The Life of a Showgirl was released on October 3rd, 2025… and the crowd goes mild?

As I write this, it has felt like a lifetime of Taylor Swift news (it’s been a week) I mean, no matter what you think of the girl, she knows how to market herself!

Whether you’re interested or not, her 12th studio album hit the headlines and is still there; despite the war, feuds, policies, and overall terrible state of the world that is going on around us. Now, while I am not a blind supporter of Ms Swift, this is not a complete hit piece.

In fact, I love the album.

As a huge fan of Swift’s more pop releases, such as 1989, Midnights, and Reputation, I was eagerly anticipating this latest release. With producers and track lists revealed, I knew I was in for a good time- and photoshoots promised even more.

While I do wish we had more conversations regarding being a ‘showgirl’ (especially coming off the back of her incredible tour), the album had the kind of cheesy, pop vibes I go for. It’s an album that’ll I play as I get ready to go out with the girls, or have on in the background when cleaning and I need a little boost.

Now, I am not a music journalist. I have never been trained or educated in the art of music critique. I consider myself almost tone deaf, due to the fact I cannot hold a tune and have a notoriously bad taste in music. While I may be loud and proud about some artists I support, my whole life I have been drawn to ‘fake deep’ lyrics and a catchy tune. So it should come as no suprise that I loved Life of A Showgirl.

I am a fan of Taylor’s music. I have seen her in concert twice, including the incredible Eras tour, and eagerly await a new release (although not at midnight, because I am not committed to anything that requires me to stay up past my bedtime) However, I am also a loud and proud supporter of bad art, specifically bad music.

While some of the artists I adore genuinely have breathtaking lyrics, many of them are a favourite for a superficial reason. Taylor is such an artist for me; and that’s okay.

Lyrics do not have to be literary sound to be life changing, and I wish Swifties felt secure enough to admit that. Some of the best songs in the world, in my opinion, have been lyrically basic – yet have had a profound effect on me. Whether its expressing a thought I’d never dared say aloud; a new way of describing a feeling; or a specific series of words that summed up exactly how i was feeling, music can be mighty powerful without being beautifully written.

And for me, a lowly tone-deaf freelancer writer, this is exactly what LOASG is for me. It’s a fun, flirty album with the occasional emotional pull. Taylor is a good writer (although my uni lecturers may tell her to tone it down a little!) but she is not the greatest we’ve even seen. She writes fun, flirty and catchy pop songs and it doesn’t need to be more than that.

I think the discourse is fascinating and I will continue to watch the reviews pour in, but I wanted to get my silly little opinion out there, because I cannot shut up.

What did you think of the album? What kind of music do you like? I’ll continue to (badly) sing along to cheesy lyrics, whether its from Taylor Swift or someone else. I hope whatever you listen to, it brings you joy too.

Stay safe.

Speak soon,

Rachael.

Photo by Markus Kammermann on Unsplash