Taylor Swift explains the soul-crushing meaning behind her Anti-Hero lyrics (2024)

FAQs

What is the meaning of the song "Anti Hero"? ›

'Anti-Hero' reveals a struggle with depression

At the very beginning of the song, Swift expresses that her depression is just one of the things that keep her up during her midnights. "When my depression works the graveyard shift/ All of the people I've ghosted stand there in the room," the lyrics go.

The #TSAntiHeroChallenge asks fans to acknowledge their unique traits — yes, even the more chaotic ones — in a fun way. Some examples they use are clapping at the end of movies or leaving clean laundry in the basket. Most of the videos feature the lyrics of the song, “It's me / Hi / I'm the problem, it's me.”

As a protest song, "Only the Young" discusses subjects such as school shootings, Donald Trump, and vote-tampering concerns in its lyrics. Upon release, music critics praised Swift's lyricism on United States politics, addressing matters such as gun violence and mass shootings.

An anti-hero is a central character of a story who lacks traditional characteristics that are associated with a conventional hero. While typically guided by the best of intentions, the anti-hero is a classically flawed character with a history of bad decisions and a questionable moral code.

They're not necessarily evil, but they definitely don't have the same sense of honor and duty as a traditional hero does. For example, in the Harry Potter series, Draco Malfoy is a Slytherin student and son of a Death Eater. He's not a good guy by any means, but he's also not pure evil.

Taylor Swift removes 'fat' scale scene from 'Anti-Hero' video following backlash. Some critics called the moment "fatphobic."

Swift's ghosts represent pieces of her past.

In the music video, these people show up in Swift's house as cartoonish ghosts — people with bed sheets draped over their heads — surrounded by tokens from Swift's past.

In the short film, Sadie Sink wears a red scarf. "The scarf is a metaphor," Swift told a panel audience at the event, "and we turned it red because red is a very important color in this album, which is called Red." She continued, drawing laughs, "And, I think when I say it's a metaphor, I'm just going to stop."

"Anti-Hero" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift and the lead single from her tenth studio album, Midnights (2022). Swift wrote and produced the song with Jack Antonoff.

Karma

Taylor Swift

Love Story

Taylor Swift

Cruel Summer

Taylor Swift

Water

Tyla

Dancing Queen

ABBA

Good Feeling

Flo Rida

What does Taylor Swift wear in Anti-Hero? ›

In the beginning of the music video, Taylor wears a striped and houndstooth-embroidered short-sleeve polo sweater paired with rust wide-leg pants, Fendi sneakers, and stacked rings from ByChari.

According to The Times, though Swift is left-aligned, a portion of the right wing still "covet" her, making her a unifying entity that could help bridge the political divide of the U.S. by drawing various demographics to her cause.

Is "Two Ghosts" by Harry Styles About Taylor Swift? "Ever Since New York" wasn't the only track on Styles's self-titled debut album that seems to be about Swift. The first couple lines of the song "Two Ghosts" seem to clearly riff off Swift's song "Style," which is widely believed to be about — you guessed it — Styles.

Swift was inspired to write "Innocent" by Kanye West's interruption of her acceptance speech at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards. Taylor Swift wrote all tracks on her third studio album Speak Now (2010), by herself.

While the 'hero' solves the problems in a way lead by his high sense of morality, the 'anti-hero' is not only not afraid, but he is seeking conflict and struggle rather that comfort and certainty. His sense of self-actualization or justice is achieved through violence.

In a 1999 interview, Grohl said that the song is "about heroes that are ordinary" and added that he looks up to everyday people more than he looks up to celebrities. During Foo Fighters' appearance on VH1 Storytellers in 2009, Grohl explained that the song was written while watching 1980s movies like Valley Girl.

the blue glitter in that video was a metaphor for, like, at one point, I bleed blue glitter. it's supposed to be midnight blue glitter. and then at one point, I'm opening it, I cut through an egg, and it's. it's glitter. and so it's supposed to be a metaphor for, like, I bleed glitter.

Swift's ghosts represent pieces of her past.

Another ghost wears the red heart-shaped sunglasses from the "22" music video while sipping an amber liquid.