D (Taylor's Version)

Just another human idolizing Taylor Swift. You can call me D. Inbox is open! Let's talk!

[fandom-trash-goblin]

we've got a life to love living.

[theswift-effect]

If you hear the voice memos but its so clear that extremely catchy hooks and melody was fully the goal of this project (taylor is just mumbling words and it literally sounds like she slotted them in rushed later, also i think jack and aaron have more influence over lyrics, max martin doesn’t care about lyrics just them fitting into the melodic math ) and they definitely achieved that!! Thats why it felt so jarring initially because this is new territory for her

[prettyswift]

I personally think it was a bit of an intentional rug pull to make a point about the life of a showgirl. We all built up an image of her in our heads as a super glamorous, flashy woman, which she actively encouraged through the imagery associated with this album, but in the end, when we finally get a peak behind the curtain, she's just a human woman with human emotions; in other words, the entire point is that, once she's behind the curtains, she's NOT a showgirl at all anymore. She's just another woman living her life. Whether or not that concept was well executed is a totally different story, but suffice it to say, I do think there's a reason why the final and title track of the album says, "You don't know the life of a showgirl, babe," unless you've lived it.

I get what you mean, and I actually agree. It really feels like she did that on purpose to mess with the image we all had of her. We got so used to the glitz and glam, and then she pulls it back to show she’s just a real person underneath it all, she’s not some untouchable icon, just a real person with ordinary feelings. It’s like the whole concept was designed to contrast the fantasy with the reality. When people say the concept wasn’t well executed, I think they didn’t really listen when she clearly says this isn’t about the show, it’s about what happens behind the curtains.

[wildfloweronwheels-deactivated2]

It’s not until I get to the end of the album that it hits me. This is the first time ever I haven’t heard Taylor Swift wonder if she’s enough. Not on a single song. She’s not dreaming of running away, hatching escape plans or making herself small. Twisting herself into knots, worried about being seen not as something shiny and new but as a woman, when the lights go down. She isn’t worried about news cycles or legacy or ageing out. She knows who she is – the motherfucking showgirl. And there’ll never be another like her. Besides, she’s not going anywhere.

An extract from my review of The Life of A Showgirl that I'm really fucking proud of and hope you all read and share with every Taylor fan in your life x

[idsb]

I’m sorry. I’m sooo sorry. But I’m listening to the album again and I started cracking the fuck up. This album is as sonically and thematically comparable to reputation as it possibly could be without her making pretty much the same album all over again. And the exact same people who have been wanting rep part 2 so bad - who have a large overlap with people who didn’t like her back then btw - who are chanting REP TV at Eras tour shows and theorizing about the rep vault and want Joe back “as a muse” etc - absolutely hate this album and are mad about it. That is fucking hilarious. I’m cackling. No notes. That is so goddamn funny to me. That’s absolutely iconic.

[susiephone]

i see why "CANCELLED!" doesn't sit right with people given the (justified!) criticism taylor's gotten for hanging out with conservatives in travis' circle, but i think part of why it struck a chord with me is because i've thought a lot about this seemingly-obligatory public shaming every famous woman goes through. sabrina got hers a few months ago (and before that in 2020 because of the joshua basset drama), rachel zegler got it for her absolutely harmless comments about a disney movie, britney spears got it in the 2000s for breaking down after years of abuse, ariana grande got it for being a homewrecker (while the guy who left his wife for her got maybe 1/1000th of the backlash that she did), janet jackson got it in the 2000s for having an accidental wardrobe malfunction in public, yoko ono got it for being married to john lennon when the beatles broke up- i could sit here all day listing examples. and taylor's spoken before about how famous women going through their first "cancellation" reach out to her for advice on how to deal with it. and even when the women really did do something wrong, the public backlash often goes way, WAY beyond what's actually warranted for the "crime" in question. i think in that context the song works; taylor's been through the wringer of public shaming before, she will be again, she knows the drill. she wasn't the first and god knows she won't be the last.

[theswift-effect]

Taylor saying she loves the Gilded age and doing an amazing Carrie impression is prob the biggest dopamine boost i have had because trust me that’s the show I was talking about for MONTHS i am obsessed

[prettyswift]

After sitting with the album for a while (except wood, i just can’t listen to it, once but never again) I think she really really achieved her goal of “infectious melodies” that you can’t get out of your head!! Like these songs are stuck in my head day and night. And lyrically I think she cared a lot of vocal inflections and how she sings certain words (some moments still give me goosebumps) but I think she absolutely didn’t care about the storytelling aspect of it.

And that is a departure from the last few albums we have had esp after Aaron Dessner it feels so foreign! And that’s causing this polarizing reaction because for us storytelling is the core of any taylor swift album. But this is a Max + Taylor Swift album so it sits differently in her discography. How this influences what’s to come will be very interesting because I do think she will be honing these skills and in future work we might get infectious melodies with extremely good storytelling.

