Maroon (song)

File:Taylor Swift The Eras Tour Midnights Era Set (53109023502) (cropped).jpg (pictured) performed "Maroon" multiple times on the Eras Tour.]]

On August 28, 2022, during her acceptance speech for Video of the Year for All Too Well: The Short Film at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards, the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift announced her tenth studio album and its impending release date on October 21.{{Cite magazine |last=Dailey |first=Hannah |date=October 20, 2022 |title=Everything We Know About Taylor Swift's Midnights So Far |url=https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-midnights-everything-we-know/ |url-status=live |magazine=Billboard |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221113133112/https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-midnights-everything-we-know/ |archive-date=November 13, 2022 |access-date=November 13, 2022}} Soon after, Swift revealed the album's title—Midnights—and its cover on her social media, but she did not immediately release the track list.{{Cite news |last=Cain |first=Sian |date=2022-08-29 |title=Taylor Swift Announces New Album, Midnights, To Be Released in October |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/aug/29/taylor-swift-announces-new-album-coming-in-october |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220829083104/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/aug/29/taylor-swift-announces-new-album-coming-in-october |archive-date=August 29, 2022 |access-date=2023-04-04 |work=The Guardian}} On September 21, about a month before the album's release, Swift announced a thirteen-episode series called Midnights Mayhem with Me on the social media platform TikTok. In each episode of the series, Swift revealed the title of one album track.{{Cite magazine |last=Jones |first=Damian |date=October 7, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Reveals All Song Titles on New Album Midnights |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/taylor-swift-midnights-album-tracklist-3314098 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220923075749/https://www.nme.com/news/music/taylor-swift-midnights-album-tracklist-3314098 |archive-date=September 23, 2022 |access-date=November 13, 2022 |magazine=NME}} In the fifth episode on September 30, Swift revealed "Maroon" as the title of track two.{{Cite magazine |last=Mier |first=Tomás |date=2022-09-30 |title=Taylor Swift Continues Midnights Mayhem With 'Maroon' Song Title |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-announces-track-reveal-1234602601/ |url-access=limited |access-date=2022-11-15 |magazine=Rolling Stone |archive-date=November 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221111035719/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-announces-track-reveal-1234602601/ |url-status=live }} Republic Records released Midnights for streaming, download, and physical formats on October 21, 2022.{{Cite web |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Releases New Album Midnights: Listen and Read the Full Credits |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/taylor-swift-releases-new-album-midnights-listen-and-read-the-full-credits/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221022235235/https://pitchfork.com/news/taylor-swift-releases-new-album-midnights-listen-and-read-the-full-credits/ |archive-date=October 22, 2022 |access-date=November 13, 2022 |website=Pitchfork}}

Swift performed "Maroon" as a "surprise song" outside the regular setlist at ten stops of her Eras Tour. She performed it as a full song in East Rutherford (May 26, 2023), Inglewood (August 3, 2023), Mexico City (August 27, 2023) and Paris (May 11, 2024). Additionally, Swift sang "Maroon" as part of mashups six times: in Sydney (February 26, 2024) with "Forever & Always" (2008); in Liverpool (June 13, 2024) with "Cornelia Street" (2019); in London (June 21, 2024) with "The Black Dog" (2024) and "Come Back... Be Here" (2012); in Warsaw (August 2, 2024) with "Red" (2012), in Indianapolis (November 2, 2024) with "Cowboy Like Me" (2020), and in Vancouver (December 7, 2024) with "The Tortured Poets Department" (2024).{{cite web |last=Smith |first=Katie Louise |date=December 9, 2024 |title=Every Surprise Song Performed On Taylor Swift's Eras Tour So Far |url=https://www.capitalfm.com/artists/taylor-swift/eras-tour-surprise-songs-setlist/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241209162750/https://www.capitalfm.com/artists/taylor-swift/eras-tour-surprise-songs-setlist/ |archive-date=December 9, 2024 |access-date=December 9, 2024 |publisher=Capital}}

