"Shake It Off" is a song by the American singer-songwriterTaylor Swift and the lead single from her fifth studio album,1989 (2014). She wrote the song with its producers,Max Martin andShellback. Inspired by the media scrutiny on Swift's public image, the lyrics are about her indifference to detractors and their negative remarks. Anuptempodance-pop song, "Shake It Off" features alooping drum beat, asaxophone line, and a handclap-basedbridge.Big Machine Records released it on August 18, 2014, to promote1989 as Swift's firstpop album after her previouscountry image and sound.
Initial reviews mostly praised the production ascatchy, but some criticized the lyrics as weak and shallow. Retrospectively, critics have considered "Shake It Off" an effective opener for1989 as an album that transformed Swift's image from country to pop;NME andConsequence ranked it among their best songs of the 2010s decade. The single topped charts and wascertified multi-Platinum in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, and it was certified Platinum in countries across Europe, the Americas, and Asia–Pacific. In the United States, the single peaked atop theBillboard Hot 100 and received aDiamond certification from theRecording Industry Association of America.
Taylor Swift had been known as a primarilycountry singer-songwriter until her fourth studio albumRed (released in October 2012),[1] which incorporates various pop and rock styles, transcending the country sound of her previous releases.[2] The collaborations with Swedish pop producersMax Martin andShellback introduced straightforward pophooks and new genres, includingelectronic anddubstep, to Swift's discography.[3][4] Swift and her label,Big Machine, promoted it as a country album.[5] The album's diverse musical styles sparked a media debate over her status as a country artist, to which she replied in an interview withThe Wall Street Journal, "I leave the genre labeling to other people."[6] Swift began recording her fifth studio album,1989, while touring to supportRed in mid-2013.[7] Inspired by 1980ssynth-pop, she conceived1989 as her first "official pop" record that would transform her image from country to pop.[8][9] Martin and Shellback produced seven out of thirteen tracks for the album's standard edition, including "Shake It Off".[10]
Featuring a saxophone line, "Shake It Off" is anuptempodance-pop song that sees Swift expressing disinterest in her detractors' negative remarks. The lyrics were inspired by Swift's experience with the media scrutiny.
Musically, "Shake It Off" is anuptempodance-pop song that incorporates asaxophone line.[13][14] Jonas Thander, the song's saxophone player, based his part on Martin's pre-recordedMIDIhorn sample, using atenor horn.[15] It took Thander over ten hours to edit the saxophone part, which he completed over the following day.[15] "Shake It Off" is in G Mixolydian – the fifth mode of theC major scale. It follows a ii–IV–Ichord progression (Am–C–G); it employs averse–prechorus–chorus form to begin with a loose verse, tighten for the prechorus, and loosen again for the chorus.[16] The song's upbeat production is accompanied by a looping drumbeat, ahandclap-basedbridge, and synthesized saxophones.[17][18]
The lyrics of the song were inspired by the media scrutiny that Swift had experienced during her rise to stardom.[19] In an interview withRolling Stone in August 2014, Swift said about the song's inspiration: "I've had every part of my life dissected ... When you live your life under that kind of scrutiny, you can either let it break you, or you can get really good at dodging punches. And when one lands, you know how to deal with it. And I guess the way that I deal with it is to shake it off."[20] Discussing the song's message withNPR in October 2014, Swift said that "Shake It Off" represented her more mature perspectives from her previous single "Mean" (2010), which was also inspired by her detractors.[21] According to Swift, if "Mean" was where she assumed victimhood, "Shake It Off" found her in a proactive stance to "take back the narrative, and have ... a sense of humor about people who kind of get under [her] skin – and not let them get under [her] skin".[21]
