The Tortured Poets Department Isn't "Boring"...You're Just Dumb 💋

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welcome back to the department where we talk about the tortured poets department. a MUCH maligned addition to the taylor swift discography....today we're talking about why dumb people don't understand it and why it's the greatest album of all time (kidding) (sort of) anyway this video just came over me like I was speaking in tongues so.....LKDL;SF;K enjoy!!
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[@theswiftologist]

Use code SWIFTOLOGIST100 for $100 off Taylor tickets and SWIFTOLOGIST10 for 10% off tickets on SeatGeek (up to $25 off). seatgeek.onelink.me/RrnK/SWIFTOLOGIST10 Sponsored by SeatGeek

[@Maryb-j5k]

Zach, how can we get tickets now 😢 I’ll buy any code or app or anything that helps… I never received the code for Toronto shows and the stadium is 10 mins to my apartment … and she is performing on my birthday on Nov. 23rd!!! The fact that I don’t have tickets is just such a shame 😢

[@tebNsf]

Sacramento for Evolution of a Snake live. It's near the Bay Area but closer to me 🫶 It's easy to travel with a rental car, but I would even drive you if there is enough planning. I'm on Patreon but not Discord yet. If you just go to SF, I'll go there as well! Please don't just do LA. That would be sad. Looking forward to seeing your show 🎉

[@morellinaty]

Best video ever. Wow. Thank you!

[@disneyjunkie19]

“Chloe or Sam hasn’t cracked 100 million streams on Spotify” Well yes! Madeline uses Apple Music!

[@Svenny21]

Hahaha😂

[@Stphndotexe]

Saaaame! 😭😂

[@notcaresse]

madeleine has taste ! we’re not shocked

[@dianaidis2427]

That is such a remarkable song, it’s sooo beautiful, so underrated

[@richmaxmchalliwchester1984]

It´s on 94 million, predicted to reach 100 million on November 8.

[@joannakossmann4482]

This is the best, most comprehensive TTPD review out there. Thank you, Swiftologist.

[@theswiftologist]

Glad you liked it!

[@coriingram5223]

How Did It End is such a sleeper hit in my opinion. The commentary not only on how Taylor views the public interacting with her relationships but how she struggles to feel the need to perform in her heartbreak. The imagery that’s presented in the song has such a particular emotion laced through the song. 1000/10

[@junainahrahman4156]

The most heartbreaking song she wrote imo (sorry All Too Well)

[@Maryb-j5k]

It’s honestly a masterpiece… Before this my first contender was Would’ve Could’ve Should’ve, but this song is even better 😢 and the bridge …

[@TheLizard199]

It’s also something that so many people can relate to. How many people end relationships that were long or gone through divorce and they just think of everyone who was at their wedding and what they would say or think knowing it ended so soon

[@jackielehman8945]

10,000%

[@robertov.dibisceglia7887]

I fully agree with this! The only thing that annoys me is that it feels so "buried" within the album. But the song is, wow, it's timeless.

[@AugustSlippedAway15]

Tortured Poets is the most beautifully haunting & sad albums - I never get bored of it. It really has a hold on me that only maybe 3 other albums have. It’s raw and real and relatable. When an album can make you feel so many things each time you play it - you know it’s a masterpiece.

[@LD-tn6ff]

What are the other three albums?

[@Li_Tobler]

It really is her magnum opus, the poetry on this album is unmatched for me so far

[@TheJenGordon]

This is the album that turned me into a legit fan. It's beautiful and haunting, and I just listened to the whole thing earlier today 🤷‍♀️

[@crystalkadletc1944]

one of my friends is introducing herself to Taylor, and I told her she needs to listen to ll her previous albums before diving into tortured Poets.

[@asum-]

We're finally getting some JUSTICE for Mother's Masterpiece (not that she's needs validation~)

[@claires8935]

@asum- "we're finally getting justice for mother's masterpiece" these are the superior spirits, great appreciatiors of complex art who are calling us unintelligent? Thank you for the compliment.

[@finslaw]

Taylor absolutely needs validation. Why do you think she cares so much about awards and her album staying at #1.

[@prariepryer3119]

JUSTICE 👏

[@lunawolf6288]

Justice ❤

[@Claire-c4s2i]

Almost 6 months and I'm still listening to it non-stop. And so many of my fellow middle-aged women are also obsessed with it!

[@TheAnaceciliadmmm]

Me, 47, listening non stop

[@AshleyShamos]

I think you hit it exactly! Taylor grew up so much on her last few albums, and TTPD was the one that not only connected with an older demographic but brought in people who were not previously fans from that same demographic. I have loved seeing it.

[@tayluvofficial]

Just turned 23 today!🎉❤

[@christiehamm6069]

Me, 57, same damn boat. It’s a masterpiece.

[@katvz857]

Yes, same at 43. It’s on repeat…

[@bettys_cardigan13]

i said it once i'll say it again ttpd is for the dear reader girlies.

[@theswiftologist]

WELL YESSSSSSS some of us got it then!!!

[@LimeSlimeee]

THAT'S ME I'm a guy though but whatever

[@Aleee89]

@@LimeSlimeee no you are a girlie. Everyone's a girlie when it comes to understanding Taylor Swift. And we should embrace that side of us.

[@Urlocalswiftie1989]

EXACTLYYYYYYYYYYYYY

[@lizzi7128]

I must be an anomaly..Casual listener but I heard this album and haven't been able to stop listening. Utterly obsessed. Anything but boring for me.

[@theogsg5648]

I love TTPD so much. It is a grief album and people who cannot understand that are lucky they never experienced it. I appreciate Taylor for letting us in on the raw insanity grief in all its manifestations can cause, it doesn’t really matter if you lose someone to a breakup or death. We are all insane here and I love Taylor for being one of us despite all our differences.

