At midnight sharp (Eastern time), Taylor Swift’s tenth studio album Midnights dropped. While the 13 tracks quickly stalled Spotify and sent millions of fans into a frenzy, Taylor was only getting started. Read on to get all the details on Midnights.
The Track List
13 tracks, a new sound, Midnights was full of surprises. With one highly-anticipated feature from Lana Del Ray, this seemingly short tracklist has a lot hidden in it. Working with long-time collaborator Jack Antonoff, there are some other surprise collabs on the album including Zoë Kravitz on “Lavender Haze” and Joe Alwyn (returning as William Bowery on “Sweet Nothings”). Dylan O’Brien is also on this album. The “All Too Well” short film star plays drums on “Snow On The Beach.” Check out the full track-list below.
- Lavender Haze
- Maroon
- Anti-Hero
- Snow On The Beach (feat. Lana Del Ray)
- You’re On Your Own, Kid
- Midnight Rain
- Question…?
- Vigilante Shit
- Bejeweled
- Labyrinth
- Karma
- Sweet Nothing
- Mastermind
A “Very Chaotic Surprise”
While Swifties around the world have been staying up late to watch Taylor’s “Midnight Mayhem with Me” TikTok series for track titles, hunting down Spotify billboards for lyric reveals, and finding clues in the pop star’s every move, Taylor has been building up for even more than the 13-track album reveal she promised.
Midnights came out at midnight and while everyone worked to devour, rank, and theorize about the 44 minutes of new lyrics, they were waiting for what Taylor called a “very chaotic surprise” at 3 o’clock the same morning. Some fans hoped for a dual album (a trend since Taylor’s folklore/evermore surprise releases in 2020), but when the clock struck three, Taylor announced a different kind of deluxe album. Midnights (3am Edition) included seven additional songs that were written during the creation of Midnights. Sleep-deprived fans around the world continued their #midnighTSnosleepover to hear the surprise songs.
Spotify asked listeners to rank the tracks, but we’re not sure it’s possible.
The “Anti-Hero” Music Video
Dedicated US Swifties had to decide if they could continue to manifest energy instead of actually sleeping or try to wake up early for Taylor’s next Midnights event. At 8AM ET Friday morning, Taylor released the first of two music videos coming out over the next week. Written and directed by Taylor, “Anti-Hero” brings the singer’s “nightmare scenarios and intrusive thoughts” to life in a hilarious and, in true Taylor fashion, complex way.
Taylor Nation tweeted “There is no secret encoded message that means something else.” While this is a reference to a scene in the video, it’s also very suspicious. The video is, in fact, seemingly filled with references from sparkling purple and Alice in Wonderland nods that give us a Speak Now feel to ghosts wearing 22 music video glasses.
One More Song (or Three…)
While Taylor’s seven “3am” tracks were a surprise, there are three other tracks streaming Swifties can’t hear yet. The Target-exclusive versions of Midnights are lavender, and the CD includes three bonus tracks. Two are remixes, “You’re On You’re Own, Kid (Strings Remix)” and “Sweet Nothing (Piano Remix).” The third is an entirely new track titled “Hits Different.” While all three of these will likely come to streaming services eventually (we saw a similar wait with folklore and evermore bonus tracks), the song probably does hit different after hunting down the CD.
More to Come
Taylor’s “Midnights Manifest” carries through October 28 with TV appearances and a second music video. Saturday, Sunday, and Wednesday encourage people to pick up the album, listen, and watch the music and lyric videos, and while these might be filler promotion, we can’t help but wonder what might be announced in the meantime. A Midnights tour is likely at the top of the list for incoming Taylor announcements.
