1. And baby, that's show business for you

2. Oftentimes it doesn't feel so glamorous to be me

3. Keep it 💯

4. I heard you calling

5. They don't make loyalty like they used to

6. Everyone's unbothered til they're not

7. You wanna take a skate on the ice inside my veins?

8. You're only as hot as your last hit baby

9. My infamy loves company

10. Thank you for the lovely bouquet

11. I protect the family

Which lyrics intrigue you the most? ❤️‍🔥

PS. 13 hours til release!

We’ve seen a lot of criticism on the lyrics, to be expected, but curious for those who enjoyed the album - what were your favorite lyrics?

Mine is from Father Figure: “your thoughtless ambition sparked the ignition on foolish decisions”

I cannot help but feel Taylor jotted down all of the words rhyming -ty that she could. Witty, kitty, pretty, city.

A third grader could have written the opening verse to the song. She then lazily sutured together a poorly written storyline.

Sabrina does no better in adding any interesting colour to the story with her shocking lyrical direction. At this point Carpenter should stick to writing about sex and failed relationships. She fails to write about anything with depth and substance - unlike her earlier albums.

Love the idea that inspired the song. The sound and vibe are excellent. Song is a does not pass lyrically.

GUYS THE ENTIRE ALBUM IS AMAZINGGGGG I BET U I'LL BE PLAYING IT ON REPEAT FOR THE NEXT 2 MONTHS

What are ur fav lyrics that you keep thinking about from the album?

Here's some of my favs

"I'd been number one but I never had 2" i've read a few stuff saying its a REFERENCE TO TAY'S FAV CHART POSITION!!!

"I can make deals with the devil because my d**ck's bigger" MOTHER?!?!😭

"When I said I don't believe in marriage that was a lie" AHHH GUYS I'M STILL SCREAMING OVER THE FACT THAT SHE'S ENGAGED

My advice is always ruin the friendship, better that than regret it"

Then the ending line of the title track "give it up for the band and the dancers and of course Sabrina!...I love you Taylor!" IN LOVE IS ALL I CAN SAY

This isn’t even necessarily a Gaylor-related post. This just feels like a safe space and community to share my thoughts / feelings with.

I’ve been a fan for about 15 years, since I was a preteen. My grandma got me a Fearless CD for Christmas and listening to those songs and the lyrics literally rewired my brain as a highly sensitive and emotional kid. I had the same core experience as many other established TS fans who truly felt like they knew Taylor and identified with her because of how soul bearing and relatable her lyrics were.

Throughout my teens and now into adulthood, every album she’s released has resonated with me in some way. Some I have liked more than others, and some took a few listens to grow on me. But each has at least 5+ songs I listen to regularly and think are brilliant. She is (was?) a head and shoulders above all other artists for me.

The Life of a Showgirl was a major, epic disappointment to me. Aside from the production, which I think was good, the album was a total miss for me. Not a single standout signature Taylor Swift bridge, content littered with tacky pop culture references, and weird / disingenuous attempts at convincing us Travis makes her horny. No good storytelling. No memorable lyrics.

Where is the lyrical depth we have seen from her for her entire career preceding this? Yes, shes had lyrically cringey moments before but those were a drop in the bucket compared to the monstrosity that is eldest daughter.

Sadly, I worry that the company Taylor keeps is just making her a worse and less creative person overall. She sings that “sad as it seems, apathy is hot” while being apathetic herself and refusing to make a positive difference in this world with her massive platform, in any way, at a time of great need for many people. Unless this is some grand performative scheme, then I worry she will never write a high caliber album again. I am compelled by the performanceartlor of it all, but starting to wonder if that’s cope of me.

Anyway, this album felt like a total cash grab. I feel like she has disrespected her own craft just by releasing it. To me, she ruined a legendary 11 album run because she decided to spend all of her time with MAGA brain rot folks. It honestly makes me sad yall 😔😔😔

“everyone’s unbothered until they’re not”…..is this supposed to be shade at her haters?

Could it be quality over quantity this time - or is she going to release 1000 variants?

I've read a lot of discourse about how the album is not really about the life of a showgirl, that it is more about loving her boyfriend if anything and, I'm not going to lie, that was my thought at first as well. But after listening to the last track, it hit me: the album's main theme is grieving the life she could have had and accepting her life as a showgirl.

"Thank you for the lovely bouquet

I'm married to the hustle

And now I know the life of a showgirl, babe

And I'll never know another

Pain hidden by the lipstick and lace

Sequins are forever

And now I know the life of a showgirl, babe

Wouldn't have it any other way"

What are the main takeaways from the songs in the album?

