taylor swift speak now world tour live cd

• CDs & Vinyl

Enjoy fast, free delivery, exclusive deals, and award-winning movies & TV shows with Prime Try Prime and start saving today with fast, free delivery

Amazon Prime includes:

Fast, FREE Delivery is available to Prime members. To join, select "Try Amazon Prime and start saving today with Fast, FREE Delivery" below the Add to Cart button.

• Cardmembers earn 5% Back at Amazon.com with a Prime Credit Card.
• Unlimited Free Two-Day Delivery
• Streaming of thousands of movies and TV shows with limited ads on Prime Video.
• A Kindle book to borrow for free each month - with no due dates
• Listen to over 2 million songs and hundreds of playlists
• Unlimited photo storage with anywhere access

Important:  Your credit card will NOT be charged when you start your free trial or if you cancel during the trial period. If you're happy with Amazon Prime, do nothing. At the end of the free trial, your membership will automatically upgrade to a monthly membership.

Return this item for free

Free returns are available for the shipping address you chose. You can return the item for any reason in new and unused condition: no shipping charges

• Go to your orders and start the return
• Select the return method

Image Unavailable

• Sorry, this item is not available in
• Image not available
• To view this video download Flash Player

Speak Now: World Tour Live

• Streaming Unlimited MP3 $18.99 Listen with our Free App
• Audio CD $20.00 13 Used from $8.69 9 New from $20.00

Frequently bought together

Similar items that may ship from close to you

From the brand

Amazon Exclusive Vinyl

Best Sellers

New Releases

Digital Albums on Amazon Music

Track listings, editorial reviews.

SPEAK NOW WORLD TOUR LIVE is Big Machines first release of live music from Taylor Swift. The DVD will give fans the complete Taylor Swift SPEAK NOW concert experience, showcasing performances of all 17 songs from Taylors SPEAK NOW show, plus additional bonus content. The CD contains over 75 minutes of music, including live versions of favorites from the SPEAK NOW album.

Product details

• Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.84 x 5.59 x 0.47 inches; 4.52 ounces
• Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ Big Machine Records
• Original Release Date ‏ : ‎ 2011
• Date First Available ‏ : ‎ September 21, 2011
• Label ‏ : ‎ Big Machine Records
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B005OLF6BI
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 2
• #1,009 in Country (CDs & Vinyl)

Customer reviews

Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.

To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness.

Reviews with images

• Sort reviews by Top reviews Most recent Top reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. please try again later..

Top reviews from other countries

• Amazon Newsletter
• About Amazon
• Accessibility
• Sustainability
• Press Center
• Investor Relations
• Amazon Devices
• Amazon Science
• Sell on Amazon
• Sell apps on Amazon
• Supply to Amazon
• Protect & Build Your Brand
• Become an Affiliate
• Become a Delivery Driver
• Start a Package Delivery Business
• Advertise Your Products
• Self-Publish with Us
• Become an Amazon Hub Partner
• › See More Ways to Make Money
• Amazon Visa
• Amazon Store Card
• Amazon Secured Card
• Amazon Business Card
• Shop with Points
• Credit Card Marketplace
• Reload Your Balance
• Amazon Currency Converter
• Your Account
• Your Orders
• Shipping Rates & Policies
• Amazon Prime
• Returns & Replacements
• Manage Your Content and Devices
• Recalls and Product Safety Alerts
• Conditions of Use
• Privacy Notice
• Consumer Health Data Privacy Disclosure
• Your Ads Privacy Choices

Spotify is currently not available in your country.

Follow us online to find out when we launch., spotify gives you instant access to millions of songs – from old favorites to the latest hits. just hit play to stream anything you like..

Listen everywhere

Spotify works on your computer, mobile, tablet and TV.

Unlimited, ad-free music

No ads. No interruptions. Just music.

Download music & listen offline

Keep playing, even when you don't have a connection.

Premium sounds better

Get ready for incredible sound quality.

• Country Rock

Buy new: #buybox .a-accordion .a-accordion-active .a-price[data-a-size=l].reinventPriceAccordionT2 .a-price-whole { font-size: 28px !important; } #buybox .a-accordion .a-accordion-active .a-price[data-a-size=l].reinventPriceAccordionT2 .a-price-fraction, #buybox .a-accordion .a-accordion-active .a-price[data-a-size=l].reinventPriceAccordionT2 .a-price-symbol { top: -0.75em; font-size: 13px; } £8.30 £ 8 . 30 FREE delivery Saturday, 4 May on your first order to UK or Ireland Dispatches from: Amazon Sold by: Amazon

Return this item for free.

Free returns are available for the shipping address you chose. For a full refund with no deduction for return shipping, you can return the item for any reason in new and unused condition.

• Go to your orders and start the return
• Select the return method

Save with Used - Like New #buybox .a-accordion .a-accordion-active .a-price[data-a-size=l].reinventPriceAccordionT2 .a-price-whole { font-size: 28px !important; } #buybox .a-accordion .a-accordion-active .a-price[data-a-size=l].reinventPriceAccordionT2 .a-price-fraction, #buybox .a-accordion .a-accordion-active .a-price[data-a-size=l].reinventPriceAccordionT2 .a-price-symbol { top: -0.75em; font-size: 13px; } £5.60 £ 5 . 60 £1.76 delivery 7 - 10 May Dispatches from: musicMagpie Sold by: musicMagpie

Image Unavailable

• Sorry, this item is not available in
• Image not available
• To view this video download Flash Player

Speak Now World Tour Live

• Audio CD £8.30 2 Used from £5.60 17 New from £8.30

Frequently bought together

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Track Listings

Product description.

Speak Now World Tour Live contains live performances from Taylor Swift's world tour in support of ther third studio album Speak Now . The album was released in 2010 and was written entirely by Swift, featuring the songs "Mine", "Back to December", "Mean" and "The Story of Us."

Product details

• Is discontinued by manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 14.2 x 12.4 x 1 cm; 110 g
• Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ Mercury
• Manufacturer reference ‏ : ‎ 2788522
• Original Release Date ‏ : ‎ 2011
• SPARS Code ‏ : ‎ DDD
• Label ‏ : ‎ Mercury
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B005ZI3EB4
• Country of origin ‏ : ‎ Austria
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 2
• 13 in Country Rock

Customer reviews

Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings, help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.

To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyses reviews to verify trustworthiness.

Reviews with images

• Sort reviews by Top reviews Most recent Top reviews

Top reviews from United Kingdom

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. please try again later..

Top reviews from other countries

• UK Modern Slavery Statement
• Sustainability
• Amazon Science
• Sell on Amazon
• Sell on Amazon Business
• Sell on Amazon Handmade
• Sell on Amazon Launchpad
• Supply to Amazon
• Protect and build your brand
• Associates Programme
• Fulfilment by Amazon
• Seller Fulfilled Prime
• Advertise Your Products
• Independently Publish with Us
• Host an Amazon Hub
• › See More Make Money with Us
• Instalments by Barclays
• Amazon Platinum Mastercard
• Amazon Classic Mastercard
• Amazon Currency Converter
• Payment Methods Help
• Shop with Points
• Top Up Your Account
• Top Up Your Account in Store
• COVID-19 and Amazon
• Track Packages or View Orders
• Delivery Rates & Policies
• Amazon Prime
• Returns & Replacements
• Manage Your Content and Devices
• Recalls and Product Safety Alerts
• Amazon Mobile App
• Customer Service
• Accessibility
• Conditions of Use & Sale
• Privacy Notice
• Cookies Notice
• Interest-Based Ads Notice

• Singer-Songwriters

Image Unavailable

• Sorry, this item is not available in
• Image not available
• To view this video, download Flash Player

Speak Now World Tour Live (CD+DVD)

• Audio CD $99.90 1 New from $99.90

Purchase options and add-ons

Frequently bought together.

Customers who bought this item also bought

Product description

Swift, Taylor

Product details

• Is discontinued by manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
• Parcel Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 14.09 x 12.63 x 1.37 cm; 81.65 g
• Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ Universal Music
• Label ‏ : ‎ Universal Music
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B005XJL3CM
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 2
• #2,133 in Pop Singer-Songwriters
• #3,584 in Country

Customer reviews

Reviews with images.

• Sort reviews by Top reviews Most recent Top reviews

Top reviews from Canada

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. please try again later..

Top reviews from other countries

• Amazon and Our Planet
• Investor Relations
• Press Releases
• Amazon Science
• Sell on Amazon
• Supply to Amazon
• Become an Affiliate
• Protect & Build Your Brand
• Sell on Amazon Handmade
• Advertise Your Products
• Independently Publish with Us
• Host an Amazon Hub
• Amazon.ca Rewards Mastercard
• Shop with Points
• Reload Your Balance
• Amazon Currency Converter
• Amazon Cash
• Shipping Rates & Policies
• Amazon Prime
• Returns Are Easy
• Manage your Content and Devices
• Recalls and Product Safety Alerts
• Customer Service
• Conditions of Use
• Privacy Notice
• Interest-Based Ads
• Amazon.com.ca ULC | 40 King Street W 47th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5H 3Y2 |1-877-586-3230

You'll need JavaScript enabled to experience the full functionality of this site. You can enable it by following the instructions at enable-javascript.com .

Skip to content

Your basket ( 0 )

There are no items in your basket.

There was an error loading your basket. Please click here to try again.

Speak Now World Tour Live

£12.99

CD/DVD Album

There was an error adding this product to your basket. Please try again.

Ring & Reserve

*Availability subject to change.

To reserve this item in store, call: 03333 230 667

Track listing

Delivery and returns, when will my order arrive.

• If the items are in stock, we’ll aim to dispatch them within 24 hours of your order being placed.   
• Orders sent via Royal Mail 48® are usually received within two to five working days, including Saturdays. 
• Orders sent via the Express Delivery service will be dispatched the same day if ordered by 2pm, Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays).
• We will aim to dispatch pre-orders so that you receive them on the release date.
• Where an item is 'Back in stock soon', we'll aim to receive more stock within a week and will dispatch any orders once the shipment has arrived.
• Certain items can take longer to source than the estimated week, particularly during busy trading periods and may take longer to arrive at our warehouse. In this instance, we'll send weekly updates to keep you aware. 
• Products labelled '*item fulfilled by Exertis on behalf of hmv' will be supplied to you directly by Exertis via their approved couriers. When you place an order for an item that is fulfilled by Exertis, your details shall be forwarded to them so that they can fulfil the order, and to their courier so that they can deliver the item.

