Taylor Swift says 'Florida!!!' was inspired by 'Dateline'. Here's why

Adding three exclamation points to the end of a song title might seem excessive, but after listening to Taylor Swift and Florence + The Machine’s thundering new duet “Florida!!!” you’ll immediately understand why.

The track, from Swift’s latest album, “The Tortured Poets Department,” is one of two special features on the LP and marks the pop icon’s first collaboration with Florence Welch.

Fans had been anticipating hearing the two sing together since the pop icon announced Welch would be a featured artist on “TTPD” on Instagram Feb. 5

When “Florida!!!” was released on April 19, Swifties also learned that the duo are credited as the only writers on the track. (Emma Stone, who has been close friends with Swift for years, is listed in the liner notes for a mysterious contribution.)

“Florida!!!” features a roaring chorus where Swift and Welch belt “Florida / Is one hell of a drug / Florida / Can I use you up?” as drums bang in the background.

Unlike other songs on “TTPD” and the deluxe edition, “The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology,” “Florida!!!” is not about a former flame or an exciting new love. The song stands out for its message about escape — and its booming production.

Swift recently revealed the inspiration behind the eccentric song in an Amazon Music commentary.

“I think I was coming up with this idea of, like, what happens when your life doesn’t fit or your choices you’ve made catch up to you,” she said.

The singer said in the voice note that the song is about escaping “harsh consequences and judgment and circumstances.”

Swift started imagining the perfect place to run off to and thought of a television show she frequently watches.

“Is there a place you could go?” she asked before laughing. “I’m always watching, like, ‘Dateline.’ People have these crimes that they commit. Where do they immediately skip town and go to? They go to Florida.”

She continued, “They try to reinvent themselves, have a new identity, blend in. And 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.’”

She explained that this desire to disappear and begin anew was the starting point for the song.

“Where would you go to reinvent yourself and blend in? Florida!” she concluded.

Welch posted a snippet from the song on her Instagram the day of Swift’s album release.

“Me and my ghosts we had a hell of a time,” Welch said in the caption.

She added, “Honoured to be in this department.”

Swifties have shared Spotify canvas videos on X of Swift filming Welch as she recorded her vocals for “”Florida!!!”

The “TTPD” chairman turns the camera to show her making an excited face before the clip ends.

Their voices pair well on the haunting track. Swift paints the scene in the first verse, describing a woman who is ready to flee her hometown. “And this city reeks of driving myself crazy,” she says.

As the pre-chorus begins, she continues, “Little did you know your home’s really only a town you’re just a guest in / So you work your life away just to pay for a time-share down in Destin.”

Welch joins her on the chorus before easing into her solo verse. “Well, me and my ghosts, wе had a hell of a time / Yes, I’m hauntеd, but I’m feeling just fine / All my girls got their lace and their crimes / And your cheating husband disappeared, well / No one asks any questions here,” she ominously says, like a person of interest in an episode of “Dateline.”

In the lengthy bridge, the musicians talk about forgetting their past regrets and leaving everything behind for Florida.

Although “Florida!!!” is a standalone track in terms of sound and subject on the album, the Sunshine State is also referenced in the lead single “Fortnight” with Post Malone, the only other featured artist on “TTPD.”

Read the rest of the cinematic lyrics from “Florida!!!” below.

Lyrics to ‘Florida!!!’ featuring Florence + The Machine

You can beat the heat if you beat the charges too

They said I was a cheat, I guess it must be true

And my friends all smell like weed or little babies

And this city reeks of driving myself crazy

Little did you know your home’s really only

A town you’re just a guest in

So you work your life away just to pay

For a time-share down in Destin

Florida

Is one hell of a drug

Florida

Can I use you up?

The hurricane with my name when it came

I got drunk and I dared it to wash me away

Barricaded in the bathroom with a bottle of wine

Well, me and my ghosts, wе had a hell of a time

Yes, I’m hauntеd, but I’m feeling just fine

All my girls got their lace and their crimes

And your cheating husband disappeared, well

No one asks any questions here

So I did my best to lay to rest

All of the bodies that have ever been on my body

And in my mind, they sink into the swamp

Is that a bad thing to say in a song?

Little did you know your home’s really only

The town you’ll get arrested

So you pack your life away just to wait out

The s---storm back in Texas:

Florida

Is one hell of a drug

Florida

Can I use you up?

I need to forget, so take me to Florida

I’ve got some regrets, I’ll bury them in Florida

Tell me I’m despicable, say it’s unforgivable

At least the dolls are beautiful, f--- me up, Florida

I need to forget, so take me to Florida

I’ve got some regrets, I’ll bury them in Florida

Tell me I’m despicable, say it’s unforgivable

What a crash, what a rush, f--- me up, Florida

It’s one hell of a drug

It’s one hell of a drug

Love left me like this and I don’t want to exist

So take me to Florida

Little did you know your home’s really only

A town you’re just a guest in (Florida)

So you work your life away just to pay

For a time-share down in Destin (Take me to Florida)

Little did you know your home’s really only

The town you’ll get arrested (Florida)

So you pack your life away just to wait out

The s—storm back in Texas

Florida

Is one hell of a drug

(Take me to) Florida

Can I use you up?

Florida

Is one hell of a drug

Florida

Go on, f--- me up

This article was originally published on TODAY.com