One of the problems with the album was that there weren't many choices for a lead single 

My boy was the standout on first listen. It's big and it sounds like her other hits. 

Down bad second single. At that point the album would have had legs so a third single was possible with Guilty 

 

I can do it is probably the worst choice

Edited February 27, 20251 yr by Digitalism

Guilty as sin!!!!

we all know its GAS?

WAOLOM would've been a STATEMENT

i think guilty as sin or but daddy i love him would've been good, i can do it with a broken heart would have been nicely misleading

The only reasonable alternative is Guilty As Sin. Fortnight works because it shows you the soundscape, tempo, and energy of the album as a whole, and that's something that Guilty As Sin would also manage to do, while being a little catchier and more radio-ready than Fortnight. Other songs wouldn't fit - they're too wordy, or too cringe at face value, or not catchy enough, or not representative enough of the album, or have some other minor issue or quirk that make them less clear single candidates than Guilty As Sin - and, frankly, worse choices than Fortnight would have been. Fortnight is already catchy, it already sounds fine on radio, it features an artist with an impressive collection of hits who was having his comeback moment, it's first on the track list - there are tons of reasons why it was chosen and why it ultimately did fine anyway, and why it fit into a promotional strategy for TTPD that was obviously more focused on the album itself and the Billboard 200 than singles.

Fortnight was the best choice. There isn't anything else on the album that would have made more sense to lead the era with. DB, MBOBHFT, and GAS are all great but Fortnight does a better job of setting the overall tone. 

 

Still a tragedy that ICDIWABH was the second and final single. 

Guilty As Sin. I still can't believe it wasn't even a single it would've absolutely been a hit 

7 minutes ago, 305 said:

Guilty As Sin. I still can't believe it wasn't even a single it would've absolutely been a hit 

Taylor should forgive Scott Borschetta and rehire him as a consultant on which songs should become singles. He did a great job steering the ship in that regard.

1 hour ago, terrorblade said:

WAOLOM would've been a STATEMENT

Only if it was this version 

 

 

I was calling her mentally unwell for picking Fortnight over My Boy literally yesterday, so...

 

 

 

Down Bad or But Daddy I Love Him or Florida!!!

Edited February 27, 20251 yr by Taylor fanboy

SWAOLLOWMe? is not single material.

2 hours ago, terrorblade said:

WAOLOM would've been a STATEMENT

A statement to end her career then and there 

 

So High School

Guilty as Sin

Fresh Out the Slammer

joebless, you muse

guity as sin is the best song on the album but it doesnt mean it should have been the single, its simply too wordy

there isnt really any single choice on this album and i dont think she tried to achieve single success with this album

my boy was the obvious choice but even then its a bit slow for the radio

Guily as sin would've bombed lol l, it's completely forgettable. what about so long london? its like the best song there and let she real, nothing from it would've smashed so you can go with quality instead. as a non swiftie, when it comes to commercial appeal, fortnite was the best option.

Guilty As Sin is the best option there was. The song is also a perfect statement to explain what the album is gonna be about. It's like the very first stone to what led to everything that is discussed here. 

 

In my fantasy world, the singles would have been:

1. Guilty As Sin?

2. But Daddy I Love Him (and I don't care that it would have flopped to oblivion)

3. My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys

4. loml 

I think My Boy would have been a great lead single, it sounds like a continuation of IDWLF. And that beat is infectious.

Guilty as Sin could have been the second single and I believe it could have been the Blank Space to My Boy. Down Bad is amazing but not really lead single material, it's like the Delicate of the album. Perfect third or fourth single. So High School is another one I think could have been a good lead single, and a perfect introduction to a proper soft-rock sound in TS12  

To be honest if she went for the shock factor like someone else said, But Daddy I Love Him is perfect, or Who's Afraid of Little Old Me. I know they aren't radio-friendly songs, but they could have had a bigger impact.

 

I agree that Fortnight is not a bad song, it's actually really excellent but it's definitely a snooze of a lead single. I LOVE IT but I would even choose ICDIWABH as the lead over it.

Overall, the album sadly just doesn't have a lot of pop/commercial-friendly songs that could have been a huge hit but they could be decent hits and Taylor's name really carried.

i think "down bad" or "but daddy i love him"

 

ICDIWABH / MBOBHFT are the best for radio friendliness x

Fortnight is one of her best songs but not a particularly good lead single. The first I listened to it I knew that it was bound to be frontloaded. 

MBOBHFT has always made more sense as the lead single, with the killer opening line that would have been perfect to kick off the era, super catchy but also relatable, and also great concept. She could've made a 50s vintage barbie doll kind of video with elements of goth and dark academia aesthetics.

Fortnight music video is so amazing that I don't want to imagine the era without it. So, she could've released the video for Fortnight like she did with Bejeweled.

 

This should've been the single run for TTPD:

1. My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys 

2. Down Bad

3. Guilty As Sin? 

4. imgonnagetyouback (with the The Anthology vinyl release)

+ Fortnight music video

Edited February 27, 20251 yr by MidnightsAtPeace

Not almost every song on the standard edition being named in this thread except that trash loml

 

See when you release an unskippable classique album

Edited February 27, 20251 yr by TaggedGalaxy