-40 chart entry and becomingReputation's fifth top-40 song, following "Look What You Made Me Do", "...Ready for It?", "Gorgeous", and "Call It What You Want".[35] "End Game" later reached a peak of number 18.[36] The single peaked at number 10 on the Mainstream Top 40, and number 25 on theRhythmic Songs chart.[37] It wascertified platinum by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for exceeding 1,000,000 units based on sales and streaming in the U.S.[38]
On December 2, 2017, Sheeran confirmed at theJingle Ball festival that amusic video for the song would be released.[44] On January 10, 2018, Swift revealed through her social media app "The Swift Life"—an app created withGlu Mobile for fans in support ofReputation[45]—with a still image from the video and text that the music video for the song would be released on January 12, that she would be releasing more stills, and that after a snippet of the video would premiere onGood Morning America on January 11.[46] Swift premiered a 20-second snippet onGood Morning America, and posted it on her social media accounts later that day.[47]
On January 12, 2018, Swift uploaded the video onto herVevo channel.[48] Directed byJoseph Kahn, the video depicts Swift partying at three locations during nighttime: with Future and partygoers on ayacht inMiami, with Sheeran at a nightclub inTokyo, and with various friends on adouble decker bus inLondon.[49] While singing/rapping with Future, Swift is seen riding shotgun in aLamborghini Aventador with him.[50] In one of the London scenes, Swift is seen sitting on a bar playingSnake on ahandheld game console, a reference to her reputation as a "snake" during promotion of the album.[51] This reference is also noted in one of the Tokyo scenes, in which Swift rides a motorcycle in asnakeskin-patternedbodysuit.[50] Thesuperyacht MIZU was used for the Miami filming.[52]
Frank Guan fromNew York observed that the video effectively eschewed Swift's previously well-knowngirl next door image, by "drinking, playing a game on her mobile phone, hamming it up at a karaoke bar, cheerfully failing atDance Dance Revolution, really getting into Future, having a crowd of friends with only a few white girls and no white guys [apart from Ed Sheeran] in sight". Guan was impressed by the video's nighttime aesthetics featuring darkness against flashing lights and vivid colors, writing that "the end result is as simple as it is appealing".[32] Lyndsey McKenna fromNPR Music was less enthusiastic: "It's pretty hard to buy Swift and Sheeran's casual outing in Tokyo or Swift's supposedly uninhibited dance moves."[53]
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