“This sucks so bad”: Even diehard Swifties are panning “The Life of a Showgirl” as “mediocre” and “lifeless”

Taylor Swift released her latest album The Life of a Showgirl to some of the worst online reviews she’s ever faced—even from diehard Swifties. Early Friday, post after post panned it as “underwhelming” and “lifeless,” with some saying it feels rushed and should have remained as a concept.

Swifties are calling “The Life of a Showgirl” a flop

Fans have been eagerly awaiting Swift’s twelfth studio album since she announced it in August. She did warn that it would be a stark contrast from her previous album, The Tortured Poets Department, with more lively beats and less grim lyrics. She worked on it during her 2024 Eras tour, but perhaps should have given it more time and attention.

Regardless, the singer expressed pride in her latest album in a launch day Instagram post.

“I can’t tell you how proud I am to share this with you, an album that just feels so right,” she wrote. “A forever thank you goes out to my mentors and friends Max and Shellback for helping me paint this self portrait.”

“If you thought the big show was wild, perhaps you should come and take a look behind the curtain…”

Swift typically releases an album about every two years, with some exceptions. All of them have done well with the vast majority of Swifties, even if official critics offered mixed reviews. Said critics certainly did with The Life of a Showgirl, but The Tortured Poets Department got a similar treatment while still earning a mostly positive reception among fans.

This time is different.

“This is the worst album of the decade”

On X, a shocking number of Swifties, some of whom admitted to always defending her, expressed disappointment in The Life of a Showgirl. Many apologized to their queen while giving their honest opinions.

User @siciiily revealed that for the “first time in the 18 years of being a fan …. i didn’t like a single song on the album (never knew i’d experience this in my lifetime),” adding, “underwhelming songwriting, production bland.”

“The most frustrating thing about taylor swift is she refuses to do music that brings out her best qualities as an artist and challenges her,” wrote @aantlerqueen. “She’s not hungry anymore. she knows how to make so. much. money off her fans now and it is by mass producing sh*t. i hate it as a fan.”

Meanwhile, @tscarletmaroon called it “genuinely her worst album and I’m saying this as someone who’s been a fan for over a decade.”

After listening to it for the first time, @olwestside said it was “definitely the last, this is the worst album of the decade.”

User @Baileymoon15 wrote that “this album is a** i’m so sorry i’ve been defending her for so long but this sucks so bad i’m really sorry this sucks a lot.”

“[T]he entire album is a chop, it’s not giving SHOWGIRL at all, the music is so lifeless, the lyrics, the production, the vocal performance, everything about this album is mediocre, I’m sorry @taylorswift13 you can do better than this,” said @tscarletmaroon.

One Swiftie, @cowboylikemichi, did find an upside, joking that “at least I can give an answer now when someone asks me what my least favorite taylor swift album is.”

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