I Knew You Were Trouble

"I Knew You Were Trouble" (stylized as "I Knew You Were Trouble.") is a song by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift from her fourth studio album, Red (2012). It was released on October 9, 2012, in the United States by Big Machine Records as the third promotional single from the album. Later, "I Knew You Were Trouble" was released as the third single from Red on November 27, 2012, in the United States. It was released as the second single from the album in the United Kingdom on December 10, 2012. The song was written by Swift herself and co-written and produced by Max Martin and Shellback. A remix of the song, which features rapper Sammy Adams, is also available.

"I Knew You Were Trouble" received generally positive reviews from music critics, who commended its mainstream appeal yet noted Swift's experimentation with dubstep as relatively limited. Due to strong digital sales, the song debuted at number three on the Billboard Hot 100, selling more than 416,000 copies within its first week, making it Swift's fourteenth entry in the top ten. It also charted in Australia, Canada, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. After its descent back down the chart, the title slowly began to ascend back up the chart and jumped to a new peak of number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, after selling 582,000 digital copies in US. This became the 4th highest single-week download sales.

Background and release

When Swift previewed the song on Good Morning America on October 8, 2012, she said that it was "one of [her] favorite songs on the album because it sounds just as chaotic as the feeling was when I wrote it. The song is about being frustrated with yourself because here you are heart-broken and you knew when you first saw that person you saw all these red flags and you just went for it anyway, so shame on me." Initially the media had speculated the song to be about her ex-boyfriend, singer John Mayer, in lieu of her previous song "Dear John" from her third studio album, Speak Now (2010). They later predicted that the song was inspired by the British band One Direction member Harry Styles, whom Swift was reportedly dating. The song was released to mainstream radio in the US as the third single from the album Red, on November 27, 2012, while in the UK it was released as the second single from the album on December 10, 2012. A CD single was released on December 13, 2012 along side with the music video to Swift's official store and Amazon.com. The CD single was individually numbered and was sold by itself or in a package with t-shirt, a Red drawstring backpack, and a spiral notebook.

Composition and lyrics

Vorlage:Listen "I Knew You Were Trouble" is a popstep song of three minutes and forty seconds that features electronic heavy production and a pop music vocal styling, a musical transition for Swift.The song was written by Swift, along with Max Martin and Shellback. Musically, "I Knew You Were Trouble" is written in the key of [[E-flat minor|EVorlage:Music minor]], with a Tempo of 154 beats per minute Moderately fast. The song follows a chord progression of GVorlage:Music–DVorlage:Music–EVorlage:Musicm–CVorlage:Music, and Swift's vocals span from BVorlage:Music₃ to EVorlage:Music₅.

Reception

Critical response

The song received generally positive reviews from critics, who complimented its mainstream appeal though many noted Swift's experimentation with dubstep was relatively limited. The New York Times critic Jon Caramanica praised the song, calling it "one of the year's great pop songs" and noting that the dubstep element "arrives halfway through like a wrecking ball, changing the course not just of the song but also of Ms. Swift's career." Spin compared the song positively to lead single "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together", calling it "peppy, uber-catchy pop" and "a far cry from traditional country." The article also commented that "yes, 'Trouble' shows some wub... But as dubstep breakdowns have increasingly become just another feature of the ever-changing pop landscape, like Auto-Tune or 2 Chainz guest spots, what emerges here is merely another sharply crafted Swift kiss-off, in post-David Guetta dance-pop clothing." Ray Rahman of Entertainment Weekly commented in a short review that I Knew You Were Trouble "has the same kind of defiant pop-radio oomph that made her fourth album’s other big breakup banger, 'We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,' a number one." MTV.com described the track as "chaotic" commenting on how "the song touches on all genres of music, with moments of straight-up Top 40 pop, country and even dance, with its grinding effects, especially on the bumping chorus." The review echoes one of Swift's own comments about the song; during the GMA preview she stated: "It’s a song that’s one of my favorite songs on the album because it sounds just as chaotic as the feeling was when I wrote it." Idolator was conflicted but hopeful about the departure from Swift's typical sound, remarking that "the hook isn’t quite as immediate as 'We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,' but Martin’s stamp is still all over 'Trouble,' from the bright, sparkly instrumentation to the keen, radio-friendly melody. There might be a little part of us that misses Swift’s very personal and idiosyncratic songcraft, but it’s already clear that it’s elsewhere on the album — and the introduction of these all-star producers into the mix is giving Swift a chance to show that she’s way more versatile than just a girl with a guitar."

