On Friday, April 19, 2024, Taylor Swift’s new album titled The Tortured Poets Department was released to her fandom. She announced this new album at the Grammy Awards on February 4, 2024, in a shocking manner, as most devoted fans expected a re-release of Reputation. After dropping the 16 songs at midnight that she claimed would be on the album, she amazed fans by releasing a surprise 15 additional songs on the album at 2AM. As a huge fan myself, here are my personal top 3 songs off the album and why they are my favorite.
3. “So High School”– In this song, Swift captures the nostalgic feeling of high school love and includes many relatable lyrics as a teenage student. There is a simple, yet catchy melody making the song enjoyable to listen to, and it has an overall happy feel.
2. “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart”– The majority of this song is extremely upbeat, and if you were to just listen to the melody, you may think this is a very positive song. However, there is a deeper meaning behind this song. Swift discusses all she has done during her career whilst simultaneously going through an extremely difficult breakup. There are a few previous songs where Swift uniquely, but skillfully incorporates a happy melody combined with sad lyrics. I feel as though the use of this in the song creates complex emotion that can be relatable for many.
1.” Smallest Man Who Ever Lived”– I believe this song is the best on the album, and one of, if not the best song Taylor Swift has ever written. Swift poured an immeasurable amount of emotion into this song. She uses several different devices including simile, metaphor, imagery, and her word choice throughout the song is incredible. Just the bridge of this song alone is beautiful; you can truly hear the strong emotions in her voice. The instrumentals also help to convey the powerful, strong, and depressing message of the song. Overall, this song is genuinely a lyrical masterpiece.