[@jackiefiedler2171]

love the way u worded this💞

[@sebastianbenavidesmorales2274]

i been saying it since the album came out, releasing such a complex, long, melancholic and depressing album in the middle of her new career peek before summer and during a world tour was NOT playing it safe, she really took a huge risk, taylor could've easily booked max martin to produce her a pop record filled with radio songs, something easy to listen to for the casuals fans that were buying tickets to the eras tour, but instead she wanted to show us a really vulnerable side filled with dark confessions. almost to remind us that yes even tho i'm a huge star and my life seems perfect, i'm actually very flawed, i have insecurites and my love life is a mess, that's what i love about the album she's not holding back and giving us everything that was on her mind during such a chaotic moment in her life.

[@robertov.dibisceglia7887]

I actually really love this take. I'll admit, TTPD had to grow on me a little bit, and I do believe some of her best songs are on here! What I personally would've wished from it was it to have a bit more distinct production to define the TPPD era. Perhaps the stripped down, simple tones were part to accentuate the vulnerability and realness, but it also made it feel a bit faded and outdated. Especially the first part of the album has songs I skip the most. I feel like Taylor's voice in some of these songs, it felt to me like, it was trying to summon some sounds that were a bit more, classic Taylor? But they never came. Also the songwriting felt more classic Taylor but matured (pre 1989) in some cases. Which makes me so sad that the sound felt like dampened Midnights? Also Who's Afraid Of Little Old Me needed a bigger punch in the sound scape. I went to the Era's tour and the TTPD part was incredible because it did so much more with the music to bring it all to life. Other songs are perfect, like Guilty as Sin or How Did It End and others. But I can't shake the feeling, mostly the first part of the album, feeling incomplete and needing a bit more time. That's how I also feel about Florida!!! I really wanted something more, something I didn't feel in any of her other albums. I could list the songs but with how divided everyone is about this album within the fandom it's really hard to pinpoint what's going on exactly. Perhaps the cohesiveness is missing. Maybe that was the point as you said.. I don't know. It makes me feel like it could've been better with a few edits and rewrites, but she didn't have the time to do so. It's a really unsatisfying feeling to have.

[@DefineObsessed]

3:59 "I don't mean that in a derogatory way (for Reputation)" It's not a Swiftologist video without Lover slander, ATE🎉

[@cardiganweather]

And is it really slander if it's true?

[@Fantasyandmusiclover]

As an English teacher who truly views this entire album front to back as a poetry portfolio that requires analyzing and reanalyzing to grasp, this video could not be more welcome 🙏🏻 I have at this point given up on the masses ever appreciating this as it should be appreciated, but at least we have Swiftologist!

[@creamkookie5932]

As a fellow English teacher, I concur!

[@tayluvofficial]

How much you be making? And how? Unemployment is at its peak.

[@rachelkibler5812]

Now that it’s fall I’ve been back on my TTPD obsession. I keep discovering new things even though I’ve listed to the whole album an obscene number of times

[@theswiftologist]

it KEEPS giving

[@nouhs8410]

Lowkey, I think if Taylor held off to release the Anthology until sad girl Autumn, the people would be eating it up right now

[@meirberg17]

@@nouhs8410agreed

[@summerchild_]

The 'her antagonist are not there to defend themselves' critisim is soooo stupid. What is she supposed to do? Work it out in the remix with Kim Kardashian?

[@theswiftologist]

KALDSKLFDNJDSGFKSD yeah lets give the illustrious singer of JAM a go!

[@sarahk2924]

I find it a very flimsy argument as while they are clearly not there while she’s writing/recording, they are all public figures who could easily put out their sides on it.

[@autumhughes553]

I saw this comment on Reddit. Apologies for length but I think it’s the only way of showing the absurdity: “I think you are right, The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived is her cruelest song and one the cruelest songs ever. When Dylan wrote Like A Rolling Stone about Edie Sedgwick's addiction, and she much later ended dying of an overdose, that's a pretty damn mean spirited song. Nobody ever batted an eye. Here we know who it is and he has been put on blast in a way that has never been seen before: world wide social media blast, on deeply personal details that are a betrayal of confidence. People have unalived themselves for much less. The only reason I guess I care, which I didn't when it was the other "predators", is I followed his band and music looking into it, after the Friedland podcast controversey. He is many things, including a great writer, artist. Hes also shown a kind side to him. He was bullied in his youth for his "flamboyant" nature, read sexual ambiguity, not for being an egdelord. Maybe he had enuff. Near the end of his tour he stopped a show, asked the audience to not record and he described his mental health struggle at that time. How is a human being supposed to handle this kind of millions, world wide evisceration? Is he supposed to fire back, revealing deeply personal, embarrassing things about Taylor? At what point does this become cruel, bullying behaviour? None of the reviews even mention this. The 2 antagonists are dehumanized, they have no feelings, no complex artist personality mix of good and bad, just sacrificial lambs to be slaughtered and consumed, with no regard to their own mental health, their lives, their well being.” The “no one has been put on blast like this before” is especially funny when Taylor herself has gone through a similar situation and it was arguably worse for her since she was way more innocent.

[@cakt1991]

@@autumhughes553 people really are delusional in their takes, trying to turn Taylor into a villain for speaking her truth. With all the talk about Justin Timberlake and his behavior toward Britney resurfacing, I saw *so* many comments like, “why is Justin being called out for how he ‘humiliated’ Britney, but no one ever called out Taylor for doing the same to her exes?” Never mind that Taylor hasn’t done what Justin has, nor could she. And people fail to see how, in there are so many parallels between Britney and Taylor, both in their relationships with media and fame, and how that fame impacts their private lives and ability to form genuine, lasting relationships with prospective romantic partners. It’s the lack of nuance and inability to acknowledge a woman’s genuine hurt, unless they “perform” it in a way that serves the narrative, as Edie and Britney supposedly did. Taylor refuses to do that, and she should be respected for her brutal honesty.

[@autumhughes553]

@@cakt1991 They actually left multiple comments and it gets worse: “I felt bad for both Healy and Swift the way this was frenzied on social media, but if I love someone, or in a relationship, there is an understanding you keep the secrets in confidence. Would it be OK for Healy to team up with Styles and Mayer and write a scathing song, revealing deep embarrassing secrets and labeling her a con artist without being required to back it up? I dont think it would be. For what it's worth, Healy isn't a conman. He may be a dreamer, he might be bohemian, he may be be avoidant, but he isn't a conman. I know, parasocial, none of us really know him, but conman? You know it when you see it. Mostly.” Like no?? You actually don’t know him more than Taylor Swift, the one who actually dated him? The audacity is insane.

