Taylor Swift’s “Midnights” album has been out for almost a month now, which means theories and new information about each track is out there! In this article series, we will be doing a deep-dive for each “Midnights” track for who they are about, notable lyrics and so much more!

Track One: “Lavender Haze”

As the opening track to “Midnights,” “Lavender Haze” was most likely the first song listeners played. Here is a deep dive of everything we know about it! “Lavender Haze” reflects many notable lyrics, including the following significant lines:

“All they keep asking me

Is if I’m gonna be your bride

The only kinda girl they see

Is a one night or a wife”

Over the past few years, there has been endless speculation about Joe and Taylor’s possible marital status. Back in 2012-2015, the press accused Swift of being a serial dater…these lyrics line up with both theories.

Any Swiftie could easily claim that “Lavender Haze” is about her boyfriend of six years, Joe Alwyn. Swift revealed in her “Midnights Mayhem With Me” episodes that she stumbled upon the phrase “lavender haze” while watching “Mad Men.”  “I looked it up because I thought it sounded cool. And it turns out that it’s a common phrase used in the 50s where they would describe being in love. If you’re in the ‘lavender haze,’ then that meant you were in that all-encompassing love glow. And I thought that was really beautiful.” 

Track Two: “Maroon”’

Track two immediately stood out to Swifties, as it is a shade of Red, which just happens to be an album she released ten years ago (and re-recorded in 2021). “Maroon” also has some stand-out lyrics… let’s take a look!

“And I chose you

The one I was dancing with

In New York, no shoes”

One of the reasons this is powerful is because later in the song, Swift sings: 

“And I lost you

The one I was dancing with

In New York, no shoes”

Fans have been speculating about who this song may be about, and a common theory is that it is about Jake Gyllenhaal. “Maroon” is a more mature version of “Red,” which happens to be the album supposedly written about Gyllenhaal…Swift also released “Red (Taylor’s Version)” in November of 202—and emotions regarding Gyllenhaal were resurfaced. Swift also released “Midnights” on the tenth anniversary of “Red,” sending Swifties into further speculation. 

Track 3: “Anti-Hero”

Track three! Swift’s lead single and first “Midnights” era music video, “Anti-Hero” is, according  to Billboard, “one of my favorite songs I’ve ever written.” Swift also admits she’s never “delved this far into my insecurities in this detail before.” Let’s find those details!

“Anti-Hero” has a number of notable lyrics, including these below:

“I’ll stare directly at the sun, but never in the mirror”

This lyric in particular stands out to listeners, as Swift seems to address her struggles with disordered eating that challenged her in the past. She has never directly done this in a song, which makes these lyrics monumental. 

It’s also hard not to mention the bridge… 

“I have this dream my daughter-in-law kills me for the money

She thinks I left them in the will”

This is a dream that Taylor admits to having, and it is quite entertaining to watch play out in the music video. 

There are also countless “easter eggs” in her “Anti-Hero” music video, so let’s try to cover as many as possible!

• The bow and arrow: “The Archer” reference anyone?
• Marjorie photo: While Taylor looks in the mirror, look behind her…
• The funeral: “Look What You Made Me Do” reference? “The old Taylor can’t come to the phone right now… why? ‘Cause she’s dead.”
• Chad recording their conversation: This has been said to be related to when Kim Kardashian famously recorded Kanye West’s and Swift’s conversation. 
• The glitter: As Taylor cuts open her eggs, the yolk comes out as glitter. The glitter that possibly resembles the words “The Man” in her “The Man” music video? 

Stay tuned for the rest of “Midnights” tracks in the coming weeks!

Track 4: Snow on the Beach (ft. Lana Del Ray)

Track four is…a collab track! 

Swift gave hints about the “Snow on the Beach” track before it was released, saying, “The song is about falling in love with someone at the same time as they’re falling in love with you, sort of in this sort of cataclysmic, fated moment where you realize someone feels exactly the same way that you feel,”. Here are some of the lyrics that demonstrate her feelings:

“This scene feels like what I once saw on a screen

I searched ‘aurora borealis green”

‘Aurora borealis green’ is the most common color for the Northern Lights. Why does Swift sing about this, you may ask? She is possibly comparing her relationship to the beautiful polar lights? This line is up to interpretation. This is also not the first time Swift has sung about films… she included it in her 2020 track off of “Folklore”, “Exile”, in which she sings, 

“I think I’ve seen this film before

And I didn’t like the ending”

She also makes a reference to Janet Jackson, where she sings,

“Now I’m all for you like Janet

Can this be a real thing, can it?”

This is also not the first time Swift has directly referenced fellow celebrities: she gave Drake a shout out on her 2019 track, “I Forgot That You Existed”.

Track 5: You’re On Your Own, Kid

It’s time for one of Taylor’s infamous emotional track five’s! One of the most personal tracks on the album, “You’re On Your Own, Kid” gives us one of Taylor’s famous emotional bridges, but this one in particular was one of the most honest she’s ever written. Let’s take a look!

“I hosted parties and starved my body

Like I’d be saved by a perfect kiss

The jokes weren’t funny

I took the money

My friends from home don’t know what to say”

This verse exemplifies Swift demonstrating a very vulnerable side of her, particularly with her eating disorder that she talks about in her 2020 documentary, “Miss Americana”. Swift opening up about this and her insecurities have come a few times, but never in a verse as powerful as this. The parties she hosted were her infamous Fourth of July parties, which were star-studded for many years until 2017, her last one posted. 

Another lyric that stands out is:

“Everything you lose is a step you take”

Fans have theorized that this lyric is a nod to her album re-recordings. According to “Rolling Stone’s” Daniel Kreps in his 2019 online edition article, Swift lost the masters to her first six albums to Scooter Braun, when her manager Scott Borchetta sold them off for $300 million in 2019. (Read here).  Swift indicated her reasons for re-recording her music in “Billboard” in a 2020 article for Rania Aniftos. Swift has talked previously about the emotional roller-coaster it has been, and the satisfaction she receives from re-recording. “I do want my music to live on,” Swift said.

Track 6: Midnight Rain

Reviewed as one of the most sentimental and touching songs on the album, “Midnight Rain” is a fan favorite. Here are some of the notable lyrics that demonstrate her heavy emotions: 

“He was sunshine, I was midnight rain

He wanted it comfortable

I wanted that pain

He wanted a bride

I was making my own name

Chasing that fame

He stayed the same

All of me changed like midnight”

Who is this mysterious man Swift broke up with for being too nice? There have been many theories, including Tom Hiddleston and Taylor Lautner. 

Another verse that stands out in particular is: 

“It came like a postcard

Picture perfect, shiny family

Holiday, peppermint candy

But for him it’s every day”

Her ex clearly had a life that just didn’t fit in hers at the time. Swift ends the track by breaking up with them to focus on her career. 

Stay tuned in the coming weeks for the next few “Midnights” tracks!