How Binge-Watching ‘Dateline’ Inspired This Taylor Swift Song on ‘The Tortured Poets Department’

Hey Swifties, did you know that one of Taylor Swift’s new songs, “Florida!!!” (which is featured on the singer’s latest album The Tortured Poets Department), was actually inspired by the award-winning musician binge-watching NBC’s Dateline?

Yup, you read that right. According to Variety, the 34-year-old singer revealed that “Florida!!!” featuring Florence + the Machine was created because she is “always watching Dateline.” The long-running news program, which has been on the air since 1992, features in-depth interviews and never-before-seen clips from real-life murder and cases. 

“People have these crimes that they commit; where do they immediately skip town and go to? They go to Florida,” Swift explained. “They try to reinvent themselves, have a new identity, blend in. I think when you go through a heartbreak, there’s a part of you that thinks, ‘I want a new name. I want a new life. I don’t want anyone to know where I’ve been or know me at all.’ And so that was the jumping-off point. Where would you go to reinvent yourself and blend in? Florida!” (As a fellow Swiftie, this particular confession came as quite a surprise to me.)

While the majority of the songs on The Tortured Poets Department (and her second bonus album titled Anthology) center around love and heartbreak, Swift also wrote a heartwarming song about her current boyfriend, Travis Kelce. 

In track 22 (titled “So High School”), Swift compares Kelce to a high school jock because he is, of course, a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs. “You know how to ball, I know Aristotle, brand new, full throttle,” the musician sings. “Touch me while your bros play Grand Theft Auto. It’s true, swear, scouts honor. You knew what you wanted, and, boy, you got her.”