[@ImpulsivePursuits]

As a semi casual fan, I'll say that TTPD even without its lore makes sense. It's a hearbreak album. I didnt think too much about who it was about but so many scenarios she wrote about (guilty as sin, i look through people's windows and I hate it here) resonate with me even devoid of any context. With taylor, she writes so well that people want to dig deeper. I've seen this happen on various reaction videos of people who dont listen to her. They want to know more. It just grabs their full attention. Another thing is that most pop songs are just fluff. 99% of pop songs are just great melodies but the lyrics make little to no sense. But Taylor's talent lies in the fact that she can do both. Good song writing and great melodies. 16:07

[@gayamarina]

Yeah I'd say TTPD is full Bob Dylan

[@sweetswiftie13]

Midnights ROBBED TTPD of winning AOTY next year 😭😭

[@theswiftologist]

well yes

[@GustavoOliveira-uv7fc]

I doubt ttpd won’t get AOTY

[@finslaw]

Robbed implies TTPD deserves it. No.

[@monsemora2964]

Yeees sadly

[@GustavoOliveira-uv7fc]

@@sweetswiftie13 TTPD will get it guys, ✌️ take it easy

[@antepolic1881]

I wasn't much of a Taylor Swift fan before (Lana Del Rey's video essays got me into your channel). This album sucked me in and made me a fan. And your videos really served as a map for me to navigate through that unknown landscape. Thank you very much for that!

[@theswiftologist]

my pleasure!!

[@4.9.a.l.i.7.7]

not to be a hater, but honestly this album cemented me leaving the fandom. i was already barely listening to her or much pop music at all in the months before ttpd, but i thought maybe it would bring me back into it. imo very disappointing and not at all my thing :/ i dont think its a terrible album but i agree with what fantano said about it fs.

[@junainahrahman4156]

​@@4.9.a.l.i.7.7goodbye 👋

[@highperformer5532]

@@4.9.a.l.i.7.7 Fantano simply didn't get it. Anyway, it's ok not to like her music, especially ttpd, the best description of which is "her vomiting from being lovesick".

[@Li_Tobler]

@@4.9.a.l.i.7.7 that's SO funny for me to read because I'm literally the exact opposite. TTPD was the last drop to finally PULL me into the fandom and get interested deeper than the ultra-popular songs

[@itsgabbycameron]

TTPD does something I have never seen a pop artist do, illuminate the back catalogue and send their listeners backward looking for more context to the story. I think this plays into the themes you mentioned of having to look backward in order to move forward. She has been weaving this story over the course of the last four albums. As a musicologist, songwriter, & popular music scholar myself, TTPD is a contemporary literary masterpiece. I also feel that it is sonically her most adventurous record-even more than Red.

[@iwascleopatra99]

i was just watching this masterpiece of a video when my mom comes in (we love watching your videos together) and she says “oh it’s the brilliant man with the flawless skin! what’s he have to say today??” the swiftologist is truly a favorite in our household 😂💓 and amazing video as per usual. ttpd deflects the wrong people and draws in the ones who are wiling to look deeper. i think that’s its charm.

[@avavaughn5086]

i love your mom and this take

[@iwascleopatra99]

@@avavaughn5086 awwhh thanks haha 💓

[@theswiftologist]

a family affair PERIODT!! xx

[@amarvera]

TTPD is the conclusion to the story that began with Folklore: yearning for a past love, idealizing it, and then getting hit with the harsh reality when you realize none of it worked out in the end. It's been a sad, tragic, but very real ending. Because life is what it is, not what we wish it would be. Just like she said when talking about Fortnight, you have a dream you've always wanted to achieve, and in the end, it doesn’t come true, and you have to live with that for the rest of your life. But... you have to move on. A lot of people can relate to that. Me included. It's been quite an experience to listen to and definitely one of my favorites.

[@sarafreitas6988]

YES! I had so many questions since Folklore and TTPD really closes that chapter for me.

[@colekayve]

I feel this album is one of her best works. And this video is the confidence boost I needed to fight the brain dead masses

[@theswiftologist]

well yes!!

[@masterswordwielder]

I'm gonna be honest, I really would appreciate to not be called brain dead for not liking one Taylor Swift album. I listened to all Taylor albums except Speak Now, self-titled, Evermore and Lover, and TTPD is the one album I dislike that many songs of.

[@colekayve]

@@masterswordwielder it's okay babes. You're entitled to your opinion I was clearly not being serious. Calling someone brain dead, unironically for music taste is insane.

[@colekayve]

@@masterswordwielder Genuinely Sorry I hurt your feelings tho. I hope you know I was not being serious gurlie

[@dansandersss]

@@masterswordwielderyou listen to ALL of Taylor’s albums except HALF of them. That’s kinda insane

[@eronblue3098]

"It was around my 50th spin of 'Guilty As Sin' that I realized TTPD is the greatest album ever made." - Swiftologist, 2024 LITERALLY THE SAME EXPERIENCE

[@cniddy7228]

Taylor’s emotional intelligence and vulnerability is a gift! I see a link between MBOBHFT and so high school where she describes herself as a shiny new toy that her love interest mistreats. She sadly reminisces saying “you should’ve seen him when he first saw me” and brings it back later saying “tell me ‘bout the first time you saw me”. She’s shiny and new again, but for how long?

[@darylesese]

Now why would you say this???

[@dq8431]

@@darylesese right? now im sad

[@lvjinx4384]

I don’t usually leave comments or compliment people, but I have to say this. You’re one of the most talented critics, writers, and creators on this platform. I truly appreciate your smart, witty, and underrated commentary. Also English isn’t my first language, and even though I consume a lot of English content, you’re my favorite creator to catch the most intriguing phrasing and vocabulary from.

