Taylor Swift says 'Florida!!!' was inspired by 'Dateline'. Here's why
Adding three exclamation points to the end of a song title might seem excessive, but after listening to Taylor Swift and Florence + The Machine’s thundering new duet “Florida!!!” you’ll immediately understand why.
The track, from Swift’s latest album, “The Tortured Poets Department,” is one of two special features on the LP and marks the pop icon’s first collaboration with Florence Welch.
Fans had been anticipating hearing the two sing together since the pop icon announced Welch would be a featured artist on “TTPD” on Instagram Feb. 5
When “Florida!!!” was released on April 19, Swifties also learned that the duo are credited as the only writers on the track. (Emma Stone, who has been close friends with Swift for years, is listed in the liner notes for a mysterious contribution.)
“Florida!!!” features a roaring chorus where Swift and Welch belt “Florida / Is one hell of a drug / Florida / Can I use you up?” as drums bang in the background.
Unlike other songs on “TTPD” and the deluxe edition, “The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology,” “Florida!!!” is not about a former flame or an exciting new love. The song stands out for its message about escape — and its booming production.
Swift recently revealed the inspiration behind the eccentric song in an Amazon Music commentary.
“I think I was coming up with this idea of, like, what happens when your life doesn’t fit or your choices you’ve made catch up to you,” she said.
The singer said in the voice note that the song is about escaping “harsh consequences and judgment and circumstances.”
Swift started imagining the perfect place to run off to and thought of a television show she frequently watches.
“Is there a place you could go?” she asked before laughing. “I’m always watching, like, ‘Dateline.’ People have these crimes that they commit. Where do they immediately skip town and go to? They go to Florida.”
She continued, “They try to reinvent themselves, have a new identity, blend in. And I think when you go through a heartbreak, there’s a part of you that thinks, ‘I want a new name. I want a new life. I don’t want anyone to know where I’ve been or know me at all.’”
She explained that this desire to disappear and begin anew was the starting point for the song.
“Where would you go to reinvent yourself and blend in? Florida!” she concluded.
Welch posted a snippet from the song on her Instagram the day of Swift’s album release.
“Me and my ghosts we had a hell of a time,” Welch said in the caption.
She added, “Honoured to be in this department.”
Swifties have shared Spotify canvas videos on X of Swift filming Welch as she recorded her vocals for “”Florida!!!”
The “TTPD” chairman turns the camera to show her making an excited face before the clip ends.
Their voices pair well on the haunting track. Swift paints the scene in the first verse, describing a woman who is ready to flee her hometown. “And this city reeks of driving myself crazy,” she says.
As the pre-chorus begins, she continues, “Little did you know your home’s really only a town you’re just a guest in / So you work your life away just to pay for a time-share down in Destin.”
Welch joins her on the chorus before easing into her solo verse. “Well, me and my ghosts, wе had a hell of a time / Yes, I’m hauntеd, but I’m feeling just fine / All my girls got their lace and their crimes / And your cheating husband disappeared, well / No one asks any questions here,” she ominously says, like a person of interest in an episode of “Dateline.”
In the lengthy bridge, the musicians talk about forgetting their past regrets and leaving everything behind for Florida.
Although “Florida!!!” is a standalone track in terms of sound and subject on the album, the Sunshine State is also referenced in the lead single “Fortnight” with Post Malone, the only other featured artist on “TTPD.”
Read the rest of the cinematic lyrics from “Florida!!!” below.
Lyrics to ‘Florida!!!’ featuring Florence + The Machine
You can beat the heat if you beat the charges too
They said I was a cheat, I guess it must be true
And my friends all smell like weed or little babies
And this city reeks of driving myself crazy
Little did you know your home’s really only
A town you’re just a guest in
So you work your life away just to pay
For a time-share down in Destin
Florida
Is one hell of a drug
Florida
Can I use you up?
The hurricane with my name when it came
I got drunk and I dared it to wash me away
Barricaded in the bathroom with a bottle of wine
Well, me and my ghosts, wе had a hell of a time
Yes, I’m hauntеd, but I’m feeling just fine
All my girls got their lace and their crimes
And your cheating husband disappeared, well
No one asks any questions here
So I did my best to lay to rest
All of the bodies that have ever been on my body
And in my mind, they sink into the swamp
Is that a bad thing to say in a song?
Little did you know your home’s really only
The town you’ll get arrested
So you pack your life away just to wait out
The s---storm back in Texas:
Florida
Is one hell of a drug
Florida
Can I use you up?
I need to forget, so take me to Florida
I’ve got some regrets, I’ll bury them in Florida
Tell me I’m despicable, say it’s unforgivable
At least the dolls are beautiful, f--- me up, Florida
I need to forget, so take me to Florida
I’ve got some regrets, I’ll bury them in Florida
Tell me I’m despicable, say it’s unforgivable
What a crash, what a rush, f--- me up, Florida
It’s one hell of a drug
It’s one hell of a drug
Love left me like this and I don’t want to exist
So take me to Florida
Little did you know your home’s really only
A town you’re just a guest in (Florida)
So you work your life away just to pay
For a time-share down in Destin (Take me to Florida)
Little did you know your home’s really only
The town you’ll get arrested (Florida)
So you pack your life away just to wait out
The s—storm back in Texas
Florida
Is one hell of a drug
(Take me to) Florida
Can I use you up?
Florida
Is one hell of a drug
Florida
Go on, f--- me up
This article was originally published on TODAY.com