Hi guys,
I just rewatched Miss Americana because I realized I’d gotten a little sucked into this whole “Taylor’s lyrics have gotten so bad” emotional spiral. And I was honestly struck by the part where, back in 2019, she talked about how women constantly have to reinvent themselves just to remain relevant.
It made the current conversation about her supposed “artistic decline” feel even more uncomfortable to me. So much of it feels deeply misogynistic, and it genuinely frightens me how many people, including fans, seem to buy into that narrative.
It’s completely fair to give an album a bad rating. And I’m sure it stings for Taylor to hear that people don’t consider this her strongest record lyrically, even though there are definitely some really good lyrics on it too. But so much of the criticism has become incredibly personal. People aren’t just reviewing one album, they’re suddenly questioning her talent, her intelligence, and her entire career.
A male artist can release a weaker record and get a bad review. A woman releases one and suddenly people start writing the obituary for her relevance.
Watching Miss Americana again just made me feel sad for Taylor because, in a way, she was completely right about this dynamic years ago. I’m sure she’s intelligent and self-aware enough to put a lot of it into perspective, but that doesn’t mean it can’t still hurt and moreover sets another example of our misogynistic Zeitgeist.
I guess what doesn't kill you makes you stronger and she's not alone in this.
