You have most likely heard about Taylor Swift’s newest album, The Life of a Showgirl (2025). Many people have mixed feelings on whether it’s worth listening to.
Showgirl is Swift’s 12th studio album. Compared to her previous works, The Tortured Poets Department (2024), it’s very different. This album is much more in the pop genre and is considerably more upbeat.
The tracks are sung with a lot of passion. Swift seems to really enjoy singing them, and her energy and dedication make the album a lot more fun and exciting. It definitely brightens up the lyrics and adds a nice touch.
In the songs “Elizabeth Taylor” and “Eldest Daughter,” there is a lot of emotion, even though the tracks are softer. In “Elizabeth Taylor,” the hushed background music and subtle vocals draw the listener in at the beginning, but towards the middle it becomes more dramatic.
“Eldest Daughter” has a lot of light vocals and an emotional feel to the work. The guitar in the bridge helps the song feel more heartfelt.
However, overall, the lyrics in this album don’t have much meaning to them. They are sort of choppy. There isn’t a unifying message to most of them and they don’t seem to be written with any intention. The songs don’t flow well and often sound forced and unnatural because of this.
In her piece “CANCELLED!” the lyrics are, “Like my whiskey sour, and poison thorny flowers,” which doesn’t really make any sense. One verse in “The Life of a Showgirl” is, “Do you wanna take a skate on the ice inside my veins,” which doesn’t make sense. The rest of the song doesn’t seem to have a lot of meaning either. It has almost a stomp-clap in the background with some acoustic guitar that gives it a country feel. This tweak to the music adds something new to the song and makes it more interesting, however the lines themselves are quite boring and unoriginal.
Some songs in the album are catchy. The choruses of many songs have a rhyming hook that fits well with the rest of each one. However, there are still other beat drops throughout these tracks and different instruments that keep you waiting for the hook.
“Wood” and “The Fate of Ophelia” are very bright and pop-like. The pieces are both reminiscent of 2000’s pop and have unique aspects. For example, in “Wood,” there is a knocking sound which is interesting as well as layering vocals. These are the types of verses that get stuck in your head and typically get very popular.
A major downside to the album, however, is how bland it feels. There isn’t anything new compared to her previous music, which makes it feel very…beige. In “Ruin the Friendship,” the melody is pretty much the same throughout the whole work and it’s not interesting to begin with. Even the beginning of the piece sounds the same as the beginning of “The Fate of Ophelia.” There aren’t very many unique parts to it besides the chorus and bridge.
The track “Honey” also feels very repetitive. It’s pop-like, but the beat is reminiscent of trap, which makes it feel very similar to the rest of the album, as it’s done multiple times.The Life of a Showgirl (2025) is worth listening to if you are a Taylor Swift stan. Otherwise, I think that the album is nothing special. The artist has comparatively better music. Although not bad, it doesn’t stick out and isn’t really worth listening to unless you have a specific reason to.
