Taylor Swift’s Anti‐Hero music video: Star references her eating disorder and politics

Taylor Swift sent fans wild on Friday as she released the music video for her new single, Anti-Hero, after releasing her tenth studio album Midnights just hours before. 

The track, which is the third on the album, sees the hitmaker admit she’s never delved ‘this far into my insecurities’, adding, ‘It’s me, I’m the problem’ in the deep-thinking song.

In the five-minute long video, the 32-year-old singer doesn’t hold back exploring the themes of ‘self-hatred’, depicting herself as two separate entities, one who she sees as her own worst enemy and one that is too afraid to let loose and have fun. 

The video sees her fending off ghosts, being shot through the heart with an arrow, referencing her eating disorder battle, mental health struggles and even attending her own funeral.

One to watch: Taylor Swift sent fans wild on Friday as she released the music video for her new single, Anti-Hero, after releasing her tenth studio album Midnights just hours before

In one scene, Taylor addresses the backlash surrounding her decision to break her years-long political silence in 2019 when she slammed ‘autocrat’ President Trump and said Americans are being ‘gaslighted’.

The subtle yet thinly veiled reference  came in the form of her placing a pin on her shirt during the video, reading ‘vote for me’. 

She previously said of Trump’s 2016 election victory: ‘All the dirtiest tricks in the book were used and it worked,’ adding that the atmosphere in America is ‘gaslighting the American public into being like, “If you hate the president, you hate America.”’ 

While she was praised by some fans for voicing her political views, it also saw her criticised for wading into politics, with critics claiming she was influencing the votes of her fans. 

She discusses her battle with depression in the video, singing: ‘Midnights become my afternoons / When my depression works the graveyard shift’ as she is shown alone in her home with her own vices.

The video depicts Taylor spending time with another version of herself who driks and parties – showing the two different sides of her as she repeatedly sings ‘It’s me, I’m the problem’.

Eating disorder : In another scene from the Anti-Hero video, she referenced her battle with an eating disorder – showing another version of herself shaming her hile standing on the scales

Scales: The shot pans to the scales, which read ‘fat’ instead of a number

 

She can be seen downing shots of alcohol, smashing her guitar and going on a rage with the alter-ego before reaching all time low. 

In another scene from the Anti-Hero video, she referenced her battle with an eating disorder, showing herself stepping onto weighing scales that said ‘fat.’ 

As Taylor weighs erself, the second version of herself is seen standing beside her, looking shameful at the weight on the scales. 

The singer previously admitted she used to ‘just stop eating’ if she saw a photo of herself where she felt she looked too big or if someone made a cruel comment about her size.

Speaking in her 2020 Netflix documentary Miss Americana, she said: ‘It’s not good for me to see pictures of myself every day.

‘It’s only happened a few times, and I’m not in any way proud of it. [There have been times when I’ve seen] a picture of me where I feel like I looked like my tummy was too big, or… someone said that I looked pregnant … and that’ll just trigger me to just starve a little bit – just stop eating.’ 

While the star told Variety recently that she felt uncomfortable discussing the turbulent relationship she has with food, explaining: ‘I think I’ve never really wanted to talk about that before, and I’m pretty uncomfortable talking about it now.’

She previously explained her decision to explore themes of ‘self-hatred’, saying on Apple Music: ‘It’s how you’re feeling in the middle of the night, and that can be intense self-hatred.

‘You go through these very polarising emotions when you’re up late at night and your brain just spirals – it can spiral downward or it can spiral way up and you can just be really feeling yourself.’

Referencing her track Karma, she went on: ‘It’s written from a perspective of feeling like really happy really proud of the way your life is… feeling like this must be a reward for doing stuff right and it’s a song that I really love because I think we all need some of those moments.

Two of a kind: In the five-minute long video, the 32-year-old singer doesn’t hold back exploring the themes of ‘self-hatred’, depicting herself as two separate entities, one who she sees as her own worst enemy and one that is too afraid to let loose

‘You know, we can’t just be beating ourselves up all the time. You have to have these moments where you’re like, “You know what karma is, my boyfriend, and that’s it.”‘ 

Many Swifties expressed their love for the album’s lead single Anti-Hero and its relatability, with one fan feeling as though Swift ‘looked into my brain’ while penning the lyrics.

Another said that Anti-Hero is the ‘anthem of my life.’

‘The exciting thing about a new Taylor Swift album is not only new music but a new personality to annoy all my friends and family with,’ joked one Twitter user, who was clearly digging Swift’s pop resurgence.

Morbid: The video sees her fending off ghosts, being shot through the heart with an arrow and even attending her own funeral

Along with Anti-Hero, fans voiced their love for the tracks Karma and Sweet Nothing.

