Taylor Swift's "Babylon" Might Be A Sequel To An Evermore Classic

Taylor Swift is digging into her lore... or in Swiftian terms, Folklore. On Sept. 25, the singer released The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore, a surprise deluxe edition of her record-breaking 2025 album featuring four new songs, including “Babylon.” If that sounds a tad familiar, there’s a reason.

Swift has referenced the ancient city of Babylon and its famous lush gardens in her lyrics before, most notably on “Cowboy Like Me” from Folklore’s sister album, Evermore. “Now you hang from my lips like the Gardens of Babylon,” she sings on the bridge. “With your boots beneath my bed, forever is the sweetest con.”

“Babylon” could arguably be the song’s sequel, playing as if the two lovers in “Cowboy Like Me” became a true couple, then fell apart in a quietly dramatic way. Years later, Swift is reminding him of the age-old adage: you never know what you got ‘til it’s gone. “You hate this song, but you wake up on the train with your headphones gone,” she sings on the chorus. “Then that melody is all you want.”

The song can also be interpreted as coming from said cowboy’s perspective, singing to his longtime crush who keeps leaving their small town behind. It also helps that “Babylon” is the most Folklore-ian song on Showgirl, full of folk guitars, cascading melodies, and minute details that perfectly capture the scene.

Additionally, “Babylon” is the 16th and final track of The Encore, matching Lady Gaga’s song of the same name, which was also the 16th and final track on her 2020 album Chromatica. Yes, the songs are the complete opposite of each other, with Gaga’s “Babylon” being a defiant ‘90s house banger. But still, Swift is truly a Little Monster.

Taylor Swift’s “Babylon” Lyrics

Read the full lyrics to Taylor Swift’s “Babylon” below.

The casino doesn't like when you run the tables

And though the box is wrapped up nice, it’s just a cage to you

Those electric fences buzz, a stallion flees the stable

And that small town’s even smaller now in your rearview

You ran with all the wild things

A liberated libertine who then longed for home

‘Cause it's where you're from

Aunt Virginia with her church dress on

No elbows on the table, and the neighbor’s lawn always looked better

Your hand-me-down sweater should've been from the mall

And you hate this song, but you wake up on the train with your headphones gone

Then that melody is all you want

You never knew that it was Babylon 'til it was gone

Give the people what they want, then you keep it movin'

Make your plans and friends, a stranger’s make-up on your tie

Twenty watches in the safe ‘cause your time is money

Love is ice upon the ladder that you need to climb

She captured your attention, so free of all pretension

It stopped you cold

Because she loved you so

Pretty as a picture that you didn’t post

Looking at you like you’re made of solid gold

Never official, you mention you're single to the girls at the bar

You hate this song, but you wake up on the train with your headphones gone

Then that melody is all you want

You never knew that it was Babylon 'til it was gone

You're using nostalgia as a weapon to hurt yourself

But darling, you end up hurting everybody else

The self-harm of never being where you are

It's bedtime, but you're sitting in your car

You're missing all the best parts

And they're all at home

She's hanging Christmas lights with your son

Sneak into the bathroom to call her mom

And say, “It's not working, it's just not worth it if we're not what he wants”

But you love this song, you wake up on the train with your headphones gone

Then that melody is all you want

You never knew that it was Babylon, and now it's almost gone

Aunt Virginia with her church dress on

No elbows on the table, and the neighbors lawn always looked better

It’s almost gone

Your hand-me-down sweater should've been from the mall

But you love this song, you wake up on the train with your headphones gone

Then that memory is all you want

You never knew that it was Babylon 'til it was gone