In an interview with Elle magazine, Taylor said the following about “Clean” :
“Clean” I wrote as I was walking out of Liberty in London. Someone I used to date— it hit me that I’d been in the same city as him for two weeks and I hadn’t thought about it. When it did hit me, it was like, ‘Oh, I hope he’s doing well’. And nothing else. And you know how it is when you’re going through heartbreak. A heartbroken person is unlike any other person. Their time moves at a completely different pace than ours. It’s this mental, physical, emotional ache and feeling so conflicted. Nothing distracts you from it. Then time passes, and the more you live your life and create new habits, you get used to not having a text message every morning saying, ‘Hello, beautiful. Good morning.’ You get used to not calling someone at night to tell them how your day was. You replace these old habits with new habits, like texting your friends in a group chat all day and planning fun dinner parties and going out on adventures with your girlfriends, and then all of a sudden one day you’re in London and you realize you’ve been in the same place as your ex for two weeks and you’re fine. And you hope he’s fine. The first thought that came to my mind was – I’m finally clean.
“Clean” has a different meaning to fans who’ve had struggles with mental illness, addiction, and abuse – it’s about being quite literally clean. While Taylor didn’t think of that meaning originally, she immediately accepted the fandom-wide meaning once she heard of it.
Taylor gave several inspirational speeches before performing “Clean” during her 1989 World Tour. Taylor said the following before performing “Clean” in Tokyo on May 5th:
The hidden message to Clean is “She lost him, but she found herself, and somehow that was everything.” This song is not just about losing someone you love – it’s also about losing yourself. Being clean is about moving on as a person and really taking care of yourself mentally.
Lyrics
[Verse 1]
The drought was the very worst (Oh-oh, oh-oh)
When the flowers that we'd grown together died of thirst
It was months and months of back and forth (Oh-oh, oh-oh)
You're still all over me
Like a wine-stained dress I can't wear anymore
[Pre-Chorus 1]
Hung my head as I lost the war
And the sky turned black like a perfect storm
[Chorus]
Rain came pouring down
When I was drowning, that's when I could finally breathe
And by morning
Gone was any trace of you, I think I am finally clean
(Oh, oh, oh, oh)
[Verse 2]
There was nothing left to do (Oh-oh, oh-oh)
When the butterflies turned to
Dust that covered my whole room
So I punched a hole in the roof (Oh-oh, oh-oh)
Let the flood carry away all my pictures of you
[Pre-Chorus 2]
The water filled my lungs, I screamed so loud
But no one heard a thing
[Chorus]
Rain came pouring down
When I was drowning, that's when I could finally breathe
And by morning
Gone was any trace of you, I think I am finally clean
(Oh, oh, oh, oh)
I think I am finally clean
(Oh, oh)
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh-oh
Said, I think I am finally clean
(Oh, oh)
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh-oh
[Bridge]
Ten months sober, I must admit
Just because you're clean, don't mean you don't miss it
Ten months older, I won't give in
Now that I'm clean, I'm never gonna risk it
[Breakdown]
The drought was the very worst (Oh-oh, oh-oh)
When the flowers that we'd grown together died of thirst
(Oh)
[Chorus]
The rain came pouring down
When I was drowning, that's when I could finally breathe
And by morning
Gone was any trace of you, I think I am finally clean
Rain came pouring down
When I was drowning, that's when I could finally breathe
And by morning
Gone was any trace of you, I think I am finally clean
[Outro]
(Oh, oh)
Finally clean
Think I'm finally clean
(Oh, oh)
Oh-oh, oh-oh
(Oh, oh, oh)
Think I'm finally clean