Fortnight

Album

Tortured Poets Department, The

Label

Republic Records

Genre

Downtempo

Composer(s)

Taylor Swift;Jack Antonoff;Austin Post

Entered Chart

Apr 6, 2024

Peak Date

Apr 6, 2024

Released

April 19, 2024

Recorded

Studio Conway Recording (Los Angeles) Electric Lady (New York)

"Fortnight" is the opening track on Taylor Swift's 11th studio album, The Tortured Poets Department. It's an '80s-inspired downtempo electropop tune where Swift joins forces with Post Malone. "Fortnight" drips with dark desire and simmering resentment as Swift details a story of living next door to an ex-lover, now married. The once-familiar pleasantries of neighborly interaction become a source of torment as Swift grapples with lingering feelings. The song takes a shocking turn as her longing curdles into a twisted fantasy – the elimination of the wife (and even the husband in a later verse) paves the way for a reunion that can never be. Post Malone's final verse reveals a disconnect. Phone calls go unanswered, highlighting the emotional gulf that separates them. This missed connection, coupled with Swift's twisted fantasies, creates a sense of desperation that fuels an escape to Florida. "Fortnight" is one half of a narrative duo on The Tortured Poets Department. The other half, "Florida!!!," features Florence Welch of Florence + the Machine. These songs, similar to the love triangle explored in Folklore with "Cardigan," "August" and "Betty," have a cohesive storyline. In "Florida!!!" Swift and Florence embark on a Thelma and Louise-inspired escape to the Sunshine State, seeking a fresh start and new identities. "Fortnight" comes from Old English and literally means "14 nights." There are several possible reasons for the song title, but it's likely a double meaning: 1. Swift's romance with her neighbor was a passionate but fleeting romantic relationship that lasted only two weeks. This aligns with the lyric, "I touched you for only a fortnight," suggesting an intense but short-lived connection. Or the song details Swift's emotional turmoil after encountering the ex-lover who now lives next door. After two weeks, she can't take any more and flees to Florida. This aligns with the lyric, "And for a fortnight there, we were forever. Run into you sometimes, ask about the weather." 2. During some months in 2023, Swift dated Matty Healy of the British band The 1975. Her relationship prior to that was with another British man, actor Joe Alwyn. Is she using the archaic English term "fortnight" to reference her two British exes? Is it significant that the Tampa, Florida shows were the first Eras Tour stop after Swift's widely publicized break up with Alwyn? Taylor Swift and Post Malone's musical paths first crossed backstage at the 2018 Billboard Music Awards. Mutual admiration sparked a connection, and by October 2023, they were hanging out and praising each other's work. According to Malone, Swift initiated the collaboration, inviting him to the studio for a session that he described as a "good day." Swift and Malone wrote "Fortnight" with Jack Antonoff, who also produced it with Swift. Antonoff has been a key player in Swift's sound since 2013, when they collaborated on "Sweeter Than Fiction" for the movie One Chance. Republic Records released "Fortnight" on April 19, 2024, as the lead single from The Tortured Poets Department along with a black-and-white music video. Drawing inspiration from silent films of the early 20th century, the video features both Swift and Malone, along with Dead Poets Society actors Ethan Hawke and Josh Charles. Swift both wrote and directed the video. The visual starts with Swift chained to her bed in a mental facility before plunging into memories of an office romance with Post Malone. Back in the facility, she's subjected to experiments by Hawke, Charles and Malone, but Malone recognizes and frees her. Swift told Amazon Music that "Fortnight" includes many of the themes that run throughout The Tortured Poets Department. "One of which being fatalism - longing, pining away, lost dreams," she said. "I think that it's a very fatalistic album in that there are lots of very dramatic lines about life or death. 'I love you, it's ruining my life.' These are very hyperbolic, dramatic things to say. It's that kind of album." "Fortnight" broke Spotify's record for the most-streamed song in a single day. The record was previously set by Mariah Carey's song "All I Want For Christmas Is You" in December 2022. With over 300 million streams in 24 hours, The Tortured Poets Department also broke the streaming platform's record for most-streamed album in a day. Previously, the record was held by Swift's re-recorded version of 1989.

I was supposed to be sent away
But they forgot to come and get me
I was a functioning alcoholic
'Til nobody noticed my new aesthetic
All of this to say I hope you're okay
But you're the reason
And no one here's to blame
But what about your quiet treason?

And for a fortnight there, we were forever
Run into you sometimes, ask about the weather
Now you're in my backyard, turned into good neighbors
Your wife waters flowers, I wanna kill her

All my mornings are Mondays stuck in an endless February
I took the miracle move-on drug, the effects were temporary
And I love you, it's ruining my life
I love you, it's ruining my life
I touched you for only a fortnight
I touched you, but I touched you

And for a fortnight there, we were forever
Run into you sometimes, ask about the weather
Now you're in my backyard, turned into good neighbors
Your wife waters flowers, I wanna kill her
And for a fortnight there, we were together
Run into you sometimes, comment on my sweater
Now you're at the mailbox, turned into good neighbors
My husband is cheating, I wanna kill him

I love you, it's ruining my life
I love you, it's ruining my life
I touched you for only a fortnight
I touched you, I touched you
I love you, it's ruining my life
I love you, it's ruining my life
I touched you for only a fortnight
I touched you, I touched you

Thought of callin' ya, but you won't pick up
'Nother fortnight lost in America
Move to Florida, buy the car you want
But it won't start up 'til you touch, touch, touch me
Thought of calling ya, but you won't pick up
'Nother fortnight lost in America
Move to Florida, buy the car you want
But it won't start up 'til I touch, touch, touch you