When Taylor Swift’s Life of a Showgirl dropped at midnight, Andrew Ledbetter was queued up to listen. His takeaways are not a review but a continuation of ongoing research.
The professor and chair of communication studies at the Bob Schieffer College of Communication at Texas Christian University studies the cultural and communication phenomena of Swift. His published findings show an arc to the superstar’s song lyrics that demonstrates the existence of her own cinematic universe. This 12th album adds to that with commentary on performance, fame, womanhood and fulfillment.
Ledbetter broke down his observations for TCU News.
Could Taylor be getting her fairy-tale ending?
Thinking about it from the perspective of a narrative, it seems to be an album that
fits into the grander story across her discography, expressing the desire for true
love. But here, the difference is that she believes she has found it with fiancé Travis
Kelce. The appeal to Shakespeare in Fate of Ophelia and the reference to her high school days in Ruin the Friendship – including her famed high school friend Abigail – hearken all the way back to the
Fearless era, which emphasizes the cohesiveness of the discography.
What else is Taylor trying to tell us?
The album is much shorter than we’ve seen from Taylor in recent years, even before
her surprise double album, The Tortured Poets Department. She is trying to cover a lot of ground in 12 songs. In addition to her relationship
with Travis, there’s (more) celebrity feuding (Actually Romantic), social/industry critique of sexism (Father Figure) and the purported titular theme of being a showgirl in the title track. These build
from storylines established in prior albums.
Might Taylor Swift be signaling retirement?
One of the more interesting tracks is Wi$h Li$t, which not only signals that Taylor might retire at some point (not the first time;
see The Lakes on Folklore), but also evokes wonder and joy in ordinary things, what I called the song theme
of “finding the extraordinary in the ordinary” in my article that analyzed her lyrics from the debut album to Midnights. That theme goes all the way back to her first single, Tim McGraw, and includes other hits like Enchanted, All Too Well and Cardigan. I think that the ability to envision the epic in common domestic scenes has been
a big part of how Taylor Swift builds a sense of identification, understanding and
emotional resonance with fans.