"The Tortured Poets Department" #MusicMonday

Taylor Swift launched her latest album this weekend titled “The Tortured Poets Department” and I’m already obsessed. Not with the music, per se, because I wouldn’t consider myself to be a “Swiftie,” but I am obsessed with the writing and the marketing of it all.

Sheer brilliance.

A few facts show the impact of the brilliance: 300 million streams of one song in a single day on Spotify. That’s more than any other single in history or artist in history. 1.6 million album sales in one day. That’s more than any other artist ever.

The songs were released at midnight ET on Friday with then another unexpected batch released two hours later. Some of the songs also had lyric changes in between. So if you were an early bird fan, you got a little extra treat.

Within minutes, fans, reviewers, and musical analysts were dissecting the lyrics. The writing is superb. Songs about friends, lovers, “enemies,” experiences, and life in general. Hidden messages, love letters, and tributes abound throughout the songs. The writing is sheer brillance, as stated above.

As an adult, I consider myself to be a writer, so I am in awe of good writing. Writing that pulls you in, entertains you, educates you, and gets you to think. All of the above on this collection of 31 songs. 31 songs!

Turns out there’s a purposeful sequence to the songs too. Taylor has created a tradition of making “track 5” the most personal and vulnerable song of the album. For this album, it’s “So Long, London” presumably about the breakup of her prior relationship.

Then there’s the song about her current relationship, “The Alchemy.”

And then of course the first single, the title single, where she brings back the cast of “The Dead Poets Society” for the video. Sheer brilliance once again.

You couldn’t miss the album release … promotions on Spotify, TikTok …. pop up venues at places like The Grove in Los Angeles … sing along and karaoke parties at bars … listening parties in people’s homes … special promotions for independent record stores. So much of it captured on social media. It’s no wonder it broke records on the first day of release. I almost bought it and I’m not much of a fan!!!

The secret to all of this success? Taylor Swift gave her fans what they want. Taylor Swift stayed true to herself and her brand. Taylor Swift put herself out there. Taylor Swift puts her fans first.

And of course brilliant writing and marketing too.

Well done and well deserved. What’s your experience? JIM