On August 13th, Taylor Swift had many Swifties venture where they thought they would never go, and that was to a man’s podcast. Yes, Taylor Swift is on the podcast New Heights, which is co-hosted by her boyfriend, Travis Kelce, and his older brother Jason Kelce. To which she revealed her upcoming new album, The Life of a Showgirl, along with the tracklist for all 12 songs that accompany it. And yes, you can best believe being the Swiftie I am, I deep dived into all of the easter eggs she left on the podcast.
- The Fate of Ophelia
The first track on her twelve-track album, without a doubt, will set the tone for the album’s lyrical content. Being a Shakespeare girly myself, I am just screaming at how excited I am for this particular track because the easter eggs are endless. First, we can’t talk about this track without mentioning Hamlet by Shakesphere (because, of course, this is Taylor Swift after all). In the play, the main character, Ophelia, ends up drowning herself in the river while picking flowers because her lover killed her father. The Life of a Showgirl album cover shows Taylor lying in a pool of water, referencing Hamlet, which she mentioned briefly on the podcast. Not only that, but when Taylor finishes her acoustic set, she would then dive into the water and enter her midnights era. Talk about hinting at something since April 2023, when she started her Eras Tour?!
- Elizabeth Taylor
The second track title comes as no surprise because Taylor has mentioned the actress and activist Elizabeth Taylor in her album Reputation. In her song Ready For It? Taylor says, “And he can be my jailer, Burton to this Taylor.” Burton was one of Elizabeth Taylor’s husbands. This track follows a similar track on Swift’s other album, The Tourted Poets Department, with one of her tracks being titled, Clara Bow. Alluding to this track being a similar life comparison to Elizabeth Taylor and Swift, however, the reason why Elizabeth Taylor is mentioned not just by Taylor herself but also by other celebrities is because of how many of husbands she had. Eight to be exact (let a girl live).
- Opalite
For those who aren’t caught up with their gems and meanings, don’t worry, we’ve got you for this track. Opalite is a gem similar to an opal, which we know Swift loves, because in her song, ivy, off of her Evermore album, Swift mentions “opal eyes.” Also, opalite means new beginnings and a sense of rebirth, which she definitely could be alluding to in her relationship with Travis Kelce, and this album being a complete 360 from her last album, TTPD. And at one of Travis’s football games, Swift was seen wearing opalite earrings…
- Father Figure
This is for the girls with father issues (send help). But, in all serious issues, this track could allude to Swift looking up to someone whom she looked up to in a figurative way. Many people have assumed this track could be about how her last manager sold her master’s, and she was deeply hurt by it because she looked up to them in a father figure way.
- Eldest Daughter
Track five. Also known as Swift’s most personal and brutal track, and with a title like Eldest Daughter, I am positive this is going to be heartbreaking. This track could be anything about the struggles of being an eldest daughter and all of the responsibilities that come along with it. And you best believe I am going to have my tissues ready.
- Ruin The Friendship
This track could be a cute friendship-to-lovers moment, or this could be the most gut-wrenching song we have ever heard. An easter egg for this track is that it could be about her being friends with Matty Healy and how their friendship ended after dating, but I think that is sooo Tortured Poets core that I think Swift might be talking about Blake Lively and the famous scandal that happened in court for the drama of the movie It Ends With Us. For context, Lively threatened to use Taylor’s popularity to end Justin Baldoni’s career. And let’s say Taylor did not appreciate that one bit.
- Actually Romantic
Do I smell a love song? It surely alludes to it. This track title could be about Swift’s boyfriend, Travis Kelce, being more than just a football player. In the New Heights podcast, Swift mentioned something about not being too sure what Travis’s intentions were. This song could allude to Travis being a huge teddy bear and over the moon in love with her.
- Wi$h Li$t
In the New Heights podcast, Swift made sure to point out that there were money signs in the track title. The easter egg for this could be Swift having enough money because of the Eras Tour to purchase her original six albums and own all of her discography again. Which is bittersweet because that means anyone who was a part of that in any way helped Swift buy her masters.
- Wood
Yes, you read that correctly, just Wood. It’s important to point out that in the Eras Tour book that Swift put out, she had an orange microphone labeled wood, which was used for her evermore set. And her album, evermore, happens to be her 9th studio album. So this song alludes to that album. Which Swifties have dubbed it being Swift’s least favorite album, despite Swift mentioning how much she loves this album.
- CANCELLED!
The all-caps track title 10 can’t be missed. Kelce mentioned in the podcast that Swift said that this song is a favorite. This could be about their relationship, or it could be about Swift being cancelled, especially when it comes to men who can’t stand to see Swift on their football screens (like, get over it).
- Honey
This track is sure to be a sweet lover track because Kelce has called Swift “honey” in the past when talking about her. If we were to go the Shakespeare route, in the play Hamlet, honey is used deceitfully between Ophiella and her lover. Honey showcases someone’s actions not aligning with their words. This could allude to several things about some of Swift’s past lovers and friendships.
- The Life of a Showgirl ft. Sabrina Carpterner
If you heard me screaming, it’s because I am. My two favorite blondes are going to be in a song together. Dare I say this might be the single? The easter eggs for this one track are endless. First, Taylor is ending her album with the title track, which means this song could be about her final night of the Eras Tour and how it has come to an end. Another easter egg is Sabrina Carpenter’s Grammys performance and Carpenter wearing a very showgirl outfit. Whatever the easter eggs may be, if there is one thing Sabrina and Taylor have in common, it’s having to perform for millions of fans and how hard the expectations are for their performances.
No matter what the easter eggs are for this album, you best believe us Swifites will be taking notes, reading Shakesphere, and just can’t wait for the days until “The Life of a Showgirl” comes out on October 3rd.