Reputation Taylor’s Version: Understanding its Cultural Impact

Taylor Swift is more than just a pop star and Reputation is more than just a music album as both are cultural phenomena.

“Nobody's heard from me for months” is what the pop sensation wrote when she hid away from the spotlight when she got embroiled in multiple controversies as she was facing the misery of her discography being sold to the man who had bullied her for years, Scooter Braun.

Before we dive into the musical aspect of Reputation, it is important to understand where Taylor stood as an artist, celebrity and a businesswoman at the time it was released in 2017.

Taylor Swift vs Kanye West:

Taylor and Kanye’s relationship has been on the rocks ever since he interrupted her acceptance speech at the 2009 VMAs when she won the moon man for the Best Female Music Video. After that followed a cold war that erupted in 2016.

The rapper released music video for his song Famous from the album The Life of Pablo which included a jab at the pop star and later featured a wax figure of Taylor lying with him in bed, which he claimed he got permission for from Taylor herself. Even his then-wife Kim Kardashian jumped in the controversy.

In the 13th track of the album, This is why we can’t have nice things, Taylor sings about being deceived by Kim saying:

“There I was, giving you a second chance

But you stabbed me in the back while shakin' my hand”

The Influence of Snake in Reputation:

When Kim “fought” the online war vs Taylor, she used the snake emoji to represent the singer as she infamously said “Wait it's legit National Snake Day?!?!? They have holidays for everybody, I mean everything these days!”.

The singer took the reptile’s representation of evil and deception and turned it into the theme of rebirth and transformation… and that is how the Reputation era began.

Taylor vs Scooter Braun:

In 2019, Taylor joined Universal Music Group and left Big Machine Records which meant all of her work till 2019, six albums, were not under her ownership but acquired by Scooter Braun, who the singer called out for being a “bully”.

Taylor also claimed that she was never given an opportunity to own her life work. “Essentially, my musical legacy is about to lie in the hands of someone who tried to dismantle it”, the singer famously said.

Regain ownership of her work:

Before the release of her seventh studio album, Lover, Taylor announced that she will be re-recording all her previous albums to regain the ownership of her work.

Themes of Revenge and Public Narrative:

By the end of 2016, the Grammy-winner was dragged in multiple controversies, romance rumours and legal disputes which had formed a prevailing media narrative of her being a “cunning” artist, as popularised by Kim Kardashian as a snake.

With the release of Reputation’s first single, Look What You Made Me Do, Taylor addressed the propagation of her negative brand image as she famously said:

“I'm sorry, the old Taylor can't come to the phone right now

Why? Oh, 'cause she's dead!”

Cultural Impact:

While Reputation is not as successful commercially as Taylor’s other albums, it is a fan-favourite as the fans have revered it as a statement form the singer against the prevailing narrative, a musical shift and a moment of resilience.

When the pop icon announced the re-recording of her albums, the fan base was most excited about the re-release of Reputation as regaining ownership of her work and specifically the album where she fights back the “evils” is a significant moment in Taylor’s career.

Romance with Joe Alwyn:

While many think Lover is Taylor’s quintessential love album, many believe Reputation is where she truly speaks about falling in love in the face of adversity as the entire world was against her yet she had her partner on her side, Joe Alwyn.

“My reputation's never been worse, so

You must like me for me”

Taylor Swift is way past from her life and public image as it was in 2017 but the past woes have upheld the significance of Reputation. As fans await the release of Taylor’s Version, they are also particularly anticipating the “Vault” tracks that she did not release 8 years ago.

Fans are excited to hear what Taylor has to say about Kanye and Kim specially as the two are not together anymore which adds a layer of curiosity in the vault tracks.

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