In the first verse of the song, Swift references her perceived image as a flirtatious woman with numerous romantic attachments: "I go on too many dates / But I can't make 'em stay / At least that's what people say."[22][23] The lines in the chorus are arranged rhythmically to produce a catchyhook: "Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play / And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate / Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake."[23][24] Thespoken-word bridge opens with Swift asserting that the "dirty cheats of the world ... could have been getting down to this sick beat".[25][26] The lyric "this sick beat" is trademarked to Swift by theU.S. Patent and Trademark Office.[27]
On August 18, 2014, during alive streaming event held onYahoo, sponsored byABC News, Swift announced the album1989 and the lead single "Shake It Off" and premiered its music video.[28] Within minutes of the video's release, Big Machine, in partnership withRepublic Records, released the song tocontemporary hit radio andadult contemporary radio in the United States.[29] "Shake It Off" was made available fordownload by Big Machine on August 19,[30] and a limited CD single edition was available via Swift's website on September 11.[31] In Europe, "Shake It Off" was added to aBBC Radio playlist in the United Kingdom on August 25,[32] released to Italian radio on August 29,[33] and was released as a CD single in Germany on October 10.[34]
The release of "Shake It Off" and its parent album1989 had been highly anticipated, given Swift's announcement that she would abandon her country roots to release an "official pop" album.[23] The magazineDrowned in Sound described the single as "undoubtedly ... the most significant cultural event" sinceRadiohead's 2011 albumThe King of Limbs.[17] While noting that "Shake It Off" was not Swift's first "straight-up pop" song,Billboard's Jason Lipshutz considered it a sign of a "bold foray into the unknown", in which Swift could experiment beyond her well-known formulaiccountry pop songs that had been critically and commercially successful.[9]
"Shake It Off" received mixed reviews upon release.[35] Although positive reviews found the production catchy, critics deemed the track repetitive and lacking substance compared to Swift's works onRed.[26][36] Randall Roberts from theLos Angeles Times's lauded the sound as "perfect pop confection" but found the lyrics shallow, calling them insensible to the political events at the time: "When lives are at stake and nothing seems more relevant than getting to the Actual Truth, liars and cheats can't and shouldn't be shaken off."[25] In congruence,The Guardian's Molly Fitzpatrick wrote that the lyrics fell short of Swift's songwriting abilities.[37]
Giving the song a three-out-of-five-stars score, Jeff Terich fromAmerican Songwriter regarded Swift's new direction as "a left-turn worth following". While Terich agreed that the lyrics were dismissive, he felt that critics should not have taken the song seriously because it was "pretty harmless".[18] In a positive review, Jason Lipshutz fromBillboard wrote: "Swift proves why she belongs among pop's queen bees ... the song sounds like a surefire hit."[38] In a review of the album1989,Alexis Petridis praised the lyrics for "twisting clichés until they sound original".[39] In the words of Andrew Unterberger fromSpin, while "Shake It Off" was musically a "red herring" that feels out of place on the album, it thematically represents Swift's new attitude on1989, where she liberated herself from overtly romantic struggles to embrace positivity.[40] Swift herself acknowledged the song as an outlier on1989, and deliberately released it as the lead single to encourage audiences to explore the entire album and not just the singles.[41]
Retrospectively, Hannah Mylrea fromNME considered "Shake It Off" an effective opener for Swift's1989 era, which transformed her image to mainstream pop.[42] While saying that "Shake It Off" was not one of the album's better songs,Rob Sheffield fromRolling Stone applauded it for "serving as a trailer to announce her daring Eighties synth-pop makeover".[43] Nate Jones fromVulture agreed, but described the song's bridge as "the worst 24 seconds of the entire album".[26] In his 2019 ranking of Swift's singles, Petridis ranked "Shake It Off" third—behind "Blank Space" (2014) and "Love Story" (2008), lauding its "irresistible" hook and "sharp-tongued wit".[44] Jane Song fromPaste was less enthusiastic, placing "Shake It Off" among Swift's worst songs in her catalog: "Swift has a pattern of choosing the worst song from each album as the lead single."[45]
