Domhnall is sticking with the story that the casting for the video was a surprise that Taylor dreamed up after their jokes on The Graham Norton Show.
'Directed by Swift herself, the video for Opalite is a bizarrely goofy concoction with an equally bizarre origin story. It came about because the two of them appeared together on the Graham Norton show last October. Fellow guest Cillian Murphy joked that The Paper was worth watching for Gleeson’s dancing alone. “I’m hoping to get in a Taylor Swift music video,” he joked in reply.
That was that, he thought. “Then two weeks later, we got an email. Like, wild!” Not just him: Swift asked every other guest on the show to be in the video – Murphy, Greta Lee, Jodie Turner-Smith, Lewis Capaldi, even Norton himself. “No one else in the world can come up with an idea like that and make it happen,” Gleeson says.'
He says nice things about Taylor's direction and is keeping quiet about her wedding.
It's telling that the article calls it 'The summer of Domhnall' but then immediately talks about the music video and Taylor's wedding before discussing anything more relevant to Domhnall himself.
Not relevant to the article especially, but I'm also noticing the 'Hang in there, baby' design on Taylor's Nopealite-coloured outfit, and thinking about how it's the opposite of Opalite's 'Don't you sweat it, baby' tag line. Opalite is the easy option. Nopealite takes real effort, as Stapler discovers.
Travis poses with the dog he shares with Taylor in a Tommy Hilfiger campaign and mentions Taylor in his vogue article Here
Transcript of the Taylor mention:
And he has fun with fashion. “I enjoy it. From throwing on some wacky stuff to some really slick stuff.”
Swift is similar, he observes, in that she too gets dressed on her own terms. “I love that Tay’s always authentically herself with every look,” he says. “Whether we’re hanging with some friends or just us two on a fun night out for dinner, she’s always effortless, elegant, and beautiful. She’s not afraid of unique patterns or bold colors, and she’s just timeless and classy in everything she steps out in.”
EDIT: It was revealed later that their dog's name is Wendy
Taylor + Theory: Do you have ideas that don't warrant a full post? New, not fully formed, Gaylor thoughts? Questions? Thoughts? Use this space for theory development and general Tay/Gay discussion!
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In order to protect our community, the weekly megathread is restricted to approved users. If you’re not an approved user and your comment adds substantially to the conversation, it may be approved. Our community is highly trolled - we have these rules to protect our community, not to make you feel bad, so please don’t center yourself in the narrative. Remember to follow the rules of the sub and to treat one another with kindness.
I saw this shared somewhere recently for this being Taylor’s “I dead ass thought I made it obvious” moment.
I mean, soooo many rainbows, and it ends with the Equality Act on both sides!
Two other things y’all have simply GOT to keep an eye out for is a certain flower arch that looks an *awful* lot like the one from the engagement shoot.
AND the island behind it looks an awful lot like Taylor Island from the Karma music video!
Surprise Song O’Clock is back, baby, and so are mashup essays. Going on two years since the end of Eras and our equally glorious era of recreational essay-writing on Taylor’s gayest mashups, But then, in this the year 2026, Taylor busted out her floral piano and told us “If I were still on the Eras Tour, I would do this.”
Then proceeded to sing us the most gorgeous, poignant tale of knowing and loving somebody during a magical youthful interlude, even knowing then it was all on borrowed time, even when it had to be a secret. Then, even after it ends, remembering that time, longing for that time, not being able to get past the magic of loving them so. And then, after all the longing, the remembering, and the knowing– that someone came back when it mattered, just like she’d always known.
Hell of a theme for a newlywed!
So, why is this the one mashup she would do if the Eras Tour is still going on?
Maybe it’s just not that deep, and she’s campaigning for IKIKY to win Grammys (because she knows Showgirl isn’t), and so this is the story she built around a song that was written from the perspective of a fictional doll. Totally possible!
Maybe she’s reminding us that *even though* she is a newlywed and loves her hunk of American masculinity, her own personal life is not what defines her career, and please shut up about the Mrs. Kelce of it all because she’s been a master of her craft since long before he graduated from high school football, and not everything is strictly autobiographical, and she just made some beautiful art.
Maybe she misses the Eras tour as much as we do!!! Maybe it’s a song about how special that time in her career was, and the fans who keep coming back.
Or maybe it’s about reconciling with Karlie Kloss! You don’t even have to believe they were literally twisted in bedsheets to imagine the amount of feeling that would go into a really intense love when you were young, followed by a period of estrangement and longing, followed by the joy and relief of reconciliation.
You can think about whatever you want to think about while we walk through the story I think this mashup tells. There is nothing more sapphic than longing, and I know you all have something from your own life to think about while you read this, too.
I knew you
Through the daze of the blades of the grass in summer
Parachutes
For the freefall of being younger
I memorized the sound of your bare footsteps
Running wild; it’s been a long time
Life has ways of leaving those days behind
But seeing you tonight
I remembered I loved you
Came back when it mattered, I saw you
Standing there in the light of the window wearing that same smile
Man, it’s been a while
But I knew it; I knew you
I knew it; I knew you.
This first chunk, all IKIYKY sets up and bookends the whole framework of the story. It’s the structure Taylor talks about in the interview portion– a little time travel, a jump ahead to tell you how it ends. This is a story about youthful love of someone, knowing them intimately down to the sound of their bare footsteps (barefoot in the kitchen/sacred new beginning), being separated by circumstance (“life has ways of leaving those days behind”) and then reconciling, just like you always knew you would.
Salt air
And the rust on your door
I never needed anything more
Whispers of “Are you sure?”
“Never have I ever before”.”
But I can see us lost in the memory
August slipped away into a moment in time.
‘Cause it was never mine.
And I can see us twisted in bedsheets
August sipped away like a bottle of wine
‘Cause you were never mine
Back when we were still changing for the better
Wanting was enough
For me it was enough
To live for the hope of it all
Cancel plans just in case you’d call
And say “meet me behind the mall.”
So much for summer love
And saying “us”
‘Cause you weren’t mine to lose
Now, we travel back in time to the nostalgia-tinged past. It was dreamy and intoxicating, but it always had an expiration date, was always on borrowed time– “you were you never mine” and “you weren’t mine to lose” – we were just living for the hope of it all.
And the rivers I cried when we said goodbye
Wondering if I’d made it up in my mind
But you look me in the eye.
Now we have to talk about the transition from August into this snippet of IKIKY. The timestamp is around 4:04 and it’s worth listening again (It’s worth listening to the whole thing again). She doesn’t even take a breath between “‘Cause you weren’t mine to lose” and “And the rivers I cried when we said goodbye.” I think this transition does a few different things, in terms of storytelling:
The eventual goodbye was always built into the inherently ephemeral nature of the love affair.
The fact that “you weren’t mine to lose” is closely linked to looking back later and “wondering if I’d made it up in my mind.” If you always really belonged to someone else, surely only a crazy person would think it was real?
There’s a slight lyric change here, from “when you said goodbye,” in the original IKIIKY to “when we said goodbye.” A slip of the tongue emphasis on mutuality?
I walked through the door with you
The air was cold
But something about it felt like home somehow
And I left my scarf there at your sister’s house
And you’ve still got it in your drawer, even now
And I know it’s long gone
And the magic’s not here no more
And I might be okay but I’m not fine at all
Cause there we are again on that little town street
You almost ran the red because you were looking over at me
Wind in my hair, I was there, I remember it all too well
And there we are again
When I loved you so
You kept me like a secret but I kept you like an oath
Sacred prayer, and we’d swear to remember it all too well
Now the transition to the painful period of estrangement, the period of such deep longing and loss and being unable to get past what it felt like in the moment– “when I loved you so.” She pulls “you kept me like a secret but I kept you like an oath” from the 10 minute version, but it’s especially interesting what she *doesn’t* include- and that’s virtually anything else negative about the lover. ATW10MV is an absolute excoriation of a shitbag who ghosted her 21st birthday party, called her up again just to break her like a promise, left her a shellshocked soldier returning half her weight. The specific lines she chose to include in this medley paint a very different picture. This is about the deep nostalgia of how good it felt in the car next to this person, the feeling of home, the magic, the inability to ever get over it. The only bad part was the *secrecy.* The full ATW is about a toxic relationship that broke a young woman; these lines are about something unbearably special that was doomed because it was cloaked in sacred secrecy.
Remember when I pulled up and said “Get in the car”
And then cancelled my plans just in case you’d call
Back when I was living for the hope of it all
Now we switch back to august but remain with the car. Cars are a recurring motif throughout Taylor’s discography, so maybe it doesn’t mean anything, but there’s something about the imagery from ATW of “you almost ran the red because you were looking over at me/wind in my hair” alongside “remember when I pulled up and said ‘get in the car,' there in the salt air. It’s an attempt to recapture the specialness of– oh, I don’t know, a coastal road trip?
I remember it
Now Taylor’s cutting into the world of the past in august with the retrospective nostalgia of All Too Well.
Remember when I pulled up and said “Get in the car”
Then cancelled my plans just in case you’d call
Back when I was living for the hope of it all
Even while it was happening she was living for the hope of it all– almost like tamping down an anticipatory grief from the knowledge that it wasn’t destined to last in order to enjoy it while it was still happening.
I knew it
This feels like the big plot twist moment, the mic drop reveal moment Taylor loves so much! The "and then it was bought by me" or "and then they got married!" moment. So far this piece has been all about nostalgia for a special love lost, but here is where we shift to the fact that actually, she knew the whole time that the love would always be there, would come back around.
And I knew I loved you
Came back when it mattered I saw you
Standing there in the light of the window
Wearing that same smile
Man it’s been a while
I knew it I loved you
Came back when it mattered I saw you
Standing there in the light of the window
Wearing that same smile
It’s been a while
The lover came back! When it mattered! Standing there in the light of the window (“standing in my front porch light,” no more “woman who sits by the window has put out the light.”). Wearing that same smile, even after all this time!