There are some obvious songs about the industry that attack its dark side and that directly tie to the theme of Showgirl: Father Figure (Said, "They wanna see you rise, they don't want you to reign") and Cancelled! (Now they've broken you like they've broken me).

And she does sing a lot about how the love she feels for Travis. However, it is usually through different perspectives that are tied to the theme as well:

For example, in Wish List, it's about how her love for him has her wishing they could have an average life together (Got me drеaming 'bout a driveway with a basketball hoop).

Or in Honey, she sings about how much she loves that he treats her so differently from the rest of the industry (And when anyone called me "lovely," they were finding ways not to praise me, but you say it like you're in awe of me).

Moreover, in Elizabeth Taylor she expresses her struggle with never being able to share her success with a lover and the highs and lows of being a star (Been number one, but I never had two (...) You're only as hot as your last hit, baby).

However, the song that sticks out the most for me is Ruin the Friendship: she describes how she wishes she had kissed her high school crush before it was too late, reflecting on how because of this she has learned to always "ruin the friendship." She realizes that's better than leaving questions unanswered for the rest of your life. But what does this have to do with The Life of a Showgirl? I think the answer is what if? Take into account this song also goes back to high school, just before she would take her first steps as a showgirl - what if she had chosen another path?

It feels like the entire track run is a reflection on the choices that have shaped her life, reaching the acceptance point in the title track: she was warned by Kitty that she shouldn't want to have this life, but she went for it anyway.

When I think about it in this way, the album stops being a collection of happy, arms-length, "I-love-my-future-husband-so-much" songs and becomes a story about the stages of grief: denial of the bad decisions, anger at the injustice, bargaining for a better position in the industry, depression for the things she lost and ultimately acceptance; she's grieving the life she could have had, and therefore accepting The Life of a Showgirl, and she wouldn't have it any other way.

What are your thoughts? I think it would also be interesting to try to tie the songs to the different stages of grief!

Edit: As some comments are saying, I agree with the fact that the album covers how happy she is with Travis! I think I may have not expressed that correctly in the post (it was like 3 am) but I also meant to add that, through the love songs, she explains that one of the things that have helped her accept and appreciate her life as a showgirl is loving and being loved by her boyfriend. That's why I highlight the examples, where she contrasts his love with the unappreciation of the industry, or she talks about how even though she lives this glamorous life, what makes it worth it is being with him. This is what the Fate of Ophelia is mainly about: if he hadn't come for her, she would've drowned in melancholy, maybe regretting her choices for the rest of her life

Reminder: THIS IS DISCUSSION ONLY. Absolutely NO sharing OR requesting audio or image leaks or where to find them. That includes the photo of the gatefold. We are serious about this and will ban you for 7 days, even for a first offense.

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Here's a fresh megathread for everyone to comment their reactions and thoughts on Taylor's newly announced album, The Life of a Showgirl. We'll keep this pinned for easy access.

In an effort to keep the sub's feed streamlined and focused more on discussion-oriented posts and any new information regarding the album, all other reaction/personal thought posts about TLOAS will be redirected here for the time being.

NO LEAK DISCUSSION IN THIS THREAD. We have a megathread specifically for the leaks. Any comments directly mentioning the content of the leaks will be removed, and repeated offenses will result in a ban. Please report any comments you see that mention the leaks so the mod team can remove them.

THE LIFE OF A SHOWGIRL

Release Date: October 3rd, 2025

OFFICIAL TRACKLIST

1. The Fate of Ophelia

2. Elizabeth Taylor

3. Opalite

4. Father Figure

5. Eldest Daughter

6. Ruin The Friendship

7. Actually Romantic

8. Wi$h Li$t

9. Wood

10. CANCELLED!

11. Honey

12. The Life of a Showgirl (ft. Sabrina Carpenter)

This thread will remain locked until midnight. Use this thread to discuss your thoughts, reactions, and theories on the album. We will be removing all future self-post discussion threads about the album in order to consolidate discussion to this thread.

If you want to talk about a song in particular, you can use the single song discussion threads that you can access by clicking on the track name below.

Taylor Swift - The Life of a Showgirl

Release Date: October 3, 2025

Label: Republic / Taylor Swift Productions

Genre: Pop

^{info from wikipedia}

Purchase / Streaming Links

Interviews

Hi all!

Please use this megathread to discuss Taylor's new album! Feel free to share your thoughts, theories and favourite tracks! How does it compare to the rest of her discography??

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I don't know how she's done it, but she somehow wrote worse lyrics than This is Why by Paramore.