Can I talk about Taylor Swift’s writing skills for a moment? I was completely taken aback by her latest album ‘Midnights’, and the stories she reads to her fans through melody and lyrics. As a music fan that can spend hours obsessing over voices and vocal agility, Taylor Swift isn’t exactly someone I would have listed in my favorite voices. Being totally honest, she doesn’t have the biggest vocal range or best technique – but please feel free to prove me otherwise, I’m intrigued!
However, my GOODNESS can she write a song. Taylor’s poet-turned-author style of executing her experiences, thoughts and feelings and turning them into 4 minute symphonies has Shakespeare quaking in his grave. Upon listening to her latest album for the first, fifth, tenth time, and even now, I can see it play out in my head. It’s as if the album is a soundtrack to a movie inside everyone. We all have our own unique premiere.
Of course, this comes from her passion for country music, a genre that can give you one single twisted song and make you experience both heartbreak and joy. From Dolly Parton to Hailey Whitters, it’s the stories we remember.
I feel SO passionately about so many of the lyrics on Midnights, so I’m starting strong with one of the key lyrics from her lead single Anti-Hero – co-written by Jack Antonoff. Just imagine my soul absolutely crushing after hearing this for the first time:
“I’ll stare directly at the sun but never in the mirror”
A single true and relatable but yet so powerful line. Read it again! The pain! Next we jump to You’re On Your Own, Kid, also pieced together by the great Taylor and Jack duo. I HAVE to talk about the bridge of this track.
Taylor whips together 13 lines in 50 seconds, perfectly capturing key moments in her life and takes us on an emotional journey of how she ended up getting through everything, and reminding us to savor every moment, good and bad. Savor the moment, give your all, except the challenges and never look back.
One of my favorite songs on the album is called Bigger Than The Whole Sky, written solely by Taylor. I feel these lyrics in my heart so deeply, it follows my own journey with grief and I know from talking to people around me that she’s pieced together such an intimate feeling of sadness that is so hard to put into words:
No words. She’s said it all here.
One thing is for certain with T Swift – she will claim her place in any argument. So many of her songs relate back to revenge, her reputation, hierarchy and KARMA:
Yes Taylor. I’m envious. You hit the nail on the head with that. I’m envious that the thought of karma coming to get people is not relaxing to me like it is for you. I can’t believe she’s still releasing songs that push her confidence higher than those that hate on her. She’s so smart and will never admit she is anything equal to or below them. Go on Taylor, keep rising above it!
I could go on and on and on about her lyrics, especially from Midnights, but honestly, all her albums. There’s 16 years worth of flawless lyrics and stories I could talk about, but I do believe, somehow, Taylor Swift gets better with age.
ROARA Magazine 