[@theswiftologist]

Thank you so much 😀

[@saucydragonfly]

This is why I appreciate you and you’re one of the only three Taylor Swift commentators I listen to. You get it… and even if you don’t appreciate something (by Taylor or any other artist) you’re willing to revisit, review and reconsider. As someone who lived through the Rumours era when Fleetwood Mac broke up, I’ve been saying this. It was considered at the time to be completely messy and too intimate. I laugh now when I see articles that claim it was an immediate smash and how it garnered widespread acclaim - because it took months (in a completely different listening and radio play landscape) but the point of making it was to work through the emotions the band members were experiencing. BTW - would love your take on Rumours. History has been rewritten. It won AOTY and opinions were changed! I think history will treat TTPD the same, any negativity we are seeing in 2024 will be erased from the narrative in the coming years. Thanks for another thoughtful essay.

[@deborahhenderson3151]

I’ve always considered Rumours , Hotel California, and Running On Empty to be the trifecta of music. I feel so fortunate to have grown up in that era. I wish we had Taylor Swift then.

[@saucydragonfly]

@@deborahhenderson3151 You’re right about that Deborah. I wanted to touch on it a bit but didn’t want to write a huge essay in the comments!! But let’s talk about the cross pollination between songwriters and producers that happened back then, and now everyone whines about Jack working with Taylor and Lana. History literally repeats itself!

[@sassy6498]

Yessss the Flertwood Mac Rumours are the parallel and influence of TTPD.She was going through a very messy period and was written the songs as it was happening.

[@FraserM27]

DIVA you excavated this so thoroughly.. BELLISIMO. This really gave me some fresh ways to consider the album.. thank you for always brightening the dread of a Sunday afternoon!! ❤️❤️

[@theswiftologist]

You are so welcome!

[@enzmondo]

“Reputation and Lover were overproduced. And I don’t mean that in a derogatory way for Reputation” IJBOL

[@spellhex6213]

I really have been returning to Tortured Poets in the last couple of months, and I wouldn’t be mad if it won album of the year this year at the Grammys.

[@Goat.Cheese]

I don't think it will because Midnights won last year and people thought it didn't deserve it (Including me lol). I think if she wins this year, too, then there will be a lot of angry people.

[@spellhex6213]

@@Goat.Cheese It will definitely anger a lot of people, so I also don’t know if it’s going to win album of the year.

[@finslaw]

I have returned to it too, but still feel it would have been better if she made just one album out of it. As it is, it is not AOTY.

[@Aleee89]

it would (and should) if it wasn't for Midnights... sadly.

[@richmaxmchalliwchester1984]

@@finslaw Taylor did submit only standard version of the album, first 16 songs. None of the songs on The Anthology will have an influences in voting process.

[@canlyhansen1588]

The album grew on me. I feel like the production was tuned down in order to showcase the lyricism, cause... the songs are actually poems.

[@deborahhenderson3151]

TTPD is the best and most honest album that Taylor has done. She said she had to do this record. She has come to see herself and all her flaws. She’s a grown woman and wants to live her own life. It took a while for me to get into the words because I was so taken by the music. Over all, she’s saying I’ve finished the manuscript, here it is. It’s finished. Now I will live my life the way I want to. It is a masterpiece. I’m always glad to see you talk about Joan Didion. I would by magazines just because she had a story or article in them. I didn’t think I could survive the death of my father until I had The Year of Magical Thinking. You and Madeline are the best.

[@theswiftologist]

the year of magical thinking is a true salve xx

[@Im_Julissa]

@@deborahhenderson3151 Taylor liked to present personal“grown,” in most albums like red, reputation, 1989, Lover, etc. Yet she keeps making the same mistakes and same songs about leaving a toxic life and starting fresh. That’s the same pattern she’s been doing for her ENTIRE career TTPD is another chapter of Taylors toxic lifestyle and messy boy drama

[@toan3207]

This is one of the most thoughtful and expansive video essays I’ve ever encountered, in regards to Tortured Poets. So thankful for your view on the matter, you are a true professional!

[@theswiftologist]

my pleasure!! xx

[@lins_z2]

I still can’t get over the hate that “I hate it here” received. Is one of the songs that I’ve identified the most. All my life I just thought this world is just too cold and harsh for me, and I was just defective and an alien, that would rather just stay in my room making up worlds of my own. I was told in therapy yesterday I’m autistic and “I hate it here” just encompasses that experience so well.

[@philly_14]

I hate it here got hate??😟😟

[@lins_z2]

@@philly_14 yeah, the line “We wished we could live in instead of this I'd say the 1830s but without all the racists and getting married off for the highest bid” Was taken out of context and people thought she was romanticizing that era, which is so far from the meaning of that part.

[@buahahaevillaugh1113]

Hot take here: TTPD not being edited and it feeling like a rant, presenting her more unpolished and raw, was 100% intentional. Because she was in a very dark place emotionally, struggling with her self image, but also because she realized the levels of fame she's reached were interfering with her life and she hasn't had a normal life, like ever. I think she wanted the album to be controversial while honest, so the audience would either get the message or scatter. Either way, to me it looked like an attempt at making her fan base less suffocating, which kinda worked, to a reasonable extent.

[@justhere-uu6mw]

She did say she needed to write this and that can be interpreted by us in different ways now after listening to it multiple times it is clear what she really meant and yeah

[@annaphallactic]

This album was something she needed to get out of her system before she could move on with her life, just like Ratty

[@tjohannam]

Well said. I also think the un-editness mirrors her "temporary insanity" so well.

[@nickybull2361]

I completely agree with you! At this point she can afford to lose a few of the Sarah’s and Hannah’s so she might as well go full psycho on us and see who is real enough to stick around 😂 I really appreciated the raw honesty even when it portrayed herself badly. Relatable queen!

[@DozyRoseyPosey]

Yeah, I really get this feeling in Who's Afraid of Little Old Me, she's going to lash out and if you're one of the suffocating fans, or overbearing press, stupid enough to be in her way you're going to get hurt. Edit to add: by lasing out, I mean she released an album that's incomprehensible to such people.