Delivery charges

• Free delivery is available for most items when the order exceeds £20, but any exceptions will be clearly highlighted.
• Selected items are only available for delivery via the Royal Mail 48® service and other items are available for delivery using this service for a charge.
• Selected items are only available for delivery using Click & Collect to an hmv or FOPP store of your choice.
• All delivery options and any charges that are applicable will be shown at the checkout.

Will you tell me when my order is on its way?

• We will email you as soon as each item is ready to be dispatched so you know when to expect them, but you can also check the status of your order in your account .
• We don’t always ship everything together so check your dispatch email for more details - we’ll send you a dispatch email per parcel.
• If your order contains items that are out of stock, we’ll ship the in-stock items as soon as we can and will dispatch the out-of-stock items as soon as we’ve received more stock in the warehouse.
• For items that are dispatched using our standard service, we ask that you wait 14 days from the date of dispatch before reporting any items as undelivered.
• We're happy to accept returns for unwanted items provided that they're returned within 14 days of receipt; unopened, unused and in perfect condition.
• Some exclusions apply, please visit our Help Centre   for more details. 

Sign-up for emails

I'd love to hear about offers and promotions from hmv*

*Please see our privacy policy to find out how we and our affiliates collect and use your personal data.

• Filmography

Speak Now: World Tour Live

• View history

This is about the live album. For the tour, see Speak Now World Tour .

Speak Now: World Tour Live is the first live album by American singer and songwriter Taylor Swift , released on November 21, 2011, through Big Machine Records .

The live album consist of songs and performances recorded from various tour dates around the world of Swift's Speak Now World Tour .

The live album debuted at number eleven on the US Billboard 200 chart with 77,000 sold.

• 1 Background
• 2 Critical reception
• 3 Commercial performance
• 4 Track listing
• 5 Personnel
• 6.1 Weekly charts
• 7 References

Background [ ]

The album was announced on September 21, 2011, via Swift's official website, along with the album cover. The DVD and Blu-ray releases feature all seventeen performances from the North American leg of the Speak Now World Tour , as well as bonus content. The CD has over seventy-five minutes of music as well as select live performances from the Speak Now album. The combo was released on November 21, 2011. [1] [2] A Target exclusive of the live album contains the bonus performances of " Ours , "Nashville" and "Sweet Escape", as well as the behind the scene making of the music video for " Mean ". [3] Many of the songs and performances were captured from various legs around the world of the tour. [4] The Brazilian release of the album contains a previously unreleased version of the song "Long Live" featuring new verses in Portuguese composed and sang by singer Paula Fernandes. [5]

Critical reception [ ]

Matt Bjorke of Roughstock gave a mixed review on the album and stated that Swift "has shown a lot of growth through the years and takes her live show seriously, so It’s good to hear this live album sound nearly as good as her records do." Bjorke also compared the CD/DVD combo to Sugarland's Live on the Inside . [7] James Monger of Allmusic rated the album three out of five stars and stated that the performances on the DVD were "an elaborate affair that utilized dancers, aerialists, numerous costume changes, and a mammoth, multi-stage setup that more closely resembled a high-profile Broadway musical than it a did country music concert." [6]

Commercial performance [ ]

The album debuted at number eleven on the US Billboard 200 chart with 77,000 sold. It also debuted at number two in Billboard Top Country Albums on the same week. [8] As of November 2017, the album has sold 366,000 copies in the US. [9] In Canada, the album entered at number 25. [10] The album also debuted in Australia at number thirty and later peaked at number sixteen. The album then fell off the chart completely the following week. The album also appeared in Mexico at number sixty seven. [11]

Track listing [ ]

Personnel [ ].

Adapted from Allmusic. [12]

Charts and certifications [ ]

Weekly charts [ ], references [ ].

• ↑ "Taylor Swift Announces 'Speak Now' Live CD/DVD" . Jason Lipshutz . Billboard.com . 2011-09-21 . http://www.billboard.com/news/taylor-swift-announces-speak-now-live-cd-1005362572.story#/news/taylor-swift-announces-speak-now-live-cd-1005362572.story . Retrieved 2011-11-20 .
• ↑ "Taylor Swift: Speak Now World Tour Live (Blu-ray + CD): Taylor Swift, Ryan Polito: Music" . Amazon.com. 2009-09-09 . http://www.amazon.com/Taylor-Swift-Speak-World-Blu-ray/dp/B006B9REH6/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1322326903&sr=8-3 . Retrieved 2011-11-26 .
• ↑ "Taylor Swift World Tour - Only at Target" . target.com . http://www.target.com/p/Taylor-Swift-World-Tour-Only-at-Target/-/A-13832473#?lnk=sc_qi_detailimage . Retrieved 2011-11-20 .
• ↑ (2011) Album notes for Speak Now: World Tour Live by Taylor Swift [CD/DVD]. Big Machine Records (BMRTS0340B).
• ↑ "iTunes - Música - Speak Now - World Tour Live de Taylor Swift" . Itunes.apple.com. 2011-12-31 . http://itunes.apple.com/br/album/speak-now-world-tour-live/id488748355 . Retrieved 2012-01-10 .
• ↑ 6.0 6.1 Christopher, James (2011-11-21). "World Tour Live: Speak Now - Taylor Swift" . AllMusic . http://www.allmusic.com/album/world-tour-live-speak-now-r2306676/review . Retrieved 2011-11-25 .
• ↑ 7.0 7.1 Matt Bjorke (2011-11-21). "Album/DVD Review: Taylor Swift - Speak Now: World Tour Live | Country Music Reviews, Taylor Swift to Lady Antebellum" . Roughstock.com . http://www.roughstock.com/reviews/album-dvd-review-taylor-swift-speak-now-world-tour-live . Retrieved 2011-11-25 .
• ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Michael Buble's 'Christmas' Squeaks Past Nickelback to Take No. 1 on Billboard 200" . Billboard.biz . http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/record-labels/michael-buble-s-christmas-squeaks-past-nickelback-1005579152.story . Retrieved November 30, 2011 .
• ↑ Trust, Gary (November 26, 2017). "Ask Billboard: Taylor Swift's Career Album & Song Sales" . https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/8046939/taylor-swift-career-album-song-sales-ask-billboard . Retrieved November 26, 2017 .
• ↑ "Canadian Albums Week of December 10, 2011" . Billboard . Prometheus Global Media . http://www.billboard.com/charts/2011-12-10/canadian-albums?order=gainer . Retrieved December 1, 2011 .
• ↑ "Taylor Swift – Speak Now: World Tour Live Cd + Dvd" . aCharts.us. February 25, 2009 . http://acharts.us/album/67362 . Retrieved August 25, 2012 .
• ↑ "World Tour Live: Speak Now  – Credits" . Allmusic. Rovi Corporation . http://www.allmusic.com/album/world-tour-live-speak-now-r2306676/credits . Retrieved 2011-11-25 .
• ↑ "australian-charts.com - Taylor Swift - Speak Now World Tour Live" . Hung Medien . http://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Taylor+Swift&titel=Speak+Now+World+Tour+Live&cat=a . Retrieved December 5, 2011 .
• ↑ "Top 20 Country Chart - Australian Record Industry Assocation" . Ariacharts.com.au . http://www.ariacharts.com.au/pages/charts_display_country.asp?chart=1F20 . Retrieved 2012-01-10 .
• ↑ "Canadian Albums Week of December 10, 2011" . Billboard . Prometheus Global Media . http://www.billboard.com/charts#/charts/canadian-albums?chartDate=2011-12-10&order=gainer . Retrieved December 1, 2011 .
• ↑ "Mexican Chart" . http://mexicancharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Taylor+Swift&titel=Speak+Now+World+Tour+Live&cat=a .
• ↑ "Country Albums Week of December 10, 2011" . Billboard . Prometheus Global Media . http://www.billboard.com/charts#/charts/country-albums?chartDate=2011-12-10&order=gainer . Retrieved December 1, 2011 .
• 1 List of Taylor Swift's ex-boyfriends
• 2 The Tortured Poets Department photoshoot
• 3 The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived

• Manage Account

Here’s How Taylor Swift Should Update Her Eras Tour Setlist to Include ‘The Tortured Poets Department’

The crowd was chanting "More!"

By Hannah Dailey

Hannah Dailey

• Share this article on Facebook
• Share this article on Twitter
• Share this article on Flipboard
• Share this article on Pinit
• + additional share options added
• Share this article on Tumblr
• Share this article on Reddit
• Share this article on Linkedin
• Share this article on Whatsapp
• Share this article on Email
• Print this article
• Share this article on Comment

Leading up to the release of Taylor Swift ‘s The Tortured Poets Department , one question lingered in the backs of Swiftie minds for months: How would the new album affect the already three-hour-plus setlist of the pop star’s ongoing global Eras Tour?

When the record finally dropped April 19, bringing with it not just 16 pre-announced tracks, but 15 surprise bonus songs as well, their concerns were only exacerbated. How could Swift possibly slim down her pre- Tortured Poets setlist to fit any new material once she hit the road again? Where would she even begin selecting just a handful of the 31 songs on TTPD to include? Would she even bother trying? (Based on a video the singer posted of recent rehearsals for her next run of shows, which kicks off May 9 in Paris, the answer to that last question is most likely a “Yes.”)

It’s no small task, especially given that no matter what the “Anti-Hero” singer cuts or adds, some fans are bound to be upset when their favorites inevitably don’t make the final listing. Even so, Billboard has risen to the challenge, selecting the best possible collection of Tortured Poets tracks to represent Swift’s newest era while trimming the fat of past eras for an updated, ultimate dream Eras Tour setlist.

Some songs were hard to say good-bye to (sorry, “Mastermind”), and others were truly painful to not extend an invitation (don’t hate us, “Guilty as Sin?”). But in service of a well-rounded, comprehensive Eras experience, difficult decisions had to be made. Keep reading to see how Swift should move forward with her trek, Tortured Poets and all — plus, an idea on how her debut album Taylor Swift can finally get its flowers — below.

