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Taylor Swift Unveils the Inspiration Behind Tracks on ‘The Tortured Poets Department. nobita

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1w ago

Apr 24, 2024 / 1649 Views

Taylor Swift is revealing the inspiration behind tracks on The Tortured Poets Department through Amazon Alexa.

Swift’s 11th studio album is still rating in the charts since its release on April 19, shattering streaming records as fans binge-listen to each track trying to decipher the meaning behind each lyric.

Now, in collaboration with Amazon Music, Swift is going through each song and giving her fans the CliffsNotes of the tracks when fans say to Alexa, “I’m a member of ‘The Tortured Poets Department.’”

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The members will hear their leader speak on “Fortnight” with Post Malone, “Clara Bow,” “Florida!!!” with Florence + the Machine, “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?” and “My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys.”

“‘Fortnight’ is a song that exhibits a lot of the common themes that run throughout this album. One of which being fatalism — longing, pining away, lost dreams,” Swift says of the album’s first single.

“I think that it’s a very fatalistic album in that there are lots of very dramatic lines about life or death. ‘I love you, it’s ruining my life.’ These are very hyperbolic, dramatic things to say. It’s that kind of album.”

For “Clara Bow”, the 34-year-old opens up about her experiences as a young female artist fighting for a record deal and constantly being pitted against other women.

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“I used to sit in record labels trying to get a record deal when I was a little kid. And they’d say, ‘you know, you remind us of–‘ and then they’d name an artist,” Swift explains. “And then they’d kind of say something disparaging about her, ‘but you’re this, you’re so much better in this way or that way.’”

“And that’s how we teach women to see themselves, as like you could be the new replacement for this woman who’s done something great before you,” she says.

“I picked women who have done great things in the past and have been these architypes of greatness in the entertainment industry,” Swift continues. “Clara Bow was the first ‘it girl.’ Stevie Nicks is an icon and an incredible example for anyone who wants to write songs and make music.”

The deep dive into “Florida!!!” may shock a lot of fans. Swift says the song, which features Florence + the Machine, is inspired by Dateline.

“People have these crimes that they commit; where do they immediately skip town and go to? They go to Florida,” the singer says. “They try to reinvent themselves, have a new identity, blend in.”

“I think when you go through a heartbreak, there’s a part of you that thinks, ‘I want a new name. I want a new life. I don’t want anyone to know where I’ve been or know me at all,’” she adds. “And so that was the jumping off point. Where would you go to reinvent yourself and blend in? Florida!”

Listen to the track-by-track experience on Amazon Music here.