Music review: The ‘ever-evolving’ Taylor Swift

By Caroline Baehr, Contributing Writer

I’m sorry, the old Taylor can’t come to the phone right now!”

In 2017, this line from Taylor Swift’s “Look What You Made Me Do” completely changed her image from a sweet, good girl to a villainous snake.

In Taylor Swift’s new song “ME!” – featuring Brendon Urie from Panic! At The Disco – Swift expresses her new confidence in her evolving identity and individuality through her fun and fresh lyrics. Because this song is cute and playful, many devoted Swifties are asking themselves if this is the return of the old, sweet Taylor, while fans of her previous album, “Reputation,”​ are wondering if Swift has truly left her “bad girl” persona behind her.

Taylor Swift fans and haters can all agree that Swift is sending a message in “ME!” about her identity and how it has changed since her last album, just as she begins a new chapter in both her musical and personal journey.

After years of being seen as the “good girl” in the music industry, Taylor found herself at the front lines of drama in 2017 when she began a feud with Kim Kardashian and her husband, Kanye West. During this feud, Taylor was seen as the “snake” of the situation, and Swift openly embraced this representation of herself through her “Reputation” era.

In the beginning of the music video for “ME!”, a snake is shown slithering along the ground and then is transformed into a swarm of butterflies. This, along with the upbeat mood of the song, shows that Swift has left her “Reputation” days behind and has evolved from this time in her career.

While Taylor has moved forward, she isn’t quite the girl that Swifties knew from ​“1989,” ​“Red​,” “​Speak Now​” or even ​“Fearless​.”

Through “ME!”, Swift breaks down the defenses she built for herself after being seen as the “bad guy” in the notorious feud, but the defenses she built and the drama she went through made her into a new person. Rather than debut the theme and tone of her album with a complex love song as she has done in the past, Swift shows her new identity through a playful song with some lines sounding as if they are straight from Sesame Street. The pastels, the dancing and the new artist she collaborated with show her more spirited and upbeat nature.

Swift makes it definitely known that she is not the same girl who wrote songs only about heartbreak and trying to find love. Now, Swift has found that the love she deserves is love from herself.

If there is anything to take away from Swift’s new song, it’s that our identities are constantly changing and evolving. The experiences that we go through change us and can help shape us into better people.

I personally loved this song, and I want to bloom into a better version of myself, just like Taylor did. I learned from Taylor Swift that by embracing my individuality and loving myself, personal growth is possible. Shedding some skin can help me learn to fly into a new, better ME!

Caroline Baehr is a junior at Mount Carmel Academy. This is her first music review for the Clarion Herald.