Recommendations of the Editorial team
Taylor Swift has released the music video for “Elizabeth Taylor” – the second track from her record-breaking twelfth studio album “The Life of a Showgirl”.
The video is a sort of visual tribute to the legendary actress and complements the song with a collage of footage from Taylor’s life as well as classics from Elizabeth Taylor’s filmography. Remarkable: Swift apparently published the video exclusively on streaming platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music – it is not yet available on YouTube. (YouTube recently stopped reporting data to Billboard magazine, so streams there no longer factor into chart rankings like the Hot 100.)
Many critics consider “Elizabeth Taylor” to be the centerpiece of “The Life of a Showgirl.” The track is a nod to the Hollywood legend, whose career parallels Swift’s own path in many ways. ROLLING STONE music critic Rob Sheffield writes, “The spiritual connection between Liz and Swift runs deep – far beyond their shared last name. Both Taylors became famous as children and grew up as America’s sweetheart in front of everyone,” adding, “Like Swift, Liz was the ingenue who complicated everything by growing up.”
Swift’s successes at a glance
Last month, Swift celebrated the success of “Life of a Showgirl” track “Opalite,” which topped the Billboard Hot 100 – her 14th song at the top of the chart. The track was preceded by lead single “The Fate of Ophelia”, which spent ten weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100. The video for “Opalite” sent the singer-songwriter on a journey to the ’90s and brought together a celebrity ensemble including Graham Norton, Domhnall Gleeson, Lewis Capaldi, Greta Lee, Jodie Turner-Smith and even Cillian Murphy.
When Swift accepted the Artist of the Year award at the iHeartRadio Music Awards last week, she gave a moving acceptance speech and reflected on her 20-year career. “Thank you for allowing me to turn a hobby into a passion, a passion into a dream, and a dream into a career,” she told the audience. Swift, who made history with seven awards that night, added: “Thank you for allowing me this for so long. I wish you all the best in everything you do.”
