Fans Are Convinced Taylor Swift Wrote A 'Folklore' Song About Daenerys Targaryen
Taylor Swift remains one of the savviest players in the music game. With a just 24-hour warning, she recently dropped what's being considered one of the best albums of her career, Folklore. But as with any of her albums, Swifties were quick to dig for hidden meanings, and came up with surprising answers. For instance, some fans are insisting Taylor Swift's "Mad Woman" is about Daenerys Targaryen, and the theory surprisingly holds up.
First off, it is a known fact that Swift is a Game of Thrones stan. She's used the show as inspiration for songs before. Back in 2017, she told Entertainment Weekly that Reputation was inspired by several Game of Thrones plot points. For example, she had Arya's famous kill list in mind when writing "Look What You Made Me Do." "King of My Heart" was inspired by Daenerys and Drogo's love story, and the drums were engineered to mimic the Dothraki music in the series. Plus, she wrote "I Did Something Bad" after watching Sansa and Arya conspire to kill Littlefinger.
When fans heard the lyrics to "Mad Woman," the connection to Game of Thrones' final episodes, and Daenerys' fate, seemed like an obvious connection.
It's hard not to make the connection of how those around Jon Snow pushed this narrative of Daenerys as "Mad Queen" when you read the chorus:
Every time you call me crazy, I get more crazy/What about that?/And when you say I seem angry, I get more angry/And there’s nothing like a mad woman/What a shame she went mad. /No one likes a mad woman/You made her like that/And you’ll poke that bear til her claws come out and you find something to wrap your noose around
One could argue this is simply the story of being a woman in the patriarchy, which many experience. But then there are lines like "Now I breathe flames each time I talk," and "My cannons all firing at your yacht," both of which arguably reference the massacre at King's Landing.
Game of Thrones fans felt betrayed by the way Daenerys was treated in the final episodes. These lyrics suggest Swift was too. At least Daenerys gets the last laugh, out there inspiring artists across genres.
Here are the full lyrics for "Mad Woman":
Verse 1
What did you think I'd say to that?
Does a scorpion sting when fighting back?
They strike to kill and you know I will (You know I will)
What do you sing on your drive home?
Do you see my face in the neighbor's lawn?
Does she smile?
Or does she mouth "f*** you forever"?
Chorus
Every time you call me crazy, I get more crazy
What about that?
And when you say I seem angry, I get more angry
And there's nothing like a mad woman
What a shame she went mad
No one likes a mad woman
You made her like that
And you'll poke that bear till her claws come out
And you find something to wrap your noose around
And there's nothing like a mad woman
Verse 2
Now I breathe flames each time I talk
My cannons all firing at your yacht
They say "move on"
But you know I won't
And women like hunting witches, too
Doing your dirtiest work for you
It's obvious that wanting me dead has really brought you two together
Chorus
Every time you call me crazy, I get more crazy
What about that?
And when you say I seem angry, I get more angry
And there's nothing like a mad woman
What a shame she went mad
No one likes a mad woman
You made her like that
And you'll poke that bear till her claws come out
And you find something to wrap your noose around
And there's nothing like a mad woman
Verse 3
I'm taking my time (Taking my time)
'Cause you took everything from me
Watching you climb (Watching you climb)
Over people like me
The master of spin
Has a couple side flings
Good wives always know
She should be mad
Should be scathing like me
But no one likes a mad woman
What a shame she went mad
You made her like that