ACT I: 'Lover'

• “Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince”
• “Cruel Summer”
• “The Man”
• “You Need to Calm Down”
• “Lover”

CUT: “The Archer”

Note: Swift could also probably benefit from shortening her meandering pre-“The Man” monologue in Act I to save room for more songs later on.

ACT II: 'Fearless'

• “Fearless”
• “You Belong With Me”
• “Love Story”

Note: At three songs, the Fearless era is already the perfect length, holistically comprised of the album’s title track and its two breakthrough hits, which made Swift a global star. No room for cuts here.

ACT III: 'Evermore'

• “‘Tis the Damn Season”
• “Willow”
• “Champagne Problems”
• “Tolerate It”

CUT: “Marjorie”

Note: Swift definitely deserves to drink in the applause for a moment after her magnificent piano performance of “Champagne Problems,” but at past Eras shows, she’s allowed the ovations to last for upwards of eight minutes . To save room for more songs, she may want to keep things moving at future stops.

ACT IV: 'Reputation'

• “…Ready For It?”
• “Delicate”
• “Don’t Blame Me”
• “Look What You Made Me Do”

Note: If you’ve been to an Eras show, you know: There’s no messing with the Reputation set. The already ear-splitting crowd somehow gets even louder as soon as this first notes of “Ready For It” blast through the speakers, and the stadium stays at peak volume throughout the traditional “1, 2, 3, Let’s go b–ch” chant during “Delicate” and the seamless transition between “Don’t Blame Me” and “Look What You Made Me Do.” No cuts.

ACT V: 'Speak Now'

• “Enchanted”
• “Long Live”

Note: Justice for Speak Now . Swift’s third album deserves a proper showcase each night, so we sincerely hope that the pop star doesn’t scrap “Long Live” — which she only added to the setlist four months into the Eras Tour’s first leg — to make room for TTPD.

ACT VI: 'Red'

• “22”
• “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together”
• “I Knew You Were Trouble”
• “All Too Well (10 Minute Version)”

Note: It may seem like an easy time-saver to simply swap out the ten-minute version of “All Too Well” for Swift’s original five-minute version, but doing so would be robbing Swifties of the best ten-minute segment in the entire show. We simply won’t hear of it. That song aside, the other three hits on this mini-set — similar to the Fearless era — form a perfect bite-sized capsule of the album they represent, leaving no excess behind.

ACT VII: 'Folklore'

• “Betty” 
• “August”
• “Illicit Affairs” (Bridge Only) 
• “My Tears Ricochet” 
• “Cardigan”

CUTS: “The 1” / “Invisible String” & “The Last Great American Dynasty”

Note: Sorry, Folklorians: It’ll always have a special place at the heart of the Eras Tour show, but Swift has now released three new albums since her initial alt-folk pivot — hence the harsher cuts here.

ACT VIII: '1989'

• “Style”
• “Blank Space”
• “Shake It Off”
• “Wildest Dreams”
• “Bad Blood”

Note: It’s almost impossible to imagine cutting any of the five songs on the 1989 setlist, each of them massive, stadium-rocking hits a full ten years after their original release (three of them peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, while “Wildest Dreams” and “Style” reached Nos. 5 and 6, respectively). A time-saving mashup between two or more of them could, however, be an avenue to explore if needed, with a majority of the tracks boasting similar keys and corresponding musical styles.

INTERLUDE: Surprise Songs

• Surprise Song No. 1
• Surprise Song No. 2

Note: It’s safe to assume that the nightly surprise song section will be where Swift makes up for unused Tortured Poets songs, giving fans the chance to hear acoustic versions of the 20+ tracks on her newest album that probably won’t make it onto the regular setlist .

ACT IX: 'Midnights'

• “Lavender Haze” 
• “Anti-Hero” 
• “Vigilante Shit” 
• “Bejeweled”
• “Karma” 

CUTS: “Midnight Rain” & “Mastermind”

Note: The only non-single to remain safe, “Vigilante Shit” would’ve been next on the chopping block. But honestly — what would the Eras Tour be without Swift’s iconic sultry, Chicago -esque dance break?

ACT X: 'The Tortured Poets Department'

• “Fortnight”
• “The Tortured Poets Department”
• “Down Bad”
• “So Long, London”
• “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?”
• Mashup: “Teardrops on My Guitar” x “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart”
• “But Daddy I Love Him”

Note: As Swift’s newest album, Tortured Poets deserves to be the finale. And while, upon first listen, the record may not seem like it has enough stadium-ready bops to close out the show, the above songs 100% have the potential to be converted into the high-energy moments the Eras Tour commands. Just imagine the theatrical potential of “Who’s Afraid,” the meta-ness of a real-life crowd chanting “More!” during “Broken Heart,” and confetti falling from the sky during the final chorus of “But Daddy…” We picture gothic visuals, writing desks, typewriter props, period costumes and lightning strikes during this section.

Now, about that mashup. It’s absurd that Swift has never included any songs from her 2006 self-titled debut album — aka her first-ever era — on the main Eras Tour setlist. But it’s not too late to rectify that.

Picture this: The lights go down after Swift performs “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?” Costumes change, a tiger cage and other circus-themed set pieces are wheeled away. Then, the songwriter — her silhouette barely visible under the dim glow of an aquamarine spotlight — sings a cappella the final chorus of the first song about faking smiles in the face of heartbreak she ever released: “Teardrops on My Guitar.” Emphasis on the lyric, “the only one who’s got enough of me to break my heart.”

After she trails off on the last line — “Drew looks at me, I fake a smile so he won’t see” — the stadium comes to life once more as the crowd’s multi-color light-up bracelets go haywire, an explosion of sound filling the space. “I can read your mind,” Swift jumps in, surrounded by dancers as the lights suddenly go up, revealing one last fabulous costume. “‘She’s having the time of her life…'”

Once that’s done, she’ll move on to the finale, flipping off the haters, embracing her truest fans and proudly proclaiming her love for the man of her dreams in one fell swoop with “But Daddy I Love Him,” disappearing offstage before concertgoers have even finished singing along. Fin.

Get weekly rundowns straight to your inbox

Want to know what everyone in the music business is talking about?

Get in the know on.

Billboard is a part of Penske Media Corporation. © 2024 Billboard Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

optional screen reader

Charts expand charts menu.

• Billboard Hot 100™
• Billboard 200™
• Hits Of The World™
• TikTok Billboard Top 50
• Song Breaker
• Year-End Charts
• Decade-End Charts

Music Expand music menu

• R&B/Hip-Hop

Culture Expand culture menu

Media expand media menu, business expand business menu.

• Business News
• Record Labels
• View All Pro

Pro Tools Expand pro-tools menu

• Songwriters & Producers
• Artist Index
• Royalty Calculator
• Market Watch
• Industry Events Calendar

Billboard Español Expand billboard-espanol menu

• Cultura y Entretenimiento

Honda Music Expand honda-music menu

Will Taylor Swift add 'Tortured Poets' to international Eras Tour? Our picks.

A double album. Thirty one songs. Two hours and two minutes. In the spaces between the international, record- breaking Eras Tour, Taylor Swift released her 11th era: "The Tortured Poets Department." But will the behemoth tour make room for the newest addition to Swift's vast catalog and how?

"The Tortured Poets Department" showcases the singer's mastery to connect words like puzzle pieces seamlessly depicting the human experience and complex themes of false wedding promises, relationship imprisonment, break-ups and drug escapism, religion versus rebellion, childhood retrospection and the duality of internally suffering while externally performing. It would be a surprise for her not to push this body of art into the spotlight.

But how it fits into the 44-song three hour and 15-minute Eras tour is anyone's guess. And we won't find out until she resumes the tour on May 9 in Paris. I'll be there.

Read Melissa Ruggieri's review Taylor Swift's 'Tortured Poets' is hauntingly brilliant, even the 15 surprise songs

Whether or not she's incorporating the era has already been decided. Swift is 13 steps ahead . She plans her moves years in advance. There is a two-month break from the tour and she has been spending time in Los Angeles. Her team of dancers have not been as active on social media possibly because they're rehearsing a new set. Or maybe it's a coincidence?

The simplest path would be to absorb some of the the 31 songs into the acoustic set that comes after "Bad Blood" during the "1989" era. Swift has used the 2024 surprise songs to play mash-ups on the guitar and the piano. It's when she makes announcements and it's a custom gift to concertgoers and fans watch in envy on livestreams from around the world.

'Tortured Poets' release live updates What to know as Taylor Swift's new album debuts

More likely, she will add a "Tortured Poets" set. The show is segmented, allowing a new era to squeeze in. She could open the show with the new era, although "Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince's" opening line is a perfect opening for an artist who has released seven albums and hasn't seen fans: "It's been a long time coming." She could end the show with the set, but "Karma" is a good show closer.

Cue the confetti. If she ends the tour with "Tortured Poets," I'm guessing "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart" is the closer.

The writing shines bright like Swift's glittering sequin stars which is reminiscent of and relative to "Folklore" and "Evermore." For the flow of the concert, it makes more sense to not place "Tortured Poets" next to these albums. The show flows with a narrative that spans almost two decades with highs and lows of energy. Two areas that could be good: after "Reputation" and before "Speak Now" or after the secret songs and before "Midnights." Maybe she dives into the stage to swim to the an asylum of typewriters and tormented thoughts.

The four eras with the most amount of songs are the latest records she owned that aren't re-records: "Lover" (six songs), "Folklore" (seven songs), "Evermore" (five songs) and "Midnights" (seven songs). Will she follow that flow? Will she cut songs from these eras?

I could see her performing the lead single "Fortnight," title track "The Tortured Poets Department," Eras Tour song "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart," "Down Bad," "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me," "thanK you aIMee" and "So High School."

Swift holds the answer key. Sixty-nine shows are left on the recording shattering magnum opus for 2024.

Don't miss any Taylor Swift news; sign up for the  free, weekly newsletter "This Swift Beat."

Follow Taylor Swift reporter Bryan West on  Instagram ,  TikTok  and  X as @BryanWestTV .