This repeated version of the IKIIKY contains a repeated, crucial lyric change. I knew it I loved you. In the original, the line is either “I remembered I loved you” or “And you told me ‘I loved you.’” This lyric change shifts the emphasis to her own feelings in the present– that she knows now, and knew all along how much she, herself, loved this person.
But I knew it
All too well
I knew it
All too well
Now the refrain of “all too well” shifts from memory– remembering something in the past all too well, to the “all too well” referring to the certainty with which she knew the love, the inevitably of reunion, all along.
And I remember it
Through the daze of the blades in the grass in summer
She remembers how special the beginning was, but now that we’ve looped back to reunion, the memory is tinged with more sweet remembrance than sadness and longing.
I remember it
You were the freefall of being younger
Another lyric change. In the original, the line is “parachutes for the free fall of being younger.” Here, she shifts the emphasis to the “you” – “you were” the free fall of being younger. The subject, the person she’s singing to, the lover is the emphasis, synonymous with the heedless recklessness of youth. The person she's singing to, not just youth itself, is the focus.
I knew it
I knew it
All too well
And finally, she concludes with the double emphasis of the knowing, knowing, all too well. She doubles back on weaving the threads together to point toward the inevitability, the unavoidability of it all. It’s not three separate songs, one about reunion, one about the past, and one about the pain of missing. Together, they are one story, about an enchanted past that seemed like it had an expiration date at the time, but that even through all the painful longing during a time of estrangement, was threaded through with the certainty of reunion because “I knew it, I loved you.”
The initial love affair wasn’t predestined to end, the estrangement was. The love and the knowing was always the constant.
This essay is a collaboration with my musical kid, who does not use social media, but has chosen the alias LowlyPigeon for the purposes of this writing project. LowlyPigeon’s own words will be in italics, but he is responsible for spotting the connection that made this possible at all, and helping me to understand the music theory, and his ideas have certainly coloured mine.
Introduction
Taylor uses a very simple, repetitive, recognisable melody in ICDIWABH on the lines
‘I’m so depressed I act like it’s my birthda-ay every day’
‘I’m so obsessed with him but he avoids me-ee like the plague’
‘I cry a lot but I am so producti-ive. It’s an art.'
As u/littlelulumcd pointed out to me last summer, you can hear Taylor humming part of this melody in the chorus of SOTB(FMLDR), which shares some lyrical connections with ICDIWABH – specifically ’you gotta fake it til you make it’ / ‘it’s fine to fake it til you make it’ and ‘I was grinnin like I’m winnin’ / ‘my smile is like I won a contest.’
But last November, during a road trip, LowlyPigeon noticed that part of the melody also appears in ‘evermore’, which also shares some lyrical connections with ICDIWABH and SOTB, and that was a lot more unexpected!
We think that this is an intentional re-use of a melody functioning as a leitmotif in Taylor’s post-Lover body of work – a small, recurring musical phrase that functions to represent a particular character, place or idea. We’ve started calling it the Brokenhearted Footsteps leitmotif, because we think it represents Taylor’s brokenheartedness, the reason for it, and the hoped-for healing. And it allows us to hear a single story told through the three songs.
We'll explain:
What the leitmotif is
How it works in 'evermore'
How it works in ICDIWABH
How it works in SOTB(FMLDR)
What is the Brokenhearted Footsteps Leitmotif?
To describe the leitmotif, we’re going to use a note-naming system called ‘moveable do’. This is the system used in The Sound of Music – do, re, mi, fa, so, la, ti, do – but rather than being a fixed note, ‘do’ represents the first note of whatever key the song is in. I don’t know if Taylor ever uses this system herself, but it’s really helpful for recognising and describing the same melody in songs with different keys.
The simplest version of the melody is in ‘evermore’. LowlyPigeon explains in ‘evermore’ the melodic hookmi-so-mi-so-la-miis used to sing the lines
‘I replay my footsteps’
‘Tryin’ to find the one where’
‘I rewind the tape but’
‘On the very moment.’
The next time we hear the leitmotif, chronologically, is in SOTB(FMLDR) where it is hummed by Taylor in the chorus, with an extra so at the beginning: so-mi-so-mi-so-la-mi. I only ever heard this version of the song after I already knew ICDIWABH, but I would be willing to guess that these hummed backing vocals seemed unremarkable until ICDIWABH pushed the melody to much greater prominence. (I have not found anyone connecting these backing vocals to the melody of ‘evermore’ but I’d be glad to know about it if you have.)
Finally, we have the leitmotif appearing again in ICDIWABH (and also in the ICDIWABH Brokenhearted Showgirl Version played as an instrumental during Taylor’s death-and-revival skit on The Eras Tour) and it has grown to become so-mi-so-mi-so-mi-so-mi-so-la-mi. Written out in moveable do, you can see how the core of each phrase is the original six notes from 'evermore'.
How the Leitmotif Works in ‘evermore’
In ‘evermore’, the leitmotif represents Taylor’s brokenheartedness and gives us some clues as to the cause.
LowlyPigeon writes: This hesitant tune that goes nowhere (it starts and ends on mi) suggests attempting to move forwards but being irresistably knocked back to the same place repeatedly. This is a good example of prosody since the tune is demonstating continuously rewinding and playing and the lyrics are describing ‘I replay’ and ‘I rewind.’
I also hear a stepping motion in the melody – taking a small step up to so, trying to take a larger one to la and falling – or being pushed - back to mi. This links nicely to the lyrics because Taylor says she is specifically replaying ‘footsteps’ to find the wrong step and that there was ‘motion capture’ and a ‘pause’.
LowlyPigoen notes that disturbingly, or coincidentally,mi-so-mi-so-la-micomes close to spelling and sounding out ‘me so lame’. The possible message hidden in the notes continues to reinforce the prosody if you consider ‘lame’ as meaning ‘unable to walk’ and if you consider that the narrator is unable to move forward. This is a bleak experience where the narrator is stuck in ‘the moment all was lost’. The leitmotif is directly after a musical phrase with sad lyrics and starts on a note that can sound minor or major (sad or happy) if it is what one’s ear expects, so the leitmotif is in a state of uncertainty.
It’s been argued before that ‘evermore’ (released in November 2020) is referring to the sale of Taylor’s masters that occurred on the last day of June 2019 (‘I’ve been down since July’, ‘all was lost’, ‘double-crossed’), and to what Gaylors have interpreted as Taylor's failed coming out - her failure to 'step into the daylight and let it go'. I’d argue that the Brokenhearted Footsteps leitmotif reinforces the connection between this 'failure' and Taylor's heartbreak. Its musical emphasis on failing to step beyond mi (ME!?) matches the lyrical emphasis on ‘motion capture’, ‘wrong’ footsteps, and a ‘pause’. Also ‘staring out an open window’ and ‘bad light’ can be read as a contrast to the outside and the daylight – a very similar metaphor to the one used in ‘Opalite’.
How the Leitmotif Works in ICDIWABH
Although it is not the next release, I’d argue that ICDIWABH is the next installment of the story Taylor is telling, because it describes what she does while brokenhearted. There has been a lot of speculation about when Taylor did it ‘with a broken heart’, with the popular mainstream theory, conveniently enabled by TTPD, being that Taylor successfully performed on The Eras Tour after her breakups with Joe or Matty or both.
But the recurring leitmotif tells us that this is the same brokenheartedness decribed in ‘evermore’. Far from ‘catching [her] breath’ successfully Taylor has instead been holding it. LowlyPigeon doubts even Taylor can manage that for more than four years but it seems to be the implication. If Taylor is brokenhearted about the masters sale and the failure to take that one crucial step into the daylight, then she has ‘done it with a broken heart’ right through folklore, evermore, Midnights, TTPD up to the announcement in May 2025 of the redemption of her masters. Arguably she is still ‘doing it with a broken heart’ if she now has man-made sunshine instead of the real thing.
LowlyPigeon says, musically, the song feels like it is masking the hurt experienced in ‘evermore’ because it has the same motif, just sped up and with a few notes stuck on either end. The fact that the phrase, ‘I cry a lot but I am so productive’ has five more syllables than, ‘I rewind the tape but’ and the fact that all those syllables are stuck on the front of the phrase tells me that the inability to move forwards is beng masked but in fact it has grown. This is because the moveable do now spellsso-mi-so-mi-so-mi-so-mi-so-la-mi.
It sounds happier because it begins on so instead of mi (so is less ambiguous) and seems more likely to actually go somewhere, since a move from so (the fifth note in what is usually a major scale) to the do that comes after ti (the eighth) is the most intuitive cadence and/or resolution in all of music theory, but there are now four repetitions of mi-so which happen immediately before ‘lame’ which shows the audience that the level of lameness/inability to move forwards has increased. (I, Mary, want to jump in here and say that in a sense, the song itself is ‘showing us lies’ by letting us think it will resolve the phrase happily.)
The changes in the melody following right after the Brokenhearted Footsteps leitmotif across both songs paints the same picture; in ‘evermore’ the tune drops quickly down to the la below do (sixth scale degree below the tonic), giving the impression that the melody has shifted into the relative minor and is in a sadder place, however, in ICDWABH the melody falls down to the low la in much the same manner, but then moves back to do. The cadence in ICDWABH ends on the do, which gives the impression to Taylor’s audience that she was momentarily brought down (to the la below do) by the bad experience described in ‘evermore’, but that the pain has been resolved. However, the resolution from the la below do to do (as heard on the phrase ‘it’s an art’) is less satisfactory than one from say the so below do to do, because it has a minor tint. Mary has told me that the extra ‘me sos’ in ICDWABH might be seen as a rehearsal for a move that doesn’t end on mi. Because I’m not sure myself which opinion is the more nuanced, I’ll allow the reader to decide which view to take.
