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On Sept. 25, Taylor Swift released “The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore”, nearly a year after the original album’s release. “The Encore” adds four tracks to the original twelve on Showgirl, called “Patient Zero”, “Cleveland”, “Pink Clouding”, and “Babylon”.
In the album, Taylor reflects on her life, what she’s done as a pop star, and the industry — the life of a showgirl, if you will.
“Patient Zero” is the lead single of the extended tracks. The violin chord progression in the opening and throughout the song is similar to that of “Wait for Me” from Hadestown and “Gone Gone Gone” by Phillip Phillips — both tales of doomed love that was lost.
The lyrics tell a story of bonding and having therapeutic conversations with people who have dated your ex. The term “patient zero” is about being the first girlfriend, and as the song goes on, warning the new partner about being with someone bad for them.
The “Patient Zero” music video was released after Taylor Swift won Video of the Year and the Artist Director Honors award. The music video features Taylor opposite Dakota Fanning and Colin Farrell, bonding with Fanning’s character in a troubled relationship.
It is incredibly cinematic and well-done, with a plot twist that can only be seen to be believed and tons of easter eggs for the Swifties who want to go on a hunt for them. For example: the grave stone at the end that shows the dates 1986 – 2022. Taylor’s birthday is 1989…so what could 1986 be??
“Cleveland” features a tune reminiscent of the intro of “The Office”. This song has been seen as cringey by a portion of the fanbase, but it’s important to remember that girly-pop lovey dovey songs were Taylor’s brand before 2020.
Taylor has been singing love songs for her 20 year career, and she finally found the ‘love of her life’.The song contains commentary on how the internet perceives Taylor versus how Travis does.
Travis loves Taylor fully, both as a person and a pop star, when many of her exes seemingly only loved her as a pop star or as a person singularly. The lyric “Now I’m wearing white, so hate all you like!” also references their wedding in July.
“Pink Clouding” has a sound similar to “Lover” and “Midnights,” telling the story of a lover that deserved an apology. The title’s definition is about a temporary euphoric state in early addiction recovery before the realities of recovery set in, similar to the rush of a getaway car.
The lyric “Gray rocking where the arrow hit” could reference cupid’s arrow hitting when Taylor separated herself from emotional entanglement. This person still haunts Taylor (‘and I swear to god to this day I wake up scared that I left scars on a good person’) because she was in a bad place and was just trying to survive it (‘you met me at a cursed time and I told you I was fine’).
“Pink Clouding” also has the second spoken word section to pop up in the Encore. She states ‘I hope you’re so happy now’ despite what she did (which she owns up to in the song). Taylor, having found her happiness, hopes her ex-love finds happiness too.
Many Swifties also theorize this song to be about Tom Hiddleston, who many also think her track “Getaway Car” is about.
“Babylon” has a folksy guitar sound, and tells the story of a place or relationship you didn’t realize was the best thing you had until you lost it. The lyrics discuss harming oneself by what they have never being enough, even when it’s a family at home.
The storytelling is similar to that of “the last great american dynasty”, with the title referring to a glorious city that fell in pop culture. Swifties theorize this song to be regarding her parent’s divorce, tackling their complex dynamic.
The Encore has received a lot of the hate Showgirl received initially, with people wanting Taylor to go back to the more lyrically-driven, somber vibe of albums like TTPD or Evermore. However, Taylor’s musical diversity is a hallmark of her catalogue, and seeing her writing songs that are less somber is a healing thing. Not everyone will agree on these new songs, but baby, that’s show business for you!