"Shake It Off" gained an audience of nine million on US airplay after one day of release to radio[46] and debuted at number 45 onRadio Songs after two days of release.[47] After its first week of release, the single debuted at number nine onAdult Pop Songs and number 12 onPop Songs, setting the record for the highest debut on both charts.[48] On the Pop Songs chart, it tied withMariah Carey's "Dreamlover" (1993) for the highest first-week chart entry.[48] Although not officially released tocountry radio, the single debuted and peaked at number 58 onCountry Airplay.[49]
"Shake It Off" debuted at number one on the USBillboard Hot 100 chart dated September 6, 2014, the22nd song to do so.[50] After two consecutive weeks at number one, it dropped to number two, where it stayed for eight consecutive weeks.[51] "Shake It Off" returned to number one in its tenth charting week, and spent a further week at number one, totaling four non-consecutive weeks atop the Hot 100.[52] It also toppedBillboard airplay-focused charts including Pop Songs, Adult Pop Songs, andAdult Contemporary.[53] "Shake It Off" was one of the best-selling singles of the 2010s decade in the United States, selling 5.4 million digital copies as of January 2020.[54] As of December 2024, the single remains Swift's biggest hit on the Hot 100, where it spent nearly six months in the top 10 and 50 weeks in the top 100.[55] The song wascertified diamond by theRecording Industry Association of America, which denotes 10 million units based on sales and streams.[56] With this achievement, Swift is the first female artist to have both a song and an album (Fearless) certified diamond in the United States.[57]
"Shake It Off" also topped the charts and receivedmulti-platinum certifications in Australia (nineteen-times platinum),[58] New Zealand (seven-times platinum),[59] and Canada (six-times platinum).[60] In the United Kingdom, it peaked at number two on theUK Singles Chart and, by November 2022, became the first song since 2020 to surpass one million in pure sales.[61] It was certified five-times platinum by theBritish Phonographic Industry to become Swift's best-selling single in the United Kingdom as of April 2024.[62][63] In Japan, "Shake It Off" peaked at number four on theJapan Hot 100 and was certified triple platinum.[64] The single also toppedrecord charts in Hungary and Poland,[65] and it was a top-five hit in other European countries, peaking at number two in Spain;[66] number three in Ireland,[67] Norway[68] and Sweden;[69] number four in Denmark[70] and Israel;[71] and number five in Germany[72] and the Netherlands.[73] It was certified triple-diamond in Brazil;[74] and double-platinum in Austria,[75] Italy,[76] Norway,[77] and Spain.[78]
Swift's black turtleneck and jeans in "Shake It Off"(left) drew comparisons toAudrey Hepburn's outfit in the 1957 filmFunny Face (right).[79][80]
The music video for "Shake It Off", directed byMark Romanek, was released on August 18, 2014, the same day as the song's release.[81] It was shot over three days in June 2014 in Los Angeles.[20] Swift conceived the video as a humorous depiction of her trying to find her identity: "It takes a long time to figure out who you are and where you fit in in the world."[20] To this end, the video depicts Swift as a clumsy person who unsuccessfully attempts dance moves with professional artists, includingballerinas,street dancers,cheerleaders,rhythmic gymnasts and performance artists.[20][81] She summed up the video: "I'm putting myself in all these awkward situations where the dancers are incredible, and I'm having fun with it, but not fitting in ... I'm being embarrassingly bad at it. It shows you to keep doing you, keep being you, keep trying to figure out where you fit in in the world, and eventually you will."[20]
The dances were choreographed byTyce Diorio.[82] The video's final scenes feature Swift dancing with her fans, who had been handpicked by Swift through social media engagement.[83] The video contains references to other areas of popular culture. According toVH1, those references are: the ballerinas to the 2010 filmBlack Swan, thebreakdancers to the 2010 filmStep Up 3D, the "sparkling suits and robotic dance moves" to theelectronic music duoDaft Punk, thetwerking dance moves to the singerMiley Cyrus, the cheerleaders toToni Basil's 1981 video "Mickey", and Swift's black turtleneck and jeans to the outfits ofAudrey Hepburn in the 1957 filmFunny Face.[79] Publications including theLos Angeles Times andThe Sydney Morning Herald also noted references toLady Gaga andSkrillex.[14][24]
