Taylor Swift The Life of a Showgirl Album Review: Reaching mass popularity, getting engaged, building an empire worth billions, and taking a private jet to have a slice of pizza across town are all important milestones in the life of any pop star. Sadly, only a few ever reach that peak of prevalence in their career, and after listening to The Life of a Showgirl, I am not sure what Taylor Alison Swift wants to do with this stage she has so meticulously created for herself. Right off the bat, you hear an impressive and attractive sound with 'The Fate of Ophelia'. Even though the comparison to Shakespeare's well-known character isn't going to force Vishal Bhardwaj to make a sequel to Haider, the very Foster The People sound works for the song. Taylor thanks her fiancé, football star Travis Kelce, for saving her from experiencing the same fate as the Bard's character. She then moves on to another very 'out there' collation with the track 'Elizabeth Taylor'. She talks about crying her eyes violet, making a reference to the famed actor's eyes that appeared purple under certain lighting. ALSO READ: Beyoncé, the most successful artist at the Grammys, was still ‘snubbed’; her husband, fans, and Kanye West never let us forget this The problem arises in talking about someone of the actor's stature and selling Cartier jewellery for someone trustworthy in the same sentence. Then she goes on to ad-lib "just kidding" right after, but she isn't cracking a joke about her empty lyrics; she just wants to keep the bling. She talks about Hollywood hating her and how she needs a 'New York' in her life (I am sure she can afford the airfare). It comes off as a predictable song until you hear the next track, 'Opalite'. The song makes you laud the ingenuity of the previous two because you see the verse, the hook, the crests and the troughs coming from a mile away. 'Father Figure', however, is a song with a well thought-out theme in the background. The singer seems to abandon her throne to talk about the early days of her career with manager Scott Borchetta. While this is the author's prerogative, Taylor is talking about a strong and well-connected man who saw potential in her. A man who guided her and helped her reach the top, only to betray her in the end (selling her masters to Scooter Braun). Even though the previous songs masquerade as layered portrayals of her life, 'Father Figure' is one of the most inquisitive tracks in the entire album, and Taylor proves to the new generation of pop artists the importance of the bridge. After literally claiming the "empire" for herself in the previous song, Taylor then moves to the track 'Eldest Daughter', which can be skipped if you aren't a 'Swiftie' or getting paid to listen to it (still skip-worthy). The next track, 'Ruin The Friendship', brings you in with a nice little drum fill and is that one summer love song that is so vague that it will fit into the lives of every single one of her fans. But the woman hasn't become one of the top-selling artists of all time without understanding her audience, so the song lives on under the shadow of that argument. ALSO READ: Stabbed as a kid at 7, he delivered more hits than Shah Rukh, was more prolific than AR Rahman; attended his own memorial service after he defeated death You do have to give Taylor props for suddenly segueing into a diss track right after singing about pretty flowers, love and hope. She does that quite successfully with 'Actually Romantic', and very few details are left for the imagination to fill in. She addresses her fallout with singer Charli XCX, and she isn't subtle about it at all. Taylor talks about how she is considered to be "boring" and very formula-driven in front of Charli, who is some kind of a pop phenom. Basically Taylor wants you to stop accusing her of making the same songs all over again, and the way she does that is by telling you to stop to your face by performing a song which is no different from anything she has ever produced; interesting strategy. While Taylor could use some diss track tips from Eminem in order to stop singing corny lines where she is calling people a dog (chihuahua, to be specific), her next track, 'Wish List', does something completely new. She talks about how she only wants her fiancé, Travis Kelce (so maybe not), and how she doesn't have any high expectations; ouch. But Taylor makes up for the confusing messaging in her next song, 'Wood', and tells her fiancé straight up, how much she loves him, again. Like any sensible human being, I am extremely happy for Taylor, but so many songs about the same repetitive thing just seem like overcompensating at this point. She has always been very vocal about her relationships through her songs. Her exes, like John Mayer, Harry Styles, Matt Healy, and others, have all been rewarded with a song at the end of their romantic union with the artist, because of which Taylor is just going crazy with the gesture of love and dedicating every other song to Travis (this is just like Raghav Juyal for Emraan Hashmi). Then we reach the much-talked-about station of this trip, the song 'Cancelled'. When you look at it from the surface, it seems pretty evident that Taylor is telling off her estranged best friend, actor Blake Lively. However, Taylor channels her inner J. Daniel Atlas and twists the message so much that the closer you look, the less you actually understand. The pre-chorus has the lyrics, "Did you fly too close to the sun, girlboss? Did they catch you having far too much fun?" Which makes you feel like she is taking a shot at Lively, but the chorus goes like, "Good thing my friends cancelled. I like 'em cloaked in Gucci and in scandal." For the unversed, Blake is one of the ambassadors of Gucci, and the duo have fallen out of grace with each other ever since the start of the Justin Baldoni lawsuit. ALSO READ: Anu Malik can take other people’s songs, he just needs to do it like Elvis Presley But boring things aside, 'Cancelled' looks like a diss track from the outside but doesn't sound like one. She talks about sharing matching scars with this friend and telling her that the only reason she is being scrutinised is because she ruffled the feathers of the wrong people; in this context, men. If the falling out is real, this track might save their friendship. 'Honey' is another gift for Travis, and honestly I don't think Taylor needs to get him anything for their first 4 anniversaries, because this is already too much. The final track on the album is Taylor's only collaborative track as far as singing goes, and she sort of ceremoniously passes the torch to singer Sabrina Carpenter. The whole song is about a fan who meets her idol, the 'showgirl'. The performer tells the fan about the realities of life as a showgirl and performer. After the bridge of the song, the fan turns into the showgirl herself, and all in all, the story behind the track is sweet and entertaining. The confusion that started this whole discussion regarding Taylor's actual theme for the album gets somewhat cleared by the time you reach the end of the album. It is about her life, her struggles with fame, her adversaries and her friends, her mistakes and her triumphs. Travis is very clearly a huge part of this picture now, and the man gets referenced more times than the number of games he has in a regular season. Could Taylor have said all this without making the songs indistinguishable from each other or her past work? Probably. The album is an attempt to set the record straight and control the narrative around her, and everyone appreciates a strong female voice speaking up. All the female needs to do now is look for a unique sound, because if the artist has changed and evolved in their personal life, so should their music, so should their style. In short, 'The Life of a Showgirl' gives you a glamorous insight into a fascinating world, but could have done with a few tasteful accessories.