It comes after Taylor received high praise from fans and critics alike, hours after releasing her highly-anticipated album Midnights early Friday morning.

Variety‘s Chris Williams deemed Midnights something ‘worth losing sleep over’ as it’s a triumphant return to the 32-year-old singer’s pop era ‘steeped in synthesizers and programmed beats.’

Deemed an evening of ‘celebration,’ fans of Swift flooded social media with their first impressions as they eagerly worked their way through the album’s 13 infectious tracks.

Impressed: Taylor is already receiving high praise from fans and critics, alike, just hours after releasing her highly-anticipated album Midnights early Friday morning

‘Midnights’ is more romantic than not, as an album, even withstanding plenty of detours into a witty churlishness or affecting lonesomeness along the way,’ pens Williams in a review published Friday.

‘It’s got to be a sign of something that ‘Midnights’ is the first of her 10 albums to both begin.’ 

Williams further praises Swift for being able to sustain ‘intimacy over a whole album’ instead of going down the past most traveled by: ‘Chasing hit singles.’

Billboard‘s Jason Lipshutz calls Midnights a ‘focused, legacy-extending new project’ for Swift, who has been an unstoppable force since bursting onto the music scene in 2006.

It was compared to the stylings of Swift’s 2017 album Reputation and 2019’s Lover, since Midnights is ‘more sonically amorphous than the mainstream pop of 1989 or the indie-folk of Folklore and Evermore.’

‘Worth losing sleep over’: Variety ‘s Chris Williams deemed Midnights something ‘worth losing sleep over’ as it’s a triumphant return to the 32-year-old singer’s pop era ‘steeped in synthesizers and programmed beats’

Despite the resemblance, Midnights is more ‘personal and focused’ project’ and offers fans another glimpse at ‘the humanity that has made [Swift] such a beloved storyteller.’

‘A dazzling bath of synths complementing lyrics caught between a love story and a revenge plot,’ describes Brittany Spanos of Rolling Stone.

Spanos adds that Midnights is where ‘1989, Reputation, and Lover’ left off but this time she’s ‘unlocked something brilliant and fresh in her songwriting.’

While also leaning into a pop-synth sound that all too familiar to Swift, The Guardian‘s Alexis Petridis reminds listeners that ‘something of Folklore and Evermore’s understated nature hangs around Midnights.

‘Midnights’ is more romantic than not, as an album, even withstanding plenty of detours into a witty churlishness or affecting lonesomeness along the way,’ pens Williams in a review published Friday 

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‘It’s an album that steadfastly declines to deal in the kind of neon-hued bangers that pop stars usually return with, music brash enough to cut through the hubbub. The sound is misty, atmospheric and tastefully subdued,’ he writes.

The Los Angeles Times‘ Mikael Wood refers to Swift as a ‘pop-music mastermind’ while calling the album a return ‘to an earlier Swift mode in both sonic and lyrical terms.’

“‘All of me changed like midnight,” Taylor Swift confesses halfway through her latest album, the aptly named and moody ‘Midnights,’ pens Elise Ryan of the Associated Press.

Ryan continued: ‘It’s a moment on the electric “Midnight Rain” that finds lyricist Swift at her best, reminding you of her unparalleled ability to make any emotion feel universal.’

Crashed: Reactions: Swifties – which is the singer’s name for her devout fanbase – actually crashed the Spotify moments after the album hit the popular streaming platform

Reactions: They collectively celebrated the crash as an accomplishment before diving into the album and sharing their first impressions to Twitter

‘It’s like an out of body experience and I’m only on track 1,’ tweeted one super fan, while another joked that Swift’s new music is ‘giving us a reason to live’

Anti-Hero: Many Swifties expressed their love for the album’s lead single Anti-Hero and its relatability

Personal: One fan felt as though Swift ‘looked into my brain’ while penning the lyrics

Ha! One fan joked that Anti-Hero was so personal that it was as if ‘swift was writing songs about me without consent’

Midnights includes 13 songs, all of which are ‘new work’ from the singer, as well as three bonus tracks on varying platforms and editions of the album.

The 13 song names are: Lavender Haze, Maroon, Anti-Hero, Snow On The Beach (featuring Lana Del Rey), You’re On Your Own, Kid, Midnight Rain, Questions…?, Vigilante Sh**, Bejeweled, Labyrinth, Karma, Sweet Nothing and Mastermind.

Meanwhile, Midnights: Lavender Edition – which is a Target exclusive – features one bonus song and two remixes: Hits Different, You’re On Your Own, Kid (Strings Remix) and Sweet Nothing (Piano Remix).

Swifties – which is the singer’s name for her devout fanbase – actually crashed the Spotify moments after the album hit the popular streaming platform.