"Maroon" is 3 minutes and 38 seconds long.{{Cite web |last1=Nugent |first1=Annabel |last2=O'Connor |first2=Roisin |last3=Whiting |first3=Amanda |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Releases Midnights: Fans and Critics Praise the Dark and Cryptic Album – As It Happened |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/taylor-swift-2023-midnights-album-grammys-b2275511.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230204225723/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/taylor-swift-2023-midnights-album-grammys-b2275511.html |archive-date=February 4, 2023 |access-date=February 4, 2023 |website=The Independent}} It is a recollection of the memories of a long-gone romance. Swift's character reminisces an ex-lover—"the one [she] was dancing with in New York".{{cite news |last=Brown |first=Helen |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Review, Midnights: Her Darkest and Most Cryptic Album Yet |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/taylor-swift-review-midnights-lyrics-b2207166.html |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221021092547/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/taylor-swift-review-midnights-lyrics-b2207166.html |archive-date=October 21, 2022 |access-date=October 21, 2022 |newspaper=The Independent}}{{Cite web |last=Ruggieri |first=Melissa |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Returns to Pop with Poetic Midnights, Her Most Deeply Personal Album Yet |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2022/10/21/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review/10553445002/ |access-date=2023-11-28 |website=USA Today |archive-date=January 8, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108034601/https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2022/10/21/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review/10553445002/ |url-status=live }} The lyrics use imagery of red shades to recall specific items: the pink of a cheap rosé, the burgundy on her T-shirt from a splash of red wine, the scarlet of the blood that "rushed to [her] cheeks". In the refrain, the word "maroon" is used to describe the remnants that the decayed relationship evokes: "the mark they saw on [her] collarbone", "the rust that grew between telephones", "the lips [she] used to call home", and the funeral carnations.{{Cite web |last=Partridge |first=Kenneth |date=2022-10-21 |title=Taylor Swift Examines Old Wounds On New Song 'Maroon' |url=https://genius.com/a/taylor-swift-examines-old-wounds-on-new-song-maroon |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221129094136/https://genius.com/a/taylor-swift-examines-old-wounds-on-new-song-maroon |archive-date=November 29, 2022 |access-date=2022-11-29 |website=Genius}} American Songwriter{{'s}} Alli Patton wrote that the line "the rust that grew between telephones" implied that the relationship in question was a long-distance one. After detailing how the relationship derails in the second verse, the narrator contemplates how the relationship still leaves a mark on her in the bridge ("And I wake with your memory over me / That's a real fucking legacy, legacy").

Music critics found connections between "Maroon" and Swift's past songs. Billboard's Jason Lipshutz wrote that many of the lyrical motifs on "Maroon" were hallmarks in Swift's songwriting: memories in rich detail, vulnerability, missed romance, and the resultant feelings. Some reviewers noted a probable reference to Swift's 2012 album Red,{{Cite web |last=Patton |first=Alli |date=2022-11-10 |title=The Swifties Speculative Meaning Behind 'Maroon' by Taylor Swift |url=https://americansongwriter.com/the-swifties-speculative-meaning-behind-maroon-by-taylor-swift/ |access-date=2022-11-29 |website=American Songwriter |archive-date=November 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221129091956/https://americansongwriter.com/the-swifties-speculative-meaning-behind-maroon-by-taylor-swift/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite magazine |last=Aniftos |first=Rania |date=2022-11-17 |title=Here Are the Lyrics to Taylor Swift's 'Maroon' |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/lyrics/taylor-swift-maroon-lyrics-1235172472/ |access-date=2022-11-30 |magazine=Billboard |archive-date=November 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221130065010/https://www.billboard.com/music/lyrics/taylor-swift-maroon-lyrics-1235172472/ |url-status=live }} with Carl Wilson from Slate saying that "Maroon" was a "more melancholy and experienced version" with similar themes about heartbreak. John Wohlmacher of Beats Per Minute wrote that in addition to Red, "Maroon" references the "flushed cheeks" imagery on "Illicit Affairs" (2020). He added that the New York setting was similar to the sentiments of "Cornelia Street" (2019) and "Hoax" (2020), which represented "a secret affair and emotionally crushing loss". Sharing the same idea, Powers and Rob Sheffield from Rolling Stone commented that "Maroon" was a sequel to "Cornelia Street", a track about a haunting romance set in New York.{{Cite magazine |last=Sheffield |first=Rob |author-link=Rob Sheffield |date=2023-10-28 |title='Maroon' (2022) |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/taylor-swift-songs-ranked-rob-sheffield-201800/maroon-2022-1234615327/ |access-date=2023-11-28 |magazine=Rolling Stone |archive-date=December 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231205122406/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/taylor-swift-songs-ranked-rob-sheffield-201800/maroon-2022-1234615327/ |url-status=live }} Sheffield added that "Maroon" recalled the New York romance of "Holy Ground" from Red.

