Taylor Swift shocked the world when she announced her 10th studio album, Midnights, upon winning a VMA for Video of the Year for ehr All Too Well short film. The pop-album was set to release on October 21st, and Swift kept her fans up til midnight many nights in anticipation of the album. In a series she made called “Midnight Mayhem With Me”, she would randomly release the name of one song off of the album at random midnights leading to the release of the album. Upon learning there was a collaboration with Lana Del Ray, multiple music videos, and a perfect score from The Independent, the excitement for the album continued to soar. Finally the anticipation was over, and the album was released on October 21st at, you guessed it, midnight. Being a major Swift fan myself, I have already listened to the album an unhealthy amount of time, making me certified to give a review for every song.

  Lavender Haze

Very reminiscent of the tune of I Think He Knows from Swift’s Lover album, the song starts off with Swift’s infamous line “meet me at midnights”. The song is about being in a “lavender haze”, which she described as “the ‘all encompassing love glow’” in an Instagram post. The lines from the song such as “I’m damned if I do give a damn what people say” and “I been under scrutiny/you handled it beautifully” express that despite people trying to meddle into Swift and her boyfriend Joe Alywn’s relationship, they continue to ignore what they say. 

  Maroon

Maroon details the breaking up of a relationship, and how the couple progressed to where they are now. The first verse is recounting a happy memory: “Laughing with my feet in your lap/Like you were my closest friend”. The chorus explains that the two are no longer acquainted, saying that “The lips I used to call home/So scarlet, it was maroon”. Many fans have made connections from this song to Swift’s album Red, which is a breakup album after she was dating Jake Gyllenhal. This song seems to be a more grown-up perspective of the relationship, hence the darker shade of red as the title.

  Anti-Hero

Swift really put her insecurities front and center in the third album track, Anti-Hero. The song talks about how she is “the problem, it’s me”. The song highlights how she is scared of being left alone, and in the chorus she exclaims that “I’ll stare directly at the sun, but never in the mirror/It must be exhausting always rooting for the anti-hero”. The lyric “sometimes I feel like everybody is a sexy baby” has thrown many listeners off guard, because what is a sexy baby? However, it seems to be a reference to the movie 30 Rock, pointing out that women have been conditioned by society to remain young and sexy. Swift also makes references to her past eating disorder in the song, singing “And I’m a monster on the hill/too big to hangout”. While I enjoyed this song, the music video is where my love for this song truly developed. In the song Swift mentions her family reading her will, and in the video they shoot a film of the family actually reading the will at the funeral, and it was hilarious!

  Snow on the Beach feat. Lana Del Ray

Many fans were left disappointed when they learned that Lana did not receive her own verse in the song. However, her harmonizing with Swift makes the song sound lovely, and you can definitely hear the impact she made on the song. Snow on the beach is a weird event to take place, and Swift used that to compare falling in love with someone while they’re falling in love with you. A sort of “calysimated, fated moment” as Swift describes, almost as magical as seeing snow on the beach. 

  Your on Your Own Kid

My, and many other fans’ favorite on the album, Your on Your Own, Kid, details young Swift’s experience coming into the spotlight. She sings about an unrequited love: “I wait patiently/He’s gonna notice me”. In the song, she tells us about all she did to try and make a name for herself. When she grows up she learns that everything will be okay, and there is no need to worry.

  Midnight Rain

This track 6 song opens with an altered, robotic-like voice, which scared many listeners at first. I personally loved it, and I enjoy seeing all the different creative choices Swift made on her album. The song tells the story of a woman leaving a man because “He was sunshine I was midnight rain”. There is speculation that this song is a follow up to Champagne Problems, a song on her Evermore album. The song is about a woman that leaves a relationship, despite his begging her to stay. The new song gives the audience the reason for her leaving: “He wanted a bride/I was making my own name/Chasing that fame/He stayed the same”.  

  Question…?

Another banger, Question…? asks the question (pun absolutely intended) on whether a past boyfriend misses being with his girlfriend (presumably Swift). The song is filled with catchy lines, such as “Have you ever had someone kiss you in a crowded room?” and “Do you wish you could still touch her/it’s just a question”. 

