Shadowing English with Taylor Swift

NYU’s 2022 Commencement Speaker Taylor SwiftNew York University · start from the beginning

• Video: NYU’s 2022 Commencement Speaker Taylor Swift, from the New York University channel · watch it on YouTube
• Length: 28 min · 265 caption lines
• Speed: a typical line runs at about 145 words a minute by the caption timing
• Accent: American. A label for the variety of English, not a promise about anyone’s voice.
• Practice lines: 8 on this page, each with the exact times of its caption line

Who is Taylor Swift?

Taylor Swift is an American singer-songwriter. In 2022 she spoke at New York University’s commencement and received an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts, as the NYU introduction in the video says.

Why practise with Taylor Swift?

It is a full speech in everyday American English, with jokes, stories and a few serious lines, so you can practise how the tone of a sentence changes. New York University published it with human-written captions, so what you practise matches what is said, and there are 265 caption lines. A typical line runs at about 145 words a minute by the caption timing. The speech is long, so pick a few lines a day rather than the whole thing; the first minutes are the university’s introduction, so the lines chosen below start with her own words.

Practice lines, with what to listen for

Each line is one caption line of the video, with its time. Press a line to open it in Sada, ready to record, then read the note under it before you listen.

NYU’s 2022 Commencement Speaker Taylor Swift · New York University

1. 4:35 Last time I was in a stadium this size I was dancing in heels and wearing a glittery leotard.

   A long line for a joke: 19 words in under seven seconds by the caption timing. Listen for how it lands on “in heels” and “glittery leotard”, the two pictures at the end.

2. 4:44 This outfit is much more comfortable.

   A short punchline. The captions show a gap of about two seconds before it, so listen for the timing as well as the words.

3. 6:08 Not a single one of us here today has done it alone.

   A plain statement after the opening jokes. Listen for how the pace compares with the joke lines, and for which word in “Not a single one of us” carries the weight.

4. 6:57 like how does the moon work and why can we eat salad, but not grass?

   Two questions in one line, joined by “and why”. Listen for where the voice goes at the end of each question.

5. 7:05 And maybe they didn't do it perfectly, no one ever can.

   Listen for “no one ever can”: it is said after a comma, and the pause before it is part of the sentence.

6. 7:09 Maybe they aren't with us anymore.

   A short line after a longer one. Listen for “aren’t”, and for how “anymore” closes the sentence.

7. 9:17 I never got to have a normal college experience per se.

   Listen for “per se” (a phrase borrowed from Latin) and how it is said in passing.

8. 11:23 You get what you get.

   A five-word line that repeats “get”. Listen for which of the two is stressed.

What to listen for

Three things to listen for in these lines. They are prompts for your ears, not claims about how anyone sounds.

• Pauses: The captions show gaps around the jokes, for example before “This outfit is much more comfortable.” Listen for the timing before the punchline, not only the words.
• Linking: In “Not a single one of us here today has done it alone”, listen for “one of us” and “has done it” running together.
• Stress: In “You get what you get”, listen for which “get” is stressed, then check whether it changes the meaning.

Sada compares the words it recognises in your take, and their timing, with the caption line; it does not grade accent, pitch or individual sounds. How close a take sounds is for you to judge by ear, with the two playing side by side in Compare.

How to practise with Taylor Swift

1. Open the first line under “Practice lines” and play it two or three times before you record.
2. Press Record and say the line after the speaker (Repeat mode) or along with them (Shadow mode), then open Compare and play your take beside the original.
3. Read the note for that line, listen to the original once more with it in mind, and go again until Sada shows every word as recognised.
4. Move to the next line. When a few lines feel easy, say them one after another as a short passage.
5. Come back to the same lines on another day: Sada shows your first take against your latest, so you can hear the change.

Keep going

• Shadowing English with Barack Obama
• Shadowing English with Emma Watson
• Shadow the person you want to sound like: all the people and shows
• American accent practice
• Question intonation: rising and falling
• Sentence stress: content and function words
• English pronunciation for Arabic speakers: the common problems in order
• How to sound like a native speaker
• Shadow any other captioned YouTube video
• Famous talks to shadow

Sada is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to Taylor Swift or New York University; names identify the video only. The video plays in YouTube’s own player from its official channel, Sada keeps no copy of it, and the lines quoted are the short caption lines needed for practice.