The evening before Oct. 3 was a big night for Swifties all around the world as they prepared for the release of Taylor Swift’s 12th studio album “The Life of a Showgirl.” The build up to this release led fans to believe that this could be her biggest project yet with her return to collaborating with producers Max Martin and Shellback.
So far, the album has received mixed reviews from critics and Swifties alike. Fans were made aware of the fact that this album was going to be different from anything else Swift had released, but they were led to believe information that turned out to be untrue.
I have been a fan of Taylor Swift’s music since I was a child, so just like every other album release, I stayed up to listen to the entire project front to back.
Like many fans, I was pleasantly greeted by “The Fate of Ophelia” as the opening track. The production instantly brought me back to the “Red” and “Reputation” eras, giving me hope for the rest of the album. The next track “Elizabeth Taylor” was also strong in its “Reputation” style. I wasn’t a big fan of this track initially, but it has grown on me.
“Opalite” was a track that many fans, including myself, were looking forward to. There wasn’t much that stood out to me on this one, and as I have sat with it, I think that it is a very classic Taylor Swift pop song which is something she promised.
The fourth track, “Father Figure” is the song that has grown on me the most. With theories of this being about her experience of recently buying back her masters, it is an empowering song for those who have been with her through this journey, and it is quite catchy.
“Eldest Daughter” was probably the most disappointing track on this album. The name gave it so much potential to be an emotionally relatable track five, but it was the complete opposite. The various internet slang references feel like an inaccurate showcase of Swift’s writing. I had never experienced the feeling of wanting to skip a Taylor Swift song on first listen, until this song.
Another track I was looking forward to was “Ruin the Friendship.” It is one of my favorites, but not for why I thought it would be. The true meaning of the song isn’t revealed until the ending when she mentions childhood best friend, Abigail, calling her to tell her about the loss of their friend. It is an emotionally nostalgic simple song.
Many fans have theorized that “Actually Romantic” is Swift’s response to Charli XCX’s song about her. This has led to many mixed feelings from fans of both artists, but unrelated to that situation, the song’s production was strong and despite a few cringeworthy lyrics, it is a classic pop song.
Another song that made me consider pressing the skip button on first listen was “Wi$h Li$t.” What feels like it was intended to be a love song, feels tone-deaf, unrelatable and is hard to listen to when thinking about the current climate of our world and the privilege that billionaires like Swift experience. Another song that feels this way later on the album is “CANCELLED!”
There is not much to say about “Wood” other than its production and funk style sound was unique. This track was clearly an experimental song for her, and you can tell she had fun with it. Because of this, I think it will grow on fans who didn’t initially enjoy it.
Lyrically, I did enjoy “Honey” but did not feel like it matched the production. It feels like they created the beat first and did whatever they could to try to make it work on the album, which left the vocals feeling detached from the music.
The album is only 41 minutes long, but it felt like it took forever to reach the closing track “The Life of a Showgirl (feat. Sabrina Carpenter).” This is a feeling I had never experienced with one of her albums. I did enjoy this track for the most part, and the collaboration between these two artists was cool to experience.
I do not feel that this was Swift’s best work, but I think she seems to have had a fun time creating something different. It may not be my favorite album, but it is nice to see her experimenting with new ideas. I believe that some of the songs will grow on me over time as they already have started to, but that others will not hold up due to their lyrics. Along with the lyrics steering me away from loving this album, Swift’s use of AI in promotional videos is also something that is disappointing to see and important to mention as she has spent so long advocating for artists’ rights.
Many fans were worried that this was going to be her final album, and if that is the case, it feels like a disappointing end. However, it does seem that at the moment, Swift has no plans to slow down creating music, though I think it may serve her well to take her time creating the next project.
Nora Lee is a Dakota Student Section Editor. She can be reached at [email protected].
