Almost a year after the release of her twelfth studio album, “The Life of a Showgirl,” Taylor Swift released four new songs in “The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore” album. Despite previously stating there would be no bonus tracks, the release shocked fans and quickly claimed the top four spots on Spotify’s Top 50 Global Chart.
Swift’s new tracks describe public scrutiny, past relationships and true love, leaving the public divided over whether they shine or fall short of the singer’s older work.
Starting with the lead single, “Patient Zero” conveys toxic relationships through a music video co-starring Dakota Johnson and Colin Farrell that aligns with the line, “But if you’re sick of him, I got you, I was patient zero.”
Swift plays the ghost, warning her ex’s new girlfriend, Johnson, about his abusive patterns before revealing that the husband, Farrell, previously poisoned Swift for money. The cycle becomes clear when Farrell’s character said, “I thought you were different,” and Johnson’s character replied, “different from who?”
Parallels from “Patient Zero” directly echo her track “All Too Well.” In “Patient Zero,” Swift wrote, “I know he charmed your family and friends / And you thought it’s ‘cause he loves you / But it’s ‘cause he loves how everybody else loves him,” mirroring lines from “All Too Well” where she wrote, “You who charmed my dad with self-effacing jokes,” illustrating a partner that uses charm to manipulate everyone around him. Beyond that, Johnson’s character asked, “Different from who?” connecting back to “All Too Well,” in which Swift said, “The idea you had of me, who was she?”
Another one of the four tracks, “Cleveland,” addresses criticism regarding her dating history with lyrics such as, “She was never a girls’ girl, She was just a—,” leaving the insult implied.
The criticism grew after Swift married Travis Kelce, but she maintains the playful, cheeky tone of “Wood,” pairing a new line from “Cleveland,” “The taste of me is acquired, but it’s his favorite dish” with her earlier line from “Wood,” “The curse on me was broken by your magic wand.”
In the end, she concludes “Cleveland” with “Now I’m wearing white, so hate all you like / This is the love of my life,” suggesting that she no longer cares what the public thinks now that she has found lasting happiness.
“Pink Clouding” works as an upbeat apology to an ex-boyfriend for leading him on through the line, “And I swear to God, to this day / I wake up scared that I left scars on a good person.”
This connects to earlier tracks such as “Back to December,” where she sang, “You gave me all your love and all I gave you was goodbye,” and “Afterglow,” where she asked, “Why’d I have to break what I love so much?”
Both tracks express her regret over how she treated past lovers, but those songs sound slow and melancholy while “Pink Clouding” sounds much livelier.
“Babylon” is the standout final track that most Swifties, Swift’s fanbase, have claimed as their favorite. The song mirrors the phrase, “You don’t know what you have till it’s gone,” pairing catchy production with depressing lyrics such as, “You’re using nostalgia as a weapon to hurt yourself / But darling, you end up hurting everybody else.” Swifties compared the track to “Evermore,” as “Babylon” was previously referenced in Swift’s song “Cowboy Like Me,” making “Babylon” feel as though it is the only song of the four that resembles her past work.
Overall, this encore album has divided listeners, with some finding the lyrics weak and the beat simple while others argue that it’s meant to be a fun project rather than a depressing release like “The Tortured Poets Department.” Either way, Swift makes it clear that she is content with her husband and her music, unbothered by public commentary. When all is said and done, she reaffirms she will continue releasing music because it is what she loves.
