As someone who has been a Taylor Swift fan since the 2014 release of “1989,” I always look forward to listening to a new album for the first time. The Oct. 3 release of “The Life of a Showgirl,” Swift’s 12th studio album, was no different.

The album reunites Swift and former collaborators Max Martin and Shellback, producers of most of “1989” and “Reputation.” While the 12 tracks flow between different sounds, they never stray too far from the pop which has defined Swift for ten years.

Much to my dismay and disappointment, especially as a long-time fan, I haven’t fallen in love with the album — at least not yet. It’s fun and upbeat, but it lacks the lyrical depth of much of her past work.

As with every Swift album, there are lyrics that stand out as particularly poetic and meaningful, but there seem to be more misses than usual. The fifth track, “Eldest Daughter,” features Swift singing about how she isn’t “savage” and how trolling and being unbothered are popular now. Compared to songs on other albums referencing William Wordsworth and Shakespeare, it seems hollow.

On “Elizabeth Taylor,” she references the life and fame of the real life actress who is known for her Old Hollywood-style glamour, fashion and multiple failed marriages. Swift sings about Cartier diamonds and staying at the Plaza Athénée in Paris, obviously comparing herself to Elizabeth Taylor, who was known for wearing extravagant jewelry and living at the $1000-a-night hotel. 

But it seems out of touch with the lives of her fans who have more mundane jobs and are living through a stagnating economy and government shutdown. Swift seems more removed than ever from the girl-next-door brand that helped her rise to fame in the late 2000s and early 2010s.

The diss track “Actually Romantic,” which dismisses a woman who gossips about Swift as a “toy chihuahua barking at Swift from a tiny purse,” gained a big response online from fans and critics. The song is rumored to be about Charli XCX and her song “Sympathy is a Knife” from her 2024 album “brat.” 

Charli XCX and Swift have been moving in the same circles for a long time. Charli XCX’s husband is in the same band as one of Taylor’s ex-boyfriends and even opened for Swift on her 2018 tour, so it is possible there is more context to this story. But without that context, this song just seems like a brutal, unjustified punch down.

I think Swift delivers on some of her promises. “Opalite” is a fun and carefree track and makes me feel like I’m at a 70s themed party. “The Life of A Showgirl” calls back to songs like “Starlight” and “Clara Bow,” telling the story of a fictional performer inspiring Swift’s career. Others like “Ruin the Friendship” and “The Fate of Ophelia” are some of my favorites; they are breezy, fun and showcase Swift as a songwriter.

Many fans love the album and say that the pendulum of public opinion always swings violently following a new release from Swift. I don’t disagree. Soon, tempers will settle and there will be a clearer fan consensus.

Kristen Pengelly is a communications professor at DePaul University who is hosting a Taylor Swift-themed discussion on Oct. 14. Pengelly said Swift can capture the emotions felt by many heterosexual women in an artistic way that stands on its own merit.

“She isn’t coming out and overexplaining her art, which is smart because then people can adapt and interpret it the way they want,” Pengelly said.

Pengelly also thinks discussions about Swift can spark conversations about society and current events.

Ellie Goldberg is a junior theatre arts major at DePaul who became a Taylor Swift fan after being a longtime fan of the Kansas City Chiefs (Swift is engaged to the Chiefs’ tight end Travis Kelce). She likes the album because it reminds her of listening to Swift’s earlier work when she was younger.

“I feel like right now in the world, we need this pop princess energy of infectious joy,” Goldberg said.

The melodies in “The Life of A Showgirl” are undeniably infectious and joyful, and its lyrics leave an impression — for better or for worse. I don’t think the album is the greatest thing Taylor Swift has ever done, not by a long shot. But it is entertaining, even if it lacks the substance many expected and hoped for.

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