"As many of you probably know, Taylor Swift recently released her 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl. This album’s release coincided with her engagement to NFL player Travis Kelce this August, with the album coming out on October 3rd. That’s why, as soon as the album was released, fans began coming up with ideas as to how its lyrics could be related to her engagement." --Alice stewart, 7th grade
As many of you probably know, Taylor Swift recently released her 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl. This album’s release coincided with her engagement to NFL player Travis Kelce this August, with the album coming out on October 3rd. That’s why, as soon as the album was released, fans began coming up with ideas as to how its lyrics could be related to her engagement. This article goes over some popular theories about the album’s lyrics, and will go in the order the songs are on the album, starting with “The Fate of Ophelia” and ending with the title track, “The Life of a Showgirl.”
"The Fate of Ophelia"
This song takes its title from the tragic female lead of Hamlet, but it appears Swift’s taken it upon herself to rewrite Ophelia’s story. According to Teen Vogue, “In the play [Hamlet] Ophelia, driven mad with grief from her lover’s murder of her father, as well as his dismissive treatment toward her, tragically drowns while making flower crowns near a brook.” However, in “The Fate of Ophelia,” Swift claims that she was saved from this fate by her fiancé, stating, “If you'd never come for me, I might've drowned in the melancholy,” a reference to Ophelia’s death. This isn’t the first time Swift’s rewritten a Shakespearean tragedy, with her song “Love Story” being a Romeo and Juliet story—minus their deaths. In “Love Story,”Swift and her Romeo get married at the end, as opposed to the famous ending of the original play. So while Shakespeare rewrites may not be a new thing, “Fate of Ophelia” is a new story for Hamlet’s female lead.
"Elizabeth Taylor"
While this song isn’t the first time Swift’s referenced the actress in her songs, it is by far the most direct. Taylor was also referenced in the song “Ready For It,” with the opening track of Reputation saying a lover can be the “Burton to this Taylor,” referencing Taylor’s relationship with Richard Burton, who she married, then divorced, and then married a second time. However, aside from in the title, the first line of the chorus (“Cry my eyes violet/ Elizabeth Taylor”) and the first line of the first verse (“That view of Portofino was on my mind when you called me at the Plaza Athénée”), Taylor isn’t mentioned much in this song.
"Opalite"
To start with, even the title of this song is a reference to Kelce, since his birthstone is an opal. In addition, the line in the chorus “sleepless in the onyx night, but now the sky is opalite” refers to things feeling dark, but now they’re like opalite, which is a bright white color. This isn’t the first time Swift’s used colors as metaphors for love (she’s also done so in the album Red, among others), but this is the first time white’s been referred to in her discography. Teen Vogue summarizes this nicely, stating that “[o]n ‘Opalite,’ [Swift] likens a newfound love to opalite, a milky, iridescent man-made glass.”
"Father Figure"
While this song doesn’t have anything to do with Kelce, it still has plenty of meaning of its own. Though some fans thought this song would just be a cover of George Michael’s hit song with the same name, as Breaking Down the Meaning of Every Song on Taylor Swift's 'The Life of a Showgirl' Album says, “Swift’s version ended up being an interpolation—one she got with Michael’s blessing—echoing the key chorus tag line of the ’80s song.” In other words, though Swift's “Father Figure” is similar to Michael’s, they aren’t the same, which becomes obvious as you see Swift’s new lyrics.
Many fans hypothesize that this song is referring to Scooter Braun, the record label owner who, as many Swifties will know, refused to let Swift buy back her albums from him, leading to her re-recording them as “Taylor’s Version.” Narratively, “Father Figure” starts from the perspective of the antagonist, but after the bridge, the viewpoint switches to that of the protagonist, presumably Swift. The antagonist says they’ll be her “father figure”, only to betray her when she becomes too famous. At this point in the song, it switches to Swift’s viewpoint, where she says that they “pulled the wrong trigger” and that “this empire belongs to me, leave it with me.”
