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Just like the title suggests, ‘The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology Edition’ is truly an example of songwriting that comes from an aching soul. Taylor Swift’s latest album can make the listener feel ‘down bad’ with a hefty dose of melancholy and poignancy. Enhancing the sob hours for all, this album project speaks of the hearts of millions, their pain, and their struggle through the songwriter’s own voice.
In the latest album, Taylor Swift has addressed more issues than fans expected and those issues range vastly in life rather than just love. The singer has also opened up about being a “functional alcoholic,” and asked the fans “Am I allowed to cry?” The album project offers a total of 31 songs which is the largest tracklist for any album by the artist. This time, she has put her love and heartbreak aside and instead of melodramatic romance, the singer has longed for stability in peace in life.
By utilizing the themes of escapism and addressing the well-being of mental health, this latest album offers multiple misty-eyed moments without exaggerating heartbreaks. With adequate maturity and expressing the art of living, Swift made sure to offer the saddest lyrics she ever wrote. Let’s take a better look at the top 10 saddest lyrics that made fans cry.
1. A “Down Bad” Depression
Just like the title refers, this track deals with the emotions of depression which is not always handled by calmness but rather anger and rage for many. A fair amount of rage can be found as the singer said, “I’ll build you a fort on some planet/ Where they can all understand it/ How dare you think it’s romantic/ Leaving me safe and stranded/ ‘Cause f— it, I was in love/ So f— you if I can’t have us/ ‘Cause f— it, I was in love”.
The lyricism shows anger and depression not for the heartbreak but for misunderstanding someone as the cosmic love. This anger is projected more on herself rather than others, considering it a mistake.
2. “I Hate It Here”, A Pungent Outburst
The poignant lyricism in the track goes “I hate it here so I will go to secret gardens in my mind/ People need a key to get to, the only one is mine/ I read about it in a book when I was a precocious child/ No mid-sized city hopes and small-town fears/ I’m there most of the year ’cause I hate it here/ I hate it here”. The intensified hatred in this song is not against any particular person but the inability to cope with this harsh world. It shows a greater sense of escapism as she has been looking for a safe space since her childhood.
3. “Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus” or anyone else?
The lyrics in this track go like this, “So if you wanna break my cold, cold heart/ Say you loved me/ And if you wanna tear my world apart/ Say you’ll always wonder”. It shows the conflicts of heartfelt longing and what ifs where the singer affirms and reclaims self-worth with her own alter ego. The name is not important here, if it is not she, then there’s no point fighting with self-created delusions.
4. “LOML”, A Deep Mourning
“It was legendary/ It was momentary/ It was unnecessary”. When the song shows the transformation from “Love of my life” to “loss of my life” along with an intriguing piano composition, you ought to cry on the floor. This song offers a different portrayal of romance than the traditional Swiftie romance. It shows the turmoil of heart that nobody speaks about, the highest highs and the lowest lows.
5. “So Long, London,” A Classic
With the lyrics like “And I’m pissed off you let me give you all that youth for free” & “Every breath feels like rarest air/ When you’re not sure if he wants to be there” it is quite evident that Swift is quite pissed of herself for investing her prime time in a relationship that only wasted her time and the heart. The bitterness and underlying rage in the track are quite relatable for the fans as well and show a sense of empowerment.
6. “Peter” Had To Go
The lyrical approach in this track proceeds like this, “Forgive me, Peter, please know that I tried/ To hold on to the days when you were mine/ But the woman who sits by the window has turned out the light/ You said you were gonna grow up/ Then you were gonna come find me/ Said you were gonna grow up”. But did Peter actually grow up? No. And so, Swift had to let him go. Peter is irrelevant here but it is dedicated to every partner who lacks conviction and accountability.
7. Nobody Knows “How Did It End?”
Perhaps nobody knows how the relationship actually ended. But everything that ends, does not come up with a new beginning, as the lyric goes, “My beloved ghost and me/ Sitting in a tree/ D-Y-I-N-G”. The unusual use of spelling added more dynamic to the track and Swift has used it multiple times. Using spellings in a unique way like “Sitting in a tree/ K-I-S-S-I-N-G”, the singer has enhanced the emotive essence of the song.
8. ‘Tortured Poets Department’ As the Poet Says
The true torture of poets is evident in this song that says, “At dinner, you take my ring off my middle finger/ And put it on the one people put wedding rings on/ And that’s the closest I’ve come to my heart exploding”. The explosiveness of emotions and the poignant climax in the end make this song somewhere between happy and sad, somewhere between dead but uniquely alive.
9. “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart”, A Dark Wave
When it comes to the depressed generation of the modern era, no one can relate better than the lyrics, “I’m so depressed, I act like it’s my birthday every day” & “I’m miserable, and nobody even knows!”. Despite the heartbreaks and deeply low moments, Swift has always masked her emotions and offered the best performances for her fans. However, this track shows the breakdowns that she had to go through.
10. “Smallest Man Who Ever Lived”, A Painful Ode
The lyric in the song goes like this, “And in plain sight you hid/ But you are what you did/ And I’ll forget you, but I’ll never forgive/ The smallest man who ever lived” which indicates to a lover who ghosted her and Swift is still in pain. Her rattling vocal skills made this song even more emotive.
Check out the latest album to cry along!
