In the middle of her lengthy Eras Tour, Taylor Swift found time to release an acoustic version of her Midnights opening track, “Lavender Haze.”
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Her stripped-back version transforms the synth-pop track into something more folky and intimate. Co-written by Swift, along with Zoe Kravitz and producers Sounwave, Jahaan Sweet, and Sam Dew, the track peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was inspired by an unlikely ’50s-era television show.
“I happened upon the phrase ‘lavender haze’ when I was watching ‘Mad Men,’” revealed Swift in a previous Instagram video, describing the inspiration behind the song. “And I looked it up because I thought it sounded cool, and it turns out that it’s a common phrase used in the ’50s where they would just describe being in love. Like, if you were in the lavender haze, then that meant that you were in that all-encompassing love glow – and I thought that was really beautiful.”
Throughout “Lavender Haze,” Swift details the connection and support of a lover and finds a more euphoric space amid the rumors and outside noise in I feel the lavender haze creepin’ up on me / Surreal / I’m damned if I do give a damn what people say / No deal / The 1950s shit they want from me / I just wanna stay in that lavender haze.
Swift recently extended her long-awaited Eras tour, which kicked off on March 17 and will run through Aug. 9 with support from HAIM, Phoebe Bridgers, beabadoobee, and more on select dates.
To honor Swift’s upcoming shows on the Eras Tour, the city of Glendale, Arizona was renamed Swift City during the opening weekend of her tour there, and Arlington, Texas recently renamed a street near the AT&T Stadium as “Taylor Swift Way” to commemorate her shows in the city.
Read the full story behind Swift’s “Lavender Haze” HERE.
Photo by Terry Wyatt/Getty Images