"Eldest Daughter"
In many of Swift’s albums, track five is the spot she saves for her most emotional songs. “Eldest Daughter” is no exception, talking about the stress being the eldest daughter has put on her. Teen Vogue has a very specific theory about this, saying, “‘Every eldest daughter was the first lamb to the slaughter,’ she sings, referring to Austrian psychotherapist Alfred Adler’s relatable concept of ‘Eldest Daughter Syndrome,’ which suggests that firstborn children, especially girls, are burdened with more responsibility, stress, and expectations than later-born siblings.” This song is much slower and more of a ballad than many of her songs, though it isn’t actually a romance song. The next song is also slow, but has very different themes incorporated in it.
"Ruin The Friendship"
This song talks about a friend from high school Swift regrets not trying to date. The song starts with her just saying that she should’ve kissed him anyway when his ex was away, but at the third verse, Swift gets a phone call from her best friend, Astrid (marking her second cameo in a Swift song) saying that the song’s subject has died. Swift flies home for his funeral, and in the last chorus, she says, “It was not an invitation/But I flew home anyway/With so much left to say/It was not convenient, no/But I whispered at the grave/’Should've kissed you anyway,’” sharing that she now regrets never kissing this mystery boy, because now she’ll never get a chance. There are several theories as to who “Ruin the Friendship” is about, but the most widely agreed-upon one is that it’s the same boy who is the subject of the Red vault track, “Forever Winter.” That song fits nicely with this one, because “Forever Winter” is about a friend struggling with his mental health, and now “Ruin the Friendship” is about a friend who died in a manner where it’s not clear what happened (“Goodbye/ And we’ll never know why”). But no matter who the song is about, it’s still certainly a much more serious song than the next track on the album.
"Actually Romantic"
While at first glance this song may appear to be a romance song, it’s in fact a diss track. The song describes a fellow female songwriter who absolutely hates Swift, so much that Swift’s decided it comes off as an obsession. There are many people who theorize that this song is about Charli XCX, due to a number of supposed references in the first verse. However, Literary Arts 8th grader Amara Deanes disagrees, saying that “I think the ‘Actually Romantic’ Charli XCX theories are wrong, because I think she could say that about a lot of different people. I feel like it’s more generalized to people who don't like her rather than a specific person.” Evie Ahlers, a Lit Arts 6th grader, disagrees, however, saying that “I think Actually Romantic is about Charli XCX.”
As Teen Vogue says, “‘Actually Romantic’ is a ‘90s-tinged pop-rock song that takes aim at another woman, seemingly a fellow musician, who keeps talking about Taylor so much behind her back that it comes off obsessively romantic (“No man has ever loved me like you do…”). The song is clearly a diss track, and though it can’t be confirmed, many fans online believe it’s about Charli XCX…” But no matter who this song is about, it’s certainly much more of a reputation--or THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT-style song—than many of the others on this album, taking aim at other people just like many of those songs.
"Wi$h Li$t"
While the previous song may have been a vicious diss track, “Wi$h Li$t’s” main message is Swift’s average, suburban family dreams. While some people might want “freedom, living off the grid” or an “Oscar on their bathroom floor,” Swift says “I just want you/ Have a couple kids, got the whole block looking like you,” “you” in this case referring to Kelce. However, Swift isn’t angry with the people who want the Oscars, and the “three dogs that they call their kids”—it’s just that neither of those lifestyles are for her. What she’d much prefer is a “driveway with a basketball hoop”—another symbol of classic suburbia. However, another part of her dream is that “we tell the world to leave us the f*** alone, and they do,” which doesn’t seem to be happening any time soon. Her relationships’ permanent fame is also referenced in the bridge of “Elizabeth Taylor,” with the lines, “All my white diamonds and lovers are forever/In the papers, on the screens, and in their minds.” So while the rest of her dream seems achievable, that goal just might not be possible.