[@toribellmar7623]

i find it both amusing and annoying that those ‘casual’ listeners who had infiltrated when folklore and evermore dropped and were running around saying ‘ah yes NOW I listen to Taylor Swift BUT ONLY THOSE TWO ALBUMS ARE GOOD I DONT DO HER OTHER STUFF I AM SO NOT LIKE THAT’ are now being all bitter and ‘missing her good music era’ when it is her good music era. TTPD is as complex as folklore/evermore and IF she had presented it as an album about imaginary scenarios in her head again, I KNOW it would’ve gotten a completely different reaction instead of ‘loOk sHe’S siNGinG aBouT exes AgaIN hoW obsessED and bOring’. those fake deep music carnivores are a plague! get a job! stay away from her!

[@rays_choice]

This 💯. If she had said I made up these songs about scenarios people would have eaten them up

[@cc1526]

Also, stop buying all our concert tickets 😭 (I know, vipers, it’s Ticketmaster’s fault - but there’s something to say about the price/demand dynamic here for resale)

[@Chinni_C888]

I think an underrated moment of TTPD is that she gives names to these random people in "Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus." Unlike the hypothetical "internet starlet" and the caricatures that are "Sarah and Hannah in their Sunday best," these are unrelated and unoffensive people to her. It's like the simple fact that he would "have his hands in their hair" grounded her so hard that she felt at level with them, and made her jealous just enough to start speculating about who they were. Like she's just another crazed fan.

[@WolfGirlie3]

I interpret the “what if I roll the stone away” as yet another Christian reference on the record. When Jesus rose from the dead he rolled the stone away that was enclosing his tomb, entering the world again as New. To me Taylor is saying she might as well rebirth herself in a way, re enter the public as who she truly wants to be with her lover, because whether it’s old her or new her they will both be “crucified”

[@DozyRoseyPosey]

Yes, I was coming here to comment on this. If I remember right, Jesus had appeared to a couple of women, risen and alive back from the dead, but the tomb was still closed, so to the rest of the world his body was still cold locked in the tomb. What happened was his disciples came and rolled the stone away to show the tomb was empty, Jesus' body was not there, confirming he had risen. So I think the metaphor of rolling the stone is Taylor thinking 'I know this love is alive again, what if I make it public, they're all going to roast me whatever I do, so why not date the smallest man that ever lived'.

[@springsteen4ever]

@@DozyRoseyPoseyone hundred percent

[@AshleyShamos]

That was a masterpiece of a video 👏. Nearly everything you said was spot on. TTPD is absolutely Taylor’s best album and nothing else like it was written this year or maybe ever. The way this one hits, the emotion in the lyrics, the way she is so unapologetic; it’s hard to try to explain to anyone the journey that TTPD is, but you may have come very close. Love love love!

[@Laef_dream]

The way this album was so deranged it plunged the general audience into chaos….it’s truly next level IT girl

[@livelurklaugh]

Swiftologist giving flowers to COSOSOM and The Manuscript? we cheered

[@MarthaFrijoles-el8ur]

They destroying you on Twitter for this lmfaoooo

[@whospeter-e8z]

"the forced branding of this album being 'only for intelligent people' is so fucking stupid" LMAOOOO

[@zoen.9872]

@@whospeter-e8zthat’s where i just came from lmao

[@gabe1989red]

does twitter opinion matter tho?

[@theswiftologist]

and? I'm their favorite person. I breathe and they're mad, despite me not being on that platform at all. at the end of the day....their traffic makes me money :) thank you twitter for the engagement!!

[@whospeter-e8z]

@@zoen.9872 it's 42k likes now ijbollllll 💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀

[@manouka]

I think people don’t listen to the title enough. The tortured poets department. it’s so unserious yet accurate and it’s her grappling with not taking herself too seriously while dealing with some very serious issues. And at the end of the day yes getting your heartbroken also feels serious and that’s what matters to the art (like what you said on emotional truth). everyone do your reading x

[@DozyRoseyPosey]

It's like when she said that she can take a feeling she has for four seconds and turn it into a 4 min song (paraphrasing) but here she turned it into a double album.

[@coolwizardname]

for me an unsung hero on ttpd is peter. once again using leftover imagery from folklore (peter losing wendy), and the cosmic written-in-the-stars of it all (underneath the same moon, in different galaxies). imo peter is a beautiful emotional well of longing and wondering and agonizingly self-aware heartbreak that deserves more flowers.

[@livyarondon6126]

It’s my favorite! 1 - TTPD 2 - folklore 3 - Evermore ...Then the songs from the vaults ❤

[@highperformer5532]

1 - folklore 2 - Red 3 - TTPD

[@AshleyShamos]

That’s a solid top 3!

[@greerclemons1224]

Ok.. I am probably what true Swifties would call a casual listener… I only really discovered her when Midnights came out because I kind of stumbled upon it, and then went back and listened to her older stuff and ended up really liking most of it… I don’t know the lore, I don’t know who she dated, etc… but I LOVE TTPD! Even without knowing all that stuff or what it’s about, I think it’s my favorite album because it’s beautiful.

[@mistertunk9132]

One of my favorite moments is the bridge from "How did it end?" Say it once again with feeling How the death rattle breathing Silenced as the soul was leaving The deflation of our dreaming Leaving me bereft and reeling My beloved ghost and me Sitting in a tree D-Y-I-N-G It has so many layers and very haunting (and medically accurate) visual metaphors about death, dying, and the end of an (already dead) relationship, and how it leaves you feeling dead on the inside.

[@emile20]

it gets better and better and every season it ends up on my playlists. This album is the best of the year no question and her honesty and fraught gnawing and desperate energy at time is the rawest portrayal of being in love/ out of it and growing

[@mushroomhehe370]

this album (like a lot of taylor's albums) is aging so well. while her competitors in the charts are having their summer moments, she's leaving a legacy.

