Taylor Swift: 1 Of Her New Songs Is Perfect For CPR
Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department may actually save someone a trip to the hospital. The pop icon’s title track from her 11th studio album can help save a life….

Taylor Swift performs onstage during NSAI 2022 Nashville Songwriter Awards at Ryman Auditorium on September 20, 2022 in Nashville, Tennessee.
Terry Wyatt/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department may actually save someone a trip to the hospital. The pop icon's title track from her 11th studio album can help save a life.
TTPD Is Perfect For CPR
After Swift, 34, dropped the album on April 19, the American Heart Association confirmed that her song, "The Tortured Poets Department," features the exact tempo for hands-only CPR—110 beats per minute. They wrote on Instagram: "A double album!?! [mind blown emoji] So double the chances for songs with lifesaving beats!?! [peace sign emoji]"
"If you see a teen or adult collapse, call 911, then push hard and fast in the center of the chest to the beat of 'The Tortured Poets Department.' Thanks, @taylorswift!"
Swifties shared their excitement about her life-saving song in the comments section. One fan hilariously changed the lyrics of the song to fit the CPR theme using lyrics from the album’s “So Long, London” track: "i stopped CPR after all it’s no use, the spirit was gone we would never come to." Another Swiftie quoted the song's actual lyrics and said: "POV: you’re doing CPR while singing 'At dinner you take my ring off my middle finger and put it on the one People put wedding rings on And that's the closest I've come to my heart exploding.'"
Another stated: "I’m a swiftie & a CPR instructor! I love this." One person commented, "I guarantee you this was on purpose." Meanwhile, fans loved that the AHA even posted about Swift's new music, with one writing, "the american heart association are swifties. makes sense." Another fan wrote: "*takes notes* another banger to add to a life-saving playlist [praying emoji]."
Swift's ex and subject matter for much of the TPD album, Matty Healy, had one of his band's songs noted for CPR. In 2022, Healy's The 1975 has a song with 110 beats per minute, shared by the British Heart Association. The BHA posted that the band’s 2016 hit, “Somebody Else,” also works for hands-on CPR.
The American Heart Association wasn't done yet. This week, they listed another TTPD track that is perfect for hands-only CPR at 100 BPM: "Clara Bow." Confirming they are Swifties, AHA wrote: "Of course we’re listening to The Tortured Poets Department on repeat. Gotta make sure we have those beats memorized to practice Hands-Only CPR."
Having fun using Swift lyrics, AHA listed another TTPD track, "imgonnnagetyouback," being perfect for CPR. They write in the caption: "If you gotta get someone back (from a cardiac arrest) make sure you know the 2 easy steps of Hands-Only CPR."
10 Weirdest Songs To Perform CPR To, Per NY Presbyterian Hospital
As anyone who has watched the classic episode of The Office where the Dunder Mifflin team learned CPR (sort of) knows, the Bee Gees' "Stayin' Alive" is the perfect song to do CPR to. While the episode is hilarious, CPR is no laughing matter. Lyrically, "Stayin' Alive" is a bit on the nose. But it is also 100 beats per minute, which is the perfect pace to administer CPR.
You shouldn't be picky about music when administering CPR, of course. Time is of the essence. But just in case, New York Presbyterian Hospital has a playlist of songs at 100bpm. Though the playlist has 57 songs and runs 3 and a half hours, we picked the funniest and oddest ones to play in the crucial moment of saving someone's life.
Per the Mayo Clinic, Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is a lifesaving technique that's useful in many emergencies, such as a heart attack or near drowning, in which someone's breathing or heartbeat has stopped. If you're afraid to do CPR or unsure how to perform CPR correctly, know that it's always better to try than to do nothing at all, so pick a tune and get to pumpin' because the difference between doing something and doing nothing could be someone's life. But, hey, why not dedicate a little time so that you are actually prepared to take action if you need to. Learn more about the basics here.
Incidentally, in the aforementioned scene from The Office, the CPR instructor tells Steve Carrell's Michael Scott to sing "Stayin' Alive," and he instead starts singing Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive." That song is also at 100bpm, so that would have worked as well (assuming that Michael is better at administering CPR than he is at keeping secrets). But you wouldn't want to start with the intro of that song, which is slower than 100 bpm, just jump right to the chorus.
See below our 10 favorites from the list:
Sorry - Justin Bieber
Singing "Is it too late now to say sorry?" while giving someone CPR feels a bit weird, but hey, it's 100bpm!
Rock Your Body - Justin Timberlake
Justin's song is weird in this scenario, as it makes us want to dance. Don't worry about bringing sexy back when you're doing CPR. Also: "Don't be so quick to walk away."
Stayin' Alive - Bee Gees
Now the folks over at the New York Presbyterian Hospital, like The Office, have a great sense of humor to include "Stayin' Alive" by the Bee Gees. It's pretty on the nose!
Gives You Hell - The All-American Rejects
"When you see my face, hope it gives you hell, hope it gives you hell." Hopefully, giving someone CPR will have the opposite effect.
Work It - Missy Elliot
Hearing Missy Elliot saying, "Is it worth it? Let me work it" while giving someone CPR seems like the most inspiring song on the list. Please note that this song and video may be NSFW, even if it might help save a life.
The Notorious B.I.G. (feat. Lil' Kim & Puff Daddy) - Notorious B.I.G.
The music video (which may be considered NSFW) takes place in an ER (which is also a bit on the nose). Tracy Morgan makes a cameo as hospital security, which is hilarious.
This Ain't A Scene, It's An Arms Race - Fall Out Boy
Instead of being an arms dealer, it's much better to be a breath dealer while getting someone's breath pumping again.
Spirit In The Sky - Norman Greenbaum
It's also a bit on the nose: "When I die and they lay me to rest/Gonna go to the place that's the best!" That's all well and good, but hopefully CPR will delay that trip.
Float On - Modest Mouse
Modest Mouse singer Isaac Brock may not have been sincere when he sang "Well, we'll float on, good news is on the way." But you can take it literally in this instance, especially after successful CPR.
Sweet Home Alabama - Lynyrd Skynyrd
Keep them "big wheels" turnin' so you can go back to whenever you call home, whether it's Alabama or anywhere else.