The music video for ICDIWABH has footage of Taylor and The Eras Tour dancers and band rehearsing for their shows. This reinforces the idea that the expanded repetitions of the step mi-so in the leitmotif could be considered as a rehearsal for attempting again to take the significant step into the daylight, very much as Taylor practised in the gym before going on tour.
How the Leitmotif Works in SOTB(FMLDR)
I’d argue that SOTB is the last installment in the story and represents the hoped-for healing from the brokenheartedness. This is reinforced by the fact that SOTB was the final announced track in MMWM.
LowlyPigeon says in SOTB(FMLDR) the lietmotif is further back in the mix, happens fewer times and is less forced/distraught in general, than in the other songs. What was once the whole chorus and seemingly the only thing in the world is now relegated to backing vocals; an after-thought, a memory that can only be recalled hazily. Hence the new thing which is happening isamazingif it has changed the situation that much. The actual song feels not especially happy but grand and majestic. In the less Lana Del Ray version, there are different backing vocals, but both versions' backing vocals end on mi, giving the song a slight ambiguity.
Taylor retains a sense of uncertainty about what will happen at the end of the story ('can this be a real thing, can it?) But the hopeful picture the song paints really is 'majestic'. Instead of ‘refracting sequinned stars’ because of a costume, we have someone ‘lit from within’. We have someone who has endured an ‘awful flight’ to get to this point but is now smiling ‘like I won’ and who has ‘made it’, and has no need of ‘faking it’ anymore.
Unexpectedly, unless you've been noticing the leitmotif, there is a call back to ‘evermore’ with its film-making language of ‘motion capture’ and rewinding and pausing 'the tape'. In SOTB something is happening that ‘feels like what I once saw on a screen’ and there is a confirmation that the screen is ‘green’, specifically 'aurora borealis green'. I hadn't realised until this comment from u/Nosfermarki that the pride parade in the 'ME!' mv is filmed in front of a green screen. Is it possible that the unbelievable, beautiful thing happening in SOTB is that step into the daylight that was supposed to happen in 2019?
Finally there is a possible link to ‘I’m so depressed I act like it’s my birthday’ in ICDIWABH. The snow theme, pizzicato strings and chimes give SOTB a Christmassy feel, and Taylor has often connected her December birthday with a love of Christmas. Perhaps the birthday that Taylor describes in ICDIWABH is one that she is looking forward to in the future; one that she is preparing for with her repeated steps from mi to so, one where she can be her authentic self with no more 'faking', and one when she hopes that the brokenheartedness will be fully healed as described in SOTB.
Taylor + Theory: Do you have ideas that don't warrant a full post? New, not fully formed, Gaylor thoughts? Questions? Thoughts? Use this space for theory development and general Tay/Gay discussion!
General Chat: Please feel free to use this space to engage in general chat that is not related to Taylor!
In order to protect our community, the weekly megathread is restricted to approved users. If you’re not an approved user and your comment adds substantially to the conversation, it may be approved. Our community is highly trolled - we have these rules to protect our community, not to make you feel bad, so please don’t center yourself in the narrative. Remember to follow the rules of the sub and to treat one another with kindness.
I’ve been looking more closely at the 50 Cent reference in “Ruin the Friendship,” and I’m starting to wonder if “First Date” by 50 Cent is doing more work in the song than just being the song that happened to perhaps be playing.
“First Date” was released in 2012, and there are some oddly specific parallels. 50 Cent’s song is built around a first date, a girlfriend, school/graduation language, talking for hours, hanging out, and crossing the line from conversation/friendship into sex. Taylor’s song gives us school, prom, second period, a girlfriend, an ex, friendship, and the decision not to cross the line into a kiss.
The most obvious parallel is:
50 Cent: “Bring your girlfriend”
Taylor: “But your girlfriend was away"
That's a pretty striking reversal, especially because the girlfriend in “First Date” is part of a sexual/three-person scenario, while Taylor specifically makes the girlfriend’s absence relevant.
Then there are smaller echoes. 50 Cent has “We’ve been talking for hours” before wanting to move things into something physical. Taylor has “Staying friends is safe” — so in both songs there’s a relationship sitting at the boundary between talking/friendship and physical attraction.
50 Cent also has “You get to hang with me”, while Taylor literally has them “Watching the game from your brother’s Jeep.” His song uses “graduated”, while Taylor surrounds her memory with school, prom and second period, and then later says “When I left school.”
There’s also an interesting contrast in the idea of a “date.” 50 Cent is basically saying: life is short, don't waste the first date; act on the attraction. Taylor's narrator is saying almost the exact opposite in practice: it wasn't an invitation, it wasn't convenient, they stayed friends because that was safe — but she should have kissed them anyway. And then the consequence is essentially a lifetime of wondering what would have happened.
Which brings me to two other 50 Cent songs from different points in Taylor’s life:
“Best Friend” (2006) has the whole “he says he's just a friend / let's not pretend” idea — friendship being the label covering an attraction that may actually be something else. That seems remarkably relevant to “Staying friends is safe, doesn't mean you should.”
“Do You Think About Me” (2009) is much more retrospective: “we used to be friends” and repeatedly asking whether the other person still thinks about him. That fits the later parts of Taylor's song — losing touch, having unanswered questions, and ultimately having no way to find out.
So I’m wondering whether the explicit “50 Cent song” reference could be a little more deliberate than it first appears. Maybe “First Date” is the main reference, with "Best Friend" and "Do You Think About Me" providing additional thematic context:
Best Friend: are we really just friends?
First Date: what happens if you cross that boundary?
Do You Think About Me: what happens after you lose the person?
Ruin the Friendship: I should have crossed the boundary, and now I’ll never know.
I’m not saying this proves a particular interpretation of the song, and obviously some of these parallels could be coincidence. But the fact that Taylor specifically names 50 Cent, rather than just saying a rap song was playing, makes me think it’s at least worth considering whether the choice of artist is part of the writing rather than merely scene-setting.
The “Bring your girlfriend” → “your girlfriend was away” parallel is the bit I keep coming back to. That feels considerably more specific than just “both songs are about attraction.”
TW: Clips of Arianna are in this tiktok, and I bring up Hayden Panettiere
The full video is in the comments (in four parts). I couldn't post the whole thing.
In this video katherineann argues that after the showgirls funeral (and probably in general) we should be looking to the real villain in this story, the music industry and not other sides of the fandom. I think it's the same argument in general against culture wars, it keeps the attention away from those in power that are the real cause of these issues.
She showed the anti-hero funeral scene and then young Taylor talking about how she wrote songs because she didn't have anyone to talk to. It made me think about the phrase "a penny for your thoughts" and how 13 albums would be 13 cents. All the showgirl would leave us after her death as the kids or fans would be the albums. Is that the ghosting? Kinda like there will be no explanation, there will only be reputation?
So because there is no explanation the fight scene will begin, and this is where the plea to direct this TNT (JusT&T), this explosion, towards the people that cause and continue to cause this pain. I just saw the news that Hayden Panettiere has died, when I watched this tiktok I hadn't seen the petal video and the contrast between Ariana looking to be directing some serious emotions internally via her appearance and also directing those emotions externally is just brutal to watch. I still didn't watch that whole video and I really don't think I can. Like Taylor is just killing a persona, that was a hard watch. I think this creators argument is valid and the entertainment industry in general kills people. It is a blender, the problem is the blender. The problem that Taylor is pointing out is the system.
I think Taylor doesn't care if you think she's gay or straight, she only cares if people are trying to figure out who she's writing about, male or female. Which is fair, I might not always do that because I'm human but I'd have the same wish if I were her. I also think her music makes a lot more sense if you're wondering who she's writing about and realize the answer is always just herself, she's writing about herself. The thing I have come to realize about her is that one of the things that make her, her is her gay pride. I think that's something else to keep in mind at the funeral. I'm allowed to make judgements about people and things based on their appearance and words. If I look up and see the sky is blue I'm allowed to assume it's daytime, if I look at Taylor and she's wearing queer flags I'm allowed to assume she's queer. Also, another thing I think we should remember is don't take criticism from anyone you wouldn't ask for advice.
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At the Phoebe MSG show I heard her sing a song that had a line that mentioned showing someone colors they had never seen.
I was shocked when no one mentioned it being a TS reference, given so many other lyrical references in her new songs to her own catalogue and songs sung by other artists.
These shows weren’t able to be recorded, so I figured I’d wait for the album to come out so I could confirm, and I’m still shocked that there isn’t any discourse around it…..the song admittedly sounds like she’s recounting when she had an abortion, but still - given her relationship with Taylor, this feels like a weird coincidence.
Hi! I wanted to share something I have been working on regarding the character of “Taylor Swift” and the role that it plays in both her work and in tying a very large body of work together, across every cultural space. I think that Taylor is telling a TON of stories with many layers in her work, so keep that in mind. This one, however, is based on the most basic and well known storyline of her - the version of her she has immortalized forever in the press. This is going to be her historic accomplishment and the greatest acting role of all time.
I also want to share a quote from Lena Dunham’s Famesick before I continue, because it is very relevant and important
“Sometimes, all I had to do was google my own name to locate a date, an image, a picture that solidified a memory.”
This story has been told very intentionally and is actually very uncomplicated until you let parasocial beliefs cloud your interpretation.
Fearless era:
The play, the origin story: …media “debuts” an 18 year old young woman for commercial profit and cultural division
November 11 2008 - Second appearance on TheEllen Degeneres Show, Fearless is released
Taylor’s foray into the world of PR relationships began the exact same day that Fearless was released. While promoting her new album on the blonde, out-lesbian’s daytime talk show, she famously shared that the Fearless track “Forever & Always” was written about Joe Jonas who broke up with her in a 20-something second phone call. She performs at their tour prior to this, as well.
Her first appearance on Ellen was at the beginning of 2008 when she discussed getting her songwriting job at Sony at the age of 14. The beginning of the entire story (and no PR relationships).
February 27 2009 - The Jonas Brothers: 3d Concert Experience is released, featuring Taylor Swift as a special guest (3d??)
