The release of The Life of a Showgirl has come with a whole lot of fan discussions over Taylor Swift’s lyricism on her newest album.
Famously known to weave Shakespearean-level phrases into her songs, Taylor’s poetic touch has not been completely lost on this album. While lines like, “You were dancing through the lightning strikes, sleepless in the onyx night, but now the sky is opalite,” are sprinkled throughout the album, there’s another underlying theme that fans have strongly noticed in the lyrics of TLOAS: an abundance of millennial and internet slang.
When Taylor has said herself that “no one’s prouder to be a millennial,” she meant it. If it hasn’t been proven already, The Life of a Showgirl solidifies this through some of the most millennial phrases we’ve heard in a while. Here are all of the times Taylor uses some form of millennial cringe or internet slang in the lyrics of the album.
1. “CANCELLED!”
Lyrics: “Did you girlboss too close to the sun? / Did they catch you having far too much fun?”
While a Greek mythology reference to Icarus in a Taylor Swift song is very “fork found in kitchen”-esque, it’s kind of funny to hear this peak millennial phrase immediately after the line “beware the wrath of masked crusaders.”
2. “Wood”
Lyrics: “Forgive me, it sounds cocky / He ah-matized me and opened my eyes / Redwood tree, it ain’t hard to see / His love was the key that opened my thighs”
“Ah-matized” = dickmatized, btw. We see you, Taylor. We see you.
3. “Wi$h Li$t”
Lyrics: “Boss up, settle down, got a wish list (wish list) / I just want you”
Fifth Harmony’s 2014 hit “BO$$” walked so that “Wi$h Li$t” could run.
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4. “Father Figure”
Lyrics: “I’ll be your father figure / I drink that brown liquor / I can make deals with the devil because my dick’s bigger“
When your opponent in the dick-measuring contest is Taylor Swift, you’re going to lose.
5. “Eldest Daughter”
Lyrics: “Every eldest daughter / Was the first lamb to the slaughter / So we all dressed up as wolves and we looked fire“
What’s the Gen Z equivalent of saying “we looked fire?” “We ate?” “We’re giving?”
6. “Actually Romantic”
Lyrics: “I heard you call me ‘Boring Barbie’ when the coke’s got you brave / High-fived my ex and then you said you’re glad he ghosted me”
Genuinely, who would ghost Taylor Swift? (We actually know who, but it still boggles the mind.)
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7. “The Fate of Ophelia”
Lyrics: “Keep it one hundred on the land (Land), thе sea (Sea), the sky / Pledge allegiance to your hands, your team, your vibes“
Can’t help but think of the 💯 emoji when hearing this line, and it makes it even funnier to imagine Taylor using it in her daily texts.
8. “The Life of a Showgirl”
Lyrics: “I’m married to the hustle / And now I know the life of a showgirl, babe”
And here we were thinking that #grindset hustle culture died. The grind really never stops, apparently.
9. “Wi$h Li$t”
Lyrics: “They want that spring break that was fuckin’ lit / And then that video taken off the internet”
Haven’t heard the word “lit” in years, but leave it to Taylor to dust it off and bring it back through one of the rare times she curses in her songs.
10. “CANCELLED!”
Lyrics: “Good thing I like my friends cancelled / I like ’em cloaked in Gucci and in scandal”
An entire song explicitly dedicated to cancel culture, but also extremely catchy, is something only Taylor could do.
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11. “Eldest Daughter”
Lyrics: “But I’m not a bad bitch, and this isn’t savage / But I’m never gonna let you down”
Millennial eldest daughters everywhere felt this to their core.
12. “Ruin The Friendship”
Lyrics: “And it was not an invitation / But as the 50 Cеnt song played (song played) / Should’ve kissed you anyway (anyway)”
Instantly recognizable as a millennial reference, a 50 Cent name drop in a Taylor Swift song was definitely not on my 2025 bingo card.
13. “Eldest Daughter”
Lyrics: “Everybody’s so punk on the internet / Everyone’s unbothered ’til they’re not / Every joke’s just trolling and memes“
Taylor summed up the current state of your average social media experience pretty well here, tbh.
Did we miss any lyrics that you think are either extremely millennial-coded or very online? Tell us in the comments!
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