Swift wrote and produced "Maroon" with Antonoff, who programmed the track and played instruments including percussion, synthesizers (Juno 6, modular synth), piano, electric and bass guitars. Evan Smith played organ, saxophone, flute, and clarinet, and he recorded his own performance at Pleasure Hill Recording in Portland, Maine. Antonoff and engineer Laura Sisk recorded "Maroon" at Rough Customer Studio in Brooklyn and Electric Lady Studios in New York City. The track was engineered by Antonoff, Sisk, and Smith, with assistance from John Rooney, Jon Sher, and Megan Searl. "Maroon" was mixed by Serban Ghenea with assistance from Bryce Bordone at MixStar Studios in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and mastered by Randy Merrill at Sterling Sound in Edgewater, New Jersey.{{Listen

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"Maroon" is a ballad{{Cite magazine |last=Sheffield |first=Rob |author-link=Rob Sheffield |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Welcome to the Lavender Labyrinth: Taylor Swift's Midnights Is the Mastermind's Ultimate Power Move |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/taylor-swift-midnights-sheffield-1234615239/ |url-status=live |magazine=Rolling Stone |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221022185255/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/taylor-swift-midnights-sheffield-1234615239/ |archive-date=October 22, 2022 |access-date=October 23, 2022 |url-access=limited}} with an atmospheric and ambient soundscape.{{Cite web |last=Petridis |first=Alexis |author-link=Alexis Petridis |date=2022-10-21 |title=Taylor Swift: Midnights Review – Small-Hours Pop Rich with Self-Loathing and Stereotype-Smashing |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/oct/21/taylor-swift-midnights-review-small-hours-pop-rich-with-self-loathing-and-stereotype-smashing |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221111121503/https://amp.theguardian.com/music/2022/oct/21/taylor-swift-midnights-review-small-hours-pop-rich-with-self-loathing-and-stereotype-smashing |archive-date=November 11, 2022 |access-date=2022-11-11 |website=The Guardian}} The production incorporates a thick reverb, layered vocals,{{cite web |last=Moreland |first=Quinn |date=October 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift: Midnights Album Review |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/taylor-swift-midnights/ |access-date=October 24, 2022 |website=Pitchfork |archive-date=October 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221024063311/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/taylor-swift-midnights/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite magazine |last=Jackson |first=Lauren Michelle |date=2022-10-23 |title=In Taylor Swift's Midnights, the Easter Eggs Aren't the Point |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/listening-booth/in-taylor-swifts-midnights-the-easter-eggs-arent-the-point |url-access=limited |access-date=2022-11-15 |magazine=The New Yorker |archive-date=October 23, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221023232033/https://www.newyorker.com/culture/listening-booth/in-taylor-swifts-midnights-the-easter-eggs-arent-the-point |url-status=live }} synthesizers,{{Cite web |last=DeWald |first=Mike |date=2022-10-20 |title=Album Review: Taylor Swift Strikes Midnights On Her Return to Pop |url=https://riffmagazine.com/album-reviews/taylor-swift-midnights/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221115101204/https://riffmagazine.com/album-reviews/taylor-swift-midnights/ |archive-date=November 15, 2022 |access-date=2022-11-15 |website=Riff Magazine}} and preset drums that create trap beats.{{Cite web |last=Attard |first=Paul |date=October 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Midnights Review: Starkly Intimate, If Redundant |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review/ |access-date=November 1, 2022 |website=Slant Magazine |archive-date=November 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221101065707/https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite magazine |last=Johnson |first=Ellen |date=October 20, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Deals in Dark Magic on Midnights |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/taylor-swift/midnights-album-review/ |magazine=Paste |access-date=October 21, 2022 |archive-date=October 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221022212054/https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/taylor-swift/midnights-album-review/ |url-status=live }} It uses an electric guitar played on an EBow, which creates a single note that sustains and slowly oscillates up and down through the track; Alexis Petridis of The Guardian said the guitar sound evoked shoegaze. The song's second half has a buzzing synth drone.{{Cite web |last=Wilson |first=Carl |author-link=Carl Wilson (writer) |date=2022-10-21 |title=Taylor Swift's Midnights Is the Right Kind of Concept Album |url=https://slate.com/culture/2022/10/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review-3am-lyrics.html |access-date=2022-11-25 |website=Slate |archive-date=October 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221021170235/https://slate.com/culture/2022/10/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review-3am-lyrics.html |url-status=live }} Music critics characterize the genre as dream pop,{{Cite magazine |last=Lipshutz |first=Jason |date=2022-10-21 |title=Every Song Ranked on Taylor Swift's Midnights |url=https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-midnights-album-songs-ranked/ |access-date=2022-11-08 |magazine=Billboard |archive-date=October 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221021040336/https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-midnights-album-songs-ranked/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Quinn |first=Rick |date=November 2, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift: Midnights (Album Review) |url=https://www.popmatters.com/taylor-swift-midnights-review |access-date=November 4, 2022 |website=PopMatters |archive-date=November 4, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221104152354/https://www.popmatters.com/taylor-swift-midnights-review |url-status=live }} synth-pop,{{Cite magazine |last=Bilmes |first=Alex |author-link=Alex Bilmes |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift's Midnights Is an Instant Classic |url=https://www.esquire.com/uk/culture/a41711408/taylor-swift-midnights-review/ |magazine=Esquire |access-date=October 28, 2022 |archive-date=October 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221028203544/https://www.esquire.com/uk/culture/a41711408/taylor-swift-midnights-review/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Nguyen |first=Giselle Au-Nhien |date=2022-10-21 |title=Clever, Addictive: Taylor Swift's New Album Bridges Pop and Folk |url=https://www.smh.com.au/culture/music/clever-addictive-taylor-swift-s-new-album-bridges-pop-and-folk-20221020-p5brkw.html |access-date=2023-11-24 |website=The Sydney Morning Herald |language= |archive-date=March 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230325192051/https://www.smh.com.au/culture/music/clever-addictive-taylor-swift-s-new-album-bridges-pop-and-folk-20221020-p5brkw.html |url-status=live }} electropop,{{Cite web |last=Byron |first=Grace |date=April 23, 2024 |title=The Masochistic Acrobatics of Taylor Swift |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/taylor-swift/the-masochistic-acrobatics-of-taylor-swift |access-date=May 20, 2024 |website=Paste |archive-date=April 30, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240430155601/https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/taylor-swift/the-masochistic-acrobatics-of-taylor-swift |url-status=live }} and trip hop.{{Cite web |last=Nolan |first=Paul |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Album Review: Taylor Swift, Midnights |url=https://www.hotpress.com/music/album-review-taylor-swift-midnights-22934680 |access-date=2023-02-06 |website=Hot Press |archive-date=February 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230206045317/https://www.hotpress.com/music/album-review-taylor-swift-midnights-22934680 |url-status=live }}

