Jimmy Fallon, The Roots and even “Tonight Show” announcer Steve Higgins were in the mood to celebrate Taylor Swift’s upcoming record, “The Tortured Poets Department” — so much so that they each came up with their own poems inspired by the album and its anticipated content.
“I feel, sometimes, like a tortured poet,” Fallon told the audience, before adding, “I actually wrote a poem I’d like to read tonight.”
After he pulled out a folded piece of paper, Fallon continued with his poem: “It’s a little… it’s not really based on anything, but, all right.” He asked for “poetry writing music” from the Roots and began, “Godzilla, Kong, Godzilla, Kong — your movies, they’re oh, so many. You wrestle around and roll on the ground. Just get a room already.”
Then the Roots’ Tariq, aka Black Thought, said that he had a poem of his own. As the harpsichord poetry music played, he intoned, “The Kentucky Derby is upon us. It’s a wonderful race, I must be honest. I lost a few bets, and lost all the rest, now my kids, they ain’t going to go to college.”
Not to be outdone, drummer Questlove had a poem to read, too. Despite Fallon’s protestation that the show didn’t have time, the harpsichord music played on as Questlove cleared his throat and he began what was clearly another in a series of limericks. “The Golden Bachelor isn’t smiling,” he began, “for divorce, he’s recently filing. He’s over the hill, but can pop a blue pill, and star on ‘Really Old F-Boy Island.’”
“That’s not bad!” Fallon exclaimed, when Higgins volunteered his own poem. At Fallon’s encouragement, he read out, “I love the month of April, when the spring comes alive. I stroll through the fields with the sun on my face. And then I s–t my pants.”
With that, poetry hour on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” concluded.
Watch the full Taylor Swift “Tortured Poets Department”-inspired segment in the video above.
