Whether you’re a Swiftie or not, you’ve probably heard something about Taylor Swift’s new album “The Life of a Showgirl.” “The Life of a Showgirl” is Swift’s highly anticipated 12th album and was originally announced on the podcast “New Heights,” hosted by Travis Kelce (Swift’s fiancée) and his brother Jason Kelce. Some people think it is lyrically boring or basic and many say it is too similar to her previous albums. “The Alternative” went as far as to call it “the year’s most disappointing blockbuster pop record” in a review they did of the album. On the other hand, lots of people, including me, really like the album. I think “The Life of a Showgirl” is a really unique album celebrating Swift’s love for Travis Kelce and all of her hard work during the Eras Tour. The album has the vibe of “I can do whatever I want now because I’m perfectly happy with who I am and I don’t really care about other people’s opinions of me.”
There are a few key songs in the album that really represent Swift’s mindset and attitude in her life right now. In “The Fate of Ophelia”, Swift draws parallels between her personality and life to those of the fictional character Ophelia in Shakespeare’s play Hamlet. In the play, Ophelia suffers a tragic end; in the song however Swift sings about how she was saved from this end. The person saving her from this fate is probably Kelce, which is implied through the lyrics and when she sings “your team, your vibes,” “team” being the key word because Kelce is a football player for the Kansas City Chiefs. “The Fate of Ophelia” addresses Swift’s fear of ending up alone but as soon as Swift had accepted her fate or in her words “almost drowned in the melancholy” Kelce came along. She sings “Late one night, you dug me out of my grave and saved my heart from the fate of Ophelia”. Listening to this song is really fun because there are so many metaphors to dissect, which has always been one of my favorite parts of listening to Swift’s music.
“Father Figure” is essentially Swift recognizing her success and talking about the lengths she would go to protect her family and the people she loves. She knows what she’s capable of and she’s done with people underestimating her. “Father Figure” celebrates how far Swift has come and how much she has learned in her courier. Listening to “Father Figure” always cheers me up and get me in a better mood.
“CANCELLED!” Is a song Swift wrote about her friends and her loyalty to them. She sings about sexism in our society and how so many women have been “cancelled,” Swift being one of them. Swift sings about how she’s realized that the people who are going to be there for her are the ones who have “girl bossed too close to the sun” or “make a joke only a man could” or have in some way been cancelled. She sings “At least you know exactly who your friends are, they’re the ones with matching scars” stating clearly that her friends are the ones who have stood beside her when things got rough and she will always do the same for them. “CANCELLED!” It is very similar in tone and sound to songs from Swift’s other album Reputation. I really like the message of this song, it feels very personal to Swift while also being easy to relate to.
“The Life of a Showgirl” is the last song on the album and features Sabrina Carpenter. It is a story song about a fictional character named Kitty who “made her money being pretty and witty.” Swift sings about Kitty’s life and what it’s like to be a showgirl, and at the end of the song, Swift switches perspectives and sings about her experience: “I’m married to the hustle and now I know the life of a showgirl.” Right now this is my favorite song on the album. Swift and Carpenter’s voices work so well together and each line has a double meaning that really makes you think. This song closes out the album in a bittersweet way that really makes me think it is the end of an era.
The album “Life of a Showgirl” is a celebration of how far Swift has come and a recognition that Swift is now untouchable because of the hard work she has put in and the name she has made for herself, her friends, and her family.