  Vigilante Sh!t

The most rebellious song on the album, Vigilante Shit, is speculated to be about Kanye West. In 2009, while Swift was accepting a VMA, KAnye interrupted her speech by saying Beyonce deserved it instead. After the two supposedly made amends, Kanye sang one of his songs that he “made that bitch [Swift] famous”, a line that Swift did not approve of. This resulted in her 6th studio album, Reputation, which is largely about getting revenge. In her new song, she makes digs at Kanye and Kim’s divorce, singing “Picture me thick as thieves with your ex-wife/And she looks so pretty/Driving in your Benz/Lately she’s been dressing for revenge”.

  Bejeweled

Another favorite of mine, Bejeweled is an upbeat pop song about Swift realizing she is not being treated as she should in a relationship, but still shining anyways. “Best believe I’m still bejeweled/When I walk in a room/I can still make the whole palace shimmer” is one of the many lines stuck in everybody’s head, and the accompanying dance on TikTok went viral. Swift also released a music video for the song, where she played Cinderella going to the ball and wooing the prince. However, in her scenario, she ditched the prince and took the castle.

  Labyrinth

I would start this off by saying it’s another favorite of mine, but that is true of pretty much this entire album. Labyrinth details Swift’s anxiety and fear of getting into a new relationship, but how someone (most likely her current boyfriend, Joe Alywin) proved her wrong and changed her opinions about love. The chorus goes, “Uh-oh, I’m fallin’ in love/Oh no, I’m fallin’ in love again/Oh, I’m fallin’ in love/I thought the plane was goin’ down/How’d you turn it right around?”, and the tune of the song is slow but upbeat. 

  Karma

Karma is a very playful song, but also aggressive. Many believe it is coming after Scooter Braun, who purchased Swift’s first 6 studio albums without her consent. He owns the rights to them, which is what led her to recording her albums, starting with Fearless and Red. The lines “You’re terrified to look down/’Cause if you dare, you’ll see the glare/Of everyone you burned just to get there” condemns Braun for using her and other artists to get where he is. The chorus is extremely catchy, using metaphors to describe everything that karma is to Swift. One of the best lines is “Karma’s a relaxing thought/Aren’t you envious that for you it’s not?”. This song could also be a dig at Kanye, which would be even more spot on, because the week of this album’s release, Kanye was dropped by Adidas. 

  Sweet Nothing

Like the title suggests, Sweet Nothing is the sweetest song on the track, talking about the peace she has found being with Alywn. The term “sweet nothings” means words of affection shared between two lovers, and the song definitely has its fair share of those. A line that warms my heart everytime I hear it is “On the way home/I wrote a poem/You say, “What a mind”/This happens all the time”.

  Mastermind

Finishing off the album strongly, Mastermind sings about how Swift was persistent in making her relationship with Alwyn work. She took control of the situation, something women aren’t supposed to do, which she expressed in the lines “You see, all the wisеst women/Had to do it this way/’Cause we were born to be the pawn/In every lover’s game”. One of the best bridges in the album, Swift sings about how she wants to be loved without is seeming that she tries “too hard”: “No one wanted to play with me as a little kid/So I’ve been scheming like a criminal ever since/To make them love 

me and make it seem effortless”. 

  Surprise! We’re not done yet!

While Midnights was released on October 21st at 12:00 AM, Swift surprised fans when at 3 AM she released her “special very chaotic surprise” as scheduled on Instagram: 7 additional songs! All songs are fabolous, but the obvious standout is Would’ve Could’ve Should’ve, a heart breaking song about the effects of Swift’s relationship with John Mayer. She was 19 and he was 32, a very large and questionable age gap. The chorus is absolute gold: “God rest my soul, I miss who I used to be/The tomb won’t close, stained glass windows in my mind/I regret you all the time/I can’t let this go, I fight with you in my sleep/The wound won’t close, I keep on waiting for a sign/I regret you all the time”. The most heartbreaking lyric is undoubtedly “Give me back my girlhood/it was mine first”, which shows how much of an affect their relationship had on her.

  On November 1st, Swift announced she is touring in the United States! The tour is called The Eras Tour, which is definitely applicable since Swift has released three new albums and two re-records since her last tour. Tickets will go on sale November 18th, but you can register for a presale code and get early access. Artists Gayle and Phoebe Bridgers will be joining Swift on stage, and fans are ecstatic already!