The American magazine Entertainment Weekly released a list of the best and worst singles of 2012, and "I Knew You Were Trouble , "Taylor Swift hit, entered the ranking as the fifth best single of the year. According to Adam Markovitz "In a classic style of Swift, she jumped in the car dubstep-allegorical-that-comes-with-a-thump, a jalopy that suddenly is everywhere, and that Britney had Bieber in the backseat - she grabbed the steering wheel. Striking a no good ex, Taylor never loses her country power, even when she's singing over beats that chacoalhariam beams Opry."

Commercial performance

Prior to its release as a promotional single on October 9, 2012, the song debuted at number three on Billboard Hot 100 and number one on Hot Digital Songs with 416,000 copies sold in its first week, Swift's second largest first week singles sales. It became Swift's fourteenth top ten hit and her eleventh song to debut inside the top ten. With sales of 416,000 from "I Knew You Were Trouble", Swift became the first artist in digital history to have two songs that debuted with sales of 400,000 or more copies. During the chart week of December 30, the song sold a whopping 582,000 copies. This becomes the 4th best single-week digital sales of all time and 2nd best for a track not in its debut frame. The song also attained commercial success worldwide. "I Knew You Were Trouble" became Swift's seventh top five hit on the Canadian Hot 100, debuting and peaking at number two. The song also gave Swift's second top two hit in United Kingdom after it reached number 5, and peaked at number two. "I Knew You Were Trouble" became Swift's seventh top ten hit in Australia after it reached number 3. It became her best charting single in Denmark, reaching number 7, surpassing her previous best peak of number 16 with "Love Story".

Music video

The music video began filming on November 18, 2012, in Los Angeles, California. Two days later, pictures from the set surfaced online showing Swift with a more rocker look and pink tipped hair. The video was directed by Anthony Mandler, photographed by David Devlin and premiered on December 13, 2012 on MTV as part of the channel's week long celebration for the singer's birthday. Swift's love interest in the video is played by Reeve Carney who starred in Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark as Peter Parker/Spider-Man. A twenty-five second preview was released prior to the video's released on the same day to MTV.com. The video was compared to "Ride" by Lana Del Rey, which also was directed by Mandler and had a "confessional voice over". Rolling Stone magazine highlighted the similarities between the music video and the music video for the Rihanna single "We Found Love".

Synopsis

The video starts with Swift speaking in a confessional voice-over. Swift wakes up on an abandoned desert, surrounded by trash and debris, and wearing dark makeup. Flashbacks show Swift and her boyfriend engaging in various stunts, along with a few tender moments. After a while of what seems to be a good relationship, she begins to realize something is wrong. While in his parked car, he leans over to kiss her when some police pull up for him. He starts a fight in a club, which results in the both of them being injured. There are also scenes of her in a grimy small bathroom, looking at herself in the mirror. While at an outdoor concert, she sees him kissing a large number of different girls. He then looks at her in nonchalant fashion. She falls asleep in the desert where the party is being held, and wakes up alone the next morning. The video ends with her letting go of the necklace he gave her.

Live performances

Swift first performed the song on November 18, 2012, at the 40th American Music Awards, on November 25, 2012, at the Australian TV program Today, and on November 29, 2012, at the ARIA Music Awards 2012. Swift also performed the song at Z100 Jingle Ball on Madison Square Garden. She also performed at Time Square on New Year's Eve.

Track listing and formats

• Digital download/Limited Edition CD single

1. "I Knew You Were Trouble" – 3:40

Credits and personnel

Credits and personnel adapted from album liner notes.

• Taylor Swift – writer, lead vocalist
• Max Martin – writer, producer, keyboards
• Shellback – writer, producer, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass, keyboards, programming
• Michael Ilbert – recording at MXM Studios (Stockholm, Sweden)
• Sam Holland – recording at Conway Studios (Los Angeles, California)
• Scott Borchetta - executive producer

• Eric Eylands – assistant
• Tim Roberts – assistant
• John Hanes – engineering
• Serban Ghenea – mixing at MixStar Studios (Virginia Beach, Virginia)
• Tom Coyne – mastering at Sterling Sound (New York City, New York)
• JoAnn Tominaga – production co-ordinator

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

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Release history

Chart (2012–13)	Peak position
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Japan (Japan Hot 100)	76
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List of radio and release dates with formats and record labels

Country	Date	Format	Label
United States	October 8, 2012	Promotional single – digital download	Big Machine Records
	November 27, 2012	Mainstream radio
United Kingdom	December 10, 2012
United States	December 13, 2012	CD single
		Music video

See also

• List of number-one digital songs of 2012 (U.S.)
• List of number-one digital songs of 2013 (U.S.)
• Hot Digital Songs

External links

• Official "I Knew You Were Trouble" Music video on MTV.com.
• Taylor Swift official site: single, album (with lyrics)