Album Review: Taylor Swift shines bright but trips on lyrics in “The Life of a Showgirl”

Taylor Swift shocked the general public with her announcement of her 12th studio album “The Life of a Showgirl” on her fiancé’s podcast “New Heights” on Aug. 13, 2025.

Swift revealed the dazzling cover of her adorned in crystal and diamonds, partially submerged in water. Her pose mimics the famous painting “Ophelia” by John Everett Millais — based on the character from William Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet” — and references the first track on the album, “The Fate of Ophelia.”

“The Life of a Showgirl” hit streaming platforms on Oct. 3 where it sold 4 million equivalent album units in its first week, the largest album debut in modern music history.

The build-up towards the album reeled people in and prepared them for the night of the release. Listening parties were set up with fans dressed as showgirls, but the initial reaction to the album was mixed.

The album consists of 12 tracks with a concept surrounding the behind-the-scenes of a showgirl’s life. Swift touches on a multitude of themes throughout the album — consisting of new found love, the passing of a loved one and adversarial relationships.

“The Life of a Showgirl” brought back the pop sound that Swift explored in her 2014 album “1989.” She reunited with past producers of “1989” Max Martin and Shellback after working with Jack Antanoff on several albums. Martin and Shellback co-produced several of Swift’s major hits, such as “Shake it Off,” “Style” and “Blank Space.”

Upon my first listen to the album, I found myself enjoying the music sonically, but I was caught off-guard by some of the lyrics. Some of them even made my jaw drop, both in a good and bad way — specifically in “Eldest Daughter” and “Wood.” After several more listens, I have begun to appreciate the lyrics more but still can’t look past a few.

The opening track, “The Fate of Ophelia," begins with a quick snare drum, followed by soft piano and Swift’s smooth voice. The song turns into a dance-pop track with dreamy vocals that describe how Swift felt as if she was drowning in melancholy before her lover came to save her heart from the fate of Ophelia — literal drowning.

Compared to the majority of the album, “The Fate of Ophelia” stands out to me lyrically. Swift has become known for her lyrical ability, the way she can interweave beautiful pop melodies with poetic lyricism. This song portrays Swift's ability to do just this. The synth and drums mixed with her story-telling opens up the album perfectly.

Swift has created a tradition with her albums where the fifth track on the album is supposed to be the saddest song. “Eldest Daughter,” the fifth song, is a ballad with Swift’s melancholic singing but some questionable lyrics.

“Eldest Daughter” is about Swift’s experience as an aging artist and how she struggles with not knowing how to feel cool anymore. Her use of “internet slang” stands out compared to the flowery imagery she uses in other parts of the song. At first, it seemed completely out of place, but after giving the song some more thought, I decided that Swift’s vulnerability shines through despite the clunky lyrics.

“Ruin The Friendship” sticks with the somber tone, beginning as an up-beat pop song about the desire to get with someone despite your friendship with them. About two-thirds of the way through, Swift reveals that the person she’s singing about has passed away. She spends the rest of the song wishing that she would’ve kissed him when she had the chance.

Switching to a rock-influenced tone, “Actually Romantic” consists of the strumming of an electric guitar and drums behind Swift’s honeyed voice. Swift discusses the idea of finding out that someone has had this one-sided adversarial relationship with you that you didn’t even know about. She feels like it is actually romantic how much this person talks about her and spends time thinking about her.

Swift ends the album with the title track “The Life of a Showgirl,” featuring Sabrina Carpenter. The song follows the actual life of a showgirl and the highs and lows of fame and public life. Swift relates her career as a musical artist to being a showgirl and describes her perspective as a seasoned artist warning an aspiring star. The theatrical tone of the song plays into the classic showgirl music, leaving the album with a dramatic ending.

“The Life of a Showgirl” showcases Swift’s thoughts and feelings about her life as a modern-day showgirl, with the ups and downs of being in the spotlight. While the album is sonically well put together, some of the lyrics may need some time to grow on the listener.

Still, Swift never fails to produce a well-crafted pop album with her signature mixture of entrancing pop melodies and poetic lyricism.