“Love Story” merupakan salah satu lagu Taylor Swift yang paling populer dan tak lekang oleh waktu. Hingga saat ini, “Love Story” masih kerap diputar di berbagai platform streaming musik hingga media sosial, bahkan setelah hampir dua dekade perilisannya.
Lagu cinta nan romantis ini merupakan bagian dari album Fearless yang versi orisinalnya rilis pada 15 September 2008. Taylor kemudian merekam ulang keseluruhan lagu dalam album ini, termasuk “Love Story”, dalam album Fearless (Taylor’s Version) yang dirilis pada 9 April 2021.
Kemunculan karakter Romeo dan Juliet dalam lirik “Love Story” membuat lagu ini menjadi ikonik. Rupanya, Taylor memang terinspirasi dengan kisah roman lawas gubahan William Shakespeare itu.
“Love Story” adalah sebuah kisah cinta yang, sebagaimana kisah Romeo dan Juliet, penuh dengan aral yang melintang. Tak mudah bagi kedua sejoli untuk bisa bersama, terutama karena pertentangan yang datang dari pihak luar.
Kesulitan ini tergambar lewat lirik-liriknya, seperti “This love is difficult, but it’s real”. Atau “So I sneak out to the garden to see you. We keep quiet,’cause we're dead if they knew” yang menunjukkan betapa sulitnya bagi mereka untuk sekadar bertemu.
Meski sulit, sang protagonis alias Juliet dalam lagu “Love Story” tetap berusaha memperjuangkan cintanya kepada Romeo. Ia siap melakukan apa saja dan menghadapi segala risikonya, termasuk jika harus melarikan diri bersama sang pujaan hati.
Lirik lagu “Love Story” - Taylor Swift
We were both young when I first saw you
I close my eyes and the flashback starts
I'm standin' there
On a balcony in summer air
See the lights, see the party, the ball gowns
See you make your way through the crowd
And say, "Hello"
Little did I know
That you were Romeo, you were throwin' pebbles
And my daddy said, "Stay away from Juliet"
And I was cryin' on the staircase
Beggin' you, "Please don't go, " and I said
Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone
I'll be waiting, all there's left to do is run
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess
It's a love story, baby, just say, "Yes"
So I sneak out to the garden to see you
We keep quiet, 'cause we're dead if they knew
So close your eyes
Escape this town for a little while, oh oh
'Cause you were Romeo, I was a scarlet letter
And my daddy said, "Stay away from Juliet"
But you were everything to me
I was beggin' you, "Please don't go, " and I said
Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone
I'll be waiting, all there's left to do is run
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess
It's a love story, baby, just say, "Yes"
Romeo, save me, they're tryna tell me how to feel
This love is difficult, but it's real
Don't be afraid, we'll make it out of this mess
It's a love story, baby, just say, "Yes"
Oh, oh
I got tired of waiting
Wonderin' if you were ever comin' around
My faith in you was fading
When I met you on the outskirts of town, and I said
Romeo, save me, I've been feeling so alone
I keep waiting for you, but you never come
Is this in my head? I don't know what to think
He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring
And said, "Marry me, Juliet
You'll never have to be alone
I love you and that's all I really know
I talked to your dad, go pick out a white dress
It's a love story, baby, just say, "Yes"
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, oh
'Cause we were both young when I first saw you