After nearly a year of social media silence, Taylor Swift has finally released her much anticipated album “Reputation.” Swifties have anxiously awaited this sixth studio album to see what era of Taylor we should expect for her next world tour. “Reputation” released Friday, Nov. 10 through Big Machine Records, features a side of Swift that the public has never seen before. Swift is now portraying a darker, sultrier side of herself that fans are not yet used to. However, after just a week of being released, her album has already been certified silver in the United Kingdom.
Swift teased the release of this album beginning in early August with singles “Look What You Made Me Do,” “Gorgeous” and “…Ready For It?” Many of the songs reflect a dance-pop style that Taylor had already began transitioning into through her previous album “1989.” Listeners can see a variety of influences in this album including rap and dubstep. Swift even collaborated with rap icon Future and pop star Ed Sheeran for her song entitled “End Game.” In various interviews leading up to the release Swift explained that the songs in the album are linear, explaining how she felt throughout the process of creating this music and teasing who the songs were written about.
She introduces us to a few new upbeat dance bops such as “King of My Heart,” “This is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things” and even a heartfelt ballad called “New Year’s Day,” reminiscent of some of her past work. Swift performed songs from her new album for the first time on last week’s episode of “Saturday Night Live.” Her performance included both “…Ready For It?” and a more accusative version of “Call It What You Want.” Earlier last week, she debuted “New Year’s Day” on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” as a tribute to Fallon’s late mother. Despite the introduction to many new influences fans have not heard before, Taylor still maintains remnants of her original sound in a few songs on this album. However, Swift has yet to release the album on any music streaming platforms.
The cover of the album features a black and white photo of Taylor covered in lettering similar to that of The New York Times. In addition to the release of her album, she also released two 72 page magazines containing photos, poetry and explanations of the lyrics all created by Swift. The magazine is currently a Target exclusive and includes the album. Swift took to Instagram late last week to broadcast her visit to the local Target in Nashville, Tennessee while surprising fans who were coming to purchase the album and magazine.
We’ve heard the album, we know the lyrics, we’ve read the magazine, so what’s next for Swift fans? The “Reputation” World Tour domestic dates were released early last week featuring cities all over the country. Swift is also introducing a new way to buy concert tickets to eliminate mass purchases for resell. In order to purchase tickets, individuals are required to register a digital “spot in line” prior to purchasing. Those who have pre-ordered or purchased a hard copy of the album are provided with a “boost code” to improve their spot in line. Once again Ms. Swift is continuing to change the way artists are presenting their work as well as producing an innovative sound her fans absolutely adore adding to her own “big reputation.”
Rachel Spurlock is the second-year student majoring in communication studies with a minor in journalism. She can be reached at RS874054@wcupa.edu.