Speak Now - World Tour Live

21 November 2011 17 Songs, 1 hour, 19 minutes ℗ 2011 Apollo A-1 LLC

More By Taylor Swift

Select a country or region, africa, middle east, and india.

• Côte d’Ivoire
• Congo, The Democratic Republic Of The
• Guinea-Bissau
• Niger (English)
• Congo, Republic of
• Saudi Arabia
• Sierra Leone
• South Africa
• Tanzania, United Republic Of
• Turkmenistan
• United Arab Emirates

Asia Pacific

• Indonesia (English)
• Lao People's Democratic Republic
• Malaysia (English)
• Micronesia, Federated States of
• New Zealand
• Papua New Guinea
• Philippines
• Solomon Islands
• Bosnia and Herzegovina
• France (Français)
• Deutschland
• Luxembourg (English)
• Moldova, Republic Of
• North Macedonia
• Portugal (Português)
• Türkiye (English)
• United Kingdom

Latin America and the Caribbean

• Antigua and Barbuda
• Argentina (Español)
• Bolivia (Español)
• Virgin Islands, British
• Cayman Islands
• Chile (Español)
• Colombia (Español)
• Costa Rica (Español)
• República Dominicana
• Ecuador (Español)
• El Salvador (Español)
• Guatemala (Español)
• Honduras (Español)
• Nicaragua (Español)
• Paraguay (Español)
• St. Kitts and Nevis
• Saint Lucia
• St. Vincent and The Grenadines
• Trinidad and Tobago
• Turks and Caicos
• Uruguay (English)
• Venezuela (Español)

The United States and Canada

• Canada (English)
• Canada (Français)
• United States
• Estados Unidos (Español México)
• الولايات المتحدة
• États-Unis (Français France)
• Estados Unidos (Português Brasil)
• 美國 (繁體中文台灣)

Taylor Swift's new album 'The Tortured Poets Department' is packed with references and Easter eggs. Here are the key details you may have missed.

• Taylor Swift's "The Tortured Poets Department" is rich with complex lyrics and subtle references.
• Swift said she curated "a summary of my findings" after two successive heartbreaks.
• Keep reading for a track-by-track breakdown of the album, including Easter eggs you may have missed.

Taylor Swift's new album, " The Tortured Poets Department ," may just be her most self-referential work to date.

Swift herself described the album as "a summary of my findings" after two successive heartbreaks — and a lifetime in the spotlight — full of "muses, acquired like bruises, talismans and charms."

Swift is known for lacing her music with clues about her personal life and callbacks to her previous work. Early in her career, she left messages by capitalizing certain letters in lyric booklets, incentivizing fans to examine her writing. Swift abandoned that strategy several albums ago, but make no mistake: The Easter egg hunt is still on and more extensive than ever.

Keep reading for a breakdown of the standard tracklist, including key lyrics and themes.

"Fortnight" introduces the album's fatalistic themes.

The first single " Fortnight ," which features Post Malone , muddles romantic memories with anguished delusions.

"There are lots of very dramatic lines about life or death, like, 'I love you, it's ruining my life,'" Swift explained in a series for Amazon Music. "These are very hyperbolic, dramatic things to say. It's that kind of album."

"I was supposed to be sent away, but they forgot to come and get me," Swift sings to set everything in motion.

This lyric seems to pick up where " Midnights ," Swift's previous album, left off. The "Til Dawn" deluxe edition ends with " Hits Different ," a song about heartbreak's grisly aftermath: "Is that your key in the door? / Is it OK? Is it you? / Or have they come to take me away?"

The "Fortnight" music video makes this allusion explicit, opening with Swift trapped in an asylum . This imagery will reappear in track 10, "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" ("You wouldn't last an hour in the asylum where they raised me").

"Fortnight" also introduces themes of fatalism and violence. In the chorus, Swift seems to suffer hallucinations: She imagines her ex becoming her neighbor and fantasizes about killing his wife. She also wants to kill her own cheating husband (who doesn't exist), possibly as a callback to the " Evermore " murder epic " No Body, No Crime ."

In the song's outro, Post Malone sings, "Another fortnight lost in America / Move to Florida," foreshadowing Swift's feverish meltdown in track eight, "Florida!!!"

"The Tortured Poets Department" contains a tragic reference to marriage.

Most references in the title track are obvious by design. Matty Healy is likely the one depicted as a "tattooed golden retriever" while Charlie Puth gets an explicit shoutout , as do the iconic poets Dylan Thomas and Patti Smith .

The song's third verse, however, is slightly more layered.

"At dinner, you take my ring off my middle finger / And put it on the one people put wedding rings on," Swift sings.

The prospect of marriage is a recurring motif in Swift's discography, dating all the way back to " Mary's Song (Oh My My My) " (2006) and " Love Story " (2008). The title track from 2019's " Lover " was written to resemble a wedding song. In that same album, Swift pledges to marry her partner with " paper rings ."

Her recent works have explored a more nuanced, cynical view of the institution. The 2020 album "Evermore" was full of apathy and betrayal , which Swift described as an "anthology of marriages gone bad." In the "Midnights" opener " Lavender Haze ," Swift denounced domesticity as "the 1950s shit they want from me."

Swift obviously has ambivalent feelings about marriage, but when a ring is dangled in " The Tortured Poets Department ," Swift is overjoyed: "That's the closest I've come to my heart exploding."

As the album progresses, it becomes clear the gesture wasn't sincere. In context, this scene becomes one of casual cruelty , rather than romance.

"My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys" is a metaphor for feeling used and neglected by a lover.

" My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys " is one of two songs on the standard tracklist written solely by Swift .

Swift compares herself to a toy, "the sickest army doll," possibly as a nod to the "Midnights" vault track " You're Losing Me " ("My face was gray, but you wouldn't admit that we were sick … And all I did was bleed as I tried to be the bravest soldier").

Meanwhile, she compares her past lovers to male Barbies , singing, "I felt more when we played pretend / Than with all the Kens." She previously used this metaphor in "Hits Different" ("I used to switch out these Kens, I'd just ghost").

Another line in the chorus, "He saw forever so he smashed it up," recalls the scathing "Fearless" standout " Forever & Always " ("Did I say something way too honest, made you run and hide / Like a scared little boy?").

"Down Bad" compares love bombing to alien abduction.

" Down Bad " opens with a surreal depiction of getting " love bombed ," which occurs when a new partner lavishes attention before abruptly leaving.

Swift sings of getting beamed up by an alien spaceship, where she's enveloped in "a cloud of sparkling dust" and embraced as "the chosen one." But in retrospect, she realizes it was only an experiment.

"For a moment, I knew cosmic love / Now I'm down bad crying at the gym" she sings.

Swift uses this juxtaposition to illustrate the outcome of her breakup: She was exposed to a glittering universe, but when her cosmic lover left, she was forced to return to her miserable normality. She underscores this point in the chorus: "Staring at the sky, come back and pick me up."

Another line, "Down bad, waking up in blood," seems to borrow reddish imagery from " Maroon " ("I wake with your memory over me").

She also flips a line from the "1989" bonus track " New Romantics " so that "Leave me stranded, it's so romantic" becomes the exact opposite plea: "How dare you think it's romantic leaving me safe and stranded?"

Most interestingly, Swift repeatedly refers to her lost lover as her "twin," recalling a key lyric in the "Evermore" bonus track "It's Time to Go " ("Not a twin from your dreams / She's a crook who was caught").

"So Long, London" is brimming with references to Joe Alwyn.

Swift employs a double entendre in " So Long, London ," so the title is used to bid farewell to her lover and to connote the length of their relationship. The city is almost certainly a reference to Joe Alwyn , Swift's ex-boyfriend of six years, for whom she relocated to London in 2016 .

"I kept calm and carried the weight of the rift," Swift sings in the first verse, nodding to the British wartime slogan " Keep Calm and Carry On ."

She continues to detail her relationship's slow demise: "I stopped trying to make him laugh." This could be a callback to " Mirrorball ," the seventh track on " Folklore " ("I'm still on that tightrope / I'm still trying everything to get you laughing at me").

The song contains several parallels to "You're Losing Me," including the lines "I stopped CPR, after all it's no use" ("I can't find a pulse, my heart won't start anymore for you") and "How much sad did you think I had?" ("How long could we be a sad song 'til we were too far gone to bring back to life?").

Once again, Swift includes a notable reference to marriage, singing, "You swore that you loved me / But where were the clues? / I died on the altar waiting for the proof." Similarly, in "You're Losing Me," she implies hope for a proposal that would never come ("I wouldn't marry me either").

The altar also doubles as a reference to religious sacrifice, which Swift exploits in the following line: "You sacrificed us to the gods of your bluest days."

Alwyn has long been associated with the color blue in Swift's songwriting, as in " Delicate " ("Oh damn, never seen that color blue"), "Paper Rings" ("I'm with you even if it makes me blue"), and " Peace " ("Don't want no other shade of blue but you").

Finally, in the outro, Swift delivers the final tragic blow: "Had a good run / A moment of warm sun / But I'm not the one."

After Swift's split from Alwyn made headlines last year, she swapped the love song "Invisible String" on The Eras Tour setlist for " The 1 ," an existential breakup ballad ("It would've been fun / If you would've been the one").

"But Daddy I Love Him" is the spiritual successor of "Love Story."

" But Daddy I Love Him " is a grandiose declaration of love, painting Swift as a melodramatic and rebellious heroine.

"I'm telling him to floor it through the fences / No, I'm not coming to my senses," she sings in the chorus, conjuring the image of " Getaway Car ." "I know he's crazy but he's the one I want."

Swift sounds like the character she played as a teenager in "Love Story" ("Romeo save me, they're trying to tell me how to feel / This love is difficult, but it's real") and even acknowledges this resemblance, making note of her enduring immaturity: "Growing up precocious sometimes means not growing up at all."

After the brutal bridge, in which Swift seems to condemn her own fans as "judgmental creeps," she employs a classic Swiftian twist at the final hour.

Much like the final chorus in "Love Story" ("I talked to your dad, go pick out a white dress"), "But Daddy I Love Him" ends with Swift's character earning parental approval ("Now I'm dancing in my dress in the sun and / Even my daddy just loves him") and the promise of marriage ("Time, doesn't it give some perspective / No, you can't come to the wedding").

