Background

Released in April 2024 as the lead single from her eleventh studio album, The Tortured Poets Department, “Fortnight” is a track performed by Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone. The song was co-written by Swift, Malone, and Jack Antonoff, with production handled by Swift and Antonoff alongside vocal producer Louis Bell.

In this review of “Fortnight”, I explore the vocal harmonies between Taylor Swift and Post Malone, the suburban nightmare storytelling in the lyrics, and the music video that felt like a global event.

The Heavenly Vocal Harmonies

When I first saw the tracklist and I learned that there was a Taylor Swift and Post Malone collaboration, I did not know what to expect. Even during the first two minutes of “Fortnight”, I was confused and wondered what Post Malone’s role was.

In “Fortnight,” Post Malone uses a soft and gentle singing style that acts like a background shadow to Taylor Swift. Instead of taking over the song with a loud solo, he stays quiet and blends his voice right underneath hers to make the music feel thicker and more emotional. It keeps the focus on Taylor’s story while adding a ghostly, sad feeling that she couldn’t have created alone. I think a more prominent role for Post Malone would’ve worked as well. But the final setup is just as effective.

The way their voices mix together fits the song’s sad and dreamy feeling perfectly. Taylor’s voice is clear and breathy, while Post Malone’s voice is deeper and a bit shaky in a pretty way, which matches the cold electronic music playing behind them. Their harmony makes the song feel like a conversation between two people who are tired of being heartbroken.

Suburban Nightmare Imagery

Taylor’s strength is her songwriting. So, a review of any of her tracks will always discuss the lyrics.

In “Fortnight”, Taylor Swift uses clever imagery to paint a picture of a suburban nightmare. She uses everyday details like watering flowers, an endless February, and seeing her ex-boyfriend as a neighbor to show how painful it is to be trapped in a normal, quiet life after a big heartbreak. She’s a functioning alcoholic trying to act normal in a small town, helping the listener feel the tension and the feeling of being stuck in a place that no longer feels like home. I can’t see myself in these exact circumstances, but I can comprehend the emotion.

The song also relies heavily on hyperbole to express the intensity of her feelings, with the most famous line being, “I love you, it’s ruining my life”. I’m not privy to the songwriting process, but I believe these dramatic, catchy lines were also an attempt to create viral moments for platforms like TikTok. However, the song’s production is quite slow and moody, that these lines didn’t necessarily become the huge, high-energy trends that she might have expected.

The Video of the Year

The “Fortnight” music video is a cinematic black-and-white production by Taylor Swift. The video is filled with dramatic, grey imagery, featuring Swift in a Victorian-gothic mourning dress and an asylum-like setting, which she described as the perfect visual representation of her album, The Tortured Poets Department. I think the visuals perfectly capture the album’s themes of sadness, being sent away, and the heavy feeling of a failed romance.

The video is also famous for its many Easter eggs. The most notable surprise (although, not really) is the appearance of actors Ethan Hawke and Josh Charles, who played students in the famous 1989 movie Dead Poets Society. In the video, they play scientists performing experiments on Swift. Other small details, like a missing typewriter key and coded dates on pill bottles, keep fans talking and endlessly discussing.

If anyone can turn a music video into a major global event, it would be Taylor Swift. The video also got its release in the middle of her record-shattering Eras Tour, helping contribute to the hype and buzz.

Conclusion

What I appreciate about Taylor Swift’s collaborations is that most of them focus on the art rather than the charts. This is certainly true for her pairing with Post Malone in “Fortnight”. Their harmonies perfectly match the suburban nightmare imagery in Taylor’s songwriting, which she then translates into a stunning visual experience through an epic music video.