Personality: ‘The exciting thing about a new Taylor Swift album is not only new music but a new personality to annoy all my friends and family with,’ joked one Twitter user, who was clearly digging Swift’s pop resurgence

One Twitter deemed Swift a ‘musical mastermind’ after listening to Midnights

Chef’s kiss! One praised the transition from the songs ‘You’re On Your Own, Kid to the opening seconds of Midnight Rain’

They collectively celebrated the crash as an accomplishment before diving into the album and sharing their first impressions to Twitter.

‘It’s like an out of body experience and I’m only on track 1,’ tweeted one super fan, while another joked that Swift’s new music is ‘giving us a reason to live.’

Many Swifties expressed their love for the album’s lead single Anti-Hero and its relatability, with one fan feeling as though Swift ‘looked into my brain’ while penning the lyrics.

Another said that Anti-Hero is the ‘anthem of my life.’ 

‘The exciting thing about a new Taylor Swift album is not only new music but a new personality to annoy all my friends and family with,’ joked one Twitter user, who was clearly digging Swift’s pop resurgence. 

Along with Anti-Hero, fans voiced their love for the tracks Karma and Sweet Nothing. 

For the fans: ‘Anyways, taylor swift never fails to release music that feels like it was written deliberately and personally for me,’ tweeted one Swifty in regards to the album’s intimacy

Responses: Another fan said that ‘the fun thing’ about Taylor Swift album debuts are ‘seeing all the different trauma responses’ from their friends

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Quoting: Teen Wolf alum Colton Hayes was already quoting album lyrics an hour after it was released

Nothing else! ‘Ain’t gonna be listening to anything but this album all week long,’ announced on Swifty on Twitter

‘Anyways, taylor swift never fails to release music that feels like it was written deliberately and personally for me,’ tweeted one Swifty in regards to the album’s intimacy.

Though criticism was few and far between, some fans were able to put their biases aside in order to give their honest reviews.

One wrote that they were ‘so excited’ for Swift’s collab with singer Lana Del Rey but, unfortunately, it made them ‘cry with disappointment’ despite ‘[loving] the album as a whole.’

They were disappointed that Lana’s vocals were not more prevalent throughout the track but another fan noted that the Blue Jeans hitmaker does in fact sing ‘throughout most of the song.’

Disappointed: Though criticism was few and far between, some fans were able to put their biases aside in order to give their honest reviews. One wrote that they were ‘so excited’ for Swift’s collab with singer Lana Del Rey but, unfortunately, it made them ‘cry with disappointment’ despite ‘[loving] the album as a whole’

Clarification: They were disappointed that Lana’s vocals were not more prevalent throughout the track but another fan noted that the Blue Jeans hitmaker does in fact sing ‘throughout most of the song’

Ahead of Midnights’ release, Swift opened up about the album’s concept and what inspired the collection of new songs. 

‘The concept of the album Midnights is the extreme emotions you might be feeling in the middle of the night,’ she told SiriusXM Hits 1. ‘What keeps you up at night? And so, it’s reflecting back on certain nights of my life of why I was awake in the middle of the night.’

Swift said the material covers a range of emotions ‘from grief to sadness, to fear, to anger, to flirtation or daydreaming about someone, or falling in love or feeling overconfident.

She added: ‘You know, it’s, I think it’s just a really intense time of day. So, I wanted to cover lots of different aspects of that.’

Concept: Ahead of Midnights’ release, Swift opened up about the album’s concept and what inspired the collection of new songs. ‘The concept of the album Midnights is the extreme emotions you might be feeling in the middle of the night,’ she told SiriusXM Hits 1. ‘What keeps you up at night? And so, it’s reflecting back on certain nights of my life of why I was awake in the middle of the night’

Swift said that good dance songs on the album include Karma, Lavender Haze and Vigilante S***.

Swift told fans that all of the material on the Midnights is new, saying it all ‘New work.’

She added: ‘Nothing is left over from a different album. It might have been, you know, ideas or concepts or things I’ve thought of maybe making in the past, but I didn’t write anything until I was making this album.’

Swift said it is a ‘fun thing’ for her to reflect back on past work.

Teaser: Along with the album drop, Swift teased footage from a number of forthcoming music videos for unknown tracks off Midnights

It was aired during Thursday Night Football

Dazzling: One sequence showed swift transform into a classic showgirl that commanded attention in a dazzling diamond gown

‘That all does usually lead to something, but you know, if we’re reflecting back on eras past and music that I’ve made in the past, I think you’ll find that there’s a really good reason for that,’ she said. ‘But it doesn’t necessarily have to do with this album.’

Along with the album drop, Swift teased footage from a number of forthcoming music videos for unknown tracks off Midnights.

It was aired during Thursday Night Football. 

One sequence showed swift transform into a classic showgirl that commanded attention in a dazzling diamond gown.