Midnights has arrived, and thus so has a whole new treasure trove of Taylor Swift-isms to deliberately pick apart. Along with the arrival of her latest studio album today (and a bonus collection of B-sides), the pop star has shared the video for the track “Anti-Hero.”
Swift, who wrote and directed the clip, described it on Twitter has a way to “watch my nightmare scenarios and intrusive thoughts play out in real time.” Relatable as ever, huh? But there’s a lot going on here — and we’re here to do our best to break it all down for you.
A Graveyard Shift Party
“When my depression works the graveyard shift, all of the people/ I’ve ghosted stand there in the room,” Swift sings in the first verse of “Anti-Hero” as she sits at her kitchen table, prodding her plate of fried eggs in the middle of the night. Suddenly, she finds that her house has been overrun by ghosts — rather, mysterious sheet-covered beings. As much as we’d love to confirm that this references her pal Phoebe Bridgers, Swift is likely personifying her own mental illness. What’s more, the “ghosts” are all wearing sunglasses and various headwear, and one’s even nonchalantly holding a whiskey glass. Her depression, she seems to say, visits her at night, as if it’s gleefully crashing a party.
The Old Taylor Really Can’t Come to the Phone Right Now
Whimsical, kitchsy home settings aren’t an uncommon concept for Swift’s music videos, but when she reaches for a wall-mounted rotary phone in “Anti-Hero,” it feels pretty reminiscent of a similar scene in her “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” video — which, believe it or not, premiered just over 10 years ago.
But, while Red-era Taylor was chastising her wishy-washy partner, current Taylor finds that the cord to her phone is broken, and the ghosts in her house seem ready to attack. Sound familiar? As she herself once wisely said: “The old Taylor can’t come to the phone right now. Why? ‘Cause she’s dead.” After spending most of her teens and all of her adulthood so far in the relentless public eye, it feels like a metaphor for Swift’s hesitance to let go of her former self, even though it’s necessary for her to grow and evolve.
Don’t Leave Her to Her Own Devices
“I should not be left to my own devices,” Swift warns us, implying that she’ll turn to dangerous vices if left unattended; like binge drinking until she vomits nondescript blue liquid, for example. But the “Anti-Hero” video also indicates a few subtler examples of self-destruction, like when she smashes her acoustic guitar on the floor. Music — the thing that’s formed her entire persona and career — sometimes feels like an antagonist she has to kill. To top all of that off, Swift gets a visit from another Swift in a flashy outfit and bright lipstick, perhaps indicating how she’s become distanced from herself: Who’s the Swift that gets on stage to sing and seemingly has it all together, and then who is Swift really?