My prediction is that this album will sit in her career trajectory as a upward curve rather than a career peak and that to me as a fan is extremely exciting because I can’t wait for another legendary career moment like she had with folklore. We just need patience she’s getting there. And meanwhile, I am just vibing with these melodies they are great

I completely agree with your perspective. I think she really nailed the goal of creating melodies that stick with you, there’s a magnetic quality to them that’s impossible to ignore. Honestly, it’s not hitting me as hard as I wish it did, but that’s more personal than anything, they’re not my personal vibe at the moment. Still, I can really appreciate what it represents in her career and life and I absolutely LOVE the visuals. I also agree that this is part of a bigger trajectory, she’s clearly experimenting and sharpening her craft.

[theswift-effect]

Yes same it dosen’t hit me emotionally as hard as her other albums because very coincidentally Reputation came out when I just started my university boyfriend Lover came while I was so in love with him and we broke up 6 months before Tortured Poets came out. So it was a thing of getting a taylor album because you NEED it and it will forever soundtrack your emotional landscape in that period of time. This is exactly why Folklore and Evermore felt like the warmest hug because collectively we NEEDED them.

That being said, with everything happening around us I absolutely needed some good music that I can bop around to and the melodies are just HITTING!! It’s a new way for me to relate to a Taylor Album and that makes it so exciting!! In that sense they truly did capture lightning in a bottle.

[theswift-effect]

After sitting with the album for a while (except wood, i just can’t listen to it, once but never again) I think she really really achieved her goal of “infectious melodies” that you can’t get out of your head!! Like these songs are stuck in my head day and night. And lyrically I think she cared a lot of vocal inflections and how she sings certain words (some moments still give me goosebumps) but I think she absolutely didn’t care about the storytelling aspect of it.

And that is a departure from the last few albums we have had esp after Aaron Dessner it feels so foreign! And that’s causing this polarizing reaction because for us storytelling is the core of any taylor swift album. But this is a Max + Taylor Swift album so it sits differently in her discography. How this influences what’s to come will be very interesting because I do think she will be honing these skills and in future work we might get infectious melodies with extremely good storytelling.

My prediction is that this album will sit in her career trajectory as a upward curve rather than a career peak and that to me as a fan is extremely exciting because I can’t wait for another legendary career moment like she had with folklore. We just need patience she’s getting there. And meanwhile, I am just vibing with these melodies they are great

[theswift-effect]

I miss when people could be normal about music

Credits : reddit

[theswift-effect]

Did anyone else clock that so many visuals from her instagram post were not in the fate of ophelia music video?? Like the picture of her on the bed in that satin nightgown, the picture of her exiting in that beautiful long gown with gloves?? I think there is another music video thats already filmed and ready to go!!

[theswift-effect]

I really really recommend experiencing this music in theaters with amazing surround sound and bass it just makes the album 10x better!!!

[theswift-effect]

The production and vocals on this album are truly something like taylor ATE with her vocal range OMG

[theswift-effect]

Let me preface by saying I liked this album at first listen its such a fresh sound! And generally I like Taylor songs because usually they will describe something that I am going through at the moment or an emotion I felt strongly but couldn’t put it in words. This connection was missing with this album But the more I listen to it, the more I love this new relationship I will prob have with Taylor’s music going forward because she and I are in different lifestages. But it’s a really good album and don’t let the internet convince you otherwise!! (tho they couldve got sabrina to co-write on wood)

[theswift-effect]

I think the reason so many people are having dissonances with the album is because it’s a departure for her from writing about Taylor Swift the human to Taylor Swift the brand.

The experience of being the centre of attention of so many strangers that adore you and then come home to this guy with whom you can have the most normal 35 year old conversations with about kids and memes must be a genuine mind fuck. Especially when you have resigned to the idea your whole life that it’s either love or fame (as was the case with all the showgirls before you including Elizabeth Taylor). And in this moment of life you absolutely have it all and you’re infectiously happy and the album does reflect that.

But the dissonance comes from the fact that most of us can’t relate because we don’t have it all. And that’s lowkey the point because it’s one of those things you only see on screen / in theatre because real life is not glitzy and glamourous its messy and raw and sad and vulnerable. And that’s why its the life of a showgirl (not our lives) a diaristic representation of what its like to be on the top of the world professionally while also being with the love of your life after 2 decades of not having it all. That’s also why I think the photoshoot was so opulent she is really leaning into I am a boss bitch that really has it all.

[theswift-effect]

I don’t know if someone mentioned this but it’s so interesting to me how so many boxes at the nyc pop up were labeled “case 13” esp because she is doing the 12 thing for showgirl ts12, 12 tracks etc! Is it hiding a clue in plain sight?

[theswift-effect]

More pics from the nyc pop up for all out of town swifties (esp international ones)