Last night, Taylor Swift uploaded all of the track reveals for the remaining songs on her upcoming album Midnights. Between using her bingo roller to unearth her famous track five (“You’re On Your Own, Kid”) and announcing a collab with Lana Del Rey (“Snow On The Beach”), Swift also shared a separate video to explain the meaning behind the album’s opening song — “Lavender Haze.” The initial inspiration for the title came from a surprise TV show.
“I happened upon the phrase ‘Lavender Haze’ when I was watching Mad Men and I looked it up because I thought it sounded cool, and it turns out that it was a common phrase that was used in the ’50s where they would just describe being in love,” Swift said. “Like, If you were in the ‘Lavender Haze,’ that meant you were in that all-encompassing love glow, and I thought that was really beautiful.”
She continued to explain how this moment, even though the show was set in the ’60s, connects to both the modern era and her longtime relationship.
“I guess theoretically when you’re in the ‘Lavender Haze,’ you’ll do anything to stay there and not let people bring you down off of that cloud,” she added. “And I think a lot of people have to deal with this now — not just, like, quote-unquote public figures — because we live in the era of social media and if the world finds out that you’re in love with somebody, they’re gonna weigh in on it.”
The Mad Men scene itself happens during season 2 episode 12, when a minor character tells Don Draper that he’s in “the lavender haze.” Draper, who at the time was feeling that way about Betty (which Swift also has a song called) according to Reddit, reacts with a shy smile. So, by association, Taylor Swift is in her Don Draper era. The good one.
Watch Swift’s full video about “Lavender Haze” above.
Midnights is out 10/21 via Republic. Pre-order it here.