Review: The Life of a Showgirl: (A)political pop perfection?

By Ana Lazarut

Almost a year after The Eras Tour ended, Taylor Swift announced her twelfth album ‘The Life of a Showgirl’; promised to be the album Swift had been wanting to make for a very long time, and that it showed Taylor’s “inner life” during The Eras Tour [1]. With no lead singles released before the album, expectations had been set by the producers revealed to be working alongside Swift on the album; Max Martin and Schellback. The pair previously contributed to the production of Taylor Swift’s 2014 Grammy award-winning album, 1989, which “punctuates Swift’s bold transition from endearing country singer/songwriter to pop powerhouse with a resounding exclamation point” [2]. Evidently, the marketing of the album was focused on drawing excitement from the record-breaking tour, whilst drawing themes from that of the backstage musical.

The album opens with The Fate of Ophelia – a playful take on the Shakespeare classic, calling back to Swift’s previous album The Tortured Poets Department whilst alluding to her highly-publicised relationship with fiancé Travis Kelce; he “saved my [her] heart from the fate of Ophelia” [3]. Imagery of Swift’s worldview being changed positively by this new love that is not “a cold bed full of scorpions” brings themes of hope and optimism forward [3]. Martin and Schellback’s production supports the content through its simplicity, which is greatly effective. This style of production is consistent throughout the album in tracks like Honey, Wi$h Li$t, Ruin The Friendship, and Opalite, with the lyrics shining through this safe style of music.

Father Figure, which samples George Michael’s 1987 hit of the same name, and Wood – a jazzy funk song that is playful in its exploration of sexuality, are the most interesting songs on the record. Father Figure explores a side of the album that is unfortunately left underdeveloped, as it details the process of Taylor Swift regaining ownership of her master’s. What these specific songs do differently is that they do not play it safe through simplicity; variation of themes (sex and desire), alongside a distinct production sound, make for truly solid tracks on the album.

Thematically, The Life of a Showgirl is concerned with romance and wealth. As a romance album, it is coherent and easily translated through the music. However, the depth of the showgirl persona is left severely underdeveloped. CANCELLED! And Elizabeth Taylor explore wealth and stardom yet they fall short in relatability. Having your cancelled friends “cloaked in Gucci and scandal” [4] and saying that “sometimes it doesn’t feel so glamorous to be me” whilst mentioning Portofino and the Plaza Athénée [5], does not relate to the average person, especially given the current economic crisis. Part of what makes Taylor Swift’s songwriting so unique is her ability to make the personal experiences she writes about, universal. Relatability is a key element of her art, which unfortunately, The Life of a Showgirl lacks.

As an isolated project, The Life of a Showgirl is an excellent pop record. Within the context of Taylor Swift’s entire catalogue, the album is decent. However, within the current political climate, The Life of a Showgirl falls flat. With the album being promoted through multiple countdowns inciting fans to panic-buy twenty-seven album variants, whilst people are struggling to make ends meet as rent price growth “reached a high of 9.2% for the year ending March 2024.” [6] With wealth being flaunted throughout the record, The Life of a Showgirl is distasteful. Swifties and non-swifties took to TikTok to share their opinions on the album, with one user renaming the album as “The Death of a Showgirl, The Life of a Capitalist” [7] which is further reflected in Queen University Belfast’s Swiftie Society refusing to comment on the album and removing The Life of a Showgirl Theme from their Halloween event, stating that it “is a carefully considered decision upon noticing certain controversies surrounding the album” [8]. However, an anonymous Swiftie defended the album, saying that “It’s not one of my favourite Taylor Swift albums, but its not as offensively terrible as everyone seems to claim”. Yet, the criticism and praise still opens valid dialogue on the role mass-media plays in pushing ideologies (purposefully or accidentally) onto audiences.

This discussion opens the conversation of if pop music can exist apolitically; The Life of a Showgirl is an excellent example of how a pop record can be great, yet the political context can affect reception of the album, as the music becomes overshadowed by the interpretations.

Rating : 3/5 Stars

Sources:

[1] Taylor Swift on Reclaiming Her Masters, Wrapping The Eras Tour, and The Life of a Showgirl | NHTV. https://youtu.be/M2lX9XESvDE?si=P1iCHom_xdW898zk, Accessed 20 October 2025.

[2] Nate Hertweck, “Taylor Swift, ‘1989’: For The Record”, Grammy, January 19, 2018, https://www.grammy.com/news/taylor-swift-1989-record-1 Accessed 20 October 2025.

[3] “The Fate of Ophelia,” 1 on Taylor Swift, The Life of a Showgirl, Republic records, 2025.

[4] “CANCELLED!”, 10 on Taylor Swift, The Life of a Showgirl, Republic records, 2025.

[5] “Elizabeth Taylor”, 2 on Taylor Swift, The Life of a Showgirl, Republic records, 2025.

[6] House of Commons Library, UK Parliament, “Rising cost of living in the UK”, July 11, 2024, https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9428/ Accessed 20 October 2025.

[7] TikTok, 2025, hhttps://vm.tiktok.com/ZNdvF6kDP/

[8] @qubswiftsoc, Screenshot of Instagram Story, 15 October 2025.