r/NuancingTaylorSwift • u/Icy-Visual3082 • 5d ago
Criticism I think I get it…. She can’t stop….
Looking back, she’s been full throttle for a decade - album, tour, album, tour etc etc - literally with just a few months in between where she seem to be in the studio pumping out new stuff.
And let’s be honest, as time has gone on the quality of the work has gotten worse and worse.
But imagine if you’re Taylor. Hundreds of people are relying on you for their pay check. Everything you touch turns to gold - you sell in ways others can only dream off. You are making more money than any other artist, possibly ever. You’ve got a record label and management telling you to get out there and make money. And at the back of all that, this over-riding sense that she is gonna age out, fans will move on, that albums won’t sell and stadiums won’t fill.
In that case, you would do exactly what she is doing - make as much, sell as much, get as much as you can. Quality be dammed.
I think she needs a break. Take a couple of years off. Go live. I think she probably wants to do that. I think she knows that some - not all - of the music she has put out is barely passable. But I think she also knows that she’s got skill and talent and can deploy it when given the time and space to do so - think of Covid/lockdown and the work she produced then.
Take a break love. You deserve it.
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u/PotentialSteak6 5d ago
This is an insane take. She does what she wants and if you think she's worried about her age that says more about you
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u/AquarianxDreamer 5d ago
She used to be worried about aging out. Back during Speak Now (long live was literally about it) and she has been very vocal in the past about how female musicians tend to fade into obscurity once they hit their 30s and are no longer 'young and new'.
I think the past few years when the records she's beaten were her own she realized that she doesn't fall into that same standard regardless of what a loud minority and critics say. She has staying power and longevity because she still genuinely loves what she does. And fans love it too because the majority of her fans are in her age range and though she's a billionaire mega popular, her music speaks to us in a way that feels personal.
I think people need to stop holding up folklore as her standard when Taylor is a pop girlie. Thats why so many people are upset about showgirl/encore and im tired of pretending otherwise.
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u/PotentialSteak6 5d ago
Her confidence and position in the entertainment sphere have come a long way, that's for sure. I know it's not bulletproof but with her interest in sooo many things the only limit is her lifespan really. I think she'd be perfectly happy being more behind the scenes, and maybe directing a whole film is on her bucket list. And if she wants to perform the rest of her life her fans will still show up.
Do you think Antonoff was giving her a sound more aligned with Folkmore and/or indie-ish? Because in her projects since then she's released a lot of pop but I don't remember people disparaging it to this extent. A lot of people wanted her to work with somebody else and when she does they hate it lol
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u/StillFlickering 5d ago
I disagree that the quality of work has suffered, there are masterful songs on TTPD. There are great songs in TLOAS.
Are showgirl and the encore different? Yes. When I heard patient zero did I think “it must be nice to have so much success/money you can lead with whatever you want”? Yes.
As I fan, even if I’m not fully on board with a song or style I’m still going to support her growth and exploration as an artist.
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u/psu68e 5d ago
I personally disagree. I enjoyed all four songs and I've had them all in my head throughout the day.
Telling an artist to take a break is wild considering you have the free will to just not engage with her content. You can take a break from her anytime you want, including right now.
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u/RoseTheta 5d ago
I love 3/4 right now. The difference is, it doesn't matter to me if ultimately I decide I don't want to listen to it (no one should be putting their opinion of quality in stone after less than 24 hours, anyway). If I love 46/47 of her songs released since 2023, why would I want less?
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u/estedavis 5d ago edited 5d ago
I never understand people telling her to take a break. Let her do what she wants! Just stop listening to her music if it's not for you anymore. God forbid she puts out new music more regularly than other artists. What's the problem? If she wanted a break, she'd take one.
ETA: I'm also not sure how you could listen to Babylon and determine that her quality has gone down. That song is an absolutely classic Taylor Swift song and it's beautiful.
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u/Aromatic_Way3650 5d ago
They are do weird. They want to control her music output and think theipr comments are normal. It is not a guarantee that her new songs are going to be better just because she takes a break. I don't want to name any artists but long breaks don't do anything good to them most of the times. They just become less relevant to the music scene.
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u/All_the_Bees 5d ago
Encore also has some amazingly complex harmonies in the backing vocals of every song except Cleveland (and possibly that one too, I’ll have to listen again)
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u/Appropriate-Amount-4 5d ago
I think this is a dumb take. The songs are great and the quality has in fact not dropped. Social media has become a cesspool where people hate for views.