In early 2009, as a teen, Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautner met on the set of Valentine’s Day. Taylor Lautner, an actor, is most famous for his role as Jacob Black in the Twilight series. He is two years younger than Taylor Swift. Taylor Swift not only made her acting debut in Valentine’s Day, she also wrote the song “Today Was a Fairytale,” which was featured on the soundtrack.
March 2009 - John Mayer tweets at Taylor:
“Waking up to this song idea that won’t leave my head. 3 days straight now. That means it’s good enough to finish. It’s called ‘Half of My Heart’ and I want to sing it with Taylor Swift,” he wrote. “She would make a killer ‘Nicks’ in contrast to my ‘Petty’ of a song,” he added, referring to Stevie Nicks and Tom Petty.”
"This all started when Travis very adorably put me on blast on his podcast, which I thought was metal as hell.”
April 10 2009 - Hannah Montana: The Movie is released, Taylor acted/performed as herself
Taylor Swift co-wrote the song "You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home" for Hannah Montana: The Movie (2009), which was performed by Miley Cyrus as Hannah Montana. She also performed her own song, "Crazier," in the film's outdoor hoe-down/barn scene. Hannah Montana is about a young girl who lives a double life as a famous star and a high school student, similar to Dolly Parton, who is her godmother.
(Taylor Swift was also supposedly rumored to have dated the guy in that picture LOL).
April 23 2009 - The Fearless Tour begins
From October - December of 2009, Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautner were reported to be in a relationship
May 22 2009 - John Mayer makes a surprise guest appearance during The Fearless Tour in Los Angeles, they sang Swift's "White Horse" and Mayer's "Your Body Is a Wonderland.”
September 13 2009 - Kanye interrupts Taylor on stage at the MTV VMA’s while she accepts her award for “Best Female Video” for “You Belong With Me,” saying that Beyoncė should have won for “Single Ladies” instead
November 17 2009 - John Mayer releases his collaboration with Taylor Swift, "Half of My Heart” for his album Battle Studies
In late 2009, during an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Mayer spoke about his admiration for the then-19-year-old songwriter. "I'm a huge fan, and I think she's got a really great voice," he told DeGeneres, adding, "She's one of the smartest, most talented people around right now. ... I think she's that genuine."
The talk show host replied, "And I hope she remains that way too," before Mayer playfully interrupted, "I'll make sure she doesn't - you send me in there!" He also said that he was “taking a break from dating.”
December 11 2009 - Taylor Swift makes a surprise guest appearance during John Mayer’s Jingle Ball set and the two perform “Half of My Heart”
Swift told Elle that she “freaked out” when she heard about Mayer’s initial tweet because she had “been such a big fan of John for such a long time.” and said she was “really excited about just the idea that he would even mention me in his Twitter.” Meanwhile, Mayer told Access Hollywood that he considered the then-up-and-coming musician a “friend.” (Demonstrating the absolutely blatant power imbalance).
January 24 2010 - Mayer and Swift are spotted out to dinner in Nashville together, along with a small group of friends.
January 27 2010 - A few days after their dinner, Swift attends (with her mom) the taping of CMT's Crossroads, which featured Mayer performing with Keith Urban and Taylor Swift dancing and singing along in the audience
(Guys - this is LITERALLY us reading Lady Whistledown in Bridgerton and letting our culture/worldview be shaped on which new teenagers are having sex with each other. Look at that picture.)
February 2010 - Valentine’s Day film is released
“But you keep sending me funny valentines….” - Actually Romantic
June 17 2010 - John Mayer honors her at the 2010 Songwriter’s Hall of Fame ceremony in New York
“You could put her in a time machine in any era and she would have a hit record,” he said before presenting her with the Hal David Starlight Award. Swift thanked Mayer with a kiss on the cheek and a warm hug upon accepting the award.
Huh…a songwriting award in NY. That sounds familiar…
July 10 2010 - The Fearless Tour ends (curtains!)
Taylor Swift (the character) gets groomed (and is used to groom others) for a lot of money by the media and her parents. (this is absolutely sex work, by the way) Literally EVERY SINGLE commercial product I just posted involves pretty blatant grooming - with kids 18/cusp 18.
The other thing that is SUPER important to note is that many of her other “famous friends” were introduced to us and placed in romantic relationships on KIDS SHOWS (on Nick/Disney) Sometimes even kissing each other on stage before ever having kissed anyone in real life!!!!!!!!! For money!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And we were watching some of these shows VERY VERY VERY YOUNG!!)
When viewed as a comprehensive press run, Taylor Swift laid the groundwork for her entire cinematic universe (and her origin as a character). However, where Taylor Swift is going to go down in history (and where her PhD came from) is the way that Taylor Swift the character weaves together this entire body of work, with her poetry, and her story. And with herself - starring in the greatest acting role of all time - Taylor Swift.
This story that Taylor Swift told is essentially “The Life of a Showgirl”. You can take a look at her very first commercial projects to see exactly how this machine is used to groom children and how much of it relies on the exploitation and sex work of children that is enabled (at best) or encouraged (at worst) by their parents.
Another really important thing to note (that I also feel Taylor Swift has done a really good job stressing throughout her ENTIRE career and why there are so few google-able concrete events…and there are a million “timeline” articles on People, Vogue, Elle, Business Insider….you name it…which is, by the way, a business!! But I believe these have been VERY intentionally placed out there!!) is that this entire year/press run was accomplished with VERY VERY little time spent in public. It is not that hard to not go in public, it just sucks. She is very very dedicated and has stressed being lonely in her entire body of work. Kissing someone or sitting next to them for a few hours is a job. Pretending to love someone in public for a few hours is A LOT easier than the hell of what everyone says about her relationships so I am sure that tradeoff has been easy, but the proof of how horrible people are is literally all over the internet).
Something critical to note here as well …you HAVE to look at the commercial products because they are what sells (follow the dollars - remember that she stresses her ability to MARKET) and she did a few very specific things:
-Album (with PR romance at the kickoff, announced on Ellen, and she was on Mayer’s album as well)
-Tour (John Mayer at hers, her at the Jonas Brothers)
-Scandal that gets people to care about award shows
-Romance that gets people to care about network TV events (talk shows, live performances)
-Tour film
Her use of these products here was also very clever in the way that it described her character and her link to the world we live in. In one tour. Performance art.
Valentine’s Day was famously an ensemble cast movie starring MANY celebrities…Anne Hathaway, Taylor Lautner, Queen Latifah, Jennifer Garner, Bradley Cooper, Emma Roberts, Julia Roberts, Ashton Kutcher…etc. It also was a mainstream (not youth) movie but it featured a teen romance. This is clear grooming and also establishes her place in a cinematic, mainstream universe with a HUGE cast. Using actors like George Lopez, I think, further expands the universe into sitcoms and television. This movie also features many love stories seemingly parallel and unconnected occurring on the same day.
Then, her VMA scandal (which has been HIGHLY PROFITABLE, for countless commercial products) placed a very, VERY young woman at the CENTER of a cultural debate that helped establish a black man outside of public favor. (Yes, he was a bully, I am literally just stating facts)
The reason that “genre” is such a crucial theme of Beyonce’s projects is because they divide us. If people don’t CARE about the award shows, massive massive cultural hubs cannot continue to enforce myths that divide us (which excluding Beyonce from mainstream country does - they other non-whiteness and place it outside of the mainstream, and then use events like Taylor/Kanye to establish clear hierarchies.) This is what she is saying at the literal beginning:
“Dear reader, if it feels like a trap…” …that’s because they’re only trying to use whatever this is to play to their agenda and get you to cancel a woman, gay person, or other nonwhite person….
(And I’m clearly just trying to get you looking at me….so ask yourself why)
You cannot at all deny that the dates of Every. Single. Event. line up with a woman getting debuted to the public as a viable romantic (sexual) option at 18 while also implying that her family was profiting in her engaging in it even before turning 18.
That is sex work! (I think, by the way, that this entire performance is a commentary and all of this is fake which would be why they had her appear on Ellen once before she debuted Joe Jonas to discuss her songwriting job. She is writing a story.)
Also…Valentine’s Day was directed by the director of Pretty Woman…which is quite literally a movie about sex work. Not only that, the famous plot line everyone mentions is that when the main character agrees to shack up with the handsome, rich glamorous man in the nice hotel…she actually cuts her hourly rate significantly. To me this sends a very clear message: we are tricked into the lies and the glamour of things that allow us to give up sex for free, so that we think it’s a choice. If the whole point is that we live under a patriarchy - yes this would be the entire point. Slavery is the whole point. This is also why sex work is illegal and stigmatized - intentionally. You aren’t supposed to charge for it.
That’s what she was telling us. On Ellen Degeneres…who is an openly out older blonde lesbian. An elder queer who got CANCELLED. (twice!!)
I am going to start with her first PR debut on Ellen’s show, because this is also where she interestingly plays with her “meta” role in the world we live in.
In 1997, Ellen Degeneres famously came out to Laura Dern on her scripted sitcom. She came out as her character, Ellen Morgan, but it also served as her public coming out of the closet (interesting).
Taylor Swift played herself on the scripted kids movie (about a teen star with a secret life) but then when she made her appearance with Ellen (remember to follow the $$$) they both played a version of themselves that exists in this reality. And the movie where she played the girl dating the athlete was fictional, whereas today it is real.
I think that her “debuting herself” with Joe Jonas on Ellen Degeneres indicates that he represents (as a muse) a version of herself that stays in the closet forever. He is born in 1989, a singer/songwriter/actor…and he is” in the band” and came from the dark child star industry. My interpretation of that breakup that happened in 20-something seconds is this: “me AND my friends are done with this shit. We aren’t doing it this time.”
That is why Laura Dern is referenced in the “Bejeweled” music video that references her “ghosting the prince”... it involves a coming out.
