A Week Deeper Into The Life of a Showgirl
By Peninsula Records & Books
It has been three weeks now (give or take) since The Life of a Showgirl was released... and I have some thoughts.
I’ll say it straight up: I love it. As a Swiftie since I heard those first notes of Love Story, I’ve watched her change, take risks, and outgrow the boxes people put her in. She did not, and could not, stay the same.
I mean why should she? We don't. She’s no longer a teenager appealing to teenagers, she’s an adult with stories to tell, experience, baggage, shadows to explore, and truths that take up space. None of us owe anyone “clean” or “appropriate” art, not Taylor, not Madonna, not Kylie, not the women who built the stage before her.
To me, The Life of a Showgirl feels like a glass of something bright and confident, fizzy, alive, and unapologetic. You can dance to it without holding back. It feels refreshing in a time when caution or conservatism too often wins. The album pushes back with heart and intention.
What’s Going On Under The Gloss
Showgirl = power, vulnerability, spectacle, secrets
From the start, the “showgirl” idea has been the frame. The album isn’t about being watched, it’s about being seen, really seen, with all the weight and beauty that comes with that.
Fame and identity in dialogue
Opening with The Fate of Ophelia and sliding into Elizabeth Taylor is deliberate. Tragedy and glamour walk together. Ophelia is silenced; Elizabeth Taylor is amplified. Taylor Swift stands in between, finding her voice in both.
Eldest Daughter as emotional core
Track 5 holds special meaning in Swift’s catalogue. It’s usually the raw one. Eldest Daughter delivers, invisible labour, quiet grief, and the weight of being the steady one. It’s heavy in the best way.
Playful, bold, and risky
Songs like Wood and CANCELLED! are fun, cheeky, and provocative. But they matter. They play with power and sexuality without giving it away. It’s ownership, not performance.
Mentorship
Father Figure is one of the record’s sharpest commentaries. It samples George Michael’s song in title only, but twists the concept into something darker, a satire of power and mentorship. The narrator is a man who lifts a “protégé” into fame, then punishes her for independence. Lines about loyalty and profit turn the whole relationship into a transaction.
In that light, The Life of a Showgirl feels like an answer song. When Taylor closes the album with Sabrina Carpenter at her side, the dynamic flips: the student isn’t trapped by the mentor, she’s invited in. It’s the same stage, but the torch passes cleanly. That’s the evolution, from exploitation to collaboration.
Passing the torch
The feature with Sabrina Carpenter on The Life of a Showgirl isn’t just a duet. It’s a gesture. A woman making space for another woman in the spotlight. That’s the kind of feminism that sticks.
My Personal Favourites
- The Fate of Ophelia: That opening hit me right in the chest.
- Opalite: Soft but radiant, and that chorus!!!!
- The Life of a Showgirl (feat. Sabrina Carpenter). The perfect closing bow.
We’ve been playing the orange glitter vinyl in the shop (too much if you ask my husband), and it sounds as good as it looks. The packaging is gorgeous, theatrical and confident, just like the music inside. As I wrote back in POV of a Record Shop Owner last August, seeing a Taylor Swift album drop isn’t just about sales, it’s about riding the cultural swell that moves people through our shop, our community, and our playlists.
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