Molly Fitzpatrick ofThe Guardian considered Swift "a little too skilled a dancer" for the video's concept, writing: "The incongruent blend of modern dance, ballet, and breakdancing is fun, but the conceit falls flat."[37] Peter Vincent fromThe Sydney Morning Herald called the video "unoriginal", citing the many popular culture references, and doubted Swift's success in transforming her image to pop.[24] Media professor Maryn Wilkinson noted "Shake It Off" as a representation of Swift's "zany" persona during the1989 era.[note 1] Wilkinson noted that as Swift had been associated with a hardworking and authentic persona through her country songs, her venture to "artificial, manufactured" pop required intricate maneuvering to retain her sense of authenticity.[85] As observed by Wilkinson, in the video, after failing every dance routine, Swift laughs at herself implying that she will never "fit in" to "any commercially viable image, and prefers to embrace her natural zany state instead".[86] In doing so, Swift reminded the audience of her authenticity underneath "the artificial manufacture of pop performances".[86]
"Shake It Off" attracted allegations of racism andcultural appropriation for perpetuatingAfrican American stereotypes such as twerking and breakdancing. Its release coinciding with the race relation debates revolving theFerguson unrest was also met with criticism.[87][88] Analyzing the video's supposedly "racializing surveillance" in apost-racial context, communications professor Rachel Dubrofsky noted the difference between Swift's depiction of conventionally white dance moves—such as ballet and cheerleading; and conventionally black dance moves—breakdancing and twerking.[note 2] She argued that while Swift's outfits and demeanor when she performs ballet or cheerleading fit her "naturally", she "does not easily embody the break-dancer's body nor does the style of dress [while twerking] fit her seamlessly".[80] Dubrofsky summarized the video as Swift's statement of her white authenticity: "I'm so white, you know it, I know it, which makes it so funny when I try to dance like a person of color."[90]
The Washington Post noted the video's depiction of dance moves associated withpeople of color, such as twerking, was another case of an ongoing debate about white pop singers embracing black culture.[91] Romanek defended his work: "We simply choose styles of dance that we thought would be popular and amusing ... If you look at [the video] carefully, it's a massively inclusive piece. And ... it's a satirical piece. It's playing with a whole range of music video tropes and cliches and stereotypes".[82][92]
"Shake It Off" appeared on many publications' lists of the best songs of 2014. It featured in the top ten on lists byTime Out (third),[93]PopMatters (fourth),[94]The Village Voice'sPazz & Jop critics' poll (fourth),[95] andConsequence (eighth).[96] The track featured on 2014 year-end lists byDrowned in Sound (14th),[97]Dagsavisen (16th),[98] andNME (27th).[99]NME andConsequence ranked it as the 19th and 38th best song of the 2010s decade, respectively.[100][101]USA Today listed "Shake It Off" as one of the ten songs that defined the 2010s.[102]
On April 23, 2019, she performed an acoustic version of the song at theTime 100 Gala, where she was honored as one of the "100 most influential" people of the year.[128] She again performed the song on the finale of theeighth season ofThe Voice France on May 25,[129] on theWango Tango festival on June 1,[130] at the City of Lover one-off concert in Paris on September 9,[131] and at the We Can Survive charity concert in Los Angeles on October 19, 2019.[132] At the2019 American Music Awards, where she was honored as the Artist of the Decade, Swift performed "Shake It Off" as part of amedley of her hits.Halsey and Cabello joined Swift onstage during the song.[133] She again performed the song atCapital FM'sJingle Bell Ball 2019 in London[134] and at iHeartRadioZ100's Jingle Ball in New York City.[135] On June 24, 2025, Swift did a surprise,impromptu performance of "Shake It Off" during a Tight End University concert in Nashville, where she played guitar and was accompanied by a band.[136]