The Line of Best Fit{{'s}} Paul Bridgewater described the production as "brooding", and Spin's Bobby Olivier regarded the track as a "slow burner".{{Cite web |last=Olivier |first=Bobby |date=October 21, 2022 |title=On Midnights, Taylor Swift Dares To See Herself |url=https://www.spin.com/2022/10/taylor-swift-midnights-review/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221126041209/https://www.spin.com/2022/10/taylor-swift-midnights-review/ |archive-date=November 26, 2022 |access-date=November 25, 2022 |website=Spin}} In Paste, Ellen Johnson compared the trap-tinged production and "light rapping" on "Maroon" to the music of "Dress", a track off Swift's 2017 album Reputation. Ann Powers from NPR said "Maroon" evoked the music of the drama series Twin Peaks,{{Cite news |last=Powers |first=Ann |author-link=Ann Powers |date=October 21, 2022 |title=In the Haze of Midnights, Taylor Swift Softens Into An Expanded Sound |url=https://www.npr.org/2022/10/21/1130293117/midnights-taylor-swift-review |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221021065926/https://www.npr.org/2022/10/21/1130293117/midnights-taylor-swift-review |archive-date=October 21, 2022 |access-date=October 21, 2022 |agency=NPR}} while Pitchfork's Vrinda Jagota said the "droning synths" resembled Lorde's 2017 album Melodrama.{{Cite web |last=Jagota |first=Vrinda |date=2022-10-21 |title=6 Takeaways From Taylor Swift's New Album Midnights |url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/takeaways-from-taylor-swifts-new-album-midnights/ |access-date=2023-12-05 |website=Pitchfork |archive-date=January 22, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240122211051/https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/takeaways-from-taylor-swifts-new-album-midnights/ |url-status=live }} Wohlmacher found the single-note electric guitar to complement the "lingering pain" expressed in the lyrics, resulting in a "borderline traumatic" listening experience. Quinn Moreland from Pitchfork wrote that whereas the lyrics were intensely personal, the production had a "consistently austere" atmosphere that made the track "oddly impersonal, bordering on numb".{{cite web |last=Moreland |first=Quinn |date=October 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift: Midnights Album Review |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/taylor-swift-midnights/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221024063311/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/taylor-swift-midnights/ |archive-date=October 24, 2022 |access-date=October 24, 2022 |website=Pitchfork}}