"Wood"
Anyone looking at this song’s lyrics probably took about three seconds to realize it looks suspicious. While it starts like a song about superstitions, it quickly devolves into something dirty-minded, with lyrics like, “Forgive me, it sounds cocky” and “I don’t need to catch the bouquet/ To know a hard rock is on the way.” Despite the lyrics, though, this song certainly talks about feeling confident and happy in a relationship, something a lot of Swift’s songs have been lacking. Again, this song is most widely speculated to be about Kelce, as they’ve recently gotten engaged. And it was certainly the most controversial song on this album, even leading some internet haters to say Swift had copied the Jackson 5 with its style. Speaking of internet haters…
"CANCELLED!"
This song refers to the internet “cancel culture” and Swift’s experiences with such. She talks about how as soon as celebrities mess up a tiny bit they’re hated (“But one single drop and you’re off the roster”) and how she’s been through these experiences and found friends who will stick with her (“At least you know exactly who your friends are/They’re the ones with matching scars”). “CANCELLED!” is also a commentary on how female celebrities and male celebrities face unequal treatment (“Did you make a joke only a man could?/ Were you just too smug for your own good?”), commenting on how when men congratulate themselves, or hype themselves up, they’re praised as “confident”, but women who say the same things are branded as “smug”. As Teen Vogue says, “On “CANCELLED!,” she makes it clear she’s not willing to play victim to cancel culture, even when she only brings a “tiny violin to a knife fight” — a lyric that jabs at accusations that Taylor likes to play the victim in the public eye, something she also addressed in a 2019 interview.” “Cancelled” isn’t Swift’s first attack at people online (this is a topic she addressed a LOT in reputation), but it’s certainly different from most of the songs on this romance album.
"Honey"
Speaking of romance songs, "Honey" is another song about Kelce, and probably the most lyrically simple song on this record. In it, Swift sings about how when she’s been referred to by pet names (like “honey” or “sweetheart”), it was negative or sarcastic. But when Kelce refers to Swift by pet names like “honey”, it doesn’t have those same negative connotations (“You can call me honey if you want/ Because I’m the one you want”). The beginning of the song states negative ways that people have used these pet names, for instance, “When anyone called me "sweetheart" /It was passive-aggressive at the bar/ And the b**** was telling me to back off/ 'Cause her man had looked at me wrong.” But now that Taylor’s in a happy relationship, she’ll allow her fiance to call her honey.
"The Life of a Showgirl"
Interestingly, the title track of this album is one of the ones that’s not about Kelce. Instead, "The Life of a Showgirl" talks about a fictional showgirl, Kitty, in a vein more similar to her pandemic albums folklore and evermore. In the song, Swift’s character goes to a performance of this showgirl, and Kitty tells her, “Hеy, thank you for the lovely bouquet/ You're sweeter than a peach/ But you don't know the life of a showgirl, babe/ And you're never ever gonna.” However, Swift then proceeds to become a showgirl anyway, as does Sabrina Carpenter, her collaborator on this song. The song is in fact a duet between Carpenter and Swift, and ends with a recording of applause from the Eras Tour. The main theme this song deals with is the dark side of fame, with Swift and Carpenter singing that “..that's not what showgirls get/ They leave us for dead,” and that, “They ripped me off like false lashes and then threw me away”. “CANCELLED!” also deals with this sort of theme. With that in mind,
What do people think of this album?
Swift’s fans have definitely had mixed reactions to this album, with some praising it heavily and some having negative reactions. For instance, Lit Arts 8th grader Cece Burger says “...now that she’s getting older, she doesn’t really have the same soft vibe and aesthetic towards her, so she’s tuning towards more vulgar music and trying to change the person she is towards the media, which just doesn’t work for the person [Swift] is.”