Following a January 13, 2015,BuzzFeed article titled "Why Isn't Everyone Voting For 'Shake It Off' In The Hottest 100?", the #Tay4Hottest100hashtag campaign on social media emerged during the voting period for theTriple J Hottest 100, an annual poll selecting the 100 most prominent songs by the Australian radio stationTriple J.[140] The social media posts tagged with #Tay4Hottest100 overwhelmed those mentioning the official contenders.[141] The campaign led to a significant amount of media debate over the merits of Swift's inclusion in the poll.[142][143] One criterion for eligibility was being played on air by Triple J at least once in 2014; Swift's "Shake It Off" did not receive airplay, but a cover of the song by thefolk groupMilky Chance did.[144] Critics of the campaign argued that the Hottest 100 was a platform for up-and-rising, non-mainstream artists,[145][146] but defenders criticized Triple J for embodyingcultural elitism andsexism, citing how the radio prioritized "masculine 'rockist'" and "alternative" artists.[142][146]Guardian Australia's Elle Hunt wrote: "[The] virulent response to #Tay4Hottest100 has revealed the persistence of a dichotomy I'd thought we'd thrown out long ago: that of high art versus low."[147]
On January 20, 2015,Guardian Australia submitted a freedom of information request to theABC in regard to the station's response to the campaign and the eligibility of "Shake It Off" for the Hottest 100 contest.[148] Triple J's manager Chris Scaddan told the websiteTone Deaf: "We don't comment on voting campaigns while Hottest 100 voting is open. It draws attention to them and may influence the results of the poll."[149] "Shake It Off" was eventually disqualified by Triple J on January 26, 2015;[150] in the announcement, Triple J acknowledged Swift's music and career but highlighted that her entry—which had not received airtime—would not reflect their spirit.[142] They subsequently introduced two new rules that prohibited "trolling the poll"-type campaigns for the proceeding Hottest 100 polls.[151] The communications scholar Glen Fuller described the #Tay4Hottest100 campaign as an example of "connective action" in the age of social media.[146] As noted by Fuller, the emergence of personalized "action frames" expressing personal viewpoints intertwining with a larger framework of information created by media publications resulted in fragmented arguments that failed to result in a definite outcome.[152]
In November 2015, Jessie Braham, anR&B singer known by the stage name Jesse Graham, claimed that Swift plagiarized his 2013 song "Haters Gonna Hate", citing his lyrics: "Haters gone hate, playas gone play. Watch out for them fakers, they'll fake you everyday."[153][154] In his lawsuit, he alleged that 92% of Swift's "Shake It Off" came from his song and demanded $42 million in damages from Swift and the distributorSony.[155] On November 12, 2015, the lawsuit was dismissed byU.S. District Court Judge Gail Standish, who ruled that Braham did not have enough factual evidence but could file a new complaint "if his lawsuit deficiencies are corrected".[155] Standish quoted lyrics from Swift's songs "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together", "Bad Blood", "Blank Space" and "Shake It Off":
At present, the Court is not saying that Braham can never, ever, ever get his case back in court. But, for now, we have got problems, and the Court is not sure Braham can solve them. As currently drafted, the Complaint has a blank space – one that requires Braham to do more than write his name. And, upon consideration of the Court's explanation ... Braham may discover that mere pleading BandAids will not fix the bullet holes in his case. At least for the moment, Defendants have shaken off this lawsuit.[156]