In the outro, Swift repeats a prickly lyric from the bridge, reveling in her happy ending: "If all you want is gray for me / Then it's just white noise, and it's just my choice."

Swift has repeatedly used black, white, and gray as a metaphor for common fare, while color is used to signal an intense and extraordinary love , as in " Out of the Woods " ("The rest of the world was black and white / But we were in screaming color") and " Illicit Affairs " ("You showed me colors you know I can't see with anyone else"). She has also described herself as "like a rainbow with all of the colors" in the 2019 single " Me! "

"Fresh Out the Slammer" is the first blush of freedom after a stifling relationship.

Swift cites this song title in the album's "Summary Poem," which is included with physical copies.

"And so I was out of the oven and into the microwave / Out of the slammer and into a tidal wave," she writes. The couplet refers to her exit from a long-term relationship and hasty leap into a new one.

And so " Fresh Out the Slammer " introduces the album's outlaw trilogy, followed by "Guilty as Sin?" and "I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)."

These songs use twangy guitar and criminal imagery to tell the tale of two ill-fated lovers on the run, evading capture and common sense. (The dynamic recalls " Cowboy Like Me ").

The first verse of "Fresh Out the Slammer" seems to run through a litany of references to previous songs in Swift's catalog. "Splintered back in winter" is an echo of the cabin creaks in " Evermore ," while "Silent dinners, bitter" is an apt summary of " Tolerate It ."

"Gray and blue and fights and tunnels" is a likely nod to Swift's gray face in "You're Losing Me," juxtaposed with Alwyn's blue eyes.

"Handcuffed to the spell I was under / For just one hour of sunshine" is a clear callback to the "moment of warm sun" described in "So Long, London."

In the second verse, Swift seems to recall The Eras Tour kicking off last year with "camera flashes, welcome bashes." (It marked her first series of live shows since 2018).

Shortly after the tour began, Swift's breakup with Alwyn was reported. "Get the matches, toss the ashes off the ledge," she sings, drawing a parallel with " Ivy " and its passionate scenes of infidelity ("It's a goddamn blaze in the dark / And you started it").

In the final verse, Swift's new lover calls her " the girl of his American Dreams ." The album isn't ordered chronologically, so we already have an inkling this will all fall apart, thanks to the foreshadowing in track one ("Another fortnight lost in America").

She then draws a parallel between their long-awaited reunion (" Now, pretty baby, I'm running / To the house where you still wait up and that porch light gleams") and the young lovers from the "Folklore" love triangle, James and Betty , calling back to " Cardigan " specifically ("I knew you'd miss me once the thrill expired / And you'd be standing in my front porch light").

Swift also refers back to the mock wedding scene in the title track. After getting out of jail, she sits in the open air with her paramour, "wearing imaginary rings."

"Florida!!!" was partially inspired by "Dateline."

" Florida!!! " is positioned as the aftermath of "Fresh Out the Slammer."

At this point in the story, Swift's character is either a fugitive or a convicted criminal with newfound freedom. So naturally, she runs away to a swampy town in no man's land.

"People have these crimes that they commit. Where do they immediately skip town and go to? They go to Florida," Swift explained in the Amazon Music series. "They try to reinvent themselves, have a new identity, blend in."

Swift and Florence Welch, who's a cowriter and featured artist, describe Florida as "one hell of a drug," teasing out their destructive impulses.

"Me and my ghosts, we had a hell of a time / Yes, I'm haunted, but I'm feeling just fine," Welch sings, an apparent nod to Swift's hit single "Anti-Hero" ("When my depression works the graveyard shift, all of the people I've ghosted stand there in the room"). Additionally, " Haunted " is the title of a track from "Speak Now."

Welch also includes a winking callback to Swift's murder fantasy in "Fortnight" ("And your cheating husband disappeared, well / No one asks any questions here").

Bonus detail: Emma Stone, Swift's close friend of many years , is credited in the liner notes for "oddities" under her birth name Emily Jean Stone .

"Guilty as Sin?" rewinds the clock, exposing Swift's illicit fantasies.

" Guilty as Sin? " is the second track in the outlaw trilogy, though chronologically, it seems to precede "Fresh Out the Slammer."

Swift opens the song by name-checking The Blue Nile's 1989 single " The Downtown Lights ." Not only was the song released during her birth year, but according to Healy, it served as an inspiration for The 1975's political anthem " Love It If We Made It ."

"Drowning in the Blue Nile / He sent me 'Downtown Lights' / I hadn't heard it in a while," she sings.

In this verse, it's clear that Swift is still in a committed relationship, though she admits, "My boredom's bone deep / This cage was once just fine." So instead, she dreams of "cracking locks," underscoring the song's connection to "Fresh Out the Slammer" ("Years of labor, locks and ceilings").

Swift ponders: "I'm seeing visions, am I bad? / Or mad? Or wise?"

The word "mad" is particularly loaded, appearing previously in two "Folklore" tracks: " The Last Great American Dynasty " ("There goes the maddest woman this town has ever seen") and, of course, " Mad Woman ."

In the chorus, Swift sketches out her private fantasies of another man: "What if he's written 'mine' on my upper thigh / Only in my mind?" Again, the word " Mine " carries weight as the title of a beloved "Speak Now" single.

In the second verse, Swift confesses, "I keep these longings locked / In lowercase inside a vault." This is a clear nod to her "Taylor's Version" series . These albums are rerecorded and rereleased with extra songs attached, labeled "from the vault," meaning they were cut from the original albums. The implication is that Swift has written songs about this person before, but chose not to release them at the time.

In the final verse, Swift portrays her desire as sacrilege ("What if the way you hold me / Is actually what's holy?"), much like she does in the "Lover" track " False God ."

"Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" is a theatrical vignette of fame — and the toll it exacts.

" Who's Afraid of Little Old Me? " is almost certainly a reference to "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" — a 1962 play written by Edward Albee — which is itself a reference to the 1933 Disney song "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?"

According to Albee , the play's title is another way of saying, "Who's afraid of living life without false illusions?" Because Woolf made her name writing stream-of-consciousness poetry, the threat she poses is not one of violence, but vulnerability.

Ablee's dark comedy follows a dysfunctional couple who delude themselves, each other, and the audience in order to cope with their feelings of frustration and inadequacy. While everything unfolds onstage, it's never quite clear who's lying about what.

Swift toys with the same concept throughout "The Tortured Poets Department," blurring the line between truth and illusion . Her emotional reactions seem to eclipse the literal events, especially in "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?"

Swift uses dark, potentially violent images — gallows, asylums, bullets — to communicate the pain of stardom and scandal. Swift has been famous since she was a teenager and the constant public scrutiny has taken its toll. By the end of the song, public perception and personal reality seem to overlap.

"You caged me and then you called me crazy," she sings in the outro. "I am what I am 'cause you trained me."

For those keeping track, that's the third cage reference in this album (following "But Daddy I Love Him" and '"Guilty as Sin?") and the seventh in her overall discography (following " I Know Places ," " So It Goes… ", " This Is Me Trying ," and " Midnight Rain "). In the album's "Summary Poem," Swift also refers to herself as a "caged beast" who was driven to do "the most curious things."

But the song's many parallels don't end there. In the 1966 "Who's Afraid of Virgina Woolf?" film adaptation, Elizabeth Burton stars as the boozy, bitter wife ("I'm always drunk on my tears," Swift sings, "Isn't that what they all say?") opposite Richard Burton's sad-sack husband.

Swift previously referenced these actors and their torrid real-life love affair in her "Reputation" single " …Ready For It? " ("You can be my jailer, Burton to this Taylor").

"I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)" portends the end of Swift's unruly relationship.

" I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can) " concludes the album's outlaw trilogy. Swift begins to acknowledge issues with her lover's behavior, like him chain-smoking cigarettes and making "revolting" jokes.

"I can fix him, no, really, I can / And only I can," Swift pledges in the chorus, echoing the conspiratorial tone of the title track ("Who else decodes you?" "Who's gonna know you, if not me?")

In the bridge, Swift coaxes her partner in crime to behave: "I'll show you heaven / If you'll be an angel all night / Trust me, I can handle me a dangerous man."

Indeed, Swift has demonstrated an attraction to danger, as in " Treacherous " ("This hope is treacherous / I like it") and "New Romantics" ("We need love, but all we want is danger").

The final lines in the song are written thusly in the lyric booklet: "I can fix him / No, really, I can / WOAH - maybe I can't."

"Loml" is a complex study of commitment and honesty.

Just as "But Daddy I Love Him" is the spiritual successor to "Love Story," " Loml " is the spiritual successor to "The 1."

In both songs, Swift characterizes herself as a compulsive grave-digger , unable to stop reviving the past and rehashing hypotheticals. "Still alive killing time at the cemetery / Never quite buried," she sings in the chorus of "Loml," a clear callback to the "Folklore" opener ("In my defense I have none / For digging up the grave another time").

Another couplet, "You said I'm the love of your life / About a million times," may allude to the adulterous tale of "Illicit Affairs" ("They show their truth one single time / But they lie and they lie and they lie / A million little times").

Notably, "Loml" belongs to this album's anthology of imagined marriages: "You and I go from one kiss to getting married."

Swift seems to conflate the relationship's intensity with longevity, though she later undermines that very correlation: "It was legendary / It was momentary." It's possible that Swift has intentionally muddied the timeline of these events, in order to confuse real-life interpretations — or else it's a poetic device used to convey a non-linear healing process.

In the bridge, Swift sings, "You shit-talked me under the table / Talking rings and talking cradles / I wish I could unrecall how we almost had it all."

The "Folklore" gem "Peace," which Swift has said is "rooted in my personal life," uses strikingly similar language: "I talk shit with my friends, it's like I'm wasting your honor / And you know that I'd … Give you my wild, give you a child."

The bridge and final chorus include varied salutes. "I can't get out of bed 'cause something counterfeit's dead" could be connected to the "Midnights" deluxe track " Glitch " ("It must be counterfeit"), while "The coward claimed he was a lion" is probably a nod to "The Wizard of Oz." (Swift previously referenced the film in the "Karma" music video. )

"I Can Do It With a Broken Heart" is about performing through the pain, specifically during The Eras Tour.

