Album Review: Reputation by Taylor Swift

When you hear the name Taylor Swift, you would typically think cute blonde teen, who sings about loving life and dancing. So, when I heard that the Taylor Swift who sang Love Story on her ‘Fearless’ album in 2008 was history, I didn’t quite believe it. Until I listened to her artistic pop masterpiece album ‘Reputation’ which dropped for us yesterday.

The passion and anger within Taylor Swift are obvious throughout this album, the songs seem to carry a strong message to those who have disparaged her. It is not unknown that Taylor Swift has been on the receiving end of criticism for almost her whole career. ’Look What You Made Me Do’ is a clear warning to her haters in the lyrics “honey, I rose up from the dead, I do it all the time” she is back and we should be scared.

There is a new found sense of sexiness and dominance within the Reputation album Taylor has never portrayed before, especially on ‘I Did Something Bad’ and “Ready for It’ making us question if we really know the real Taylor? Is she so sweet and innocent after all? We hear a more emotional and deeper side to the 27-year-old pop singer on songs like ‘Delicate’ where we hear her reflect on the struggles with both her celebrity life. Of course, Taylor sang about her personal life too, about love, heartbreak and moving on as she passionately explains “I made up my mind, I’m better off being alone” in ‘King of My Heart.’

Reputation features big names like Ed Sheeran and Future on the fresh hip-hop track ‘End Game’ not only does this song tie the whole album together as it heavily refers to the title of the album ‘reputation’, but it seems this song it directed at a certain love interest. The post chorus we hear “ooh, you and me we got big reputations” and “oh, you like the bad ones, too” this new bad girl, dominant persona Taylor has created for herself seems quite fitting to these lyrics , and it seems she is now the perfect type of girl for whoever she is singing about.

Over all this album is filled with a lot of emotional energy, when you listen to the album as a whole you go through a journey with Taylor, you feel her pain, anger and passion - she will not be defeated by anyone or anything. This album expresses how Taylor struggles sometimes, as we all do. The way she has risen above this and become this new sexy, independent icon will inspire women all over the world. I think this album is a genuine piece of art Taylor has put her blood sweat and tears into; it’s something to be remembered just like her-self transition.