The highly anticipated album, “The Life of a Showgirl” by Taylor Swift released Oct. 3 through Republic Records. Swift announced her 12th studio album on Travis and Jason Kelce’s podcast, “New Heights” on Aug. 13. The album highlights the behind the scenes of her life during the highest-grossing record-breaking Eras Tour. On the podcast, Swift shared the process of creating this album, stating that she began working on it while she was in Europe performing  The Eras Tour. Swift said balancing an international tour and writing a new album inspired the title, “The Life of a Showgirl” as she was “physically exhausted… in the tour, but so mentally stimulated and excited to be creating… and that is living the life of a showgirl.” After Swift started her music career in 2006, she’s gained a large following with her “Swifty” fan-base. And while  I would consider myself a Swifty, this album disappointed me. 

To open the album, “The Fate of Ophelia” refers to the Shakespeare play, “Hamlet.” In the play, Ophelia commits suicide after her father’s death. She uses the play to contrast her love-life, displayed in the lyrics “you dug me out of my grave and saved my heart from the fate of Ophelia.” In short, I liked this song. The beat and sound reflected pop music, which I typically don’t enjoy, but it worked for this song. I’ll add this one to my playlist. The connection to Hamlet adds a layer of depth and gains my respect.

The second track, “Elizabeth Taylor,” references the late actress, Elizabeth Taylor, who gained popularity for her relationships. In this song, Swift explains the complexity of her relationship with the spotlight. She describes her career as rewarding but recognizes that all she truly wants is love and meaningful relationships. Her vulnerability and honesty in this song is inspirational and adds to its value. While I don’t love the sound of this song, I do enjoy the writing and honesty she presents.

As seen in previous albums, Swift loves connecting colors to her songs. “Opalite” is the color of this album. This song represents her resilience through hardships and the calming feeling of her stable relationship. “Opalite” features my favorite beat in the whole album. The heavy use of metaphors creates depth, but the writing seems lazy and less significant than other tracks in the album. For the sole aspect of the sound, this places in my top three songs on the album and earns a spot on my playlist. 

Swift’s former record label CEO, Scott Brochetta, sold the rights of her music to Scooter Braun, sparking the creation of “Taylor’s Version” albums, a reproduction of her previous albums. Recently, she purchased the rights to the six albums produced under Brochetta, and while the ongoing fight was unfortunate for Swift, it led to the fourth track, “Father Figure.” And for that, I am grateful. This song is a perfect mix of an upbeat tune with a vengeful purpose. The beat reflects the edgy sound we often saw in “Reputation” and the writing is definitely more mature compared to the other tracks on the album. She addresses Brochetta by comparing him to a Mafia boss and in a way, it’s like she’s dangling her success in front of him. I personally love the messy meaning of this song and the way it was conveyed. 

The fifth track and star of this album, “Eldest Daughter” earns the number one spot in my ranking. This song carries on the vulnerable nature of the album as Swift shares the mental struggles that come with being the oldest daughter. With the hope of connecting with her audience, she presents issues that her teenage audience can relate to. Her use of slang such as “savage” and “trolling” honestly turned me away from this song at first. However, this lingo makes Swift seem like a human, an aspect of fame that often gets lost. She reminds listeners that she struggles too, and provides many examples of the imperfections of her life. The lyrics “I’ve been dying just from trying to seem cool” showcases her drive for social acceptance, something that many teenagers struggle with as well. Along with the impactful lyricism, the sound of “Eldest Daughter” reminds me of her sister albums, “Folklore” and “Evermore” which easily remain my favorite albums of hers. It’s whimsical and emotional and makes me want to give Swift a hug. It’s beautiful. 

“Ruin the Friendship,” the sixth track, tells the story of Swift’s regrets for not pursuing a former friend romantically. I honestly don’t know how to feel about this song. The upbeat pop-like sound is catchy but I can see myself getting tired of it. I also think the meaning is pointless. She’s encouraging listeners to “ruin the friendship” by kissing their friends. The lyrics “your girlfriend was away, should’ve kissed you anyway” also shows the subject’s girlfriend and Swift’s potential intervention in their relationship. I think that’s a really immature lesson coming from a grown woman. 