The official lyric video for " I Can Do It With a Broken Heart " features clips of Swift on The Eras Tour, the blockbuster run of shows that boosted the US economy , inspired fervent devotion , and spawned a groundbreaking concert film , all before it was halfway done.

Behind the scenes, however, Swift didn't feel so triumphant. "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart" digs into the chasm between her "glittering" onstage persona and her genuine emotional state, which takes a backseat to appease the demands of her fans.

"All the pieces of me shattered / As the crowd was chanting, 'MORE!'" Swift sings. "I was grinning like I'm winning / I was hitting my marks."

This brings to mind "Mirrorball," which paints a similar portrait of Swift as a fragile yet devoted performer: "I'll get you out on the floor / Shimmering beautiful / And when I break, it's in a million pieces."

In the chorus, Swift sarcastically intones, "I'm so depressed I act like it's my birthday / Every day."

Indeed, Swift has an iffy track record with birthdays, as evidenced by " The Moment I Knew " ("What do you say / When tears are streaming down your face / In front of everyone you know?") and the 10-minute version of " All Too Well " ("It's supposed to be fun turning 21").

The second verse deepens the connection with "All Too Well" — in particular, the fabled scarf that Swift left at her ex's sister's house .

"I keep finding his things in drawers / Crucial evidence I didn't imagine the whole thing," Swift pouts. A similar scene also occurs in "Hits Different" ("I find the artifacts, cry over a hat … I trace the evidence / Make it make some sense / Why the wound is still bleeding").

"The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived" is the exact opposite of "Innocent."

The subject of " The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived " is vividly painted using physical details ("In your Jehovah's Witness suit ") and allusions to drug abuse ("You tried to buy some pills," "Sank in stoned oblivion") that seem to suggest the subject is Healy.

Swift revisits the theme of addiction in one of the album's deluxe tracks, " Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus " ("You needed me, but you needed drugs more").

Addiction is also a dominant theme in The 1975's discography. Healy has written about using cocaine (" Ugh! "), mixing pills with wine (" Playing On My Mind "), fighting an addiction to heroin (" It's Not Living ," " Medicine "), and eventually going to rehab (" Surrounded by Heads and Bodies ").

In the bridge, Swift poses a series of hypothetical questions, trying to understand her lover's rationale for leaving. She calls back to the pistol imagery from "I Can Fix Him" ("Did you sleep with a gun underneath our bed?") and draws a connection to "Fresh Out the Slammer" ("You deserve prison, but you won't get time").

"In plain sight you hid / But you are what you did," she concludes, flipping a line from " Innocent " ("Who you are is not what you did").

"The Alchemy" was likely inspired by Swift's fans, not Travis Kelce.

In the first verse of " The Alchemy ," Swift revisits the asylum imagery found elsewhere on the album: "What if I told you I'm back? / The hospital was a drag / Worst sleep that I ever had."

The chorus marks her triumphant return to reality: "Ditch the clowns, get the crown / Baby, I'm the one to beat / 'Cause the sign on your heart / Said it's still reserved for me."

These lyrics are intentionally vague, using generalized metaphors to illustrate her own dominance. "The Alchemy" could be read as a kind of " Mastermind " part two — a song that celebrates her own prowess while saluting fans for sticking by her side.

In the second verse, Swift declares, "That child's play back in school / Is forgiven under my rule."

This could be another reference to The Eras Tour, whose setlist includes songs like " Fearless " and " You Belong With Me " that Swift wrote as a high schooler.

Swift has been widely praised for allowing fans to reclaim their "girlhood" and creating a safe space for "cringe" at her concerts.

"Cringe is unavoidable over a lifetime," Swift said in 2022 during her NYU commencement address . "I had a phase where, for the entirety of 2012, I dressed like a 1950s housewife. But you know what? I was having fun. Trends and phases are fun. Looking back and laughing is fun."

Some fans have attempted to connect "The Alchemy" to Swift's current boyfriend, Travis Kelce , suggesting the bridge was written after he won the Super Bowl in February: "Where's the trophy? / He just comes running over to me."

However, according to the liner notes, "The Alchemy" was copyrighted in 2023, so this theory is implausible.

"Clara Bow" is a meta critique of the music industry.

Swift explained in the Amazon Music series that " Clara Bow " was inspired by real conversations she had with label executives as a child.

"They'd say, 'You know, you remind us of,' and then they'd name an artist, and then they'd kind of say something disparaging about her," Swift said. "That's how we teach women to see themselves, as like, 'You could be the new replacement for this woman who's done something great before you.'"

To illustrate her point, Swift creates characters who name-drop "It Girl" flapper Clara Bow and Stevie Nicks. (Nicks even wrote an introductory poem for this album, included in physical copies.)

At the end of the song, Swift adds her own name to this succession: "You look like Taylor Swift / In this light / We're loving it / You've got edge / She never did." Remember, in "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" we learn that Swift's handlers "took out all her teeth." Now, industry executives mock her for not having enough "edge."

Throughout the album, Swift seems to argue that public critique, at least at her level of superstardom, is a self-fulfilling prophecy. She's steeling herself for the day of reckoning, when she's outstripped by a younger, edgier starlet.

Swift previously expressed her fear of being discarded and replaced in the "Red" vault track " Nothing New " ("She'll know the way and then she'll say she got the map from me / I'll say I'm happy for her, then I'll cry myself to sleep").

Given the array of young stars who've already cited Swift as an influence , it's very possible the conversation she outlines in "Clara Bow" has already happened.

• Main content

Find anything you save across the site in your account

Why Normal Music Reviews No Longer Make Sense for Taylor Swift

By Sinéad O’Sullivan

Ask music critics what they think of Taylor Swift’s eleventh studio album, “The Tortured Poets Department,” and those who aren’t afraid of getting doxed might say something about the interminable length, the repetitive synth overlays, or the uninspired lyrics. Take “imgonnagetyouback,” a track that’s notably similar to Olivia Rodrigo ’s “Get Him Back!” In the chorus, Swift sings that she hasn’t yet decided “whether I’m gonna be your wife or gonna smash up your bike.” Perhaps the lyric is meant to be somewhat infantile, but even the most novice editor should have pushed Swift toward the more obvious rhyme: “whether I’m gonna be your wife or gonna smash up your life .”

Ask a Swiftie what they think of the album, though, and they may very well say that it’s her best work yet. Yes, it would have made more sense for her to rhyme “wife” with “life” in “imgonnagetyouback.” But Swift obsessives know to connect “imgonnagetyouback” with “Fallingforyou,” a song by the 1975 that was written by Swift’s ex-boyfriend Matty Healy . In it, Healy sings, “I’m so excited for the night / All we need’s my bike and your enormous house.” Swift’s mention of a bike, in “imgonnagetyouback,” is therefore an intentional creative decision, like the lack of spaces in the song’s title. Some fans have gone even further, claiming that the lack of spaces not only invites a comparison to “Fallingforyou” but to Swift’s own “Blank Space,” a song on her “1989” album. (1975, 1989—there are a lot of years to keep track of here.) “In Blank Space music video, Taylor Swift is smashing things and sings ‘Cause you know I love the players And you love the game,’ ” a YouTube user called Miranda-ry9tf writes in a comment. “In imgonnagetyouback she says ‘We broke all the pieces, but you still wanna play the game.’ ” Perhaps “Blank Space,” released in 2014, was about Healy, too? Those Swifties who have gone far down the rabbit hole might argue that Swift, by leaving out the spaces in her new song’s title, has created a kind of ouroboros—a running theme in the artist’s work since 2016, when Kim Kardashian referred to her as a “snake.” If you write the words “imgonnagetyouback” in a circle, you’ll notice that the “k” and “im” are right next to each other. This might seem like a reach—but, six tracks later, Swift mentions a mysterious rival named Aimee, on a song titled “thanK you aIMee.” It doesn’t take a Swiftie to figure out whose name the capital letters spell.

There has long been a disconnect between how music critics and Swifties consume Taylor Swift’s work, but never before has that split been so pronounced. We saw it back in 2014, when “1989” became the fastest-selling album in more than a decade, but went unreviewed by Pitchfork. (The next year, the music publication instead reviewed Ryan Adams’s “1989” cover album.) In 2017, Swift’s “ Reputation ” was the best-selling album of the year; it received lacklustre reviews and got snubbed at the Grammys. During the pandemic, Swift narrowed the reception gap by releasing “ folklore ,” an album beloved by critics and fans alike. (“Some of us have spent years dreaming Taylor would do a whole album like this, but nobody really dreamed it would turn out this great,” Rob Sheffield wrote , in Rolling Stone , declaring it Swift’s “greatest album—so far.”) But whereas critics came for the “folk,” fans stayed for the “lore,” and that is the primary appeal of Swift’s latest release. “The Tortured Poets Department,” or “T.T.P.D.,” is nothing short of a Rorschach test. The tepid music reviews often miss the fact that “music” is something that Swift stopped selling long ago. Instead, she has spent two decades building the foundation of a fan universe, filled with complex, in-sequence narratives that have been contextualized through multiple perspectives across eleven blockbuster installments. She is not creating standalone albums but, rather, a musical franchise.

“T.T.P.D.” has helped Swift break nearly every possible streaming record. Upon its release, it became the most-streamed album on Spotify in a single day, and Swift herself became the most-streamed artist in a single day. It was streamed 314.5 million times the day of its release; the second-biggest Spotify début this year was Beyoncé’s “ Cowboy Carter ,” at 76.6 million. Ariana Grande’s “eternal sunshine” came in fourth, at 59.1 million. “[Swift]’s on another level, let’s start comparing Ariana with like Olivia Rodrigo instead,” a Grande fan account wrote on X. This poster might have the right idea: Why do we compare Swift with singer-songwriters like Grande and Beyoncé, and not with Bob Iger, the media executive who turned Disney into a two-hundred-billion-dollar company? Disney owns two of the largest fan properties in existence: Star Wars and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Marvel villains include Thanos and Doctor Doom; Taylor Swift’s villains include Scooter Braun and Kim Kardashian. (And, now, perhaps Healy.)

