Taylor Swift‘s 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl, was released on October 3, and the reactions have been a mixed bag of critiques and praise, all par for the course when it comes to album drops. But accusations of misogynoir? Well, that has to be a first for the Swifties, at least on this scale.
In August, Swift got engaged to Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. Before that, he dated influencer and journalist Kayla Nicole, a Black woman. When they broke up, she was subject to the exact type of digital backlash you’d expect from your ex dating one of the most influential women in the world. Prior to Kayla Nicole, Kelce was also romantically linked to other Black women, and he even had a whole reality television show, Catching Kelce, where he went on a quest for romantic partnership in the style of Flavor of Love.
Taylor Swift’s subliminal lyrics on ‘The Life of a Showgirl’
Now, this history has left many people speculating whether or not some of Swift’s lyrics were directed at Kayla Nicole. Swift, who has made a career of her ability to glamorize the plight of the anti-cool girl, who isn’t the canonically cool “cheer captain” or a “sexy baby.” Instead, she’s more of a “monster on a hill” kind of gal.
This mixture of Kelce’s previous dating history and Swift’s propensity for melodic self-deprecation has led many to ponder whether her “But I’m not a bad b***h and this isn’t savage” lyrics on her song “Eldest Daughter” were a dig at Kayla Nicole or just her usual ne’er-do-well happenings. If you’ll recall, these are also the lyrics in Megan Thee Stallion‘s “Savage.” There’s also a “Opalite” lyric referencing “Sleepless in the onyx night but now the sky is opalite,” which many have taken as a racial dog whistle.
On its own, all of these happenings might not seem like a big deal. But it’s the culmination of all of these subtleties that gives us pause. This is also all happening as Swift further nestles herself into the bosom of male-centered rhetoric that has largely been the antithesis of her brand thus far. This includes her telling Jimmy Fallon that part of the reason she doesn’t want to do the Super Bowl halftime show is because she was too concerned about Kelce.
Sneaky, covert conservatism
Again, independently, this might be a fine statement. But many people have drawn parallels in Swift’s statements and trad wife content. On TikTok, trad wife content is a vertical that idealizes the rejection of progressive ideals of women in the workplace in favor of domestic labor, child rearing and other more traditional gender roles, like making cereal from scratch on TikTok. These viewpoints also have strong conservative leanings, which don’t look the best paired next to the possible racial subtext and Swift’s lyrics about loving her friends being “canceled.”
The speculation here is vast, but a recurring theme to be remembered is the importance of impact versus intent. The appearance of microaggressions, even if unintentional, still has real-world consequences. Especially when you occupy space as one of the most influential women in history.
The post How Taylor Swift’s New Album ‘The Life Of A Showgirl’ Raises Concerns Of Anti-Blackness appeared first on Blavity.
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