Released in October 2025 as her twelfth studio album, Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl serves as a high-glamour pop exploration of her persona during the record-breaking Eras Tour. Swift wrote and produced the record alongside long-time collaborators Max Martin and Shellback, marking a return to the polished sonic energy of her 1989 and Reputation eras.

Enough time has passed. I’ve finished a song review for each individual track. I can now rank them in order of preference.

Note: My feelings are updated as of March 2026. They are subject to change.

12 – Eldest Daughter

Out of all of Taylor Swift’s “Track 5” songs, this is my least favorite.

I think she is clever at picking a specific topic, like being an “eldest daughter”, to explain a feeling. However, that is the only part I like.

The lyrics aren’t as good as her past songs. She used too much internet slang and forgot to make the writing poetic or smart. Because the production is simple and quiet, it makes the weak lyrics stand out even more. Also, based on what I know about Taylor’s life (which I know are limited), her problems don’t really feel like the struggles of an eldest daughter.

11 – Wi$h Li$t

Taylor has every right to do what she wants, and I’m happy she finally found her happy ending. I like the romantic sentiment of the song. However, I think her songwriting was much stronger in the past, especially on her albums Folklore and Evermore.

Some of her choices, like the trap beats, the way she wrote the song title, and the vocal stutters, make her sound very confident (and also an appreciated experiment). She even talks about being a boss. But her lyrics still sound fragile and insecure. For me, these two contrasting choices just don’t mesh well together.

10 – CANCELLED!

I genuinly admire how Taylor stands by her friends, especially since her own reputation was treated so badly in the past. Even though people are currently divided on Blake Lively, Taylor doesn’t seem to care what the public thinks. And I respect that.

Her music has always been about her specific life. Even if I don’t live exactly like her, I could always relate to her sentiments. However, this time, singing about being “cloaked in Gucci” felt a bit much for me. Maybe this song just wasn’t made for someone like me.

9 – Elizabeth Taylor

I still don’t know much about Elizabeth Taylor, but I learned a tiny bit about her life from Taylor Swift’s song. Taylor has used old stories like this before, but I can’t really relate to this specific person. And I didn’t feel that way about all the other characters she’s referenced in the past.

I’m not sure if the dramatic production is good or bad for the song. There are parts where the music almost stops and then suddenly gets very loud and explodes. I find myself focusing on the production, which I’m not completely sold on, instead of listening to her storytelling.

8 – The Life of a Showgirl featuring Sabrina Carpenter

Taylor Swift often writes about the difficult side of being famous. When I heard “The Life of a Showgirl”, I had high expectations because she has written great songs about this topic before, like “Clara Bow” or “The Lucky One”.

The music had some great ideas. I liked the sounds of the crowd stomping and clapping, the bridge that sounds like musical theatre, and the Eras Tour spoken word segment. The problem for me was the utilisation of Sabrina’s talent. Sabrina sounded restrained and less like herself. She is definitely a showgirl, but I think her personality and sound would have fit better on a song like “Wood”.

7 – Actually Romantic

Taylor is very familiar with being petty and wanting revenge. Some people think her reactions are too much because she is the world’s biggest superstar, but I actually stan her for it. I especially like how vicious and scathing her insults can be.

I think since none of us know the true details of their private lives. Hence, they should be allowed to write whatever they want in their own music. Charli shared her feelings in “Sympathy is a Knife”, and Taylor did the same in “Actually Romantic”. All of this angst is part of art.

6 – Wood

Taylor is an adult and she can sing about whatever she wants. If she wants to sing about her boyfriend’s manhood, she has the right to do that. However, it was a little too much for my taste, maybe 20% more than I wanted to hear!

The music sounds perfect. I love the song “I Want You Back” by The Jackson 5. I think the way she used those similar sounds was inspired, not lazy. If she wanted to make a maximalist song, using that style was the best choice possible.

5 – Honey

One of Taylor’s biggest strengths is that her songs feel different every time you listen to them. Usually, I find small details that I missed the first time. The song “Honey” is the perfect example. I didn’t care for it at first, but now I like it more and more every time I hear it.

Another thing she does well is taking a common phrase and changing its meaning. This time, she writes about how people use sweet-sounding words in a fake way to be mean or sarcastic. She shows us what is actually happening behind those kind words when used by others, and how Travis brought back their original meaning.

4 – Ruin the Friendship

“Ruin the Friendship” feels like a short story that a famous author like Nicholas Sparks would write. But Taylor is the only one who can fit that whole story into just one song.

My only problem with the song is that the music sounds a bit dated. It sounds like it belongs on her album Speak Now from more than a decade ago. In isolation, it’s probably her best storytelling on the album.

3 – Father Figure

Some people say the lyrics in the album The Life of a Showgirl aren’t her best, and I might agree. But “Father Figure” is proof that her songwriting, in some aspects, is actually getting even better.

She has written about how men can have too much power over women, but “Father Figure” tells that story better than any of her other songs. She says she was inspired by the show Succession and I see it.

I also love how she interpolated the famous George Michael song. It helped me and many other people rediscover his music. She made a new classic by respecting the old one, not by ruining it.

2 – The Fate of Ophelia

Taylor has not always been good at picking the best songs to release first. By choosing “‘The Fate of Ophelia” as the first song from her new album, she is making the right choice and trying to fix some of her past mistakes.

The song is based on a Shakespeare classic. But she also makes modern references that make the track feel current for today. She takes art from the past and turns them into something brand new.

The song is also full of catchy parts that stay in your head. I can’t stop listening to it! Before I get bored as the chorus concludes, she gets into another hook during the post-chorus, just to make sure all my attention is on her.

1 – Opalite

On my first listen to the album, “Opalite” stood out, and it became my instant favourite. Five months since, I still consider the song the best from The Life of a Showgirl.

“Opalite” proves that there are many things I can count on Taylor to deliver. She works hard in a lot of aspects of her life, including making her own happiness, and that is inspiring. She has a song for every mood I’m in, even for extreme glee and celebration. And she’s willing to invest, innovate, and take risks with the art she makes, even on music videos.