Like the M.C.U., the Swiftverse is more than a series of plotlines and characters. It is thousands of comments under Instagram posts, an additional three hundred and thirty-two million dollars for the N.F.L. , a worldwide run on bracelet beads, and the Fed wondering why inflation persists . In the Swiftverse, the music itself is not the point but the way in which the point is delivered. That’s not to say that the music is irrelevant; it serves a crucial purpose. But this purpose is different depending on whether you’re a diehard Swiftie or a casual listener. A common critique of “T.T.P.D.” is that it’s devoid of stylistic evolution, with too many references to Swift’s previous albums. Swifties understand that these Easter eggs add another dimension to a song or story they thought they knew. In the opening of “So Long, London,” a track on “T.T.P.D.,” staunch fans will recognize a pulsing sound akin to an effect used in “Call It What You Want,” from the album “Reputation.” Roughly halfway through the song, there’s also an “ah, ah” sound similar to part of the chorus of “Dress,” another “Reputation” track. On one hand, it’s reasonable for non-Swifties to assume that the artist, working with her longtime collaborators Jack Antonoff and Aaron Dessner, has unintentionally rehashed some of her old work. On the other, it’s kind of crazy to think that Swift is capable of doing anything without intentionality. Assuming the callbacks in “So Long, London” are deliberate, they rather beautifully bookend the beginning and ending of Swift’s six-year relationship with the actor Joe Alwyn. Most musicians—and artists more generally—can only dream of their fan base picking up on such subtleties. It’s ironic that, in Swift’s case, these subtleties have led to some of her fiercest criticism.

Some of the cleverest callbacks on “T.T.P.D.” are not to Swift’s old music but to Healy’s. Fans have discovered that Swift’s “Guilty as Sin” works eerily well as a musical overlay to “About You,” a song by the 1975 that is widely thought to be about Swift. Skeptics will note that both songs were produced by Antonoff, and claim that “Guilty as Sin” raises the question of whether the Swift-Antonoff collaboration has finally grown stale. But, for Swifties, “Guilty as Sin” offers answers. It connects two crucial pieces of a puzzle, and makes fans feel as if they are tantalizingly close to solving the mysteries upon which Swift’s universe is built—the identity of her muses, the uncertainty as to whether “folklore” and its follow-up “ evermore ” are based on real events. Following this train of thought, Swift’s and Healy’s combined three-hundred-and-fifty-plus-song discography leaves at least twenty-two thousand one hundred and ninety-four possible combinations of track overlays for fans to manically work through, in order to answer the biggest question posed by “T.T.P.D.”: Was Matty Healy the main character all along?

Oh, but what about the tempo of the chorus on the fifth track, or the bass progression on the—no, none of it matters anymore. Because for the fans who live and die by the meaning that is hidden between what is not said (and not sung) and the significance of what sounds the same rather than what sounds new, this latest album is by far the most important of Swift’s œuvre. “T.T.P.D.” is a grenade that Swift has thrown into her fan universe, and the most poetic thing about it is that it feels like a parallel to the grenade that Healy presumably threw into her life. This grenade has prompted fans to reëvaluate the entire past decade of Swift’s work, inspiring millions of people to comb through every lyric of every song in her previous albums. This is all while Swift is rerecording these old albums, and touring them. Therein lies the key to her success: achieving what a business strategist would call “synergies” among her music releases.

It’s not just some critics who didn’t get the memo that Swift’s business model has changed; it’s also the private-equity analysts who have been buying and selling the original catalogues of her music. By now, you probably know the story: in 2019, Scooter Braun bought the record label that owned the master recordings of Swift’s first six albums. (At the time, Swift claimed that she had been denied the opportunity to buy them herself.) Unwilling to let Braun control her music, she announced that she would rerecord those albums. The controversy led Braun to resell Swift’s master catalogue to Shamrock Holdings, the investment arm of the Disney family. But while teams of lawyers and financial analysts created spreadsheets making the case for buying Swift’s masters, they must not have realized that the most valuable thing about Taylor Swift is not the royalty number attached to her future streaming count. Rather, it’s her devoted audience. One may buy Swift’s music, but it’s impossible to buy her fans. And so Swift has been able to popularize her rerecorded songs—the Taylor’s Versions—to such an extent that streaming the originals is a punishable offense in the Swiftverse.

As she regains control over her old music, Swift is making new music and expanding the Swiftverse such that it now covers the universe of the 1975. Google searches for “Matty Healy” spiked on April 19th, the day of “T.T.P.D.” ’s release; the only time he was more Googled was May 7, 2023, the day that his relationship with Swift became public. Now, as Swifties listen to the 1975 and splice together Swift’s tracks with Healy’s, the whole thing might have the appearance of a mutually beneficial collaboration. But as Taylor giveth meaning, so, too, can she taketh meaning. Back in 2014, when Swift and Healy were first rumored to be together, Healy told Q Magazine that he found the idea “emasculating,” a comment that he was later forced to clarify . (“At that time I had fears of being ‘somebody’s boyfriend,’ ” he wrote, in an open letter, “before even being recognized for my music or presence as a person in my own right.”) Swift may have led her followers to Healy’s music, but she has also made sure that they will never listen to it again without understanding it through the narrative that she has created. Essentially, she has pulled off a reverse takeover of another artist’s catalogue.

Even if the Swiftverse can’t be bought and sold by investors, that doesn’t mean that investors aren’t watching. Earlier this year, Ray Dalio , the founder and owner of Bridgewater, the world’s largest hedge fund, half-jokingly endorsed Swift for the United States Presidency after attending one of her Eras Tour performances in Singapore. “I also saw the power of this American cultural icon and the power of that sort of American culture in influencing how the balance of geopolitical power goes,” he posted on X.

That level of global influence does not go hand in hand with reports of unfulfilled lyrical potential and uninspiring chord progressions published soon after Swift’s thirty-one-track, double-album release. Critics, of course, are within their rights to dislike “T.T.P.D.,” and they should be able to do so without fear of dying by a thousand Swiftie-inflicted cuts. But any critique of Swift’s work that doesn’t consider her role as one of the most prominent narrators of our time—and certainly anything that critiques her work as one-dimensional when she’s playing a kind of 4-D chess—will fail to speak to even the most casual of her fans. And without an understanding of the Swiftverse, very little of Swift’s music, or Taylor Swift herself, will ever make any sense. ♦

New Yorker Favorites

A Harvard undergrad took her roommate’s life, then her own. She left behind her diary.

Ricky Jay’s magical secrets .

A thirty-one-year-old who still goes on spring break .

How the greatest American actor lost his way .

What should happen when patients reject their diagnosis ?

The reason an Addams Family painting wound up hidden in a university library .

Fiction by Kristen Roupenian: “Cat Person”

Sign up for our daily newsletter to receive the best stories from The New Yorker .

By signing up, you agree to our User Agreement and Privacy Policy & Cookie Statement . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

By Amanda Petrusich

By Skyler Higley

By Andrew O’Hagan

• Work & Careers
• Life & Arts

Become an FT subscriber

Try unlimited access Only $1 for 4 weeks

Then $75 per month. Complete digital access to quality FT journalism on any device. Cancel anytime during your trial.

• Global news & analysis
• Expert opinion
• Special features
• FirstFT newsletter
• Videos & Podcasts
• Android & iOS app
• FT Edit app
• 10 gift articles per month

Explore more offers.

Standard digital.

• FT Digital Edition

Premium Digital

Print + premium digital, weekend print + standard digital, weekend print + premium digital.

Today's FT newspaper for easy reading on any device. This does not include ft.com or FT App access.

• 10 additional gift articles per month
• Global news & analysis
• Exclusive FT analysis
• Videos & Podcasts
• FT App on Android & iOS
• Everything in Standard Digital
• Premium newsletters
• Weekday Print Edition
• FT Weekend Print delivery
• Everything in Premium Digital

Essential digital access to quality FT journalism on any device. Pay a year upfront and save 20%.

• Everything in Print

Complete digital access to quality FT journalism with expert analysis from industry leaders. Pay a year upfront and save 20%.

Terms & Conditions apply

Explore our full range of subscriptions.

Why the ft.

See why over a million readers pay to read the Financial Times.

International Edition

Taylor Swift's new album The Tortured Poets Department smashes chart records in the US, UK and Australia

Taylor Swift has tied with Madonna as the female artist with the most number ones in the UK in official albums chart history.

Her new album The Tortured Poets Department has also outsold the rest of the top ten combined, while beating The Beatles' record of fastest artist to rack up 12 UK number one albums.

"No other artist has notched up 12 number one albums in such a short space of time," the official charts company said.

"Taylor Swift has done it in 11 years and six months. This surpasses The Beatles, who managed the feat in 14 years and one month."

The first single from the album Fortnight featuring Post Malone topped the UK singles chart.

Not long after the album was released, Spotify and Amazon Music said it was their most streamed album in a day.

Spotify later said it was their most-streamed album in a single week, surpassing 1billion streams.

Swift takes out the entire top 10 on the singles chart in Australia

Swift has also shattered ARIA records.

She now holds the record for the most number one albums in ARIA history for a female artist.

In Australia, Swift moves ahead of Madonna to claim third place on the list of acts with the most chart-topping albums in the country.

Jimmy Barnes leads with 15 as a solo act (he had another five with Cold Chisel), followed by the Beatles with 14.

The Tortured Poets Department is Swift's 13th number one ARIA album.

Fortnight has also climbed the charts in Australia and is Swift's 12th number one ARIA single.

Swift is the first artist to hold the entire top 10 on the singles chart, with Hozier at number 11 with Too Sweet.

ARIA Top 10 singles

• 1. Fortnight, Taylor Swift Feat. Post Malone
• 2. Down Bad, Taylor Swift
• 3. The Tortured Poets Department, Taylor Swift
• 4. So Long, London, Taylor Swift
• 5. I Can Do It With a Broken Heart, Taylor Swift
• 6. My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys, Taylor Swift
• 7. But Daddy I Love Him, Taylor Swift
• 8. Florida!!!, Taylor Swift Feat. Florence + The Machine
• 9. Who's Afraid Of The Little Old Me?, Taylor Swift
• 10. Guilty as Sin?, Taylor Swift

She has also set the record for the most singles in the top 50, charting a total of 29 tracks on the current chart.

