Ours (song)

Updated on Dec 24, 2023

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Genre Country Label Big Machine		Length 3:58 Writer(s) Taylor Swift
Released November 22, 2011 (2011-11-22) Format CD single digital download

"Ours" is a song written and recorded by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift for her third studio album Speak Now (2010). Produced by Swift and Nathan Chapman, it was later released as a promotional single by iTunes and Amazon.com on November 8, 2011. It was released as the sixth and final single of the album and was the fifth single from Speak Now to be sent to country radio on December 5, 2011.

The song peaked at number one on the Billboard Country Songs Chart and number 13 on the Hot 100 and was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. Internationally, the song peaked at 91 in Australia and 68 on the Canadian Hot 100. In the UK, it peaked at number 181 on the UK Singles Chart.

A music video for the song was released in December 2011 and aired on E! News and E! Online and is the second video of Swift's to be directed by Declan Whitebloom, as well as the second video for which Swift would do the concept for. The video received positive praise from music critics.

Release

"Ours" was first released as a promotional single from Speak Now by Big Machine Records on November 8, 2011. A CD single was released exclusively to US Wal-Mart stores alongside the live album. The song is the sixth single from the album, Speak Now, and was originally intended to be released on November 28, 2011 but was released to country radio on December 5, 2011. It was the fifth single from Speak Now to be sent to country radio.

Composition

"Ours" is a country ballad, with a length of three minutes and 58 seconds (3:58). The song is written solely by Swift, who also produced the song along with Nathan Chapman. The song is written in the key of C Major with Swift's vocals spanning two octaves, between E₃ and A₄. The song has been described as a "love letter". Amy Sciarretto of Pop Crush describes the song as "a pretty, slower tempo song that showcases Swift’s strengths, which are her inviting, open journal lyrics and that sweet voice." Karen Goodner of All Access describes the song as being "in love and knowing that they can make it through the rough times."

Reception

The song received acclaim from music critics. Billy Dukes of Taste of Country gave the song a four-and-a-half out of five stars and wrote that "Lyrically, 'Ours' is similar to 'Our Song' in that it’s cheesy and delicious." He added that the lyrics were "sharply written" and that the "production was welcomed respite from the shine and polish Swift has coated previous hit songs with." Liv Carter of Urban Country News gave the song a thumbs up and noted that the songwriting is "superb" where Swift sets the scene beautifully with an expert use of language. Amy Sciarretto of Pop Crush praised the song and stated that Swift "saved the best for last." Karen Goodner of All Access called the song "one of my favorites." On the contrary, Erin Thompson of Seattle Weekly stated that "If This Was a Movie", a promotional single from Speak Now, is better than "Ours", saying that "I've given it a few listens and it just keeps sounding like a mess of mixed metaphors to me." Allen Jacobs of Roughstock claimed ""Ours" may be her best single since "White Horse.""

The song appeared on the US iTunes Top 100 and debuted at number five on the Hot Digital Songs and number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100. As of August 2012, the song has sold 1,224,000 copies in the United States. The song was certified Platinum by the RIAA. Internationally the song appeared at number 68 in Canada, and at number 181 in United Kingdom. The song also charted at number 91 in Australia. On the week ending March 3, 2012, "Ours" became Swift's 15th consecutive song to hit the top ten on Hot Country Songs. This made Swift the first woman to begin her chart history with 15 consecutive Top Tens dating to the survey's 1944 launch. On the week ending March 31, 2012, "Ours" topped the Billboard Country Songs chart, making it Swift's sixth chart-topper, following "Our Song" in 2007-2008, "Should've Said No" in 2008, "Love Story" in 2008, "You Belong with Me" in 2009, and "Sparks Fly" in 2011. As of November 2014, "Ours" has sold 1.4 million copies in the United States.

Live performances

Swift performed the song at the 2012 Country Music Association Awards on November 9, 2011. Amanda Hensel of Taste of Country stated that Swift's performance of the song felt "more personal and less like an arena show." During the performance Swift "donned a simple pink sweater and plopped down on a couch." The Target exclusive of the live album, Speak Now: World Tour Live, contains the bonus performance of "Ours" on the Speak Now World Tour. The song was added to the main setlist for the 2012 leg of the Speak Now World Tour. The song has also been performed on some dates of the Red Tour.

Development and release

According to Swift, on November 3, 2011 she had finished the second day of shooting for the music video of "Ours". The music video premiered on E! News and E! Online on December 2, 2011 at 7:00pm ET. Swift, herself, came up with the concept for the video. The video is directed by Declan Whitebloom. In an interview with E! News, Swift describes her idea, "I had a very definitive idea of what I wanted this video to be." Whitebloom, who also directed Swift's "Mean" video expresses, "When Taylor says, 'I've got an idea,' you listen to what she's gonna say. And so I did, and it was a great idea—and I loved it!" To promote the video Swift released thirteen behind the scene "webisodes" daily on her official website.

Synopsis

The video begins as Swift, dressed as an office worker, passes through the lobby to the elevator and greets the people she meets. As the elevator's door closes, Swift begins to sing, looking indolent and slothful, seeing the people surrounding her in the elevator. As the elevator reaches the thirteenth floor, people surrounding her start to exit, nudging her. Swift then walks in the office and sluggishly sits at her office desk while a man disturbs her. She then walks around the office to use the office's printer (which is first out of paper, out of toner, and then disappears altogether); waits for a man who is noisily drinking water at a water cooler in the staff room; and eats while two women laugh and talk about her behind her back. Later at her office desk, Swift takes a sticky note written by her and her boyfriend (portrayed by Zach Gilford) stating that they loved each other first. Swift turns on the computer, watching and smiling at various videos of her and her boyfriend. She takes a look at her watch and leaves the office in a better mood than when she arrived. Swift waits for a bus outside. On the bus, Swift watches more videos on a Sony Tablet S of moments with her boyfriend. The bus stops at the airport. Swift gets off and looks around. Her boyfriend then emerges from the sliding doors of the airport, revealing to the audience that he was overseas serving in the military. Swift breaks into a smile, drops everything that she is carrying, and runs into her boyfriend's arms. They embrace each other as the video ends.

Reception

Idolator described the video as being "the perfect video to end the week with" and "double-dares [viewers] to not get a case of the “aww“s in the video’s heartwarming conclusion." Chelsea Lewis of VH1 called the video an "emotional video". Erin Strecker of Entertainment Weekly wrote, "I’ll admit it: I gasped at the twist ending with Swift rushing off from work not home, but to an airport to meet her military beau, presumably returning from overseas. Sweet, with just the right tinge of bittersweet sadness for the country-infused pop story." To date, the video has almost 49 million views on YouTube.