If you’ve scrolled literally anywhere this week, you know that Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl has arrived — and true to form, the internet is divided between jazz hands and side-eye. But instead of dodging the discourse, Taylor is welcoming the critics and the chaos alike.
“If it’s the first week of my album release and you are saying either my name or my album title, you’re helping,” Taylor said, speaking on Apple Music’s The Zane Lowe Show.
“And art, I have a lot of respect for people’s subjective opinions on art. I’m not the art police. It’s like everybody is allowed to feel exactly how they want. And what our goal is as entertainers is to be a mirror.”
So basically — whether you’re blasting it, hate-listening, or subtweeting it, you’re doing your part in the grand legacy of the showgirl era.
What are critics saying about The Life of a Showgirl?
The reviews of The Life of a Showgirl have been anything but flat. Variety’s Chris Willman called the record “an uncomplicated good time” with “love that seems easy-fought”, praising its bright pop sound and refusal to overthink. But critics across social media haven’t been so kind.
Content creator Allie Daisy King summed up a chunk of TikTok’s vibe, saying, “I wanted Taylor to pull back the curtain and give us an intimate look on the complex realities of being the biggest musician in the entire world. But what we got instead felt like a very surface-level introduction to the concept that, like, ‘hey, sometimes being famous as a woman can suck’.”
One user on X posted, “Taylor’s The Life of a Showgirl feels almost claustrophobically inward. She’s so consumed with her own mythology (high school heartbreaks, breakups, reputation arcs) that she can’t create music that mirrors the cultural moment.”
Others have also pointed to possible racial undertones with some of Swift’s lyrics.
Swifties hold the line
Lest anyone think the Swifties are packing up their glitter, social media has delivered plenty of love for Taylor’s lighter approach.
“God forbid a woman fall in love and be happy,” a fan wrote on X.
“There’s absolutely nothing about The Life of a Showgirl that deserves this amount of discourse. People are really crashing out over a 40 minute light-hearted pop album,” said another.
Taylor herself explained her approach to her music. “Oftentimes, an album is a really, really wild way to look at yourself,” she said in her interview with Zane Lowe.
“What you’re going through in your life is going to affect whether you relate to the music that I’m putting out at any given moment. I have such an eye on legacy when I’m making my music.”
She added, “What I often love seeing my fans say is, ‘I used to be someone who didn’t relate to Reputation. And now that I’ve been through some other things in my life, that’s my favourite album.’ Or, ‘I used to be a Fearless girlie, now I’m obsessed with Evermore‘. We’re doing this thing for keeps.
“I have such an eye on legacy when I’m making my music. I know what I made. I know I adore it, and I know that on the theme of what the Showgirl is, all of this is part of it.”
So, whether people are streaming The Life of a Showgirl out of love or loathing — Taylor’s message is crystal clear: if you’re talking about her, you’re helping, and all of it is part of the show.
Lead image: The Zane Lowe Show / Taylor Swift / X
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