This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UC Irvine chapter.

Taylor Swift has done it once again. On October 21st, at the stroke of midnight, she released her tenth studio album, Midnights, and my Spotify listening history has not been the same since. Between the catchy hooks, Jack Antonoff’s soaring synths, and her sharp lyricism, this album is truly a masterpiece.

As a lifelong fan, my favorite part of any Swiftian album release cycle is ranking the tracks after the first listen because I know my ranking will change over time. Usually once a year, I update my album rankings and reflect on what has changed since the last time I ranked the tracks. For example, maybe I was a “this is me trying” girl a year ago, but today I am much more of a “mirrorball”. It is a fun little tradition I have done ever since I can remember, and it is made easier by this song sorter created by user jesseepinkman on Tumblr.

21. Dear Reader

A slow ending to Midnights (3am Edition). Swift sings about the advice she gives to others, but never seems to take herself. Perhaps referencing the Clean speeches she gave each night while on tour in 2015. I have a feeling this song will grow on me over time, but for now, I prefer the other tracks to this one.

Best Lyric: “No one sees when you lose / When you’re playing solitaire”

20. Bigger Than the Whole Sky

One of the things Swift does really well is write about grief, and this song is no exception. In this bonus track, Swift grieves over something, or someone, that was only in her life for a short amount of time. While the lyrics are more on the cryptic side, it does beautifully capture a bargaining moment of loss.

Best Lyric: “Did some bird flap its wings over in Asia? / Did some force take you because I didn’t pray?”

19. The Great War

I’d be lying if I said my TikTok For You Page has not been full of edits to this song. All I have seen are couples from fantasy novels, or action movies, and discussions of whether or not they survived their own “great war.” It is a great opening track to the bonus 3 am songs, perfectly paralleling the first track on the album. I will never forget the feeling I had listening to this at midnight for the first time after learning there were seven more tracks added to the album.

Best Lyric: “Somewhere in the haze / Got a sense I’d been betrayed”

18. Hits Different

Since this track is only available on the Target edition of the CD, I will admit that I have not listened to this track as often as the others. Unfortunately, I am one of the many masses patiently waiting for this song to be available on streaming services. But, the few times I have listened to it, I do love this song. I love the rom-com-esque story that is lined throughout it, and I love the bridge! It is one of the wittier songs on the album, but that is exactly why it hits different.

Best Lyric: “Bet I could still melt your world / Argumentative, antithetical dream girl”

17. Vigilante Sh*t

It is not really a Taylor Swift album if there is not, at least, one revenge track. Swift sings about teaming up with an old foe’s ex-wife, both dressed to kill as an act of revenge. It is worth noting this is the only track on Midnights with Swift credited as the sole songwriter. This is definitely my least favorite of the tracks on the standard edition of the album. But hey, if you catch me on the weekends, there is a good chance I will also be dressed for revenge.

Best Lyric: “Ladies always rise above / Ladies know what people want”

16. Paris

Reminiscent of the bubblegum pop sound of Swift’s previous pop hits, “Paris” details the early stages of a secret relationship. Full of gossip, make-believe, and dreams of traveling abroad: this is a classic Swiftian pop song. The second I heard it, I was immediately transported back to the moment I first heard 1989. The culture may not have been clever in my middle school, but this song brought up nostalgic feelings of the classic 2010s pop songs I listened to on my iPod.

Best Lyric: “Romance is not dead if you keep it just yours”

15. Snow on the Beach ft. Lana Del Rey

Out of all the songs on Midnights, this track was the one I was anticipating the most. Earlier in the summer, I had gotten into Lana Del Rey’s music, and when Swift announced this collaboration, I was so excited. The song is the perfect mix of both Swift and Del Rey’s writing styles, and their voices blend beautifully together. I really hope they collaborate again in the future because this song sounds as stunning as the snow on the beach they are singing about.

Best Lyric: “But your eyes are flying saucers from another planet / Now I’m all for you like Janet”

14. High Infidelity

Something I love about Swift’s albums is how, more often than not, several songs parallel each other. The story in “High Infidelity” mirrors that of “Bejeweled”, but in a serious, somber way. Swift sings about how the scandalous act of cheating negatively affects both partners in a relationship. It is a cautionary tale, but the themes are not new to Swift’s discography. See: folklore and evermore.

Best Lyric: “You know there’s many different ways that you can kill the one you love / The slowest way is never loving them enough”

13. Midnight Rain

Continuing with the theme of Swift parallels, we have “Midnight Rain”. This song tells a similar story to that of “champagne problems,” where a girl would rather end a relationship and pursue greater things than become someone’s bride. Unlike its evermore counterpart, “Midnight Rain” is more upbeat, with synths and vocalizers layered throughout the track.

Best Lyric: “And he never thinks of me / Except when I’m on TV”

12. Glitch

When I saw that Swift collaborated with the minds behind Red Hearse, I knew I was going to love this album. This song is reminiscent of Red Hearse’s “You Make it Easy,” with beautiful vocals, minimalistic instrumentals, and a cute little story hiding within the lyrics. This is another artist I hope Swift continues to collaborate with in the future because I have loved every song they worked on together.

