Swift's new album, "The life of a showgirl", was released at 06.00 in Sweden.
The world star has once again taken the help of Swedish producers Max Martin and Karl Johan "Shellback" Schuster. Swift collaborated with the Swedish producers also in 2010 and she has previously revealed that the new album was recorded in Sweden in connection with "The eras tour", which took place from March 2023 to December 2024.
Mixed criticism
Some reviewers think she lives up to expectations: "A triumph", exclaims BBC's critic Mark Savage.
"In 2025, with the world at her feet, Swift can finally be quite sure that her place in pop history is guaranteed. 'The life of a showgirl' is her well-deserved victory lap", he writes.
AP's reviewer Maria Sherman is also delighted.
"On the twelve tracks, she combines glitter and glamour with humanity and humor from the start", she writes and gives four stars out of five.
Lacks hits
But The Guardian's reviewer Alexis Petridis gives the album two out of five stars and he thinks that the new album lacks obvious choruses and melodies. Two stars are also given by Financial Times who also think that the hits are missing.
Per Sinding-Larsen on SVT shares the criticism that the hits are missing: "I can say that based on the expectations surrounding this album that it should be a return to bangers that Taylor herself said, it doesn't quite fit".
Kristin Lundell on Expressen gives the album three wasps out of five. She writes that if the star's engagement to Travis Kelce is Christmas Eve, then the new album is rather New Year's Eve. She expects that the title track "The life of a showgirl", a duet with Sabrina Carpenter, must be something extra but gets disappointed.
"Eternal thanks"
On Instagram Swift writes that the album feels completely right and she thanks the Swedish producers in particular:
"Eternal thanks to my mentors and friends Max and Shellback for helping me paint this self-portrait" writes Taylor Swift.
The album had already been pre-saved more than five million times before its release. It's more than any other record and thus a record on Spotify.
Facts: Taylor Swift
TT
Name: Taylor Swift.
Born: 1989 in Reading, Pennsylvania.
Is: American songwriter and pop singer.
Background in brief: Moved to Nashville in her teens to focus on country music. The self-titled debut album came in 2006 and since then Swift has become one of the world's best-selling artists. She has released twelve studio albums, four re-recorded albums, and four live albums.
Current: With her twelfth album "The life of a showgirl", as well as movie screenings for music videos on the same weekend as the album release.
Together with Swedes Max Martin and Karl Johan "Shellback" Schuster, she has produced the album. Also, the Swedish conductor and violinist Erik Arvinder has helped Swift on the album, in the song "Cancelled".
