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Taylor Swift’s new album is still the number one topic of conversation in every pop culture community this week.
And while all of that discourse surrounding The Life of a Showgirl has led to record-breaking sales, the discussions about the album have not been as favorable as Tay might have hoped.
In fact, she’s enduring some of the harshest criticism of her career, much of it having to do with her habit of “punching down” at other artists.
Taylor Swift accused of ‘punching down’ at female pop stars
Taylor has been venting her frustrations with fellow musicians throughout her career.
It’s one of the things her fans like best about her music.
But when you’re a billionaire and by far the most successful entertainer on the planet, there are no equals for you to lock horns with, and the disses wind up looking a lot like bullying.
The latest alleged victim of Taylor’s lyrical carpet bombing is Megan Thee Stallion.
And some fans have gone so far as to suggest that there’s a problematic racial component to Swift’s jabs.
In all likelihood, Taylor has never even met Megan Thee Stallion, but some listeners are convinced that she took a veiled shot at the rapper on her song “Eldest Daughter.”
“But I’m not a bad b-tch, and this isn’t savage,” Taylor croons on the track, seemingly addressing Travis Kelce.
“And I’m never gonna let you down / I’m never gonna leave you out / So many traitors / Smooth operators / But I’m never gonna break that vow,” she continues.
Obviously, the lyrics bring to mind Megan’s signature song “Savage” — but why would Taylor be calling out an artist with whom she has no known beef?
Well, many believe it has to do with the rumors that Travis unsuccessfully pursued Megan before he began dating Taylor.
“When you realize that Taylor Swift said this because Travis Kelce was hitting on Megan Thee Stallion before he got with Taylor. Oh Taylor you’re not even trying to hide how much of c-nt you are,” one X user wrote, alongside screenshots of the “Eldest Daughter” lyrics.
Taylor was previously accused of attacking Kelce’s ex Kayla Nicole on the song “Opalite.”
Many have accused her of singling out women of color on this album, noting that Taylor also (allegedly) went after Charli XCX on “Actually Romantic.”
And lines on “Wi$h Li$t,” particularly — “They want that yacht life, under chopper blades, / They want those bright lights and Balenci’ shades, / And a fat a-s with a baby face / They want it all” — have been called out as racially problematic.
Taylor hasn’t spoken publicly about these controversies, and it’s possible that she has a perfectly good explanation.
But whatever the case, it’s clear that the TLOAS rollout has not been as smooth as she’d hoped.
