The Story Of Us Lyrics

[Pre-Chorus]
So many things that you wish I knew
But the story of us might be ending soon

[Chorus]
Now, I'm standin' alone in a crowded room
And we're not speakin'

And I'm dyin' to know
Is it killin' you like it's killin' me? Yeah
And I don't know what to say since the twist of fate
When it all broke down

And the story of us looks a lot like a tragedy now, now, now
And we're not speakin'
And I'm dyin' to know
Is it killin' you like it's killin' me? Yeah
I don't know what to say since the twist of fate
'Cause we're going down

And the story of us looks a lot like a tragedy now

[Outro]
The end

How to Format Lyrics:

  • Type out all lyrics, even repeating song parts like the chorus
  • Lyrics should be broken down into individual lines
  • Use section headers above different song parts like [Verse], [Chorus], etc.
  • Use italics (<i>lyric</i>) and bold (<b>lyric</b>) to distinguish between different vocalists in the same song part
  • If you don’t understand a lyric, use [?]

To learn more, check out our transcription guide or visit our transcribers forum

About

Genius Annotation

Swift wrote “The Story of Us” after an awkward encounter with ex John Mayer at the 2010 CMT Music Awards, where both parties tried to ignore each other’s presence. She told USA Today that she came up with the song concept after returning home from the event, after telling her mom she felt like she was “standing alone in a crowded room” throughout the evening.

Swift released the song as the fourth single from Speak Now in April 2011, and the music video came out the next month. Swift recruited Noble Jones to direct the video, which they filmed in the library at Vanderbilt University.

The hidden message for this song was “CMT Awards” in the album booklet, leading fans to speculate that the subject of this song is ex John Mayer, who attended the 2010 awards show.

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did Taylor Swift say about "The Story Of Us"?
Genius Answer

Swift told MTV News:

I was at an awards show, and there was a guy there, obviously — it all starts there, doesn’t it? It was a guy I had been in a relationship with, falling out, then we end up at the same awards show, both trying to act like we don’t care, both like, you know, chatting up the people next to us. Afterward, I just felt so empty, like we were both fighting this silent war of pretending we didn’t care that the other was there. And I went home, and I wrote this song about it. And at that point, I had this gut feeling, and I knew the album was finished.

Swift also told USA Today, Swift explained:

‘The Story of Us’ is about running into someone I had been in a relationship with at an awards show, and we were seated a few seats away from each other. I just wanted to say to him, ‘Is this killing you? Because it’s killing me.’ But I didn’t. But I couldn’t. Because we both had these silent shields up. I went home and I sat there at the kitchen table and I said to my mom, ‘I felt like I was standing alone in a crowded room.’ Then I got up and ran into my bedroom, as she’s seen me do many times. And she probably assumed I had come up with a line in the song.

What certifications has the song received?
Genius Answer

“The Story of Us” is certified Platinum by the RIAA.

Making of the Song
Genius Answer

Acoustic Performance
Live Performance
Comments