Some critics praised the lyrics of "Maroon". Courteney Larossa and Callie Ahlgrim from Business Insider hailed "Maroon" as a standout track from Midnights; Lacrossa called the song a "brilliant" play on Swift's color theory about love, while Ahlgrim stated that it was a "shimmering" nostalgic rush of her past songs.{{Cite web |last1=Ahlgrim |first1=Callie |last2=Larocca |first2=Courteney |date=October 22, 2022 |title=Review: Taylor Swift's Midnights Is A Disappointing Album |url=https://www.insider.com/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review-tracklist-breakdown-2022-10 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230115005313/https://www.insider.com/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review-tracklist-breakdown-2022-10 |archive-date=January 15, 2023 |access-date=November 11, 2022 |website=Business Insider}} Kenneth Partridge, in an article for Genius, found it to contain some of the most poetic lyrics Swift had written. Melissa Ruggieri from USA Today described the lyrical imagery as "striking" and "classically vivid".

Some others were fond of the production. Sheffield praised the song as a "gorgeous ballad", and Esquire's Alex Bilmes said it had "a killer vocal and lyrics worthy of a Ryan Murphy soap opera". Lipshutz said that although "Maroon" contained many of Swift's songwriting details that had been familiar, "their impact hasn't dulled one bit". Wohlmacher labeled it as an "immediate masterpiece" and said it was "maybe the pop song of the year",{{Cite web |last=Wohlmacher |first=John |date=2022-10-24 |title=Album Review: Taylor Swift – Midnights |url=https://beatsperminute.com/album-review-taylor-swift-midnights/ |access-date=2022-11-19 |website=Beats Per Minute |archive-date=November 4, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221104144526/https://beatsperminute.com/album-review-taylor-swift-midnights/ |url-status=live }} and Moreland said that it was a track that "may be the one that keeps [her] awake at night". Petridis called the song "superb" and deemed it to represent the album's subdued, atmospheric production, and Bridgewater remarked that it was one of the album's "minor flashes of brilliance".{{Cite magazine |last=Bridgewater |first=Paul |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Review of Midnights by Taylor Swift: 'A Love Letter to Emotional Stability That Can't Hide Its Flaws' |url=https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/albums/taylor-swift-midnights-love-letter-to-emotional-stability |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221021040052/https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/albums/taylor-swift-midnights-love-letter-to-emotional-stability |archive-date=October 21, 2022 |access-date=October 21, 2022 |magazine=The Line of Best Fit}}{{Cite web |last=Siroky |first=Mary |date=October 21, 2022 |title=With Midnights, Taylor Swift Finds Grandeur in the Small Hours: Album Review |url=https://consequence.net/2022/10/midnights-album-review-taylor-swift/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221022145154/https://consequence.net/2022/10/midnights-album-review-taylor-swift/ |archive-date=October 22, 2022 |access-date=February 6, 2023 |website=Consequence}} Mark Richardson of The Wall Street Journal deemed "Maroon" the best track on Midnights because it "unfolds gradually and hits an exciting peak where words and tune are precisely matched".{{Cite news |last=Richardson |first=Mark |date=2022-10-24 |title=Midnights Review: Taylor Swift After Dark |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/midnights-review-taylor-swift-jack-antonoff-anti-hero-single-11666647508 |url-access=subscription |access-date=2024-01-05 |work=The Wall Street Journal |archive-date=February 11, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211011818/https://www.wsj.com/articles/midnights-review-taylor-swift-jack-antonoff-anti-hero-single-11666647508 |url-status=live }}

In a less enthusiastic review, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times was not impressed by the production and said that Swift's vocals were "stacked together to the point of suffocation".{{Cite news |last=Caramanica |first=Jon |author-link=Jon Caramanica |date=2022-10-21 |title=Taylor Swift, Caught Between Yesterday and Tomorrow on Midnights |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/21/arts/music/taylor-swift-midnights-review.html |url-access=limited |access-date=2022-11-11 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=October 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221022110127/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/21/arts/music/taylor-swift-midnights-review.html |url-status=live }} Similarly, Paul Attard from Slant Magazine found the production somewhat redundant. Wilson considered "Maroon" a decent song on its own but thought that it made the album drag. He added that its songwriting was "a bit generic and fan-servicey". Exclaim!'s Megan LaPierre appreciated the first verse and the bridge but found that the rest of the song "stumbles in comparison".{{Cite web |last=LaPierre |first=Megan |date=October 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Is Her Own Timekeeper on Midnights |url=https://exclaim.ca/music/article/taylor_swift_midnights_album_review |access-date=2022-11-14 |website=Exclaim! |archive-date=November 3, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221103124141/https://exclaim.ca/music/article/taylor_swift_midnights_album_review |url-status=live }}

