Flannagan, 1

Emma Flannagan

Nate Hellmers

English Composition

17 June 2021

The Best Day Analysis

“Don’t know if Snow White’s house is near or far away, But I know I had the best day

with you, today” is one of the many heartfelt lyrics in Taylor Swift’s “The Best Day.” The music

video is a collection of home videos of Swift growing up. The original one is mainly Swift and

her mother, Andrea. The remix, made over twelve years later, contains more of her brother,

Austin, and father, Scott. While the original “The Best Day” music video focuses on the bond

between mother and daughter, the remastered version homes in on family being one of the

strongest units in Swift’s life.

Taylor Swift had always dreamed of being a country popstar. With her family’s support,

they uprooted their home in Reading, Pennsylvania, and moved to Nashville, Tennessee. She

quickly got a record deal with Big Machine Records. In her second country album, Fearless, she

released “The Best Day.” The song is about a girl reflecting on how her upbringing made her the

person she is now. The lyrics give a shoutout to her dad and brother, but the song is for her

mother, Andrea. Andrea had always supported Taylor’s dream, so she wrote this song and made

the music video for Andrea’s birthday. The music video shows videos of Swift as a child through

teenager, primarily with her mother. There are videos with young Swift showing off her

Christmas tree farm, where she grew up. The main claim of the video is that mother and daughter

will always have a strong bond in Swift’s life. The video heavily uses Pathos, drawing out an
 Flannagan, 2

emotional connection. The video makes the viewer think about their connection with their

family.

Twelve years later, Swift is ready to re-record her second Grammy-winning album

Fearless. Swift is now with a new record company. While Big Machine owns her first six

albums, Swift is legally allowed to re-record them. She started off with Fearless because of the

emotional impact it had on her life. Swift released “The Best Day” music video. The video is

very similar to the original, but this time it is a lyric video, and the home videos contain more of

her brother and father. Swift has always been close with her family, but they especially bonded

through the cancer of Andrea Swift. The main claim of this video is that family will always be a

strong unit in Swift’s life. The video uses Pathos as well, having the same affect the first video

had.

There are many differences between the original and remix. From the song itself, Taylor

has a lot more emotion and her voice is clearer in the re-record. The first music video was mainly

for Swift’s mother, but the second one is saying thanks to her whole family. Andrea Swift had

cancer in 2015, but she relapsed in 2019. Taylor and her mother were always close, so this hit

Taylor hard. Swift has written plenty of other songs for her mother including “I’m Only Me

When I’m With You,” and “Soon You’ll Get Better.” But “The Best Day” was a birthday present

for Andrea in 2009. The remix features her brother, Austin, and more of her father, Scott. Scott

had always played a big part in Swift’s life. He invested in her record company, and he helped

young Swift move to Nashville to pursue her dream. Scott has always had a hand in Taylor’s

career. Austin had also supported Swift throughout her career. So, the second video was about

Swift realizing that her family is one of the strongest bonds in her life. Her family has done so

much for her, so she decided to repay them with a song.

 Flannagan, 3

The main audiences for this song are longtime fans and new ones. “The Best Day” was

not a single, so fans would have to listen to the album to know this song. Swift’s fanbase grew

between the twelve-year gap in the two videos. So old fans and new fans could watch this

familiar music video again. These videos could also be for young girls, so they could realize how

important family is. It is important to connect with family and make close bonds with them while

they’re young. Since family is so important to Swift, she probably made these videos to

encourage young fans to connect with their family and form connections with them.

Swift’s two versions of “The Best Day” have a relationship through the bond of family.

Swift’s family has always been important to her. Using her talent of songwriting, she gave them

a gift of a heartfelt and touching song. Family will always be a strong unit in Swift’s life, and

these music videos are a reflection of these values.

Works Cited

Swift, Taylor. “The Best Day.” Youtube. Uploaded by Taylor Swift. 16 June 2009.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4_6eQm7RTQ. Accessed 18 June 2021.

Swift, Taylor. “The Best Day (Taylor’s Version)” Youtube. Uploaded by Taylor Swift. 29 April

2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0cde-Km05o. Accessed 18 June 2021.