Deanes agrees, saying that “...the whole hyper pop vibe is not really the kind of music I like either. I expected more complex songwriting.” However, other Lit Arts students did like this album, with Leo Pyskacek, a Lit Arts 7th grader, saying that, “This album definitely lives up to my expectations.” Lit Arts 6th grader Vanessa Schulte said that,“I like this album…it's catchy and it's great…it's not her best, but it's a [milestone] in her career…and I love this album because she [shows that] in every song.” But despite the conflicted reactions, this album is certainly a sweet romance album about Swift’s fiance—with a little bit of reputation Swift mixed in.
"The Fate of Ophelia"
This song takes its title from the tragic female lead of Hamlet, but it appears Swift’s taken it upon herself to rewrite Ophelia’s story. According to Teen Vogue, “In the play [Hamlet] Ophelia, driven mad with grief from her lover’s murder of her father, as well as his dismissive treatment toward her, tragically drowns while making flower crowns near a brook.” However, in “The Fate of Ophelia,” Swift claims that she was saved from this fate by her fiancé, stating, “If you'd never come for me, I might've drowned in the melancholy,” a reference to Ophelia’s death. This isn’t the first time Swift’s rewritten a Shakespearean tragedy, with her song “Love Story” being a Romeo and Juliet story—minus their deaths. In “Love Story,”Swift and her Romeo get married at the end, as opposed to the famous ending of the original play. So while Shakespeare rewrites may not be a new thing, “Fate of Ophelia” is a new story for Hamlet’s female lead.
"Elizabeth Taylor"
While this song isn’t the first time Swift’s referenced the actress in her songs, it is by far the most direct. Taylor was also referenced in the song “Ready For It,” with the opening track of Reputation saying a lover can be the “Burton to this Taylor,” referencing Taylor’s relationship with Richard Burton, who she married, then divorced, and then married a second time. However, aside from in the title, the first line of the chorus (“Cry my eyes violet/ Elizabeth Taylor”) and the first line of the first verse (“That view of Portofino was on my mind when you called me at the Plaza Athénée”), Taylor isn’t mentioned much in this song.
"Opalite"
To start with, even the title of this song is a reference to Kelce, since his birthstone is an opal. In addition, the line in the chorus “sleepless in the onyx night, but now the sky is opalite” refers to things feeling dark, but now they’re like opalite, which is a bright white color. This isn’t the first time Swift’s used colors as metaphors for love (she’s also done so in the album Red, among others), but this is the first time white’s been referred to in her discography. Teen Vogue summarizes this nicely, stating that “[o]n ‘Opalite,’ [Swift] likens a newfound love to opalite, a milky, iridescent man-made glass.”
"Father Figure"
While this song doesn’t have anything to do with Kelce, it still has plenty of meaning of its own. Though some fans thought this song would just be a cover of George Michael’s hit song with the same name, as Breaking Down the Meaning of Every Song on Taylor Swift's 'The Life of a Showgirl' Album says, “Swift’s version ended up being an interpolation—one she got with Michael’s blessing—echoing the key chorus tag line of the ’80s song.” In other words, though Swift's “Father Figure” is similar to Michael’s, they aren’t the same, which becomes obvious as you see Swift’s new lyrics.
Many fans hypothesize that this song is referring to Scooter Braun, the record label owner who, as many Swifties will know, refused to let Swift buy back her albums from him, leading to her re-recording them as “Taylor’s Version.” Narratively, “Father Figure” starts from the perspective of the antagonist, but after the bridge, the viewpoint switches to that of the protagonist, presumably Swift. The antagonist says they’ll be her “father figure”, only to betray her when she becomes too famous. At this point in the song, it switches to Swift’s viewpoint, where she says that they “pulled the wrong trigger” and that “this empire belongs to me, leave it with me.”
"Eldest Daughter"
In many of Swift’s albums, track five is the spot she saves for her most emotional songs. “Eldest Daughter” is no exception, talking about the stress being the eldest daughter has put on her. Teen Vogue has a very specific theory about this, saying, “‘Every eldest daughter was the first lamb to the slaughter,’ she sings, referring to Austrian psychotherapist Alfred Adler’s relatable concept of ‘Eldest Daughter Syndrome,’ which suggests that firstborn children, especially girls, are burdened with more responsibility, stress, and expectations than later-born siblings.” This song is much slower and more of a ballad than many of her songs, though it isn’t actually a romance song. The next song is also slow, but has very different themes incorporated in it.
