Taylor Swift Reflects on Emotional Album 'The Tortured Poets Department'

On October 6, 2025, Taylor Swift, 35, appeared on the Scott Mills on Radio 2's Breakfast Show and discussed her experience writing and releasing her 2024 album "The Tortured Poets Department." Swift revealed that she is currently in a very similar life stage as when she wrote the album, which she found refreshing compared to her previous record.

"The cool thing about this record is that I'm in a very similar space in my life as to when I wrote it and now that I'm putting it out, which is nice...it's nice when those things are not incongruous," Swift said, referring to her latest album, "The Life of a Showgirl."

The singer-songwriter also reflected on the emotional journey behind "The Tortured Poets Department," which she had kept secret for two years before announcing it at the 2024 Grammy Awards. Swift described the creative process as "miserable" but is now proud of the "beautiful art about misery." However, she acknowledged that she no longer relates to the person she was during that period.

"Just miserable. And then when I put it out, I was so happy," Swift said. "So it was like, ah, I love this art. I love this beautiful art about misery. I, however, am not miserable anymore so it feels weird to talk about the record because it's like, you can be proud of the work, but you can also just not relate to that person you were."