Taylor Swift Fans Say She’s ‘Too Big to Fail,’ but They Wanted More From ‘Showgirl’
Taylor Swift’s latest album, The Life of a Showgirl, is perhaps her most divisive album yet. Even her most supportive fans have expressed disappointment with the record, and critical reviews have been mixed. Her fans discussed why they think the reactions to the album have been less-than-glowing, even amongst her supporters.
Taylor Swift’s fans have discussed the lukewarm reactions to ‘The Life of a Showgirl’
On Oct. 3, Swift released her 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl. Fans eagerly anticipated the record, but many expressed disappointment after listening to it. Many have even hopped on social media to discuss their frustrations with it. Swift’s fans are a fiercely supportive group, and some have found the backlash baffling.
“I can’t speak for everyone, but when you’re excited for something and it doesn’t meet your expectations or disappoints you, a lot of people might seek comfort in finding others that are also in that boat,” wrote one Reddit user in response to a fan wondering why people are criticizing the album.
Other people explained that they thought the album would sound different based on the title. Swift released the entire album at once, opting not to roll it out by dropping singles in advance.
“I think we were expecting something else,” wrote another person. “Also I don’t feel the songs are showgirl. Even if people keep saying it’s the life of a showgirl. I just don’t see the theme.”
“Putting aside the most truly unhinged and deranged discourse, I think a lot of the struggle for many is just expectations vs reality,” added another person. “Obviously we know what Taylor, Max, and Shellback are capable of cooking. So when she got back in the tank with them, and proclaimed that this was going to be 12 bulletproof bangers, an album that she’s as proud of as she was the Eras tour, the expectations were understandably through the roof. And what we got was … not that. I think most of us agree? I don’t think it’s bad, but imo it fell short of what these three have done in the past.”
Still, even those who disliked the album said they didn’t think it would cause problems for Swift. It has already broken records.
“I can’t pinpoint exactly why this feels different! I think she is believing her own hype and Swifties buying anything she puts out has made her too big to fail,” wrote one person. “She will be breaking records with this regardless.”
Fans cautioned each other about describing criticism as hate
Some of Swift’s fans have slammed anybody who has criticized the album as misogynistic, unsupportive of Swift, or too miserable to grasp the upbeat album. Many others have cautioned against this kind of messaging, though.
“I’m a real person and I don’t like it,” wrote one person. “I would be careful of overly subscribing people’s opinions about music to them being some kind of hate mob or brainwashing.”
“As a hardcore Swifite who didn’t like the album, I can give you my reasons,” wrote another person. “A lot of people in these comments are really projecting made up reasons on people, and its quite frankly annoying. Not everyone who didn’t like it is a hater, sad girl, bitter person who doesn’t like pop and love.”
Others noted that they shouldn’t be vilifying anyone for sharing their opinion about the album.
“I think it’s ok for people to have different opinions and I would leave it at that,” wrote one person. “I kind of despise the album, but that doesn’t mean you should or that I judge you for liking it. It’s not a moral reflection and we need to resist the temptation (which is social media-driven) to fall into binaries.”
Taylor Swift said she welcomes the varied opinions on ‘The Life of a Showgirl’
Swift herself has said that she doesn’t mind the conversation around The Life of a Showgirl.
“If it’s the first week of my album release and you are saying either my name or my album title, you’re helping,” she said on Apple Music’s The Zane Lowe Show. “And art, I have a lot of respect for people’s subjective opinions on art.”
She said that she thinks everyone is entitled to their opinion, whether positive or negative.
“I’m not the art police,” she said. “It’s like everybody is allowed to feel exactly how they want. And what our goal is as entertainers is to be a mirror.”