"Ruin The Friendship"
This song talks about a friend from high school Swift regrets not trying to date. The song starts with her just saying that she should’ve kissed him anyway when his ex was away, but at the third verse, Swift gets a phone call from her best friend, Astrid (marking her second cameo in a Swift song) saying that the song’s subject has died. Swift flies home for his funeral, and in the last chorus, she says, “It was not an invitation/But I flew home anyway/With so much left to say/It was not convenient, no/But I whispered at the grave/’Should've kissed you anyway,’” sharing that she now regrets never kissing this mystery boy, because now she’ll never get a chance. There are several theories as to who “Ruin the Friendship” is about, but the most widely agreed-upon one is that it’s the same boy who is the subject of the Red vault track, “Forever Winter.” That song fits nicely with this one, because “Forever Winter” is about a friend struggling with his mental health, and now “Ruin the Friendship” is about a friend who died in a manner where it’s not clear what happened (“Goodbye/ And we’ll never know why”). But no matter who the song is about, it’s still certainly a much more serious song than the next track on the album.
"Actually Romantic"
While at first glance this song may appear to be a romance song, it’s in fact a diss track. The song describes a fellow female songwriter who absolutely hates Swift, so much that Swift’s decided it comes off as an obsession. There are many people who theorize that this song is about Charli XCX, due to a number of supposed references in the first verse. However, Literary Arts 8th grader Amara Deanes disagrees, saying that “I think the ‘Actually Romantic’ Charli XCX theories are wrong, because I think she could say that about a lot of different people. I feel like it’s more generalized to people who don't like her rather than a specific person.” Evie Ahlers, a Lit Arts 6th grader, disagrees, however, saying that “I think Actually Romantic is about Charli XCX.”
As Teen Vogue says, “‘Actually Romantic’ is a ‘90s-tinged pop-rock song that takes aim at another woman, seemingly a fellow musician, who keeps talking about Taylor so much behind her back that it comes off obsessively romantic (“No man has ever loved me like you do…”). The song is clearly a diss track, and though it can’t be confirmed, many fans online believe it’s about Charli XCX…” But no matter who this song is about, it’s certainly much more of a reputation--or THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT-style song—than many of the others on this album, taking aim at other people just like many of those songs.
"Wi$h Li$t"
While the previous song may have been a vicious diss track, “Wi$h Li$t’s” main message is Swift’s average, suburban family dreams. While some people might want “freedom, living off the grid” or an “Oscar on their bathroom floor,” Swift says “I just want you/ Have a couple kids, got the whole block looking like you,” “you” in this case referring to Kelce. However, Swift isn’t angry with the people who want the Oscars, and the “three dogs that they call their kids”—it’s just that neither of those lifestyles are for her. What she’d much prefer is a “driveway with a basketball hoop”—another symbol of classic suburbia. However, another part of her dream is that “we tell the world to leave us the f*** alone, and they do,” which doesn’t seem to be happening any time soon. Her relationships’ permanent fame is also referenced in the bridge of “Elizabeth Taylor,” with the lines, “All my white diamonds and lovers are forever/In the papers, on the screens, and in their minds.” So while the rest of her dream seems achievable, that goal just might not be possible.
"Wood"
Anyone looking at this song’s lyrics probably took about three seconds to realize it looks suspicious. While it starts like a song about superstitions, it quickly devolves into something dirty-minded, with lyrics like, “Forgive me, it sounds cocky” and “I don’t need to catch the bouquet/ To know a hard rock is on the way.” Despite the lyrics, though, this song certainly talks about feeling confident and happy in a relationship, something a lot of Swift’s songs have been lacking. Again, this song is most widely speculated to be about Kelce, as they’ve recently gotten engaged. And it was certainly the most controversial song on this album, even leading some internet haters to say Swift had copied the Jackson 5 with its style. Speaking of internet haters…
"CANCELLED!"