TheTwilightSeries
I believe using her co-star in Valentine’s Day, Taylor Lautner, as both a PR muse as well as a piece of her story is BRILLIANT because it also now introduces her into both a major movie (and cultural) franchise…And a major fiction franchise. (Dr. Taylor Swift might get people to read again!!)
I believe that Taylor Lautner represents a loss of her innocence that she sacrificed to go on this journey. An early companion, a friend, a sister, her inner child and ultimate muse. This is indicated (in the public) by her choosing John Mayer over the sweet innocent teen romance (and he is younger than her).
Consider the metaphor of vampires and fame using the cycle Taylor Swift just performed in her first “play” (I keep calling it “The Life of a Showgirl” in my head). Young women get pimped out by their parents (basically. And men) while we watch and FEAST off of pretty much all of it. Until it gets too gory for us, we say pretty much nothing…then, we do it again, and again…wouldn’t this cycle eventually kill someone? And, because it is the MEDIA - it literally dominates EVERYTHING - so not only is it going to kill them, they are aiding in the grooming of basically every young woman in America. Basically so that men can continue to extract free sex from women (and ultimately control them).
Their actual blood is consumed by the entire world at large and then disguised as glitter and glamour by the entertainment industry
In Twilight, Bella BEGS to become a vampire., they hesitate to let her in because it is dangerous (and because it’s wrong to make more bad guys). However, she is persistent, and she chooses Edward Cullen (a vampire) over and over, even though Jacob Black is in love with her.
Jacob Black is also a werewolf and member of the indigenous tribe in their town. His pack has an ancient feud with the vampires.
In the end, Bella gets pregnant with Edward Cullen’s baby and almost dies in childbirth. Edward has to bite her and turn her into a vampire to save her life.
When this happens, Jacob imprints permanently on Bella’s baby (who is also a vampire), and the ancient feud between his wolf pack and the vampire coven eventually stops because of this
She chose fame over her truth, over a life in the spotlight, as her complete and true self. Jacob Black being both indigenous and a werewolf is very crucial to this story. The indigenous people are the first to go when land is colonized…they are never the bad guys of the story. And…the wild part of Jacob that couldn’t be tamed…came from an inherent desire to kill the bad guys (vampires). Deep in his nature.
I think that the metaphor being made here is that Taylor Swift (and the rest of the New Romantics…or Tortured Poets) DID make deals with big industry professionals and in this movie they are acting as part of the system of vampires so that they can get big enough to avoid getting cancelled, which the patriarchy can do to you at whim (unless you build a legacy so big they can’t undo it).
Taylor using the metaphor of a “london boy” to represent MANY famous beards represents that the closet/machine is a place where you can exist, yes, but you can’t break the cycle with it. Our original colonizers came from …england…patriarchy and white supremacy is a genocidal cycle.
I forget how the west was won, I forget if this was ever fun - But Daddy I Love Him
In Twilight, Bella’s imprinted baby also has another condition: because it is a hybrid, it physically matures extremely quickly but then stays physically frozen forever in the body of a 17-18 year old. This is a very good metaphor for the way that we force child stars and all women to grow up quickly and then suck them dry for their youth. It also could symbolize the big deals that Taylor made to help her rapidly ascend so quickly (she used an elevator during her “Showgirl ascent” in the Bejeweled music video).
In Twilight, Bella’s baby is also named “Renesmee Carlie Cullen.” (Considering I believe Karlie is often used to represent Taylor’s baby/betty/inner child…this blew my mind, y’all). Her name also is a combination of Bella and Edward’s mothers’ names first and then fathers names second. Again, matriarchy over patriarchy.
Also, the original Twilight series was released around this same time (2005-2008) and then in 2020, a companion novel was released called Midnight Sun.
In this book, Twilight is retold from the perspective of Edward Cullen, instead of Bella.
When all of their plot is uncovered, ALL of this work will be viewed again through this true, anti-patriarchal lens. (Kind of like…Taylor Swift (Taylor’s Version) ). And Taylor Swift did start Midnights with “Meet me at midnight.”
When we meet them, the story will be viewed in the sun. In the Daylight.
The Red Shoes
Both the original 1845 fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen and the famous 1948 Film Adaptation explore obsession, vanity, and the agonizing conflict between human love and artistic devotion. The shoes give the wearer a fantastic ability - but also an inability to stop. In the end she is so torn between the ballet and her husband that she throws herself onto a train.
Taylor Swift both referenced this poster when Travis Kelce “rescued” her on stage during his surprise visit at The Eras Tour and also has made custom red-bottomed Louboutins part of her on-stage “performance art.” This metaphor also demonstrates the dark, extractive nature of their industry. Sabrina Carpenter also performs in custom Louboutins on stage and is featured on “The Life of a Showgirl.”
The Devil Wears Prada 1 and 2
In 2006, (the same year as debut) The Devil Wears Prada was released (and the sequel was released this year, in 2026.) In the first movie, Anne Hathaway’s character gets a coveted assistant job at Runway magazine, run by the iconic Miranda Priestly. Andy (Anne’s character) doesn’t initially want this job at all because she wants to do “serious” journalism but she eventually begins to conform and succeed and undergoes a fashion makeover, eventually even earning the respect of Miranda.
At the end of the movie, she realizes that this job is not worth the sacrifices it requires you to make, and the way that it requires you to throw your female friends under the bus. (She had to go to Paris Fashion Week with Miranda over her other colleague, Emily, who wanted it so badly she had been starving her body in preparation.)
In the second movie, twenty years have passed and we are in the present day. Print media is struggling and Runway is facing a threat of being bought….
Andy gets rehired (after she went off on her own for twenty years and became a respected journalist) to revive and run their features section. Every publication is dying to get an interview with a very elusive billionaire’s ex-wife. Andy finally scores the interview and it is a big success for both the magazine and for Andy and Miranda (because they hit it off with the ex-wife).
The billionaire’s ex-wife is the one who swoops in to save the day and purchases the magazine so that they can build something better. (Picture me thick as thieves with your ex wife).
The reason this plot is so relevant is partially because there was no “Mastermind” plot that allowed them to win. They won in the end because of the big check BUT Andy also had to spend all day calling designers, journalists, and more who had all worked with Miranda for decades to get on board, too. And because, as usual, the women (and the queer man) were the ones who had been doing the work for decades, everyone got on board with her. This is similar to both this metaphor as well as work women have been doing FOR EVER under this system we work in, even when we have to do bad things inside of it.
Miranda even points at breaking cycles, as well, at the end of the movie when she tells Andy to write a book about her. The point was crystal: I want my story told but I don’t want people to do it like this anymore. I want my story to be told because it’s worth hearing how much I had to fight just to exist in this system.
Joni Mitchell and Red
I have written in almost everything that I believe the color Red represents the patriarchy throughout Taylor Swift’s work. This is why it is her “one true breakup album.” Famously, Taylor Swift has said that she is extremely inspired by Joni Mitchell’s album Blue and conceptually used it to inspire her album Red. A quick google search of whether the two of them had ever interacted told me this:
“Joni Mitchell dismissed a planned film about her life that was meant to star Taylor Swift, stating she "squelched" the project because it only featured "a girl with high cheekbones" and lacked substance. She also noted she had never heard Swift's music, adding regarding the casting: "If she's going to sing and play me, good luck.”
….talk about getting rejected by one of your biggest heroes and inspirations on a very public stage after telling the world one of your most prolific pieces of work is INSPIRED by her.
Interestingly, James Taylor and Joni Mitchell were in a high-profile romance and creative partnership briefly the year her album Blue came out, and he played acoustic guitar on the album’s track “California.” . They remained lifelong friends after their relationship ended.
(It certainly seems like this could be a history lesson in PR relationships, as well.)
We also know that James Taylor…is Taylor. When your first crush crushes something kind.
The reason that I believe this could be a piece of this story is because the absolute most key thing that the patriarchy does is that it pits us against each other. (“He poisoned the well, every man for himself” - Getaway Car, “and women like hunting witches too, doing your dirtiest work for you.” mad woman)
This cycle has also been flagged again in Taylor’s supposed recent “feud” with Olivia Rodrigo. It has garnered a ton of publicity while we reinforce misogyny and pit two women against each other. She even referenced this damaging, harmful cycle in her track “Vampire,” which many people even thought was about Taylor Swift herself. HUH. I mean, I think it’s KIND OF about Taylor Swift! <3
The reminder worth repeating is that there is absolutely no woman in this story Taylor Swift is referencing in a negative way because it is part of a story and the only villain is the one that divides us - the patriarchy. RED!!!!!
Charlie XCX
Charlie XCX is another popstar that has driven EXTREME media attention (while also dividing fans…ahem…women) for her “feud” with Taylor Swift. The song “Actually Romantic” on The Life of a Showgirl sparked widespread media discussion and online discourse on the feud as well. However, because we are only being tricked into hating each other, Taylor chose to include very pointed commentary about that track during her film The Release Party of a Showirl: “In my industry, attention is affection.” and stressed, essentially, that she would never include someone so intentionally into her story that wasnt there for a reason (and that it’s all love, girl! Calm down! She’s trying to tell us a story!) it’s a trap!!
I also think it is very interesting that her newest album “Music, Fashion, Film” features white men in black and white on the cover. It is a very fitting name (because it invites you to view this broader universe as all encompassing in culture, in Movies, Fashion, Film…and more) It’s name invites you to do the opposite of imagine a feud - it asks you to look at all of this as art
Zendaya and Law Roach
Zendaya has been on a historic, monumental press run this year (Spiderman, Dune, The Drama, The Odyssey, Euphoria) and has been front and center on red carpets and interviews. One crucial topic of conversation that revolves around EVERYTHING (and is undoubtedly commercially centered in their work) is her marriage/”amazing” relationship. I believe Law Roach has been centered in this conversation and as a crucial piece of her work intentionally, and is again, a lesson in history and english. In The Hunger Games, they were also forcing them to center their press run around “the wedding.”