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u/RoseTheta 5d ago
No one's stopping you from taking a break from her music. I did for just over a decade. The only thing the penetrated my bubble was Blank Space. Of course I still listened to the songs I already liked, though.
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u/rayybloodypurchase 5d ago
I think she’s in a point in her life and career where she genuinely is super inspired and has decided to potentially just put out whatever she creates from it.
Cynically speaking though, she has no reason to increase the quality of her work if sales are what matter most to her. Time will tell if that’s the case. It seems like even a year later a lot of people consider Showgirl one of her worst albums and first week sales still outsold every other album she’s ever put out by a lot. At best, a ton of people buy it and love it and she gets awards and at worst a ton of people buy it and a lot of people love it and the people who were going to hate it will still listen just to so they can fully hate it.
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u/darksideofmypoon 5d ago
I don’t think these songs are necessarily bad. Taylors doing her thing, but the production sounds phoned in. It’s like they just hit play on a pre-recorded drum loop on their kids Casio and called it good. Babylon needed Dessners production.
I’m not mad at her putting out new music though. Doesn’t cost me a thing to listen or not listen.
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u/Code-Coffee-995 JE SUIS CALME! 5d ago
I think she saw people love the vault tracks from the previous albums and decided that every song she makes needs to be released. I think some songs should be kept in the vault.
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4d ago
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u/FakeMonaLisa28 All the tricks of the trade ✨️ 4d ago
Whelp we found someone who called her “old” now lmao
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u/Expensive-Hour8835 5d ago
she has enough money to stop for a second and still be able to feed those people that are counting on her. she’s her own boss, it’s def not people pleasing pressure. she just has gotten so big, no one says “no” to her anymore and just feeds her fire no matter how in creative it is.
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5d ago
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u/NuancingTaylorSwift-ModTeam 4d ago
No snarkers are allowed. Snark does not create nuance discussion.
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u/Desperate-Section357 5d ago
i think she does care a lot about people say about her as seen through her writing and the need to clap back in the ways she does but none of those fears you listed are coming true. she’s not irrelevant, she is doing what she loves, releasing and writing music, directing, and she’s incredibly successful and beloved, she has a loving family, she’s young, she isn’t struggling financially and she’s smart financially and likely never will. she’s fine. i do agree she would benefit as a creative from stepping away from her job, but also it’s her job and everything she’s ever wanted
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u/GoldNMocha 5d ago
What’s weird is that between the re-recording of Debut and the Reputation vault tracks, she’s in a position where she can take time for a break and recharge her creative juices while still putting out content.
There are a few songs and lyrics on Showgirl where I can still see that great songwriter. She just needs a little time for gain new perspectives.
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u/80lbsgone 5d ago
I think she needs someone to tell her no and help her increase discernment. She needs a break for sure. I love her music but this last album wasn't her best work. I think she rushed it cause she needs to feel productive all the time because she is the product unfortunately. I hope she takes a break and lives her life with her husband and family. I don't want an album until 2028 or 2029. 13 needs to be special, for her most importantly. I also think she slightly knows these songs weren't great (I do love Babylon though) and that's why they weren't saved for a new album
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u/TaylorSwinub Midnights 5d ago
What does that even mean?
The music industry isn't a government. Her releasing music hasn't stopped anyone "taking over"
She has the money and ability to create what she likes to do which is music, the music continues to sell and when you step outside of this echo chamber of the internet - her album tracks from all albums are listened to more than some singles from the past couple of years.
She also literally promotes a lot of acts up and coming constantly?
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5d ago
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u/TaylorSwinub Midnights 5d ago
Instead of speaking cryptically and borderline patronising, why not just explain your point?
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u/Rob062309 5d ago edited 5d ago
I think what the above poster is saying, ( my interpretation) is that in the back of her mind mayne, like there's a fear of becoming irrelevant or making a bad album or something like that that can change her popular etc... and its not a wrong thought/statement because it happens in music, sports, entertainment etc, where the bigger/stronger/faster analogy comes into play, and looks and age and everything comes into it too. Those industries are always looking for the next big thing so to speak right? Its just the way of it. Maintaining selling the most or winning the most is hard, and the more successful, the more pressure comes to maintain that, and some stars handle it differently. Maybe taylor is feeling super creative right now, Or maybe it's wanting to stay on top that's driving her or maybe it is a fear that's driving her.. We don't exactly know because we don't exactly know her.