[@dunnowhat2say566]

CoSoSoM has my whole heart, i am so grateful for taylor for releasing it and not thinking who in the hell could even relate to this song because of how specific it is

[@DatingDisaster]

The way I would happily listen to your video essays even if they were 12 hours long😭😭😭

[@EvanThomas-b2m]

I could listen to you talk about But Daddy I Love Him for weeks on end!!!! you've always gotten it and I feel so validated whenever you talk about it

[@mandmified17]

“I can fix him (no really I can)” is genuinely one of my favorites. The country flare and outlaw imagery ties in so well with “Fresh out the slammer”. I also think of it as a bit of a sister song/sequel to “Cowboy Like Me”

[@mistahmago]

when the SWIFTOLOGIST posts, the DIVAS are seated🤭. i simply cannot get ENOUGH of your content. it’s so well thought out. also on an unrelated note i learn like 20 new words when i watch your videos (thesaurus who?😜)period diva 💅😽✨

[@Mother_is_Mothering306]

FINALLY THIS MESSAGE IS BEING SPREAD THIS LITERALLY AN AMAZING ALBUM AND ITS NOT ALL “sad and boring” AND THE SLOWER SONGS ARE STILL AMAZING AND EMOTIONAL

[@tp4055]

It’s honestly scary how…. stupid…. people are these days 😭 going to bat for 143 and calling TTPD a flop isn’t just a bad opinion, it’s an insult to the world of art.

[@Chinni_C888]

Moment of silence for the Katy Cats, who apparently have been working overtime on the internet this past few weeks 🖤🙏📿

[@Theaterkid510]

I feel like TTPD would not be so hated if Taylor didn't write it. I can't believe that people need to remember to separate the art from the artist when the artist didn't do enough to need to be separated from the art.

[@springsteen4ever]

ONE TRILLION PERCENT. If Taylor’s name wasn’t starched to it, it would have been immensely well received and admired.

[@elizaday]

Or I feel like if it wasn’t mostly about Matty Healy

[@bluedolphin814]

Commenting before finishing the video lol but 1:05 I really saw ttpd as a modern version of Red (and to a lesser extent speak now) too! There’s something about the raw confessional songwriting that Taylor hasn’t fully explored since those albums and ttpd is really a return to form Edit: 3:59 “and I don’t mean that in a derogatory way for reputation” LMAOOO you’ll always stay shading lover

[@theswiftologist]

i'll never change but i'll never say the same either - taylor swift (and me rn)

[@hermionegranger4837]

It is long, but it’s not a problem. Did I need a break to process everything? Absolutely, but still slaps

[@ytuser392]

I so LOVE TTPD!! As soon as I listened to fortnight I actually related to it quite a bit! Imo it depicts very well the rambling state one can get into when experiencing unrequited love! All these thoughts haunting your mind at any given time of the day that don't make sense to anyone but you continue to see them due to your suffering for not being able to be with this person, and then you want to call them and you imagine them wanting to call you too, all very confused like a tornado of feelings, wanting to forgive but also being terribly down, then jealousy comes up, then the feeling this will never end and you'll continue seeing this person forever just never with you...That's the way I interpreted the song, as this crazy chaotic combination of feelings and thoughts.

[@DefineObsessed]

Tayvoodoo at work: Loosing him was Blue: (1989, Midnight) Missing him was Dark Grey: (TTPD) Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met: (Lover, Folklore, Evermore) Loving him was Red: (Rep)

[@shar3859]

YOOO

[@tinamardt7734]

That final pleading “Please” at the end of The Prophecy is so emotional

[@tennisfan1706]

You’re so right! The thing about tortured poets that KEEPS GIVING is that it’s so complex and poetic that as you said, no one could possibly take it in and get it all at once. It’s po-e-tic. Duh. The album title is actually perfect. Guilty as sin has to be the most perplexing, astonishing song to me. Ugh so good!

[@canlyhansen1588]

After I watched the making of Please Please Please interview w/ Jack, I understand more about the making of the albums he produced. Jack WAS involved in making those productions and the final product was what indeed what they planned. Now, what I need is the artistic explanation/discussion behind the making of the album. We haven't had that for multiple albums now...

[@VioletaFolgarait]

Chloe or Sam or Sophie or Marcus is so my FAVORITE song from the album so THANK YOU!!!! it resonates as such a stream of consciousness in the way it sounds but still so full of pointedly painful realizations..... soooo good!!!

[@the_piano_nerd4960]

Preach. I would argue it’s the best song on the whole double album. Unsung hero with excellent storytelling, efficient and evocative lyrics, and walks the line between revealing just enough but not too much

[@DozyRoseyPosey]

Yes, she wondered, he wondered, and her world was torn apart.

[@Tess7]

The way you articulate you’re thoughts is impressive. I loved your thoughts on I Hate it Here and especially, The Prophecy. I will overlook your opinion on Who’s Afraid lol 😊 Great video

[@Im_Julissa]

TTPD is Taylor’s attempt of making another Folklore But it gives a mix of RED, Rep, Midnights together which makes it nothing new or interesting I think Taylor can do better tbh 😅

[@Reputationdino]

never be afraid to share your opinion as long as its respectful and informed 🩷🩷🩷good on u

[@tayluvofficial]

I honestly do not think she really intended that. It's always been a very upbeat album but with sadder lyrics. much like Red. And we knew that by the prologue and tracklist. You're just a hate.r

[@mbthebookworm]

I have to say I agree with every word. this album is actual art.

[@tabathaarria9558]

when we said that taylor has a song for every occurrence in your life, we were NOT exaggerating. when taylor said "i can't get out of bed cause something counterfeit's dead", on god i have been there. i was like "girl you too??" i love this idea that sews all the songs in ttpd together: that love is a life ruiner. she didn't write love in this album as this magical, miracle, beautiful thing. even in songs like but daddy i love him or so high school, there's still something ominous hiding underneath ("are you gonna marry, kiss, or kill me? (...) i'm betting on all three for us two"). this album was written by someone who was temporarily insane, and it shows. we were in the mental hospital fr

[@mathey5558]

I ABSOLUTELY loved this one cause TTPD is really a grower due to delicate details and brilliant writing that not everyone will understand! Keep up the good work Zach❤

[@tinewordsmith126]