In September 2017, the songwriters Sean "Sep" Hall andNate Butler sued Swift forcopyright infringement. They alleged that the lyrics of "Shake It Off" plagiarized those of "Playas Gon' Play" (2001), a song they wrote for the girl group3LW, citing their lyrics: "Playas they gon' play, and haters they gonna hate / Ballers they gon' ball, shot callers they gonna call."[157] U.S. District JudgeMichael W. Fitzgerald, in February 2018, dismissed the case on the grounds that the lyrics in question were too "banal" to be copyrighted;[158] but U.S. Circuit JudgesJohn B. Owens,Andrew D. Hurwitz, andKenneth K. Lee of theU.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in October 2019, reversed the ruling, holding that the district court had "constituted itself as the final judge of the worth of an expressive work", and sent the case back to the district court.[159]
Swift's legal team filed new documents for dismissal of the suit in July 2020,[160] and in July 2021, filed for a summary judgment, arguing that thediscovery phase of the lawsuit has turned up evidence in their favor.[161] On December 9, 2021, Fitzgerald refused Swift's request for a summary judgment.[162] Swift's legal team filed a second motion to dismiss the case on December 23, claiming the Fitzgerald's ruling was "unprecedented and cheats the public domain" if the plaintiffs could sue everyone who uses the phrases in any songwriting, singing or says it publicly.[163] On January 14, 2022, Hall and Butler's legal team filed a response stating, "The rules simply do not provide defendants with vehicles for rehashing old arguments and are not intended to give an unhappy litigant one additional chance to sway the judge."[164] On December 12, 2022, the lawsuit was dropped with no final verdict.[165]
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. † Streaming-only figures based on certification alone.
After signing a new contract withRepublic Records, Swift began re-recording her first six studio albums in November 2020.[282] The decision followed apublic 2019 dispute between Swift and talent managerScooter Braun, who acquired Big Machine Records, including themasters of Swift's albums which the label had released.[283][284] By re-recording the albums, Swift had full ownership of the new masters, which enabled her to control the licensing of her songs forcommercial use. In doing so, she hoped that the re-recorded songs would substitute the Big Machine-owned masters.[285]
The re-recording of "Shake It Off", subtitled "Taylor's Version", was released as part of1989's re-recording,1989 (Taylor's Version), on October 27, 2023.[286] Swift produced "Shake It Off (Taylor's Version)" withChristopher Rowe, who had produced her previous re-recordings.[287] The track wasengineered by Derek Garten and Lowell Reynolds at Prime Recording Studio inNashville, Tennessee; mixed by Ghenea at MixStar Studios in Virginia Beach, Virginia; and mastered byRandy Merrill atSterling Sound inEdgewater, New Jersey. Rowe and Sam Holland recorded Swift's vocals atConway Recording Studios in Los Angeles and Kitty Committee Studio in New York.[288]
^Wilkinson used "zany" to describe Swift as "a figure who emphasises the pop 'performance' as one of hard work instead, because she exposed its construction as one that does not come 'naturally'".[84]
^Dubrofsky, citingSimone Browne, describes "racializing surveillance" as "a technology of social control where surveillance practices, policies, and performancesconcern the production of norms pertaining to race and exercise a power to define what is in or out ofplace."[89]
^Pilley, Max (June 14, 2024)."New Smashing Pumpkins guitarist Kiki Wong speaks out after first shows with band".NME. RetrievedOctober 12, 2024.Kiki Wong is a Los Angeles rock guitarist who plays in Vigil of War. Among her claims to fame is playing drums for Taylor Swift's performance of "Shake It Off" at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards.
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic.Note: Select 47. týden 2014 in the date selector. Retrieved September 19, 2014.
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic.Note: Select 43. týden 2014 in the date selector. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic.Note: insert 201445 into search. Retrieved September 19, 2014.
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic.Note: Select SINGLES DIGITAL - TOP 100 and insert 201444 into search. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
Fuller, Glen (2017). "The #tay4hottest100 new media event: discourse, publics and celebrity fandom as connective action".Communication Research and Practice.4 (2):167–182.doi:10.1080/22041451.2017.1295221.S2CID157195033.
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