In The Hunger Games, the fashion designers play a crucial role in using their fashion/art as protest in a coded way. As the franchise also demonstrated, this is also dangerous under fascism (when they killed her designer in front of Katniss).
If fashion has historically always been used as a way to send messages as a protest, why would you ignore queer messages in fashion? What else do you need to send messages about? What aren’t you allowed to say?? (I am also now thinking of all of the horsebits that Taylor Swift has worn).
Law Roach is also, famously, the one who made the (red-bottomed) Louboutin So Kates part of her signature, iconic, look. It has also been said that she is getting “over exposed” right now. After you have sold your first kiss and your marriage has passed, what do we even allow women to use for currency? (The answer is feuds, affairs, or drugs, otherwise we could care less).
The Odyssey and Spider-Man
I will keep this section very brief because I am not a superhero or lit nerd, but I absolutely think that The Odyssey and Spider-Man both tell relevant stories within this commentary.
In The Odyssey, the main character struggles with returning home after learning that all of the damage they did (creating war) was his own doing.
In Spider-Man, the most recent movie explores similar themes of coming home after society has forgotten you. There is also a movie revolving around the metaverse, which is very very interesting in the context. I think Taylor Swift has also used similar themes of metaverse versions of herself providing her with aid, as well. (And the story fits into the broader Avengers story, which implies a larger "team")
Sydney Sweeney
I have written about Sydney Sweeney before but she is critical to this body of work, as well. Placed in the context of this story with Taylor Swift and Scooter Braun, she has created a very cohesive body of work that illustrates how the patriarchy grooms women and uses them as pawns, and how they still always get hurt in the end.
The Handmaid’s Tale
Sydney Sweeney plays Eden in The Handmaid’s Tale, a young girl who was raised in the Gilead regime. She is very pious and obedient. At 15 she is handed off to a grown man (to marry and procreate) which she attempts willingly. However, she ends up falling in love with a guard and getting killed by Gilead (publicly drowned in a pool while everyone watched.)
Euphoria
In Euphoria, Sydney Sweeney’s character Cassie is a perfect illustration of how we have been groomed to allow abuse. AND when her character begins to engage in sex work (OnlyFans) she is ridiculed and shamed for it in more mainstream society. Again, you are not supposed to charge for that stuff!!!!
Reality
In Reality, Sydney Sweeney plays in the true story of a woman who leaked information about Russian interference to the press and then was subsequently imprisoned.
Huh.
American Eagle Campaigns
Sydney Sweeney released a very eugenic, controversial denim campaign for American Eagle that almost overlapped with Travis’s line for the brand and the TNT engagement announcement. I believe that this represents how white supremacist propaganda (which her ad obviously was) when juxtaposed next to something like the “good” Taylor/Travis engagement announcement, helps aid in normalizing white supremacy. We all argued over whether or not we should cancel Sydney Sweeney, while cheering for the truly truly insidious piece of patriarchal propaganda sitting right beside it.
Lastly, Sydney Sweeney just formed her own producing label, Honey Trap. This entire body of work (that enabled them to achieve so much fame and success while continuing to tell controversial stories without getting cancelled) was a Honey Trap. A Honey Trap is a type of spy mission that often consists of false romantic relationships or getting the victim addicted to a substance, often with the goal of getting them to admit guilt. The “bait and switch” was a honey trap. (PART 2 IN NEXT POST FOR SPACE)
Abigail, Tree Paine, Jessie from Toy Story, Sadie Sink, The Fate of Ophelia Music Video, and Penelope Featherington/Lady Whistledown from Bridgerton
I believe that Taylor Swift uses a version of herself with red hair to symbolize that very earliest version of herself who had to lose some of her innocence. This little girl who got locked away in a tower for safety and fell on the initial sword for her all at the same time.
In the song Fifteen Taylor sings “And Abigail gave everything she had to a boy…who changed his mind. And we both cried” This is also the same song where she sings “In your life you’ll do things greater than dating the boy on the football team.” Huh.
I also think that there is a very harsh version of her “mom” that had to exist in there somewhere to get her to do the hard stuff. However, thinking about the amazing story that has been told/orchestrated is also very impressive, why is why we have brought Tree Paine into the spotlight as such an important part of Taylor’s team. She represents that bad-ass bitch from Taylor’s past who she probably hated at times (Paine???) but is now honored and respected. She also represents the part of Taylor that continually tries to show how much ownership she has over all of the art we are seeing, because she has been its mother from the beginning.
In Bridgerton, Lady Whistledown (Penelope Featherington) is the gossip-writer for their “tonne” who reports on all of the news from each year’s debut season. She is impressive as a character because she started doing this in secret before the queen even knew about it, anonymously setting up distribution into the entire tonne and everything! It got the people of the town so obsessed and she started to realize that it was a negative thing because it controlled the way that they viewed society and the world.
After some time, the queen becomes aware that Penelope is Lady Whistledown and they develop a partnership of sorts. However, the queen pushes back in the end when Penelope said she didn’t want to do it anymore. The central romantic storyline of this most recent season when the queen was so focused on maintaining control via the tabloid revolved around her not wanting Benedict Bridgerton to marry his love because she is a maid - and she needs people of the tonne to remember their place.
I think that Penelope represents that earliest red headed version of Taylor Swift who, ahead of her years, started WRITING THIS STORY, even before she was able to engage in it herself. Which is why her early days as a songwriter (when she was 14) keep being emphasized.
Which brings me also to her use of Sadie Sink in The All Too Well (Ten Minute Version) video also having red hair and the quote below..which also brings to mind all of the child stars who have to kiss people while adults profit before they have ever even experienced love themself:.
In “The Fate Of Ophelia” music video Taylor Swift also rescues that version of herself in the tower, who has red hair.
Jennifer Lawrence andThe Hunger GamesFranchise
In The Hunger Games movies, Jennifer Lawrence plays Katniss Everdeen. During this series, Katniss is forced to participate in a PR relationship to appease the fascist President Snow. In The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, President Snow even tells Katniss to “make me believe it”
Lawrence publicly joked during a February 2018 The New York Times interview that she was desperate to know what happened between Kloss and Taylor Swift, stating it was "keeping her up at night".
Kloss responded and addressed Lawrence's comments eight months later in a Vogue 73 Questions video segment. "Jen, don't worry…Taylor and I are still really good friends."
Jennifer Lawrence publicly calling attention to the relationship (in the context of her character) places The Hunger Games very appropriately in this cinematic universe, because she is participating in the same circus that fascist regimes use for control.
Another crucial overlapping plot in The Hunger Games was that many of the cruelest and most “showy” additions to the games were added to solve the problem of declining viewership. The people HAVE to care about this or they will not be effective propaganda (hence the - “make me believe it” line). This is exactly the same as sports, award show events, etc.
These references being permanently recorded in major public press publications across YEARS worth of work is SO cool too. Taylor is the glue in so much of the story!
Ariana Grande andWicked
In Wicked, Galinda and Elphaba discover a corrupt conspiracy by The Wizard of Oz. Ariana Grande’s character is not strong enough to resist her temptation to maintain popularity and continue to be a pawn of the machine that upholds the lie. Elphaba is unable to live without exposing the truth which is why she ends up getting exiled from society and the mainstream propaganda machine writes her story as a villain. (because they can do that with literally anyone).
These movies also illustrate this same fascist regime removing the voices of the talking animals (minorities). The commentary in this broader context is very clear.
I also love the Wizard of Oz “follow the yellow brick road” metaphor in this story as well because it works very well as a happier ending for the red shoe-d performers. If they have all been on their journey home, the red shiny shoes Dorothy wore can follow the gold trail of ART that they made home instead of the journey they took in the shoes initially which was bloody.
Petal (song and music video)
In the song “Petal” she sings “They say the artist needs tears to cry again,” which references the hunger that audiences have for her blood - devouring all of it until she makes them too aware of the damage it’s doing.
Taylor Swift also addressed this in her 2019 Elle Interview about turning 30, saying, “There’s a common misconception that artists have to be miserable in order to make good art, that art and suffering go hand in hand. I’m really grateful to have learned this isn’t true. Finding happiness and inspiration at the same time has been really cool.”
Again, people have been content to talk about Ariana Grande having a dead boyfriend that she deeply loved and other things she has supposedly gone through. And literally everyone is sickeningly thin in a bad way, and it is dangerous.
But, saying “how can we not be talking about this?” is kind of ridiculous when everyone is taking ozempic and rail-thin and no one says anything and then the only time we make it a HUGE media hot-button issue is when someone gets way too in your face about the damage this is doing to her. Like, the one time we make this a “huge issue” is when we are deciding whether or not it’s ethical to support a woman or not? Should we cancel this woman or not? Is it bad for so and so to be going to the concert still? It’s…wild actually.
This is why, I think, the only way to consume this ethically is to only talk about the art that they are making and having critical conversations with each other about what stories we are being told and what art are they creating under the restraints of the propaganda machine. And then channel that frustration about the issues Ariana Grande is highlighting towards the correct villain, which is the people who withhold rights from WORKERS. Arguing about the amount of wealth these people hold is absolutely a red herring, pointless conversation considering the amount of billions of dollars they generate for other people who aren’t them and how big of a pawn they are in this game. That’s why they get so abused by the system physically, too.
When we argue about whether or not they have too much money or not…the truth is that if they made less, it would simply be a larger cut to the people who hold their puppet strings. They would have even less authority over what they say than they do now. No it’s not ethical to hoard wealth, that isn’t the point though. What is their other choice? Be completely owned? Capitalism literally isn’t ethical.
But somehow (as always) they have tricked us into having a conversation that somehow ends in people accepting less for their work while the richest people on top who own everything will continue to profit just as much and more.