Best Lyric: “And I’m not even sorry / Nights are so starry, blood moonlit”

11. Karma

Thanks for the name drop, Taylor! Karma is a Kat, indeed. (Just kidding!) After years of speculation, “Karma” has officially entered the Taylor Swift canon as the ultimate revenge bop. What goes around comes around, and doesn’t she know it? As she once stated, “your nemeses will defeat themselves before they get the chance to swing.” This song re-establishes that message, but in a glittery, carefree way. Just like a purring cat sitting on her lap.

Best lyric: “Spiderboy, king of thieves / Weave your little webs of opacity”

10. Labyrinth

When I first saw the album tracklist, I immediately thought of the film, Labyrinth. This song is very different from the movie, but was one of my most anticipated tracks because of the title alone. Swift’s vocals are gorgeous in this song, and it is definitely a highlight of the entire album.

Best Lyric: “I thought the plane was going down / How’d you turn it right around?”

9. Sweet Nothing

Co-written with William Bowery, “Sweet Nothing” is another splendid love song on the album. Its production and lyricism are on the more simple side, but that is exactly what the song is about. It depicts the simple moments in a relationship: discovering a pebble on the sidewalk, humming in the kitchen, and sharing poems about each other. I love this song, and I hope it gets the recognition it rightfully deserves.

Best Lyric: “To you I can admit / That I’m just too soft for all of it”

8. Lavender Haze

When Taylor Swift first said, “Meet me at midnight,” I did not expect that to be the opening line of this album. “Lavender Haze” is a bop and the perfect opener for this album. It sets the scene brilliantly, as Swift sings about how she just wants to block out the noise by staying in this hazy state of love. It’s a good segway from her folksy albums, establishing to her audience that she is, once again, back in the pop realm.

Best Lyric: “Talk your talk and go viral / I just need this love spiral”

7. Question…?

Nothing will ever beat the first time I listened to this song. The gasp I let out when I heard the familiar, “I remember”, at the beginning of the song was something else. I absolutely freaked out because she literally sampled herself! It was such a treat, and I am sure it was something she did for her fans to catch and enjoy. The lyrics are captivating in this song; Swift leaves her audience hanging on every word, waiting to see what happens next.

Best Lyric: “Does it feel like everything’s just like / Second best after that meteor strike?”

6. Maroon

If loving him was red, the legacy he ultimately leaves behind is “Maroon.” Swift gives details of a relationship that was ultimately doomed from the start, but she never noticed the red (ha!) flags until it was over. Everything from a wine-stained shirt to lost rubies, to the familiar scarlet lips, were signs that it was never going to last. It is difficult to see clearly through rose-colored lenses, but it never mattered anyway because living in the aftermath is maroon.

Best lyric: “The rust that grew between telephones / The lips I used to call home / So scarlet, it was maroon”

5. Mastermind

The closing track on the standard edition of the album ends with a bang. “Mastermind” explores the idea that some things are not, in fact, up to fate, but engineered by the very people who come in and out of our lives. Was it love at first sight? Or was this moment crafted perfectly by the two people who ended up in the same place at the same time? Swift lets her listeners in on the moments that may have seemed coincidental but were really a result of her genius.

Best Lyric: “No one wanted to play with me as a little kid / So I’ve been scheming like a criminal ever since”

4. You’re On Your Own, Kid

The esteemed Track 5 is something of a legend in the Swift fandom. Swift, herself, has talked about the pattern of her fifth tracks being some of the most vulnerable and honest songs in her discography. “You’re On Your Own, Kid” is no exception to this rule, but what makes it different? Unlike her previous Track 5s, which leave the listener in a bit of a hopeless place, this song flips that around and gives a hopeful ending to a song about facing hardship and dealing with solitude. I cried when I first listened to this track, which is something I do not do often.

Best Lyric: “’Cause there were pages turned with the bridges burned / Everything you lose is a step you take”

3. Bejeweled

After my first listen to this track, I immediately went back and listened to this song again. And again. And again. By the time I finished listening to the rest of the album, it was very late at night, and I should have definitely gone to bed. This song is so much fun! Between the bubbly instrumentals, the dazzling music video, and the cute little “Nice!” every few verses, it is just the perfect pop song in my eyes.

Best Lyric: “Baby boy, I think I’ve been too good of a girl / Did all the extra credit, then got graded on a curve”

2. Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve

This is easily my favorite song from the bonus 3am tracks. Swift sings about a toxic relationship she experienced as a 19-year-old girl that still scars her to this day. It has some of her most cutthroat lyrics, full of religious metaphors and scathing regret for choosing to be with someone who greatly affected her, and her mental health, in the following years. It is worth noting that this song is Track 19 on Midnights (3am Edition); a nod to the age she was when her innocence was robbed from her.

Best Lyric: “Living for the thrill of hitting you where it hurts / Give me back my girlhood, it was mine first”

1. Anti-Hero

In classic Swift-Antonoff fashion, this song is the perfect bop to play in the middle of a breakdown. Reminiscent of the latter’s I Wanna Get Better, Swift sings about her insecurities, and how she feels like she’s the problem in everything she does. I have had this song on repeat for about a week now. It would not surprise me if it becomes my top song on my Spotify Wrapped, especially considering I’ve already added it to so many of my playlists.

Best lyric: “I should not be left to my own devices / They come with prices and vices / I end up in crisis”

By the time this article gets published, my ranking will probably be wildly different. Knowing me, it’ll change again when the clock strikes twelve tonight. But one thing’s for sure: I will be listening to this album on repeat for a very long time.

My Ranking of Taylor Swift’s Midnights (3am Edition)