Dissecting All Of Taylor Swift’s ‘The Life Of A Showgirl’ Lyrics We Know So Far

Update: The album is out now, and we have Taylor talking to Amazon Music about the meaning behind the songs.

Taylor Swift is taking her much-awaited return back into the pop realm after The Tortured Poets Department‘s slower, subtler sound. From the sound of it (and the imagery we’ve been fed), Taylor’s bringing back the glitz and glamour of Midnights, and she’s ready to open up to fans about what the woes and wonders of what it means to be a performer taking center stage.

So what can fans expect when the new album drops on October 3? Let’s take a look at what we know so far, thanks to some very well-planned leaks.

Taylor’s Opening Up About The Tragedy Of Fame

We all know that Taylor has a contentious relationship with the spotlight—just look at her Reputation era. But she’s likely going to be exploring this in a broader way in the song “Elizabeth Taylor,” whose title gives a nod to one of the most well-known Hollywood celebrities. Fans believe the song will contain the lyric:

“Oftentimes it doesn’t feel so glamorous to be me”

This line has already begun to be criticized online for being “tone deaf,” especially when comparing Swift’s wealthy lifestyle to the many people who are struggling economically right now. However, it’s probably safe to say that Swift’s gripes about fame aren’t completely unwarranted—after all, like the real-life Elizabeth Taylor, Swift often finds herself and her personal life scrutinized and criticized by the media, including her relationships. And now that she’s in a high profile relationship with professional athlete Travis Kelce, it’s likely worse than ever.

George Michael Might Be Getting A Songwriting Credit For “Father Figure”

George Michael’s “Father Figure” made a comeback this past year after the A24 film Babygirl used it in one particularly entrancing scene with Harris Dickinson, leading to the song becoming a beloved TikTok sound.

That being said, Michael’s song isn’t about a literal father, but about becoming a “father figure” to a lover, promising to protect and care for them.

Fans believe this lyric might be from “Father Figure”:

“They don’t make loyalty like they used to”

How might this relate to Taylor Swift? It’s possible Swift plans to sample the song to give some insight into her relationship with Travis Kelce—or maybe even flip the script to make her the father figure in the song, ultimately professing her loyalty and devotion to her fiancé.

The Fate Of Ophelia, Rewritten

The song “The Fate Of Ophelia” likely refers to the character in Hamlet, a young noblewoman and potential wife to Hamlet who is eventually led to madness because of his actions, leading to her drowning.

It’s easy to see where Swift, a certified lover girl, might insert herself into this narrative—in fact, her last album was all about her descent into madness after she left her 6-year-long relationship with Joe Alwyn and quickly entered into a new one with The 1975 Frontman Matty Healy.

These leaked lyrics are believed to be part of the song:

“I heard you calling, Keep it 100”

Swift referenced the “Keep it 100” during her appearance on the New Heights podcast with fiancé Travis Kelce.

It’s likely that Swift will reference her shaky past relationships here, but flip the script on what it means to be Ophelia, likely showing that instead of losing herself and drowning, she came back stronger and more genuine—more herself—than ever, probably in part thanks to Kelce.

Feeding The Eldest Daughters Of The World

The eldest daughters of the world rejoiced when they saw they have a whole song dedicated to them. Online, eldest daughters are often spoken of as martyr-like figures, meant to shove aside their own needs and ambitions to take care of their families and stand-in as mediators for their parents. So it makes sense that these leaked lyrics might be related to the song:

“Everyone’s unbothered till they’re not”

This might reference the eldest daughter’s need to keep her cool during times of strife, though that patience can only last for so long. Swift herself is an eldest daughter, and when the pressures of fame coming from an early age, she likely knows what it means to have to step up and push her feelings down for the sake of the people around here.

A Charli XCX Diss Track?

Fans online are speculating that the album’s seventh song, “Actually Romantic,” might be a diss track about industry peer Charli XCX, who’s song “Everything Is Romantic” has gone viral on social media. Some of the believed lyrics include the line:

“I heard you call me ‘Boring Barbie’ when the coke’s got you brave.”

Despite being believed to be about Charli for… perhaps obvious reasons, fans believe this line may specifically be a response to the Brat song “Sympathy Is Like A Knife,” where Charli sings about not wanting to interact with another female performer because of the need to fake her way through the interaction, in part because of a feeling of insecurity. The song includes these lyrics: “Don’t wanna see her backstage / At my boyfriend’s show / Fingers crossed behind my back / I hope they break up quick.”

Considering Charli just married The 1975’s drummer, George Daniels, it’s easy to make the connection back to Taylor, whose doomed romance with frontman Matty Healy was quite literally the inspiration for her last album. Could Taylor be pointing out that Charli’s obsession with her is, as the title says, actually romantic in a tongue in cheek way? After all, the opposite of love isn’t hate—it’s indifference.

Taylor’s Back And Ready To Fight

Much of Taylor’s more recent music has delved into her vulnerabilities and struggles with fame, but it wasn’t always this way—in fact, her Reputation era was very much about trying to fight back against the narrative and against the people who had something bad to say about her. Will we be seeing a resurgence of this fierce Swiftian era? These lyrics might be pointing to it:

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

At face value, these lyrics feel sharp, challenging others to test her patience. It makes sense that these sentiments might be rising again—she’s never been so in the spotlight since the Reputation era, thanks to the viral Eras Tour and her relationship with Travis Kelce. And now that she’s back in the spotlight, it sounds like she has some things she needs to get off her chest once and for all.