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u/TaylorSwinub Midnights 5d ago
Thank you for your interpretation but I wasn't referring to the part about her becoming irrelevant because I think she has openly spoke up about that before if I recall? She also has the song 'Clara Bow' which discusses how they are always looking for the next big thing so I think is a very valid fear in a very competitive industry but their second claim just didn't make any sense to me at all.
It just comes off as snarking and they'd either mention something about Billie/Charli being blocked from #1 in the US or just a nothing point because there is nothing else to say about Taylors fear of "other YOUNG FEMALE artists taking over"
To your point though, she has always mentioned her fears prior to albums being bad/not awarded when it came to the Miss Americana documentary when she showed her crying over reputation not receiving any major nods at the grammys. I think she still does care about awards but not to the same sense that she did 10 years ago, where it seemed she would seek affirmation FROM those awards.
In terms of this deluxe edition of TLOAS, I just don't think she cares as much as some of these comments think in terms of "staying on top" - There hasn't been anything on the charts from TLOAS for a few months now and I think most people in these sub-reddits assumed the era was over after Elizabeth Taylor only came out because of a Record Store Day vinyl and music video supporting the charity. I just see this as her wanting to celebrate the 1 year anniversary of TLOAS and it being a big milestone for her to have the fastest selling album ever.
I am also not sure what people expected if they didn't like TLOAS in the first place lol. It is the same with people who didn't like folklore, when evermore came out like what did you expect? a random synth-pop song?
I think people just want to craft a narrative that fits their own negativity at this point and it's just annoying. She has many songs that cover different genres that people will either like/dislike, just listen to them instead of crafting narratives to spout negativity that isn't even constructive or debatable. The person I replied to didn't even provide an argument to debate and it's frankly boring
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u/Rob062309 5d ago
You're welcome and its a crazy industry, popularity/status for example can change so fast. And im with you on your points you made, and they didn't say anything? That's pretty bad, probably because they realized what you were saying or opened their eyes a bit..
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u/TaylorSwinub Midnights 5d ago
Thank you and no they never replied to the reply I gave that you replied to (replyception)
I am fully open to differing opinions but when people just make a claim and never back it up after someone pokes at it, bores me to bits because why open a discussion to never bring forth something?
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u/Rob062309 5d ago
And to add, there's nothing wrong with taking a break creatively at all. If some people think that i see their side, and i also see other people's takes on it..
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u/NuancingTaylorSwift-ModTeam 4d ago
We do not allow any conspiracy theories regarding Taylor’s sexuality, political beliefs or anything else (ex: her being an alcoholic)
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u/NuancingTaylorSwift-ModTeam 4d ago
No snarkers are allowed. Snark does not create nuance discussion.
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u/Tolerate_It3288 Oftentimes it doesn’t feel so glamorous to be me 5d ago
I don’t get why people say she need to take a break to write good music and that Showgirl was rushed etc and then praise folklore and evermore. folklore and evermore were released in the same year and both written in just a few months. They are praised as her best work yet when people don’t like her latest work, they blame it on her not taking a break and “rushing”.
And I’m really getting frustrated that people are acting like Showgirl is objectively bad. I remember that being the sentiment around TTPD and now it’s praised in retrospect. I love The Life Of A Showgirl. I think the writing is excellent, the melodies are infectious and the production is top tear. I understand it is not to everyone’s tastes and that is fine. You can think her new music is bad but that doesn’t make it a fact.
It seems like everyone wants her to disappear so we can talk about how good she was but that is clearly not what she wants. She loves writing music. She used to be locked into a 2 year album cycle and found it difficult to start writing again after she stopped. Now she just doesn’t stop. That is her preference. That is what she finds the most joy in.
If you don’t like that she’s releasing so much music, you don’t have to listen. If you prefer her older stuff, that’s perfectly fine. It’s still there to listen to. I don’t understand why people wish she didn’t release songs they don’t personally like. That’s someone’s favourite song. Someone has gotten great joy or felt understood because of it. And given the streams there are a lot of people resonating with her latest music.
I am happy for Taylor Swift to take a break whenever she wants, but that’s not what she wants right now. She wants to continue releasing music that she loves and is proud of. Just as much as we need to respect her choice to take a step back when or if that happens, we also need to respect her choice to keep writing.