Look What You Made Her Do

Emily Reese Turner
Sep 7, 2018 · 4 min read

The old Taylor Swift is dead.

“All my flowers grew back as thorns.” — Taylor Swift “Call It What You Want” Photo Source embedded.

The stadium lights go pitch black. The 110 foot screens begin to glitch. On them appears a face all too familiar in Hollywood: Taylor Swift. The speakers litter the stadium with sound bites from media outlets trashing Swift. The speakers surround the audience with whispers of the star’s name and the word “reputation.” Suddenly an acapella excerpt from “…Ready For It” shouts “baby let the games begin.” The stadium quakes with over a hundred thousand screeching fans. The colossal screens part with white fog and beaming lights. Out comes Taylor Swift in a hooded, black, shimmering, snakeskin, one piece to stun the crowd and begin her stupendous show.


Taylor Swift: either loved or loathed. The pop star has faced her fair share of humiliation, mortification, and backlash. The media has partaken in ruining Swift’s image; painting her as a boy crazy, overly emotional, backstabbing, selfish nightmare. November of 2017, Swift released her most iconic album, Reputation. Taylor Swift turned the negative media frenzy into an empire. With clever lyrics of “big enemies,” a “big reputation,” and “all the drama queens taking swings” at her, the Reputation album reached 1.2 million sales in the first week of release. Those numbers made Swift’s album the best-selling album of 2017. The Reputation Stadium Tour has consisted of 30 foot cobras on three stages, alluding to Kim Kardashian West deeming Swift a “snake” on social media; snake merchandise, newspaper confetti with Swift’s name printed over and over again, symbolization of media drags, and millions of crazed fans praising Taylor Swift’s boldness on stage.

The Reputation album is sonically unique. Tracks consist of bass beats, synthesizers, and futuristic voice alterations; rather than Swift’s usual girly, upbeat, pretend-happy songs. Swift truly opens herself up to the world on this album, singing about darker times, loneliness, lost friendships, and mistakes she has made. When listening to Taylor Swift’s discography, you can see her powerful journey of growth, learning, breaking down, and building herself back up again.


“Anytime someone tells me that I can’t do something, I want to do it more.” — Swift Photo source: Getty Images.

Despite her downfall and media portrayal, Swift’s fans praise her to be one of the kindest, most impactful, inspirational human in their lives. Fans on all social medias openly admit that Swift saved their lives or helped them in desperate times. They describe her as a friend, someone who can make them feel loved even if they have not met her. The artist invites groups of fans to her houses for “secret sessions,” pre-release parties where she hangs out with her fans and plays the new album exclusively for them. Swift replies to fans on Tumblr with advice, playful interactions, song playlists, support, and love. Swift opens up to fans during tour speeches, speaking on the dark feelings the multiple years of constant hurtful comments brought her. She thanks her fans for allowing her to be a human being rather than an object of fame.

Swift is unapologetically herself. She has shed her former skin. She no longer cares about her “reputation.” The Reputation era has caught lots of attention. The media and critics have complimented her performances; saying they are “her finest yet.” This era has brought out a darker version of the Taylor Swift we all used to know. Swift has transformed from a fragile, love song singing, American sweetheart into a powerful woman making a stand for herself. As she states in her hit “Look What You Made Me Do,” the old Taylor is dead. Swift has proved to everyone that she is more than capable of “[rising] from the dead” and taking over the world of pop music.

With all eyes on her, Swift has broken the mold of being soft and feminine. Swift is no longer a slave to fear of backlash. She has practiced what she preaches and set an example for every single one of her fans. Through all of her dark times, she came out stronger and better than ever. On her record, she mentions that she is “doing better than [she] ever was.”

Taylor Swift has made one of the most iconic comebacks in music history. With her multitude of awards, including ten Grammys, she will remain a phenomenon in the music world forever. Taylor has pulled through and shown the world her perseverance. The Reputation Stadium Tour will go on until November; when she will seal the Reputation era with a kiss from a darker shade of her former staple: bright red lips.

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