This weekend, I rewatched one of my favorite movies, Heretic (2024), with my friends. Because of how phenomenal I find the film, I think everyone should watch Heretic at least once in their lives. We broke out the popcorn and got cozy in the living room of my friend’s NCA to watch one of the most important pieces of media I’ve ever consumed. All of my friends loved it, which I expected, except for one. We discussed what she didn’t like about it, and despite my profound love for the film and believing it was the best thing to come out of 2024, I still respected her opinion.
This weekend, Taylor Swift — one of the greatest musical icons of our time — released a new album, The Life of a Showgirl. Something must’ve been in the air when she first announced the release of the album because, even as a Swiftie, I strangely couldn’t bring myself to care. Still, I thought back to three-year-old me, thrilled, dancing, and listening to Taylor Swift during her Fearless era, and mustered up the motivation to listen to the album.Â
At first, I didn’t like The Life of a Showgirl. I assumed the album would simply have to grow on me after a few listens. I shared my initial (both negative and positive) thoughts with fellow-Swiftie friends. I stayed off social media so my views wouldn’t be tainted by unnecessary hate or overcompensating praise. I let myself block out external biases to try and form my own opinion, which can be hard nowadays when everyone is persistently shoving their thoughts down everyone’s throats.
However, in a world like this one, I couldn’t avoid the haters for long. By noon on Friday, I was subjected to an angry girl in the dining hall talking about how much hate she had for The Life of a Showgirl. She went on to say how Taylor Swift hasn’t released any good music in the last 10 years, she hit her peak a long time ago, and there was nowhere for her to go but down. The best part of everything she said was when her lunch partner asked for more details on particular critiques about the album. She said, “I didn’t listen to it, but…”
Shortly after that, I stopped listening to her rant. I decided her opinion ceased to be valid once she expressed that all of her strong anti-Taylor sentiments were derived from other people’s opinions on the internet. Though it’s hard to be original nowadays, how hard is it to think for yourself?
After that point, I decided I would need to see how reasonable all the negativity online was compared to my generally positive ideas of Taylor Swift and her music. After a few more listens, where I sat and really absorbed the lyrics and sounds of the individual tracks, I came around. This album certainly isn’t my favorite, but I feel like it contains a few gems. I think with any art, one can acknowledge that there are both valid negative and positive opinions within the discourse surrounding the piece. No piece is all good or all bad, and one must respect the nuance, even if one does not agree with the opposite side.
Despite my personal appreciation for the album, I acknowledge that some people percieved her references to Gen-Z slang as cringy, which I agree with. I can acknowledge that these tracks didn’t hold the same artistry and lyricism as tracks from Folklore and Evermore. I can acknowledge that Taylor Swift is a singer-songwriter who has dedicated her entire life to music and performance and her fans, and no matter what I or other people think of her, there is unarguable value in her commitment.Â
The kind of hate that this album is receiving is the same kind of hate that 1989 received when it first came out. Then, Taylor Swift released Reputation, and everyone decided to jump off the hate train and onto the bandwagon. As someone who has been here for the long haul, I’m starting to realize that the problem isn’t Taylor Swift or her lyrics or her sound. The problem is people and their inability to respect the nuance of opinion.Â
Pop’s genericism leads many to criticize it unjustly. But pop’s popularity must mean something for its cultural value. Many songs in the genre sound the same and are praised solely for their catchiness, which is exactly the point of the genre in my opinion. Some people like basic genres and are allowed to. People dislike basic genres, and they are allowed to. Both criticism and celebration of pop are valid in their own right, and the genre’s allure perhaps lies within its polarizing quality.Â
Everything is so subjective. For example, what I value in art is different from what others value. I value lyricism and storytelling in songs without caring much about sound, but appreciating a good beat, while others may prefer good sound over good lyrics.
Many hate simply for the purpose of being negative. If you have a non-favorable take, you’re allowed to think that way, but sometimes it gets to be simply unnecessary and unhelpful. This TikTok featuring a Kenyon classic film, Liberal Arts, puts it perfectly.
I personally believe that the issue arises when people do not allow others to have their opinions in peace. Nobody is the arbiter of what art can be deemed “good” or “bad.” All we can acknowledge is that certain people like certain pieces while others dislike them. If someone wants to die on the hill that Taylor Swift has never made a bad song, that is their prerogative. If someone wants to die on the hill that says Taylor Swift songs are all terrible, they can do that. Opinions become invalid when they try to invalidate the opinions of others.