'Sway' by Kacey Musgraves - Lyrics & Meaning

Co-produced and co-written by Kacey Musgraves herself, the talented singer-songwriter’s 5th studio album titled Deeper Well finally hit all music streaming platforms on March 15, and it is safe to say that the project will be a smash hit in no time.

Deeper Well – which finds Musgraves “reflecting on her life’s changes and priorities after the age of 27,” much of which is a result of “the cosmos as Saturn’s return” – features 14 tracks, with track number six titled “Sway” quickly becoming a fan favorite. Naturally, country music lovers took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share their love for the track, despite not becoming one of the project’s two singles so far.

“This new Kacey Musgraves is very healing. The lyrics are hitting. It’s ‘Sway’ for me,” one listener gushed.

“This new Kacey Musgraves album. Love. ‘Sway’ is my fave so far,” another spilled.

“I want the last 30 seconds of ‘Sway’ by Kacey Musgraves to be injected into my veins,” a third exclaimed.

Beginning with a unique, untracable sound – coming from what is seemingly a synthesizer – more and more instruments are introduced throughout the opening seconds of 'Sway', adding in some acoustic strumming prior to engaging with a toe-tapping beat.

It's followed by the introduction of Musgraves’ angelic vocals – which remain extremely on-brand with the sound that fans have grown to know and love since her musical debut –the soon-to-be smash hit builds with intensity as it progresses, with the 35-year-old slowly but surely harmonizing with her own voice as the song goes by.

Concluding with a euphoric outro for the final few seconds by harmonizing with her own voice once again – the overall sound of 'Sway' is arguably the most unique out of all of the songs featured on Deeper Well, straying away from some of her more country-centric tunes and ultimately solidifying its spot as a fan favorite.

"When the wind blows
It can push you around
It can shake you
Maybe you can show me
Cause it seems like you know how
To not let it phase you
If I didn’t wanna take control
I could let go"

As a whole, “Sway” tells a story of resilience and sticking to the course of life that fate is providing, despite how hard it might be to go with the flow. This narrative begins in the very first verse of the track, as the narrator sings to someone else – presumably a love interest, or even a higher power – praising their ability to roll with the trials and tribulations of life and “not let it faze [them]”, something that Musgraves seemingly cannot do. Here, the narrator introduces her struggles with control and inability to go with the flow, which runs through the course of 'Sway' as a whole.

"Maybe one day
I’ll learn how to sway"
As Musgraves prolongs her vocals in the chorus of the tune, the narrator is seemingly crying for help, yearning for an ability to adapt to the trials and tribulations of life with little to no struggle, as well as an ability to relinquish control.

"Most of the time
All the thoughts in my mind keep me running
Show me a place where I can just
Think of nothing
If I surrender, if I let go
Will you hold me?"

This struggle to relinquish control is detailed in verse two of the soon-to-be hit song, as the narrator details how “the thoughts in [her] mind keep [her] running” and begs the individual she is singing to for the ability to go with the flow.

The line “If I surrender, if I let go, will you hold me?” causes country music lovers to believe that Musgraves is singing to a higher power – seemingly pondering the idea as to whether or not she should surrender to God to achieve peace – however, this is naturally up to interpretation by the listener.

"Maybe one day
I’ll learn how to sway
Like a palm tree in the wind
I won’t break
I’ll just bend
And I’ll sway
I’ll sway
Ahh
I’ll sway
(I’ll sway)"

The second chorus of “Sway” adds four new lines – “Like a palm tree in the wind / I won't break, I'll just bend / And I'll sway / I'll sway” – which help relay the same overall message, all while introducing some of the nature-focused elements that Deeper Well is known for. Palm trees are known for bending back and forth, remaining resilient and flexible despite how hard the wind tries to shake them, serving as a metaphor for Musgraves and her struggles detailed throughout 'Sway'.

While Musgraves has not said much about the individual songs on Deeper Well thus far — given the fact that it was released just a few days ago on March 15 — when asked in an exclusive interview with NPR whether or not there is a song on the album that plays with the borders of country music and other genres, the Texas native said that 'Sway' fits the bill.

She then proceeded to detail how 'Sway' specifically does not confine itself in the country music genre: “My friend said it best the other day. She was like, this record is a walk in nature. You're walking in nature, but along the way, on your walk, you're encountering little modern art installations throughout the way, and you're like, ‘Oh, that's a little bit of something modern… These kind of muted palettes that have a lot of space’. There's a lot of negative space on the record, which I love. You know, I just always love when there's like intrinsic country instruments that can live alongside things like vocoder or synth pads or whatever”.

As exemplified in the lyrics detailed above, this “walk in nature” is exemplified beautifully within 'Sway' – as well as other tracks featured on Deeper Well – using nature-focused terms, notably a palm tree, to tell a story of resilience and sticking to fate’s course for your life.

When the wind blows
It can push you around
It can shake you
Maybe you can show me
Cause it seems like you know how
To not let it phase you
If I didn’t wanna take control
I could let go

Maybe one day
I’ll learn how to sway

Most of the time
All the thoughts in my mind keep me running
Show me a place where I can just
Think of nothing
If I surrender, if I let go
Will you hold me?

Maybe one day
I’ll learn how to sway
Like a palm tree in the wind
I won’t break
I’ll just bend
And I’ll sway
I’ll sway
Ahh
I’ll sway
(I’ll sway)

Like a palm tree in the wind
I won’t break
I’ll just bend
And I’ll sway
I’ll sway

––

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