I noticed that most of the haters in the comment say "it's boring because the production is not as big". What they don't get is this album is like 80% lyrical showcase, 20% production. I think skibidi toilet and tiktok really fried some people's attention spans and critical thinking. Someone here said that "sanctimoniously performing soliloquies I'll never see" is pedantic and redundant. Uhmm no. Redundant? How? Pedantic? No, because the words perfectly captivate the gravity of the situation: the people dictating her life act sanctimonious and they post soliloqual rants about her life that she will never see anyway and never read and never heed. Now, what is so pedantic and redundant about that? Btw, i have a swiftie friend who has an aunt who hates taylor. Her Aunt heard ttpd for the first time and had no idea who was singing it and she loved it. If she knew TS was singing, she would've gone ahead and bashed the album asap. 😅

[@scorespin9794]

The problem is that "80% lyrics showcase, 20% production" is a recipe for a weak album. Production is significantly more important than lyrics when it comes to music. It's the music itself. If you want to focus on writing, write a book. If you want to make music, make music. Good lyricism can absolutely enhance a record, but the production is essential to a songs strength. If you focus 80% of your efforts on the lyrics, you end up with a pretty but structurally weak song. The foundation (good production) is what make the track strong, and THEN you can decorate it with pretty lyrics if you feel so inclined.

[@Philosophicalavocado]

clock their tea! but idc anymore, i know what the album means to me and i'm grateful for all the 31 songs, it's in my top 5 of her discography even. a masterclass in storytelling

[@creepypapermultipack]

I was SO WORRIED you weren’t going to mention I Hate It Here when we were approaching the end because I KNOW you relate to it and then you added it on and I was so relieved! As a fellow writer and dreamer myself it felt like she was digging through my brain when I first heard it because daydreaming has been my greatest escape through childhood trauma and beyond. And the analysis on The Prophecy?!? Spot on. I truly feel it’s her most vulnerable song to date. These might be my two favorite songs from the whole double album, but definitely from the second half. Honestly, the analysis of all of these songs was *chef’s kiss* Zach

[@MM-dw4ew]

I cannot for the life of me get behind I Can Do It With A Broken Heart. It‘s full of lore but sonically it‘s the definition of a bleep bloop song to me and it sounds like a kids bop

[@yadiraduarte8622]

Not a swiftie but I dig you a lot. After a while of watching, you say we share the same favorite writer. Things are making sense :)

[@ItsCatrissa]

I have barely listened to anything else but TTPD since its release. It is meaty, it is lengthy, but it is everything that I needed to hear. I find new things out of it to appreciate all of the time.

[@MimSou]

Proud to say here that the bolter and the prophecy were part of my favorites, especially the prophecy, since the beginning ❤

[@Asakyoshi]

32 seconds ago??? I AM SEATED THIS EARLY

[@alekseyharitonenko8241]

I wouldn’t say *The Tortured Poets Department* is Taylor’s best album by any stretch. But somehow, I can’t stop listening to it-nearly the whole thing, too. Here’s my potentially unpopular take: if you didn’t like TTPD, you might not really like Taylor Swift’s music. And that’s not a knock on you-it’s perfectly fine to not like something. But maybe you’ve misread her and her music to begin with. And when she hands you a hot, messy, unfiltered version of herself, that raw, “real” Taylor Swift-suddenly you’re cringing and clutching your pearls.

[@capobvious]

Thank you for this! I love TTPD and the anthology and it breaks my heart to see so much negativity around it... I love your deep dives - you really see the depth in the art beyond just the drama

[@zldeks]

if you wanna read some real good lyricism and not this “we declared charlie puth should be a bigger artist” bs then check out Fiona Apple

[@survivorbest4589]

Cherry picking one line out of context is not a fair way to analyse lyrics. The title track works but people don't get the making fun of herself part of the lyrics...

[@zldeks]

@@survivorbest4589 “touch me while your bros play grand theft auto” NEXTTT

[@tayluvofficial]

​@@zldeksIt's a romantic song, honey.

[@zldeks]

@@tayluvofficial a bad one at that!

[@intheskatepark]

⁠@@zldeksi love that lyric. it’s evocative of midwest emo. doubt that was her intention, though.

[@emmaarpa13]

I literally can’t stop listening to this record! I was in dire need of a thoughtful, nuanced approach to TTPD, and you gave us just that. Thank you so much for the video, Zack!

[@ms_khoff]

THANK YOU for what you said about Dear Reader. You said EXACTLY what I thought 🤯 and have been hoping you would discover. I hope others now open their eyes & ears because of your video.

[@GrannySwiftie]

I absolutely love how raw and unpolished ttpd is. It is somehow so healing.

[@Synesthesia_n_Sugar]

I'm one of the people who was disappointed by Tortured Poets. I can appreciate the extremely raw, confessional nature of it, the Matty Healy lore, the self-deprecation, etc. I don't mind how much detail she includes or how experimental it gets. I've been a Swiftie since Debut, so I'm seated for messy lyrics, tea, and storylines. I've enjoyed all your videos and podcasts this era because there's so much to talk about! This is an hour-long video defending/analyzing the lyrics, like that's the only reason people are criticizing the album. I just find the sound itself usually quite bland. Many of the songs find her murmuring low notes the whole time, so they never climax, so to speak. The Anthology tracks feel unfinished, with most being a single guitar or piano and nothing else added. Some songs have production or melodies that are nearly identical to older songs (My Boy Breaks His Favorite Toys is so similar to Is It Over Now? you could literally sing them on top of each other). There were bits of this on Midnights, and now it's become more pronounced. TTPD is an album of big emotions but delivered through small sounds. There's a reason the fan favorites are songs like But Daddy I Love Him, The Black Dog, and Guilty as Sin -- they actually sound new and energetic rather than the umpteenth lo-fi synth-pop song. I understand the themes and what she was trying to do just fine, and there's a lot of fascinating material on TTPD, but I hope TS12 is more musically engaging, because for me, powerful lyrics need a powerful delivery.

[@Mar1293]

I agree. Great album lyrically but it definitely has quite a few skips. Florida, The Alchemy, the title track, and the majority of the Anthology(which is obviously Evermore b sides she decided to repurpose) could’ve been left off. The album is VERY underwhelming sonically which is what took me soooo long to listen to her discography in the first place lol(started listening to her music Dec 2023). Im more of a Beyonce, Evanescence vocal and music production fan so I have to really focus when I listen to Taylor’s lyrics because I’m not going to be impressed by her voice or the production tbh. I’m thinking this will cost her AOTY. You can’t be a four time winner and have this many mistakes on an album and expect to win a fifth time. It kinda gives off the impression that she was in a hurry and didn’t bother to proofread.

