Swifties rejoice! Taylor Swift just dropped her latest album, The Life of a Showgirl, just after midnight on October 3. Anticipation has been building ever since Taylor announced the title and release date of her new work. And she shared the announcement on the New Heights podcast, which is significant. The podcast is hosted by her then-boyfriend, and now fiancé, Travis Kelce, and his brother, Jason Kelce.
Of course, Taylor is known for teasing fans with Easter eggs hidden throughout her song lyrics and videos. Once upon a time, the clues were dropped in her liner notes. However, Taylor is expanding on the premise and delighting her fans.
Naturally, fans have been listening to the 12 tracks and trying to decode who Taylor is talking about. And in this album, Taylor is taking aim at several well-known figures in her songs. Are you wondering who Taylor is calling out in The Life of a Showgirl? No worries. We have you covered.
Who is Actually Romantic about on Taylor Swift’s new album The Life of a Showgirl?
The song Actually Romantic isn’t about a romance. Instead, it is a diss track reportedly aimed at Charli XCX. Of course, Taylor usually doesn’t share who a song is written about. However, all the clues lead back to Charli.
Charli, who opened for Taylor on her Reputation tour, has a song on her album, Brat, called Sympathy is a Knife. The duo were once friends, but Charli is also friends with Taylor’s ex, Matty Healy, from the band The 1975. In addition, Charli married The 1975 member George Daniel. Plus, the singer references not wanting to be around a woman who is tight with The 1975 in her song.
In her song, Taylor sings: “I heard you call me ‘Boring Barbie’ / When the coke’s got you brave / High-fived my ex and then you said / You’re glad he ghosted me.”
Taylor added: “It’s honestly lovely / All the effort you’ve put in / It’s actually romantic / Really got to hand it to you, to you / No man has ever loved me like you do.”
Another potential clue is that Charli has a song called Everything is Romantic. Plus, both songs are the seventh track on each lady’s album. And we know an Easter egg when we see one!
Who is Father Figure about?
Father Figure seems to be about the CEO of Big Machine Label Group, Scott Borchetta. This was Taylor’s former record label. And Scott famously sold Taylor’s masters to Scooter Braun. Eventually, she was able to buy them back and finally own her discography.
Once Scooter obtained the masters of her first six albums, it launched a brutal feud. According to Taylor, she wasn’t allowed to purchase them herself.
The song Father Figure is a reimagining of the hit song by the late George Michael. He also received a writing credit for this track. The beginning of the song is told from the viewpoint of one of the hit-maker’s former mentors in the music business.
She sings: “I’ll be your father figure / I drink that brown liquor / I can make deals with the devil / because my d*ck’s bigger / This love is pure profit.”
Taylor losing her masters was a crushing blow, and she set about re-recording her albums. It makes sense that this song would be about Scott and that brutal betrayal.
Who is CANCELLED! about?
Swifties believed all too well that Taylor would reference the end of her longtime friendship with actress Blake Lively in this album. When Taylor was issued a subpoena amid Blake’s ugly legal battle with Justin Baldoni, everything changed.
Taylor claimed that she wasn’t involved in the on-set chaos surrounding the film It Ends with Us. However, after Blake allegedly threatened to release private texts between her and Taylor, their friendship seemed to crumble.
In the song CANCELLED!, fans think that Taylor could be referencing Blake. The songstress seems to be comforting someone who has been canceled, which is a feeling that Taylor is familiar with.
Taylor sings: “Come with me, when they see us they’ll run / Something wicked this way comes / Good thing I like my friends cancelled / I like ’em cloaked in Gucci and in scandal.”
According to Newsweek, in 2012-2013, Blake was an ambassador for Gucci’s Première fragrance. This is a bit of a twist, as most Swifties expected a bit more fang from Taylor about the Blake situation.
However, there is an alternate theory. Some fans believe that the song is about Taylor’s friend, Brittany Mahomes. Brittany is the wife of Travis’ Kansas City Chiefs teammate and close friend, Patrick Mahomes. According to Page Six, Brittany is also known for sporting Gucci and was prominently wearing it during a high-profile double date at the U.S. Open.
Meanwhile, Brittany has faced internet backlash for hinting that she supports President Donald Trump and for spraying an opposing team with champagne during a playoff game in 2022. Given all the details, I’m leaning towards the song being about Brittany.
Other possible Taylor Swift theories from her new album
Of course, the song Ruin the Friendship, which sounded like it was about Blake, is a nostalgic song about a high-school friend of Taylor’s. She recounts how they never dated and never kissed. When Taylor’s real-life friend Abigail notifies her of the boy’s passing, Taylor attends his funeral.
And, naturally, Taylor’s fiancé got some shout-outs on the album, too. Fans think that the steamy song, Wood, is an ode to Travis and their hot sex life. If it’s not, someone had better find out who Taylor is singing about.
It seems that the song, Wi$h Li$t, also references Travis. In this song, Taylor talks about the future, complete with kids and a basketball hoop. However, she may have also shaded Kim Kardashian in this track.
In Wi$h Li$t, Taylor sings: “They want that yacht life, under chopper blades / They want those bright lights and Balenci shades / And a fat *ss with a baby face / They want it all.”
As you may recall, Taylor feuded with Kim and her then-husband, Kanye West, over some lyrics about Taylor in his hit, Famous. While the lyrics were allegedly passed on to Taylor for approval, she denied ever giving her say-so. She objected to the line: “I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex / Why? I made that b*tch famous.”
So, Taylor may be giving a call-out to Kim and her infamous posterior in this track. With Taylor’s Easter eggs, there is sure to be more debate as fans devour the Grammy-winner’s latest musical masterpiece.
TELL US – WHO DO YOU THINK TAYLOR IS CALLING OUT IN THE LIFE OF A SHOWGIRL?