Swift is still the only artist in ARIA history to replace themselves at number one on the album chart, having done so three times – two of those times with debuting albums.

In 2023, Speak Now (Taylor's Version) replaced Midnights; March 2024 saw Lover replace Midnights; and last week The Tortured Poets Department replaced Lover.

It's the most-sold album on vinyl and most-streamed album in week one in ARIA history.

An historic debut on the Billboard charts

Swift has also made an historic debut at number one on the Billboard 200 chart.

It's her 14th chart-topping album on the Billboard charts.

Swift ties with Jay-Z for the most number ones among soloists in the almost-70-year history of the chart.

Only the Beatles have more number ones, with 19.

With 1.914 million sold, Billboard reports that The Tortured Poets Department is the top-selling album of 2024 to date, with Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter coming in at number two, with 228,000 copies sold.

Billboard published a list of the acts with at least 10 number ones on the Billboard 200, since the list began publishing on a regular, weekly basis in March 1956.

They are as follows:

19. The Beatles

14. Taylor Swift

11. Bruce Springsteen

11.  Barbra Streisand

11. Ye (formerly Kanye West)

10.  Eminem

10. Elvis Presley

Reuters/ABC

• X (formerly Twitter)

Related Stories

'do i need to give a billionaire more money' how taylor swift's financial status collides with fans.

Is The Tortured Poets Department a sign of genius, or does Taylor Swift need an editor?

Taylor Swift's new album is actually two new albums, and the internet has lost it

Why The Tortured Poets Department could spell trouble for Taylor Swift's Eras Tour

Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department breaks multiple records in 24 hours

You can try to intellectualise what makes Taylor Swift so damn successful, but you would be missing the point

• Arts, Culture and Entertainment
• Music (Arts and Entertainment)
• Popular Culture
• United Kingdom
• United States

Tornadoes leave trail of destruction in the Midwest and Taylor Swift's new album smashes records: Morning Rundown

In today’s newsletter: Biden and Netanyahu speak after Palestinian officials say they are expecting an offensive in Rafah. Residents assess damage after tornadoes devastate parts of Oklahoma. And Taylor Swift breaks another music record. 

Here’s what to know today.

Biden speaks with Netanyahu as tensions over the Israel-Hamas war mount in the U.S.

President Joe Biden spoke over the phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday amid the backdrop of a possibly imminent Israeli invasion of Rafah. 

Netanyahu shows no signs of backing away from a ground offensive in Gaza’s overcrowded southern city,  a potential move that the U.S. publicly opposes , after Palestinian officials said they were expecting the potential attack within days.

Biden “reiterated his clear position” on any Rafah offensive, according to the White House.

The two leaders discussed areas of commonality, with Biden “reaffirm[ing] his ironclad commitment to Israel’s security” after Iran’s missile and drone retaliatory attack on the country earlier this month, the White House readout said. The leaders also spoke about renewed hopes for a hostage release and cease-fire deal, along with humanitarian aid for Gaza.

• World Central Kitchen announced that it will resume operations in Gaza today, almost one month after seven of its aid workers were killed in Israeli airstrikes in the enclave.
• A senior Qatari official has urged Israel and Hamas to show “more commitment and more seriousness” in cease-fire negotiations in interviews with Israeli media.
• A video of Israeli hostages Keith Siegel and Omri Miran was released by Hamas’ military wing. NBC News has not been able to independently verify when or where it was filmed.

Pro-Palestinian protests spread as colleges crack down on encampments

Pro-Palestinian protests continue to grow at universities in the U.S. and Canada after months of war in Gaza. Students taking part say they want divestment from companies that could be profiting from the war and transparency regarding where institutions are investing their money. 

This is Morning Rundown, a weekday newsletter to start your morning. Sign up here to get it in your inbox.

Many universities have said they support freedom of speech and will allow protests on campus, but that encampments violate school policy. Dozens of people were arrested at colleges that cracked down on encampments, including Northeastern University, where about 100 people were detained over the weekend. 

Columbia University’s pro-Palestinian encampment has stretched into its second weekend after talks between protesting students and the administration remained at a stalemate. Video from this past week showed officers in protective gear moving in on Emerson’s campus, where an encampment was set up. A total of 118 protesters were arrested as a result.  

Read the full story  here.

Read more:  

• Columbia University said that  it has banned a student protest leader from campus  after a video resurfaced that showed the student saying Zionists “don’t deserve to live.”
• Biden’s administration   is accused of taking a lax approach  toward enforcement of civil rights laws, exposing Jewish students to continued harassment. 

Outnumbered and outgunned, Ukraine retreats in the east amid wait for U.S. aid

Ukraine’s outnumbered troops have been forced to retreat from three villages on the eastern front lines, the country’s top commander said yesterday, as Russian forces push to break through its beleaguered defenses while Kyiv waits for newly-committed U.S. military aid to arrive. 

It was a rare admission from Ukraine’s new commander-in-chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, that his troops were not only struggling, but also that Russia was gaining the upper hand. 

In a lengthy post on his Telegram channel yesterday, he said the situation on the front lines had “worsened.”

“Trying to seize the strategic initiative and break through the front line, the enemy has concentrated main efforts in several directions, creating a significant advantage in forces and means,” Syrskyi said. “It’s actively attacking along the entire frontline, in some areas — it has tactical successes.”

5 people dead, including a baby, after tornadoes hammer the Midwest 

At least five people are dead, including an infant, after a tornado outbreak touched down in Oklahoma, with reports of 35 tornadoes over the weekend. 

Footage on social media in the early hours of yesterday showed heavy damage across the town of Sulphur, including toppled trees and scattered bricks and wooden beams. In the downtown area, buildings had structural damage, including blown-out windows and missing walls. Some were reduced to rubble. 

Thousands were without power and more than 30 million people across multiple states  were in the path of severe weather.  Gov. Kevin Stitt said the damage was “unbelievable” and signed an executive order declaring an emergency.

Taylor Swift makes historic debut ‘Tortured Poets Department’ at No. 1 on Billboard 

Taylor Swift said her “mind is blown” after her newest album, “The Tortured Poets Department,”  hit record streaming numbers on top of selling nearly 2 million physical records.

The album hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 200 chart after it was released last week. Her album marked a banner week for vinyl sales, with 859,000 vinyl units sold. That’s the largest single-week vinyl sale for an album in the modern era, according to Billboard. Swift thanked fans on X, saying that not only was her mind blown, but also that she was “fired up” to continue her worldwide tour in a few weeks. Billboard reported that the combined totals for all 31 tracks of her latest album hit 891.37 million official streams, the biggest streaming debut for an album in history.

‘The Jinx Part Two’ revisits the Robert Durst saga of murder and mystery

The case of Robert Durst, a real-estate scion accused of eluding justice for decades in the deaths of three people, exploded nine years ago during the finale of an HBO documentary series about his life, in which he muttered: “Killed them all, of course.”

He was arrested on the eve of the finale of the 2015 HBO docuseries “The Jinx," put on trial and convicted in the death of a confidant, and indicted separately in the death and disappearance of his first wife. Durst died serving a life sentence in 2022, but director Andrew Jarecki has continued to tell the story for a second season, “The Jinx Part Two,” which premiered April 21 on HBO. 

The new season covers the events up to Durst’s arrest, his trial and his eventual conviction.  Here’s a recap of what led to the second series. 

Politics in Brief

  NBC News poll:  Supporters of Biden and former President Donald Trump are divided on, among other things, how they get their news ,  according to an NBC News poll. 

Election 2024:  Trump  met privately over breakfast with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis  to discuss ways to fundraise for Trump’s campaign, according to six sources. 

Republican National Committee:  The Arizona GOP has picked state Sen. Jake Hoffman, a “fake elector” indicted and accused of working to overturn Biden’s 2020 election win in Arizona, to serve as a national committeeman for the RNC . 

Abortion rights:  Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has shied away from saying if he supports a federal ban on abortions after 15 weeks, with exceptions, but told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that he doesn’t think any proposed abortion legislation would "get 60 votes in the Senate".

White House Correspondents’ Dinner:  Watch Colin Jost  headline the 2024 White House Correspondent’s Dinner,  where he joked about Trump, the upcoming election and his wife, Scarlett Johansson. 

✦ WANT MORE POLITICS NEWS?

 Sign up for From the Politics Desk to get exclusive reporting and analysis delivered to your inbox every weekday evening.  Subscribe here.

Staff Pick: The rise of ‘Tenniscore’

“Tenniscore” — or tennis-inspired outfits — has steadily increased in popularity for years, thanks to growing interest in pickleball and the dominance of athleisure. And now, the new movie “Challengers” is taking the trend to new heights. Actor Zendaya’s red carpet looks, curated by her longtime stylist Law Roach, have gone viral online, inspiring fashion enthusiasts and moviegoers to put an updated spin on a style characterized by pleated skirts, cable knit sweaters.  You could say this trend is serving.

—  Daysia Tolentino,  culture and trends reporter

In Case You Missed It

• A wide receiver for the NFL’s Houston Texans, Tank Dell, was  injured in a shooting in Florida.
• Grizzly bears are set to be reintroduced to Washington state’s North Cascades mountain range, and advocates say the effort will  help make the overall ecosystem healthier. 
• The teenage child of former Slack CEO Stewart Butterfield  has been found safely  after having run away from home. 
• U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russian President Vladimir Putin  probably didn’t directly order the killing of Alexei Navalny.
• Gabby Douglas  returned to competitive gymnastics  and qualified for the U.S. Championships. 

Select: Online Shopping, Simplified

 Skin care products with vitamin C can deliver protection directly to your skin cells. NBC Select spoke with three dermatologists about its benefits and compiled a list of  the best serums to shop . 

  Sign up to The Selection  newsletter for exclusive reviews and shopping content from NBC Select.

Thanks for reading today’s Morning Rundown. Today’s newsletter was curated for you by Elizabeth Both. If you’re a fan, please send a link to your family and friends. They can sign-up here .

Elizabeth Both is an associate platforms editor for NBC News, based in New York.