Taylor Swift’s Midnights Proves She Is a Mastermind
By Matthew Landsman
November 18, 2022
Image Credit: Raphael Lovaski for Unsplash
On October 21, Taylor Swift dropped her highly anticipated 10th studio album Midnights, along with the surprise Midnights (3 AM Edition) at three a.m. that morning, featuring seven new tracks. Swift put out a statement to her social media pages saying “Surprise! I think of Midnights as a complete concept album, with those 13 songs forming a full picture of the intensities of that mystifying, mad hour. However! There were other songs we wrote on our journey to find that magic 13.”
After only a week of the album’s release, it broke numerous records. With this album, Swift has become the only singer in history ever to occupy the top 10 spots on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, as well as having earned the biggest Spotify and Apple Music debut for an album in history. “Snow On the Beach,” her collaboration with Lana Del Rey, broke the number for most streamed all female collab of all time. Midnights went #1 on the Billboard 200 charts and after the mass success of both versions of albums, Taylor Swift is now the #1 most followed artist on Spotify globally.
The first single of Midnights, “Anti-Hero,” has been #1 for two weeks, making it her longest running #1 hit on the Hot 100 charts since the release of “Look What You Made Me Do” in 2017.
After releasing two folksy sister albums, folklore and evermore, Swift goes back to telling her own personal stories from sleepless nights, instead of telling fictional stories about made-up characters.. She explores the terrors she faced in the night, as well as the sweet moments that came along with being in love. Swift switches up the sound sonically in Midnights once again, with alternative pop, synth pop and dark pop elements.
From track one to track 20, the songs flow into each other very well and prove Swift can do any genre she pleases, while still having the vivid lyrics she is known for. For me, this is easily in my top three albums of hers of all time. The album has been on repeat ever since it came out and is my favorite release of 2022; Swift’s lyrics with this more alternative approach to pop is exactly what was missing in her catalog.
Taylor Swift expresses the terrors and sweet feelings she faced during late night thoughts where she couldn’t sleep. Swift discusses many different topics within Midnights such as mental health problems, trauma from past relationships, and accepting love with open arms from her longtime boyfriend, Joe Alwyn.
My favorite songs from Midnights are “Lavender Haze” and “Karma.” “Lavender Haze” shocked me as whole because of how different it sounds from the rest of her songs in her catalog. She experiments with alternative pop and her falsetto range to create a perfect opener to the album. “Karma” is my other favorite because I love the hook and catchy melodies she finds while telling how karma is on her side rather than against her in reputation, her previous album where it felt like the whole world hated her at once.
My favorite Midnights (3am Edition) tracks are “Bigger Than The Whole Sky” because it gives off the vibes of Lorde's Melodrama as the producer on this song, as well as majority of the album is Jack Antonoff, the main producer of that album as well. “Glitch” is my other favorite because of its chill vibes with beautiful melodies, backing vocals, etc.
I reached out to a few students on campus that are Swifites (or just listened to Midnights) and asked them: What are your overall thoughts on Midnights? Did you like or love it? What are your favorite songs on the album, and what are your favorite 3 am edition tracks?
“I loved Midnights, Taylor Swift outdid herself again by making yet another perfect album. My favorite songs right now are ‘Karma,’ ‘Sweet Nothing,’ ‘You’re On Your Own, Kid,’ and ‘Maroon.’ My favorites from the 3am edition tracks are ‘Would’ve, Could’ve Should’ve,” said sophomore business major Marta Janeiro.
Sophomore hearing and speech major Paige McGinnis said, “I personally love Midnights and I think it was a great album. It came across as a combination of a bunch of her albums which I loved hearing.”
McGinnis’s favorite songs from Midnights are “Karma,” “Mastermind,” and “Bejeweled.” Her favorite 3am edition tracks are “The Great War” and “High Infidelity.”
“I really like how each song on Midnights has a different vibe and mood. It was definitely a reminder that Taylor Swift really makes any type of music for any mood, just like how each album has a distinct tone and perspective to it. If you listen to the lyrics you can definitely figure out which initial era each song is from which makes it an even better album if you are a fan of Taylor Swift and have been following her for years.” said Alyssa Canowitz, sophomore double major in secondary education and history.
