Whether you’re a diehard Swiftie or just an unsuspecting social media user, by now, you’re probably aware that Taylor Swift has released four new songs.
Taylor teased the tracks — contained on her new Life of a Showgirl: The Encore bonus album — earlier this week, and fans lost their minds.
Now, the songs are finally here, and the reaction has been — decidedly mixed.
While some of the tracks are darker in tone — especially “Patient Zero,” which seems to chronicle Taylor’s escape from a toxic relationship — most are cheerier, in keeping with the overall vibe of the Showgirl album.
The most talked-about song by a wide margin is “Cleveland!,” Taylor’s ode to her marriage to Travis Kelce.
“The taste of me is acquired, but it’s his favorite dish / He says I look like an angel, they say, ‘I hate that bitch’ / There, that house with the porch is where he lived as a kid,” Tay sings on the track.
“He’s been saying forever, must not have read / That scathin’ take ‘bout how I’m fake / And he could find someone younger,” she continues. “I can see what they mean / And now I guess there’s somethin’ we all can agree on / But my baby likes what he likes.”
The song features a bit of uncharacteristic self-deprecation with Swift declaring that Kelce is the one person who doesn’t find her “completely insufferable.”
“You only need to find one person in this entire world who doesn’t find you completely insufferable, and I have an important announcement to make, I found mine,” she sings.
It’s a bit of an odd remark coming from the world’s most famous person, and it’s not the only line that’s struck a sour note with some listeners.
“None of Taylor’s songs for Travis really feel genuine, right? It just seems like forced effort, like she’s writing in a way that NEEDS TO PROVE she’s in love and not about the actual feeling of being in love itself,” wrote one user on X (formerly Twitter).
“Cleveland is an amazing example of Taylor Swift being at her worst when she pretends that she doesn’t care about her criticism. She obviously does, and the tension of trying to be wildly beloved is what drives a lot of her best songs,” another added.
“Cleveland! is the most embarrassing song released by any pop star in history and probably any musician if we’re being honest. Jesus Christ lol,” a third chimed in.
You get the idea. Naturally, there were a whole lot of people who loved the track — this is still Taylor Swift we’re talking about — but saying it’s not her most well-received work would be putting it mildly.
But maybe at this stage in her life, Taylor is so content that she’s no longer bothered by the criticism.