"Maroon" debuted and peaked at number three on the US Billboard Hot 100; its first-week figures included 37.6 million streams, 2,900 downloads, and 471,000 airplay impressions.{{Cite magazine |last=Trust |first=Gary |date=2022-10-31 |title=Taylor Swift Makes History as First Artist With Entire Top 10 on Billboard Hot 100, Led by 'Anti-Hero' at No. 1 |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/taylor-swift-all-hot-100-top-10-anti-hero-1235163664/ |access-date=2022-11-10 |magazine=Billboard |archive-date=October 31, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221031172231/https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/taylor-swift-all-hot-100-top-10-anti-hero-1235163664/ |url-status=live }} The song along with nine fellow Midnights tracks made Swift the first act to concurrently occupy the top 10 of the Hot 100 and surpassed Madonna as the woman with the most top-10 entries.{{Cite magazine |last=Trust |first=Gary |date=2022-10-31 |title=Taylor Swift Makes History as First Artist With Entire Top 10 on Billboard Hot 100, Led by 'Anti-Hero' at No. 1 |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/taylor-swift-all-hot-100-top-10-anti-hero-1235163664/ |access-date=2022-12-21 |magazine=Billboard |archive-date=October 31, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221031172231/https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/taylor-swift-all-hot-100-top-10-anti-hero-1235163664/ |url-status=live }} It peaked at number four on the Canada and was certified platinum. The song reached number six on the United Kingdom's Audio Streaming Chart and received a gold certification.

Elsewhere, "Maroon" appeared on many territories worldwide: it peaked within the top 10 on singles charts in Australia (4), the Philippines (4), Malaysia (5), New Zealand (5) and the top 30 in Portugal (11), Vietnam (11), Iceland (12), South Africa (12), Croatia (19), Luxembourg (20), Hong Kong (22), Sweden (26), and Norway (30). The song peaked at number four on the Billboard Global 200.

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of Midnights.{{cite AV media notes |title=Midnights |type=liner notes |others= |year=2022 |publisher=Republic Records |last=Swift |first=Taylor |author-link=Taylor Swift}}

{{div col}}

• Taylor Swift – vocals, songwriting, production
• Jack Antonoff – songwriting, production, engineering, programming, percussion, Juno 6, modular synth, piano, electric guitars, bass, recording
• Evan Smith – engineering, organ, saxophone, flute, clarinet, recording
• Laura Sisk – engineering, recording
• Megan Searl – assistant engineering
• John Sher – assistant engineering
• John Rooney – assistant engineering
• Serban Ghenea – mixing
• Bryce Bordone – assistant mixing
• Randy Merrill – mastering

{{div col end}}

{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for "Maroon"}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Australia|type=single|award=Platinum|relyear=2022|certyear=2023|access-date=September 13, 2023}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Brazil|artist=Taylor Swift|title=Maroon|award=Platinum|type=single|relyear=2022|certyear=2024|access-date=July 23, 2024}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|title=Maroon|artist=Taylor Swift|type=single|award=Platinum|relyear=2022|certyear=2023|access-date=January 19, 2023|refname="musiccanada"}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|artist=Taylor Swift|title=Maroon|type=single|award=Platinum|access-date=December 19, 2024|source=radioscope|relyear=2022|certyear=2024|refname="RMNZ"}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|title=Maroon|artist=Taylor Swift|type=single|award=Gold|relyear=2022|certyear=2024|id=18855-1598-1|access-date=December 13, 2024|refname="BPI"}}

{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true|noshipments=true|nosales=true}}

{{reflist}}

{{Taylor Swift songs|state=}}{{Authority control}}

Category:2022 songs

Category:2020s ballads

Category:Taylor Swift songs

Category:Songs written by Taylor Swift

Category:Songs written by Jack Antonoff

Category:Song recordings produced by Taylor Swift

Category:Song recordings produced by Jack Antonoff

Category:Dream pop songs

Category:American synth-pop songs

Category:Synth-pop ballads

Category:Trip hop songs

Category:Breakup songs

Category:Electropop songs