Vigilante Shit

Swift performing "Vigilante Shit" at the Eras Tour (2023)

On August 28, 2022, Swift announced her tenth studio album, Midnights, set for release on October 21, 2022. The track-list was not immediately revealed.[1] Jack Antonoff, a longtime collaborator of Swift who had worked with her since 1989 (2014), was confirmed as a producer on Midnights by a video posted to Swift's Instagram account on September 16, 2022.[2] On September 21, 2022, Swift began unveiling the track-list in a randomized order through her 13-episode short video series on TikTok, called Midnights Mayhem with Me.[3] In each episode, Swift rolls a lottery cage containing 13 ping pong balls numbered from one to thirteen,[4] each representing a track of Midnights, and when a ball drops out, she disclosed the title of the corresponding track on the album, through a telephone.[5][6] In the second episode, released on September 23, 2022, Swift announced "Vigilante Shit" would be track eight.[6][7] The song, along with the rest of Midnights, was released on October 21, 2022 under Republic Records.[8][9]

"Vigilante Shit" was included on the set list of Swift's sixth headlining concert tour, the Eras Tour (2023–24), as part of the Midnights act.[10] The performance is a burlesque chair dance[11] that resembles 1975 musical Chicago;[12] the performance went viral on social media[13] and critics highlighted it as a standout moment of the concert.[11][14]

"Vigilante Shit" is a dark pop tune produced by Swift and Antonoff; it is the only Midnights track that Swift wrote alone.[15][16][17] At two minutes and 44 seconds, it is the shortest track on the album's standard edition.[18] The song is set in the key of A minor with a moderately slow tempo of 80 beats per minute.[19] Swift's vocals span from F₃ to A₄.[20] The minimalist production is built on a trap beat consisting of pulsing snare drums and light bass and electronic tones.[21][22][23][24] It incorporates swirling synths and elements of industrial and hip hop.[25][26][22] Writing for The Independent, Helen Brown described "Vigilante Shit" as a noirish rap, while The New York Times' Jon Caramanica called it an "electro-cabaret exhale."[27] USA Today's Melissa Ruggieri said that the song's "minor chords and theatrical chorus provide the noir ambiance".[28] Other critics compared the moody production to that of Lorde's Pure Heroine (2013)[24][29] and Billie Eilish's When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? (2019).[24][30][31][32]

Lyrically, "Vigilante Shit" is a revenge fantasy told by a sneering narrator who recruits her lover's ex-wife to join the narrator's plot.[33] The lyrics describe an envelope handed to an ex-wife who is now driving her ex-lover's Mercedes-Benz.[34] The song's final verse concludes referencing the antagonist's cocaine use: "While he was doing lines / And crossing all of mine / Someone told his white collar crimes to the FBI."[15] Some music critics theorized that the lyrics were a reference to either Swift's feuds with rapper Kanye West[30] or talent manager Scooter Braun, whose purchase of the masters for her first six albums created a highly publicized dispute.[35][36] "Vigilante Shit" was described as a more direct response to the dispute, building on her previous songs "My Tears Ricochet" and "Mad Woman", both from Folklore (2020).[37][38] Various critics drew lyrical parallels to Swift's sixth studio album, Reputation (2017), which focused heavily on scrutiny directed towards Swift and public feuds with figures like West.[lower-alpha 1]

In reviews of Midnights, critics praised the vengeful lyrics and production of "Vigilante Shit". Variety's Chris Willman lauded the track's production and lyrics, predicting it would be the album's "most talked-about song."[37] Clash's Mattew Neale called the track "utterly irresistible."[39] Along with "Karma", "Vigilante Shit" was praised by Rolling Stone's Brittany Spanos and The Guardian's Alexis Petridis for creating an intriguing energy on Midnights.[24] Both American Songwriter's Alex Hopper and PopMatters' Rick Quinn lauded Swift for not sugarcoating her desire for vengeance.[43][40] Lucy Habron of Gigwise praised the purposeful decisions made on the track, comparing Swift's musical experimentation to that of Prince.[44] Helen Brown of The Independent lauded the lyrical details and "classy-sharp wordplay" of "Vigilante Shit" as conjuring a vivid image of the track's storyline.[34]

In a warm review of Midnights published in The New York Times, Jon Caramanica considered the song as the album's high point, describing Swift's self-characterization as "funny, wry, [and] slightly perturbing."[27] Paul Attard of Slant praised the song's extreme but reserved approach towards the theme of vengeance, particularly directing acclaim towards its production.[45] Justin Curto, writing for Vulture, called "Vigilante Shit" Swift's "venomous best." Curto highlighted Swift's wordplay and confidence on the track as powerful and an improvement from the thematically similar Reputation (2017).[38] In his ranking of the standard edition of Midnights, Billboard's Jason Lipshultz named "Vigilante Shit" the album's second-best track, directing acclaim towards its "stripped-down [...] cutthroat approach" towards years of built-up anger.[25]

In Pitchfork's review of Midnights, Quinn Moreland was less positive, claiming Swift's "edginess" was less convincing than her previous work.[46] Carl Wilson, writing for Slate, felt "Vigilante Shit" was a disposable track but also was a more sophisticated take than similar vengeance songs in her previous albums.[35]

Globally, "Vigilante Shit" received over 11.8 million streams on Spotify in its first 24 hours, becoming the seventh-most streamed song on that day, following six other songs from Midnights.[47] It debuted and peaked at number nine on the Spotify Weekly Top Songs chart,[48] where it charted for six weeks.[49]

Upon the release of Midnights, 10 of its tracks debuted in the top 10 of the United States' Billboard Hot 100, making Swift the first and only artist to occupy the entire top 10 of the Hot 100.[50] "Vigilante Shit" opened at number 10, accumulating 32.2 million streams, 6,400 digital downloads, and 424,000 airplay impressions.[51] "Vigilante Shit" spent six weeks on the Hot 100. It also charted at number seven on the international singles chart in Greece;[52] nine on the Billboard Global 200,[53] Canada,[54] and the Philippines;[55] and number 10 in Australia[56] and Malaysia.[57] It peaked within the top 25 of singles charts in Portugal,[58] Iceland,[59] Vietnam,[60] Luxembourg,[61] and South Africa;[62] and on the international singles chart in India.[63] The song received certifications from Australia (platinum),[64] Canada (gold),[65] and the United Kingdom (silver).[66]

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of Midnights.[17]

Recording

• Recorded at Rough Customer Studio, Brooklyn and Electric Lady Studios, New York City
• Mixed at MixStar Studios, Virginia Beach
• Mastered at Sterling Sound, Edgewater, New Jersey
• Evan Smith's performance was recorded by herself at Pleasure Hill Recording, Portland, Maine
• Dominik Rivinius' performance was recorded by Ken Lewis at Neon Wave Studio, Pirmasens, Germany

Personnel

• Taylor Swift – vocals, songwriting, production
• Jack Antonoff – production, engineering, programming, synths, percussion, juno 6, wurlitzer, Moog, recording
• Evan Smith – engineering, synths
• Dominik Rivinius – drums
• Laura Sisk – engineering, recording
• Ken Lewis – engineering
• Megan Searl – assistant engineering
• John Sher – assistant engineering
• John Rooney – assistant engineering
• Jonathan Garcia – assistant engineering
• Serban Ghenea – mixing
• Bryce Bordone – assistant mixing
• Randy Merrill – mastering