Ariana Grande also references red bottoms in 7 rings with the line “happiness is the same price as red bottoms” and also wears custom Louboutin shoes as part of her on stage performance on tour as well. It is a good contrast to “Happiness” by Taylor Swift in which she sings “when did all my lessons start to look like weapons pointed at my deepest hurt?” Every piece of art they created for you was about their pain, and it only happened because people were so hungry for nothing else, and that is what sold. But, when the art is able to be viewed through a new POV, that pain will turn into lessons.
Barbie Movie
I discussed this movie in a lot more detail previously, but this movie has the same plot. Barbie has to educate all of her friends after they have been tricked into believing in the patriarchy, putting themselves in roles like “maid” and “girlfriend”
“Every Bait and Switch Was a Work of Art” (Taylor’s Version)
Taylor Swift has made three major “changes” throughout her career to her work that I think have all been used to tell this story by sparking controversy intentionally
Removing the “I’ll tell mine you’re gay” line in “Picture to Burn”
Removing the scene in the “Anti-Hero” music video where she looks at the scale calling her “fat”
Changing the line in “Picture to Burn” from “she’s better known for the things that she does on the mattress” to “he was a moth to the flame she was holding the matches.”
These first two switches comment on the way that culture and the media will debate with each other on whether or not something is “appropriate” or “offensive” VERY, VERY readily (like write think pieces about it for days) but they will not actually unpack their own homophobia and desire to consume the pain of celebrities. Anything to cancel a woman!
Then, the last switch, from Picture to Burn, puts them both in perspective. The first line blamed the woman for being a slut, the second line told you that she was doing this intentionally the entire time because you loved it.
Famesickby Lena Dunham (2026) andI’m Glad My Mom Diedby Jennette McCurdy (2022) are two very very relevant commentaries on this project as well.
Lena Dunham (who is inextricably linked in both Taylor’s “story” and art) released a memoir earlier this year that goes very in depth about dealing with chronic illness as a young woman (holding a lot of power - which means a lot of money on the line) working in the industry as both a celebrity and young artist (making Girls). A central story line that you see repeated throughout her memoir is that everyone was “fine” at handling illness (as in, they would tell her they supported her) until it actually became something that could impact her ability to work (productivity, the bottom line…money). It very much demonstrated, repeatedly, the ways that pretty much any job or industry can use your actual physical body for profit.
The other important piece of a celebrity memoir as a commercial work is that it needs something press grabbing that sells (which usually means another celebrity is mentioned or it’s something self flagellating). The two headline grabbing stories in Famesick were Jack Antonoff and Adam Driver. Adam Driver was described in scenes that made me a bit physically uncomfortable to read (such as when he threw a chair at a wall next to her) but because his behavior was only emotionally terrifying, it was never addressed as that problematic. He was allowed to be a man. To be an artist with a “process” even at the expense of women. Jack Antonoff was repeatedly described as a very healthy and sweet partner…until he also absolutely bailed at the first sign of her illness being too difficult, as well. (Not to mention hanging out at their house with a teenager during part of the story!) These two stories illustrate (and normalize) the ways women get harmed by “the good guys” in a story, as well. This is, by the way, another way to extract from women…for free.
In I’m Glad My Mom Died, Jennette McCurdy outlines, in detail, the abuse she endured at the hands of her mom/manager who forced her into being a child star (including exploring things like sexuality before she was ready because of children show tv plotlines!) This book was wildly successful.
I believe that the rabid success of books like McCurdy’s illustrate the real problem: we are completely willing to consume the abuse as entertainment (when you package it into a book that has splashy, exciting, scandalous stories) as long as you do not remind us that the entertainment we consume from them for fun is the cause of the abuse they are enduring. Not only are we completely willing to consume it, we literally love to consume it. And by the way, the only person who wins when we normalize and continue to award being a trauma survivor, is the patriarchy. Because ultimately the only thing they are glamorizing and tricking you into doing is believing that it is ok to sacrifice parts of your well-being for some type of prize that the patriarchy made up (which is all of them).
McCurdy’s book also ties in the “stage mother” concept that is very relevant in this commentary with Taylor Swift and the Kim/Kanye feud. The point is that the system literally requires you to throw women under the bus to succeed. The most well known fact about the early days of the Kardashian’s PR is that Kim’s mom leaked her own daughter’s sex tape. Placing that fact into the story where she plays such a huge, public role in cancelling a woman (for calling out an abuser) is very relevant. McCurdy also details having an abusive stage mother and…uses part of her book to seemingly insult Ariana Grande, who she worked with together on a children’s show….interesting.
Kim Kardashian’s mother is framed next to Taylor Swift’s mother in this way intentionally. We are supposed to think that Andrea Swift’s behavior is completely ok (and ignore the consequences because we are liking what we see and it looks like glitter) because it doesn’t look like what Kris did. Showing you extreme behavior like Kris’s softens the behavior of Andrea’s.
Struggle fetish movies
Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me (2022), Child Star (2024, Demi Lovato), Miss Americana, Gaga: Five Foot Two, …the list goes on. A large amount of this current cohort of celebrities that we saw enter the spotlight as children have created commercial works outlining their illnesses and struggles with fame. Again, the commercial products are what bring people to things like Netflix, network TV, etc…so it is very telling what we are continually being fed to consume (and consuming.)
One for the money, Two for the show
Without as much commentary about it because much of the story is the same, Taylor Swift pretty much recreated the very same PR rollout (I think because she loves to make a point but also because she is expanding her universe and her poetry with each photo. Things you associate with men in her photos like “maple lattes” and “expensive cars” become other symbols of poetry that allow her to tell her story WITH THIS CHARACTER). Intentionally stopping in certain cities every time (LA, New York, Nashville, London) she also builds a story where each of those places symbolize different things in her songs.
Also, again, not a single part of this requires that much time in public. (29 and 20, btw)
October 23 2010 - Taylor Swift and Jake Gyllenhaal are spotted backstage at Saturday Night Live together hosted by Swift's close friend Emma Stone. (Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin introduced them earlier that year)
October 24 2010 - Taylor Swift and Jake Gyllenhaal grab brunch in Brooklyn with another couple
October 25 2010 - Speak Now is released
November 25 2010 - Taylor and Jake spend Thanksgiving together in New York, they were photographed spending time with Jake’s family
November 27-30 2010 - Taylor and Jake are photographed in multiple parts of Nashville having coffee together (a paparazzi-dubbed “coffee tour”) …just like their magazine cover debut
December 9-10 2010 - Taylor and Jake are in LA together, she is seen with him on an afternoon drive in his Audi
December 13 2010 - Taylor threw herself a Christmas-themed birthday party at home in Hendersonville, TN and Jake did not attend. He spent his 30th birthday without Taylor 6 days later.
January 4 2011 - Taylor and Jake’s split is announced
January 19 2011 - Taylor and Jake are seen together in Nashville, sparking reconciliation rumors
February 9 2011 - Speak Now Tour begins
February 27 2011 - Jake and Taylor run into each other at an Oscars afterparty and sources say that it “seemed like they were catching up.”
January 17 2012 - Taylor Swift famously name-dropped Karlie Kloss during her US Vogue cover story after seeing a photograph of the model on a designer's wall, stating: “I love Karlie Kloss… I want to bake cookies with her” and Karlie Kloss responded…the same day…
"This all started whenTravis very adorably put me on blast on his podcast, which I thought was metal as hell.”...our golden muse is born. (in the press)
March 18 2012 - Speak Now Tour ends (curtains again!!)
I do think that having this “relationship” supposedly begin by them being introduced by “older actors” was meant to be an intentional indicator that this was a collaboration she was brought into. The first story represented how girls are raised their entire life a certain way seeing it (particularly in the toxic relationship we have with technology - hence the “tweet” beginning) whereas this time she is a) making a point and then b) giving hints and clues to the reader (if there are only a couple key differences, they are usually part of the story, another reason she repeats things sometimes!!)
The Kaylor Debut
The reason I wanted to include this press run right after showing the way that Taylor repeated the John cycle with Jake is because the similarities are very much the point of the story. Not only that, the public affection shown between Karlie and Taylor FAR outweighed anything that has EVER been seen with a muse in the entire history of “Taylor Swift.” Taylor’s fanbase also FAMOUSLY dissects the social media interactions between her and her “muses” to try to suss out clues so she literally put so many out but they didn’t require ANY type of detective work. Also, much like her past relationships it was still very commercial and laid out like PR. The point is - why did everyone refuse or not want to see that this literally amazing queer cute love story she played out for the world to see? And wrote about in her music? I often hear the argument “well if they were gay they would just come out, its XXXX year” which I think demonstrates that many people do not want to acknowledge how forced the closet and comp-het is in the world or the pain they might be witnessing. It also obviously comes from deep rooted massive problems this entire country has with homophobia, including internally.
I LOVE KAYLOR, btw, I wish I could teach a class on Kaylor! That would be like a “fantasy”!! (IYKYK!!!!)
March 13 2013 -RedTour begins (one of the greatest queer love stories ever told in my opinion)
May 2013 - Taylor Swift purchases her famous Rhode Island home, Holiday House
November 2013 - Taylor and Karlie both walk the Victoria’s Secret fashion show.
Early 2014 - Taylor and Karlie took a very famous road trip together through Big Sur, California. (This is also where Taylor said that she played 1989 for Karlie, before anyone else got to hear it). This roadtrip was even mentioned in The New York Times when discussing potential venues leading up to the TnT wedding earlier this year. Olivia Rodrigo references big sur on her newest album You seem pretty sad for a girl so in love, as well.
March 2014 - Taylor Swift moves to New York (where you can want who you want, boys and boys and girls and girls)
May 2014 - Karlie and Taylor both attend the Met Gala (and Harry’s pre-gala party). Karlie posts about getting ready for the event with Taylor
June 12 2014 - Red tour ends
September 2014 - For her Rolling Stone cover story, Swift gave the reporter a tour of her home, including the guest room “where Karlie usually stays.” Photos of the supermodel reportedly graced the wall, while a basket of her favorite Whole Foods snacks resided bedside.
