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This past Friday, Oct. 3, Taylor Swift released her 12th studio album, “The Life of a Showgirl,” 51 days after its initial announcement. Swift teamed up with producers Shellback and Max Martin, both of whom she collaborated with in past albums such as “Red,” “1989,” and “reputation,” which came out in 2012, 2014, and 2017, respectively. 

Although Swift has been working with Aaron Dessner and Jack Antonoff for her more recent albums, she looked to past albums for inspiration this time. Swift said her goal was to make an album with “infectious melodies” but also wasn’t overloaded with unnecessary songs. 

“The Life of a Showgirl” follows her 2024 double album, “The Tortured Poets Department,” which was lauded for its raw lyrics but criticized for length. Personally, I loved “The Tortured Poets Department,” so I had high expectations for “The Life of a Showgirl,” since the tracklist was supposed to be diligently curated. 

When the album was first announced, I was especially excited for certain tracks because of their titles; “Opalite,” “CANCELLED!,” and “Eldest Daughter,” to name a few. When I listened to the album at 6 a.m. on Friday morning, I was astonished at what I heard.

While I was expecting an album filled with ooey-gooey love ballads, I heard a package of pure sunshine. The production was full and joyful, and her voice has never sounded richer. She truly sounded happy, which is the exact opposite of “The Tortured Poets Department” and “Midnights.”

The production of this new album is absolutely stunning – strong piano chords and creative drum patterns make up for the songs’ simple melodies. Despite this, it felt like there was something lacking in the album. 

The songs all touched on important themes happening in Swift’s life, including her fast romance and engagement to professional football player Travis Kelce and her conclusion of the Eras Tour, but didn’t go into enough depth to make it really matter to the listener. 

The only song that actually gave me chills was “Ruin the Friendship,” in which Swift sings about a friendship in high school that was actually a mutual love. She laments his recent death and pleads for the listener to “always ruin the friendship / better that than regret it / for all time” after he passes away unexpectedly. 

If “Ruin the Friendship,” ripped at my heartstrings, then the rest of the songs only gave me a slight twinge of feeling. Although the album contains some bangers, there wasn’t enough substance for it to instantly become one of my favorite Swift masterpieces. 

However, I think this album will grow on me. The lyrics from love songs like “Honey,” “Opalite,” and “The Fate of Ophelia” are fun and romantic, but from the borderline diss-tracks of the album, “Actually Romantic,” “Father Figure,” and “CANCELLED!” come witty, “reputation”-esque barbs. 

My top three from this album so far are “Honey,” “The Life of a Showgirl (feat. Sabrina Carpenter),” and “Elizabeth Taylor.” All three of them embody exactly what Swift does best: good production, eloquent lyrics, and a relatability you just can’t get with many other artists. 

Out of 5, I would give “The Life of a Showgirl” 4.5 stars, because I loved most of the songs, but it just felt like there was something missing to make this the perfect album. I would recommend this album to anyone thinking about listening because of its good songwriting, diverse production, and wide range of topics that are sure to entertain any listener.