Canowitz’s favorite songs are: “You’re On Your Own, Kid,” “Question…?,” and “Mastermind.” Her favorite 3 am edition tracks are “Paris,” “High Infidelity,” and “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve.”
If you have been thinking about listening to the album, you should definitely give it a try, especially if you are an alternative and synth pop fan. Swift has done it again and I hope you enjoy the album as much as I do!
After only a week of the album’s release, it broke numerous records. With this album, Swift has become the only singer in history ever to occupy the top 10 spots on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, as well as having earned the biggest Spotify and Apple Music debut for an album in history. “Snow On the Beach,” her collaboration with Lana Del Rey, broke the number for most streamed all female collab of all time. Midnights went #1 on the Billboard 200 charts and after the mass success of both versions of albums, Taylor Swift is now the #1 most followed artist on Spotify globally.
The first single of Midnights, “Anti-Hero,” has been #1 for two weeks, making it her longest running #1 hit on the Hot 100 charts since the release of “Look What You Made Me Do” in 2017.
After releasing two folksy sister albums, folklore and evermore, Swift goes back to telling her own personal stories from sleepless nights, instead of telling fictional stories about made-up characters.. She explores the terrors she faced in the night, as well as the sweet moments that came along with being in love. Swift switches up the sound sonically in Midnights once again, with alternative pop, synth pop and dark pop elements.
From track one to track 20, the songs flow into each other very well and prove Swift can do any genre she pleases, while still having the vivid lyrics she is known for. For me, this is easily in my top three albums of hers of all time. The album has been on repeat ever since it came out and is my favorite release of 2022; Swift’s lyrics with this more alternative approach to pop is exactly what was missing in her catalog.
Taylor Swift expresses the terrors and sweet feelings she faced during late night thoughts where she couldn’t sleep. Swift discusses many different topics within Midnights such as mental health problems, trauma from past relationships, and accepting love with open arms from her longtime boyfriend, Joe Alwyn.
My favorite songs from Midnights are “Lavender Haze” and “Karma.” “Lavender Haze” shocked me as whole because of how different it sounds from the rest of her songs in her catalog. She experiments with alternative pop and her falsetto range to create a perfect opener to the album. “Karma” is my other favorite because I love the hook and catchy melodies she finds while telling how karma is on her side rather than against her in reputation, her previous album where it felt like the whole world hated her at once.
My favorite Midnights (3am Edition) tracks are “Bigger Than The Whole Sky” because it gives off the vibes of Lorde's Melodrama as the producer on this song, as well as majority of the album is Jack Antonoff, the main producer of that album as well. “Glitch” is my other favorite because of its chill vibes with beautiful melodies, backing vocals, etc.
I reached out to a few students on campus that are Swifites (or just listened to Midnights) and asked them: What are your overall thoughts on Midnights? Did you like or love it? What are your favorite songs on the album, and what are your favorite 3 am edition tracks?
“I loved Midnights, Taylor Swift outdid herself again by making yet another perfect album. My favorite songs right now are ‘Karma,’ ‘Sweet Nothing,’ ‘You’re On Your Own, Kid,’ and ‘Maroon.’ My favorites from the 3am edition tracks are ‘Would’ve, Could’ve Should’ve,” said sophomore business major Marta Janeiro.
Sophomore hearing and speech major Paige McGinnis said, “I personally love Midnights and I think it was a great album. It came across as a combination of a bunch of her albums which I loved hearing.”
McGinnis’s favorite songs from Midnights are “Karma,” “Mastermind,” and “Bejeweled.” Her favorite 3am edition tracks are “The Great War” and “High Infidelity.”
“I really like how each song on Midnights has a different vibe and mood. It was definitely a reminder that Taylor Swift really makes any type of music for any mood, just like how each album has a distinct tone and perspective to it. If you listen to the lyrics you can definitely figure out which initial era each song is from which makes it an even better album if you are a fan of Taylor Swift and have been following her for years.” said Alyssa Canowitz, sophomore double major in secondary education and history.
Canowitz’s favorite songs are: “You’re On Your Own, Kid,” “Question…?,” and “Mastermind.” Her favorite 3 am edition tracks are “Paris,” “High Infidelity,” and “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve.”
If you have been thinking about listening to the album, you should definitely give it a try, especially if you are an alternative and synth pop fan. Swift has done it again and I hope you enjoy the album as much as I do!