[@Synesthesia_n_Sugar]

@Mar1293 I love Florida!!!, lol, the big drums give it a jolt of energy that some of the other songs lack. But I agree about the rushing. If she hadn't dropped it on tour, there would have been more time for her and the collaborators to edit and polish it. But then, it's pretty clear she wanted an unpolished product this time around (perhaps in opposition to Midnights). I also think that, since a lot of people are complaining about the length, she could have avoided that by dropping the main album and then waiting ~6 months to drop the Anthology. But what's done is done, I love the way she staged the new songs on the tour and I'm always excited for what comes next!

[@Mar1293]

@@Synesthesia_n_Sugar yeah Florida is fun sonically but it doesn’t need to be on the album and I feel like her features are almost always underwhelming.

[@estherk9999]

This video is EVERYTHING!! Haters are gonna hate, but I just LOVE how much Taylor celebrates her own insanity on this album. I relate to so many different parts of it. At first I didn‘t really like "Who‘s afraid of little old me?“ but as I listened to it more, I kinda fell in love with it. People are so quick to say things like ”oh, it just happened“, well no, literally EVERYTHING happens for a reason and that‘s what the line ”They say they didn‘t do it to hurt me. But what if they did?“ represents to me. I guess I‘m just grateful for Taylor giving me a space where all my feelings are valid and justified.

[@oscarrevelins6034]

I’ve been saying this since day one ! TTPD is the spiritual successor to red, the culmination of the sounds she’s been experimenting with over the past few years. You devoured with this vid

[@oscarrevelins6034]

Also you clocked my only two skips back to back, Cassandra & Amiee 😂

[@OYJluv]

I love taylor but the album is way too monotonous, drags too long and is too slow and mumbled by her. She needs to drop Jack Antnoff and seek new inspiration.

[@Inksplatter1991]

She seemed depressed writing this album so maybe the melancholy and numbness matched the tone she was going for.

[@LimeSlimeee]

OMG THE FIT! HELLO?? IT'S GIVING TTPD ❤❤❤

[@LimeSlimeee]

I WANT IT NOW I'M OBSESSED

[@alohasargent]

In college, the theme stated by each professor in my first 2 years of general education courses was "Text and Context." In other words, we would read a text, and then we would explore the social and historical *context* in which it was written. Only then were we able to have a full understanding of what was being said in the text. I will never forget this idea of "text and context" and as you note, it is a key part of *fully* fathoming Taylor's work.

[@theswiftologist]

great class much needed by many internet 'critics' !!!

[@Whymee24]

I think The Way I Loved You on Fearless actually kinda of summarizes her Tortured Poets situation. The song is about being bored with a nice and stable guy and missing the highs and lows of a more chaotic past relationship

[@hanaz1023]

I have so much to say 1. THANK YOU for this analysis and bringing it back to Red. I hadn’t thought about how her relationship with Joe had made her want to be reckless again but it makes so much sense and just puts all of her discography into a clear, yet complex, psychological framework. Bellisismo! 2. My hot take is that The Bolter is one of my favorites on this album lyrically. She’s a genius poet and you help me understand a lot of her lyricism, but I am just such a sucker for a good story. Yes I’m a folklevermore girly. The Bolter is simple in its lyrics, but uses this metaphor of breaking through the ice being able to finally breath again that is so visceral and easy to grasp.

[@OrngePeel]

Chloe et al was my fast favorite track and hasn't budged from my #1 spot. So, so good!

[@ferre.h_yt]

The fact that you have to defend this lazy album by making this video about it says enough already

[@asmrtpop2676]

BAHAHAHAHA

[@sarahkeling7124]

Sam, Chloe, Sophia, or Marcus is my favorite song from TTPD...the lyrics, the lore, and the way the lyrics beautifully convey the sense of longing throughout the passage of time; it's a masterpiece.

[@hewo263]

Would you believe that some people are going "143 for AOTY guys!!!"

[@sockeeee]

that's just ridiculous! thank you for the giggle!

[@richmaxmchalliwchester1984]

lmao, thanks for the giggles

[@jyhkcraycraycaray1336]

Don't be mean to Katy . I em a girl, but I don't listen to i em his , he is mine and women's world . These three songs are made, for the male gaze.

[@hewo263]

@@jyhkcraycraycaray1336 I'm a huge Katy Perry fan fyi. But 143 was a huge disappointment. Most of the tracks were either forgettable or downright bad. Although I will say there were about four songs I enjoyed, it was a critical flop and a joke in the music industry unfortunately. I truly hope Katy can turn this around in the future, but 143 was a huge misstep.

[@jyhkcraycraycaray1336]

@@hewo263 Katy Perry kiled, her career... This you tube person said, that this is her third strike! 😭

[@caleplrent4030]

this album really keeps shape-shifting with time as I find out more things about it. My first tracklist reshuffle was about telling the story of the relationship, but as I payed attention my new reshuffle is about how her fame and how it affects her. Clara Bow is such a good book end because it reflects her career and also the idea of being picked up and put down like what happened in the main relationship of this album. "Take the glory, give everything" is a perfect thesis statement (in my opinion). THERE ARE LAYERS.

[@Elaine-f5m]

“Midnights....I’ll get her ass later” PREACH 🗣

[@CatNagTaylorsVersion]

I don’t think the girlies are ready for this one

[@ivanaloncar5320]

This was everything and more. If I have to live with one song and one song only for the rest of my life, it is Guilty as sin❤️ When that chorus starts I’m seeing visions (am I bad or mad or wise?)

[@That_BrownGirl]

After taking a break from TTPD with Midwest Princess and Sort and Sweet I revisited it and I was blown away. Not saying I didn't appreciate it before as it was all I could listen to for a while but I liked it so much better. Totally agree with everything you said