Another clapback track, “Actually Romantic” serves as a response to Charlie xcx, an artist Swift publicly disagreed with on numerous occasions. Beyond the two artists, their fanbases are the true enemies in their relationship. In “Actually Romantic,” Swift changes the vibe of the situation, thanking Charlie for the attention she gave her. She addresses Charlie xcx saying, “it’s actually sweet all the time you’ve spent on me”. I really like the sound of this song. The peaceful tune and her soft voice stands as a perfect depiction of the song. The contrast between her petty lyrics and angelic sound represents the change in perspective on the dispute. I’m just in the middle about this one. It’s not horrible, but definitely not one I’d listen to on the daily. 

When Swift announced the album, I knew her fiancee, Travis Kelce, would remain the main subject. “Wi$h Li$t” is the prime example of this. She shares her gratitude for her relationship by explaining she only truly cares about happiness, not the other things typically on a wish list, including money, fame or recognition. This song is just really tacky. I understand the purpose but it sounds like a Kidz Bop song. I don’t like this song, I will not listen again, in fact it may be one of my least favorites on the album. 

I don’t really know where to start with this one. The ninth track, “Wood” represents Swift’s confidence in her relationship with Kelce. This song features much more mature humor and innuendos than we’ve seen from her since “Reputation”. She signifies the strength of her relationship by saying “I ain’t got to knock on wood”. When I listened to this for the first time, it caught me off guard. As she started her career young, many of her followers grew up listening to her. It’s weird to hear her go from romantic, innocent songs in previous albums to now a much more suggestive one. I also just don’t like the sound of it. Her voice doesn’t shine through like it does in previous songs and albums in general. 

I can’t talk about weak lyricism without mentioning the tenth track, “CANCELLED!” In this song, Swift touches on the “cancel culture” celebrities face. While she’s personally dealt with getting cancelled, she focuses on supporting her friends saying, “Good thing I like my friends cancelled.” I actually really like the sound of this song. If I didn’t pay attention to the words, I would enjoy it much more. But I heard “did you girlboss too close to the sun” and immediately shook my head in disappointment. This song sits in the middle of my ranking, saved by the catchy sound. 

Everyone in unison say “awwwwwww.” Swift redefines the meaning of pet names in the eleventh track, “Honey,” explaining the shift in seeing “honey” as an undermining term to now a romantic one. The lyrics, “But you touched my face, redefined all of those blues when you say ‘honey’” depicts the peace of mind Kelce provides her and her newfound definition of pet names. Many interviews and podcasts show Kelce calling Swift “honey” or “sweetheart” and Swift discusses how she now associates the terms with their traditional meaning, as Kelce shows admiration using them. I love the purpose of this song. It represents her comfortability in her relationship and her newly developed positive outlook on love. While I don’t love the almost techno sound, her voice really pulls through. If I wanted a karaoke song, I’d look to “Honey”.  

When two worlds collide, you get the title-track, “The Life of a Showgirl.” Growing up watching Disney Channel’s “Girl Meets World” with Sabrina Carpenter playing the main character, then 10 years later watching her perform with Taylor Swift may be the most full circle moment for me. During her rise to fame, Carpenter always spoke of her admiration for Swift. Since I watched them perform together during the New Orleans show of the second leg of The Eras Tour, I’ve waited for a collaboration track. “The Life of a Showgirl” is exactly what I wanted. Their voices work so well together and their energy very clearly reflects one another. The song touches on the trials and tribulations showgirls face. It brings light to many behind-the-scenes aspects of performing and develops a greater respect for those who dedicate their time to entertaining. With a catchy tune and pulsating sound, I can see myself dancing around my room with this on. This track marked a beautiful ending to the album and wrapped up the meaning entirely. 

After 12 tracks, I can confidently say, I don’t know how to feel about this album. I am not a fan of pop music, and that’s exactly the genre of music “The Life of a Showgirl” represents. The upbeat melody reflects the sound of “Midnights,” which I also did not love. To dive deeper, the lyricism reflects incredibly lazy writing. After her poetic performance in “Folklore,” hearing her stoop down to a much weaker style of writing disappoints me. I understand she holds a typically younger audience, but as a 35-year-old woman, she should write more mature music. Now I can’t lie, the more I listen to it, the more I like it. The pop nature reminds me of 2015 Taylor Swift, so I appreciate the nostalgic feel. However, after her absolutely remarkable presentation of “Folklore”, I expected much more from her. There’s a few songs I would listen to again, but the twelfth studio album is mediocre at best.