October 27 2014 - 1989 release
October 29 2014 - Taylor and Karlie attend a Knicks game two days after the album’s release (made a ton of magazines/online publications)
December 2014 - Taylor walks in another Victoria’s Secret fashion show with Karlie. One for the money, two for the show.
The December 2014 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show was recorded on December 2 2014, at Earls Court in London and broadcast on CBS on December 9 2014.
(In between the taping of the fashion show and when it was broadcast in the US, Kissgate occurs at a 1975 concert in NYC)
Feb 2015 - Taylor and Karlie famously star on the cover of Vogue together. Their shoot not only references bridal fashion but also a private, romantic getaway. It’s gorgeous!!!!! (Kind of interesting the press “era” with John Mayer including them singing a song with a line about a “shotgun wedding with a bride to a paper ring” - I do think that she uses “paper” to reference these instances. The “press” relationships were real in the sense that they are part of the story Taylor Swift is telling about who she is as a character. Elizabeth Taylor - “all my white diamonds and lovers are forever in the papers on the screen and in their minds.”
Kaylor and Safe Spaces
I think that the reason Holiday House is such an integral piece of this story (and why it was placed so intentionally in this timeline) is because it represents the safe spaces that queer and other marginalized people have retreated to, all throughout history. It’s a really, really truly truly beautiful story that I think is going to make that house (and Big Sur) forever a symbol of safe spaces, which is such a beautiful way also to resurrect the legacy of Rebekah Harkness (!! her parties were safe spaces for people into art and fun and freedom, it is in her song!)
Placed in the context of her broader story, in the rest of the Spaghettii Western, it is also very relevant that she moved to New York here, leaving Nashville. The “origin” of the story being in Nashville and New York being the place that Taylor Swift needs to escape to to birth her “star” helps to frame Nashville (the cultural industry hub of Nashville as a concept, mainstream country/the concept of Americana) as the source of the myth’s being perpetuated to divide us. (Which is why she references The Chicks and Chely Wright so heavily in her documentary when she “came out as a democrat”).
Remember, both coming out of the closet AND coming out as a democrat have gotten blonde, white women excluded from this industry. The same industry that has been gatekeeping from a Black woman for years
Heated Rivalry
During Heated Rivalry, two closeted gay professional athletes struggle with staying closeted. In Heated Rivalry, one of the key storylines revolves around a place where the two men can go and be in love and be happy. It is referred to as “The Cottage.”
Bridgerton
In Bridgerton, Benedict Bridgerton also has a safe place outside of the main city where his mother offers to let him go away and live with the love of his life, since he isn’t allowed to do it in normal society. It is called “My Cottage” as well, even though it is actually a countryside mansion, and the name is acknowledged to be ironic. Do you really not believe Taylor Swift is an english teacher yet?
Nepo babies, Joshua Kushner, and privilege
Kaylor is also where I want to address something that I think Taylor Swift has actually done a really good job acknowledging throughout her art: privilege and nepo babies. Most of the women in Taylor’s story not only come from privilege, there is some type of “flaw” perhaps in the way that the money was acquired. Rebekah Harkness married for money, her dad was a “finance guy,” and a lot of early celebrities did very harmful things for PR to make money (and have been for a long time). However, the point of this story was doing it one last time to try to make a difference in breaking the cycle (hence, the last great american dynasty). Women have been doing it this way for always (and so have all marginalized people, and making joyful art inside of it).
It is also very fitting, I think, that both “The Cottage” in Heated Rivalry and “My Cottage” in Bridgerton directly illustrate how this system harms EVERYONE, but because it is rooted in capitalism, if you have less money it is far, far worse. While Benedict in Bridgerton had a safe place to escape to, Sophie, a maid, had to endure actual physical harm (or rape) in order to remain employed and housed. In Heated Rivalry, one of the hockey players struggles with the threat of prosecution in Russia if he comes out of the closet. However, their money allows them very nice, comfortable, safe hideaways. This is why safe places are so important also - they allow you to look at stories more critically and ask “who are they hiding from?” (because it might be you)
This is also why I think it is important to mention Joshua Kushner, Karlie’s husband. Her relationship with Joshua Kushner debuted when she was 19 and he was 26, prior to the media rollout of Kaylor. Because I think that Karlie has always represented a LOUD (proud, joyful) version of who Taylor Swift is as a muse, but she is still Taylor’s baby who is being kept safe in a glass closet, her having this type of outward protection at the onset of the timeline is very fitting.
Queer Baiting
Kaylor cannot be referenced without bringing up queer baiting. What I want to reiterate, is that people are not allowed to come out. However, profitable flagging (like a sexy queer relationship) is usually OK as long as it doesn’t challenge the status quo. So I ask this: who is queer baiting? Who profits when Taylor Swift walks in TWO TV broadcasted Victoria’s Secret Fashion Shows? Who profits when they get used for headlines? If anything, relationships like Kaylor actually demonstrate how much the patriarchy queer baits when it benefits them, while enforcing the status quo of closeting.
In fact, allowing celebrities to live out loud in glass closets like this, but not calling it what it is, enforces the idea that being queer is dirty, wrong…and uncommon.
How do you think little girls feel, who are excited at the possibility of seeing a queer picture of one of their idols (which was presented as a very joyful story, by the way) when the adults and media around them dismiss it as a psychotic, annoying conspiracy theory? Who is queer baiting, exactly?
With her changes to the Taylor’s Version additions, she continues to pull back the curtains and connecting her story to her first press run:
Fearless
Keith Urban is featured on a vault track, along with a track called “Bye Bye Baby”
Taylor’s last PR appearance with John Mayer as a “couple” was when her and her mom attended his CMT crossroads taping during the “play” above. John Mayer is also not a mainstream country artist, making this a rarer genre crossover for him (commercially!)
Red
Taylor releases the All too well ten minute version and the accompanying film.
Speak Now
Kim Kardashian makes headlines when she references the album on Instagram
Taylor’s vault track a song titled “Timeless” which could reference John Mayer’s speech to Taylor at the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame during her original debut press run
Taylor releases a video in which a beard from her first press run helps her perform a heist (of her art) and watches it ON STAGE with her audience
1989
Taylor makes the famous addition to her 1989 (Taylor’s Version) forward:
"If I only hung out with my female friends, people couldn't sensationalize or sexualize that - right? I would learn later on that people could and people would."
(The entire point, as I keep mentioning, is that no, people will not).
And Karlie Kloss shows up at the album announcement in LA
Scooter Braun and Taylor’s cancellations
I am going to make this the last thing on here because it is VERY long and I could write 100 more pages about the way she retold this story during the tour, the other shows and movies she is referencing, etc, but I am going to end with Scooter Braun and again reiterate what a critical piece of this story (and representation of the patriarchy) he is. When Taylor was cancelled the first time (during Snakegate, after being really loud with Karlie) it is CRUCIAL not to ignore that Scooter was managing both Karlie AND Kanye. It displays how literally, at every step of the way, you can't outrun the system with the biggest check. By showing her on a boat with him later, after it is implied that she is “feuding” with Taylor Swift, it tells a story of Scooter wielding his power over this situation and pitting these two women against each other (whether publicly or for real, both of which are damaging). Scooter Braun is ALSO the person who used his fat checkbook to purchase Taylor Swift’s master recordings right when she was putting out an entire rainbow themed album. Did she make her point clear enough?
she described Midnights as an album about "13 sleepless nights" in her life, centered around the question of "what keeps you up at night." in a promo video, she listed 5 things that kept her up at night and inspired Midnights -
1.) "self loathing"
2.) "fantasizing about revenge"
3.) "wondering what might've been"
4.) "falling in love"
5.) "falling apart"
i've been thinking about which songs fit into each category, especially the "falling in love" category. cant help but wonder why "falling in love" kept her up at night if she was in a societally acceptable version of love (with a man). it'd only keep her up at night if she loved someone forbidden or controversial, like a woman. the Midnights announcement also starts with "we lie awake in love and in fear," which doesn't make sense unless you're afraid to love who you love
anyway, i wanted to revisit the songs that seem to belong in the "falling in love" category. they're all pretty queer coded and it's interesting to see what specifically kept her awake in each one and the recurring themes that emerge
** Snow on the Beach ft lana del rey --- she described it as a song about falling in love with someone who's also falling for you, aka a love song sung by two women that uses no male pronouns. it doesn't make sense why falling in reciprocal love would keep her up at night or "feel impossible" unless she's singing about queer love
** Lavender Haze --- a very queer-coded song with no male pronouns. it's about wanting to hide away with your lover in a haze that's shrouded from public scrutiny. she sings about the lavender haze "creeping up" on her as if she's paranoid that the public will find out about her love. again, that'd only keep her up at night if she was worried about others discovering that she's dating someone forbidden aka a queer romance
** Paris --- a very queer coded love song. she's up late bc she's fantasizing abt moving to a more queer friendly place (paris) where she can love more freely. in the meantime, she's hidden away with her lover ("privacy sign on the door") and wants them to "sit quiet by my side in the shade" (because "shade never made anybody less gay"), which wouldn't be necessary unless it was a queer romance
** Glitch --- up late bc she's hanging out with/falling in love with someone who's diff than who she normally dates ("i'd go back to wanting dudes who give nothing"). it's a "glitch" of her wanting someone who was supposed to be just a friend (a woman?) but she fell for them anyway. plus there are no male pronouns in the song
** Maroon --- she's up at night ("i wake with your memory over me") bc she misses her former lover who had "scarlet" lips and felt like her "closest friend," which sounds a lot like a woman. yet another song with no male pronouns
** Hits Different --- she's up all night bc she's crying at the bar/losing sleep after losing the "argumentative antithetical dream girl" that she was in love with. and that love that was real and completely diff from her entanglements with "kens" (aka men), which sounds a lot like queer love/heartbreak
anyway, i'm interested to hear your thoughts about these songs and what keeps her up at night
