“You’re only as hot as your last hit baby!” We are officially in pop star Taylor Swift’s 12th musical era, and show business has never seemed so sweet. Written and produced by Taylor Swift, Max Martin, and Shellback, “The Life of a Showgirl” has all the infectious pop beats we’ve come to love from this trio collaborating.
Taylor wanted to produce an album that she was just as proud of as the Eras Tour. The project was an immense success breaking almost a dozen records. The lead single, “The Fate of Ophelia,” broke the record of the fastest song to reach 100 million listens within five days. Taylor also unseated Adele’s “25,” with most albums sold in a week with 3.4 million units in pure album sales, compared to Adele’s 3.378 million units. Finally, “The Life of a Showgirl” movie premiered number one in America making about 33.3 million dollars.
Taylor’s last album, “The Tortured Poets Department,” came out on April 19th, 2024. This album was an ode to her inner poet with 31 beautifully written songs. Swift stated in an interview that she likes her albums to show different parts of her personality; while TTPD showed the broken-hearted poet, “The Life of a Showgirl” shows the Showgirl inside the pop star.
The viral “Fate of Ophelia” dance is impossible to avoid. It is the only song on the album to have a music video, which features a reunion of the cast and crew from the Eras Tour. The music video premiered in movie theaters along with behind-the-scenes clips, all twelve lyric videos from the album, and little snippets of an interview with Swift describing what each song meant to her. There are over 100 easter eggs in the music video for Swifties to find. From October 3rd-5th Swifties were celebrating in movie theaters across the country.
Other hit songs from the album are “Opalite” (number 2 on all music charts), and “Elizabeth Taylor” (number 4). All of the songs from the album are within the top 25 songs trending worldwide.
While the album received good reactions, some of the song lyrics left listeners a little stunned. “Actually Romantic” is one of the most talked about songs from the album. While listeners thought the song would be about Travis Kelce, “Actually Romantic” is a rumored diss track about pop star, Charli XCX. Charli’s response to the track was to post a tweet and wear a Kansas City Chiefs shirt on SNL. Fans are beginning to take sides in this celebrity feud. Whether the song carries a hidden meaning or not, one can admit it’s a little catchy.
When this album was announced on Travis and Jason Kelce’s “New Heights” podcast on August 12th, Swifties were thrilled by the fact that the last song on the album featured Sabrina Carpenter. “The Life of a Showgirl,” the twelfth track on the album is a fictional story about a performer named Kitty who warns Swift about the trials and tribulations of show business. Taylor talks about how almost everyone who has wanted to enter the music industry has been told at some point to do something else. The song mentions the dedication and work that being a showgirl needs, as well as the retributions and rewards that come with it. Taylor told Elvis Duran on the Morning Show that Sabrina was perfect for this song “because she has the right mentality and artistry for the industry, calling her ‘brilliant’ and ‘sensitive.’” Last year, Sabrina Carpenter opened the Australian and Asia legs of the Eras Tour for Taylor Swift, and came on stage during one of the New Orleans shows to sing two of her hits “Please Please Please” and “Espresso.”
This album was filled to the brim with infectious pop beats and easter eggs. Despite its release one month ago, there are still exciting things coming up for Swifties. One of the biggest easter eggs Taylor has left for her fans are double exit signs. These have been spotted in her music video, her target ad, album art, and in an interview with Jimmy Fallon. Finally, on Monday, October 13th, Taylor went on Good Morning America and announced a six-episode documentary of the Eras Tour as well as a movie of the last show in Vancouver, the closing show on the Eras Tour.
“Now I know the life of a showgirl, babe, wouldn’t have it any other way.” Here’s to Taylor Swift’s shimmering 12th album!