This song refers to the internet “cancel culture” and Swift’s experiences with such. She talks about how as soon as celebrities mess up a tiny bit they’re hated (“But one single drop and you’re off the roster”) and how she’s been through these experiences and found friends who will stick with her (“At least you know exactly who your friends are/They’re the ones with matching scars”). “CANCELLED!” is also a commentary on how female celebrities and male celebrities face unequal treatment (“Did you make a joke only a man could?/ Were you just too smug for your own good?”), commenting on how when men congratulate themselves, or hype themselves up, they’re praised as “confident”, but women who say the same things are branded as “smug”. As Teen Vogue says, “On “CANCELLED!,” she makes it clear she’s not willing to play victim to cancel culture, even when she only brings a “tiny violin to a knife fight” — a lyric that jabs at accusations that Taylor likes to play the victim in the public eye, something she also addressed in a 2019 interview.” “Cancelled” isn’t Swift’s first attack at people online (this is a topic she addressed a LOT in reputation), but it’s certainly different from most of the songs on this romance album.
"Honey"
Speaking of romance songs, "Honey" is another song about Kelce, and probably the most lyrically simple song on this record. In it, Swift sings about how when she’s been referred to by pet names (like “honey” or “sweetheart”), it was negative or sarcastic. But when Kelce refers to Swift by pet names like “honey”, it doesn’t have those same negative connotations (“You can call me honey if you want/ Because I’m the one you want”). The beginning of the song states negative ways that people have used these pet names, for instance, “When anyone called me "sweetheart" /It was passive-aggressive at the bar/ And the b**** was telling me to back off/ 'Cause her man had looked at me wrong.” But now that Taylor’s in a happy relationship, she’ll allow her fiance to call her honey.
"The Life of a Showgirl"
Interestingly, the title track of this album is one of the ones that’s not about Kelce. Instead, "The Life of a Showgirl" talks about a fictional showgirl, Kitty, in a vein more similar to her pandemic albums folklore and evermore. In the song, Swift’s character goes to a performance of this showgirl, and Kitty tells her, “Hеy, thank you for the lovely bouquet/ You're sweeter than a peach/ But you don't know the life of a showgirl, babe/ And you're never ever gonna.” However, Swift then proceeds to become a showgirl anyway, as does Sabrina Carpenter, her collaborator on this song. The song is in fact a duet between Carpenter and Swift, and ends with a recording of applause from the Eras Tour. The main theme this song deals with is the dark side of fame, with Swift and Carpenter singing that “..that's not what showgirls get/ They leave us for dead,” and that, “They ripped me off like false lashes and then threw me away”. “CANCELLED!” also deals with this sort of theme. With that in mind,
What do people think of this album?
Swift’s fans have definitely had mixed reactions to this album, with some praising it heavily and some having negative reactions. For instance, Lit Arts 8th grader Cece Burger says “...now that she’s getting older, she doesn’t really have the same soft vibe and aesthetic towards her, so she’s tuning towards more vulgar music and trying to change the person she is towards the media, which just doesn’t work for the person [Swift] is.”
Deanes agrees, saying that “...the whole hyper pop vibe is not really the kind of music I like either. I expected more complex songwriting.” However, other Lit Arts students did like this album, with Leo Pyskacek, a Lit Arts 7th grader, saying that, “This album definitely lives up to my expectations.” Lit Arts 6th grader Vanessa Schulte said that,“I like this album…it's catchy and it's great…it's not her best, but it's a [milestone] in her career…and I love this album because she [shows that] in every song.” But despite the conflicted reactions, this album is certainly a sweet romance album about Swift’s fiance—with a little bit of reputation Swift mixed in.
