Here to set more music industry records, Taylor Swift currently dominates the top 10 spots on Billboard Hot 100 with Midnights, her newest release and 10th studio album.
The Billboard Twitter account tweeted that Swift “scores one of the most historic weeks in @billboardcharts history, as she becomes the first artist to claim the #Hot100’s entire top 10 in a single week.”
She has surpassed Drake’s 2021 record, in which his Sep. 3 album, Certified Lover Boy, remarkably claimed nine of the top 10 spots.
Midnights elegantly creates a specific and intentional atmosphere. Swift’s use of complex synths and mellow pulsing beats formulates a delicate and glassy yet airy and distant ambiance. The album effectively embodies the precise and distinctive mood of sleepless nights.
A few days before the Oct. 21 release date, Swift put out “Meet me at midnight,” a short promo track in which she described the album as “the stories of 13 sleepless nights scattered throughout [her] life.” The original release had 13 tracks, but a few hours later she surprised listeners by releasing the extended Midnights (3am Edition) with seven more songs.
Contrary to the fictional narrative styles of her 2020 releases Folklore and evermore, Midnights is a return to Swift’s more traditional, diaristic songwriting style. Each of the 13 tracks (and the additional seven from the extended version) tell a unique story, painting a clear picture of exactly the impact her sleepless nights have had in her journey understanding love, loss, regrets, and growing up. Her simple narrative style and oftentimes relatable lyricism immerse listeners into a moonlit atmosphere.
In Swift’s lead single “Anti-Hero” (which is currently number one on Billboard’s Hot 100), she credits herself as a major source of her problems. The chorus says, “It’s me, hi / I’m the problem, it’s me.”
In the track, she essentially admits to being self-conscious but hardly self-aware — a theme that translates into various other songs throughout the album.
“Dear Reader,” the closing track to the expanded version of her album, is a collection of advice. The song is somewhat of an oxymoron as she counters her words of wisdom with an advisory to not listen to her. She sings, “Bend when you can / Snap when you have to” and “When you aim at the Devil / Make sure you don’t miss.” She then warns listeners to “Never take advice from someone who’s falling apart” and “You should find another guiding light, but I shine so bright.”
The album comes just in time for autumn and winter, setting a cold and nocturnal feel.
You can stream Taylor Swift’s Midnights on Apple Music, Spotify, Youtube Music, and other major music streaming services. You can purchase her CDs, vinyl records, and other merchandise in stores or on Swift’s official website.
