Taylor Swifts new single Look What You Made Me Do is an anthem for bullies

Posted by Janel Helmers on Friday, May 3, 2024

taylor album

I felt such a strong mixture of emotions this morning as I listened to Taylor Swift’s new single, “Look What You Made Me Do.” On one hand, it’s gratifying – Taylor is doing exactly what we wanted, which is letting her Petty Mean Girl freak-flag fly proudly and gloriously. She’s not hiding behind the who-me-I’m-so-innocent persona anymore. She shed the Innocent snake skin a year ago. On the other hand, without the Innocent persona, what we’re left with is everything we’ve always said about Taylor and what she’s been hiding: she really is this petty, she really does hold massive grudges, she really does twist herself in knots to view herself as the wronged party in every situation. “Look What You Made Me Do” reads like an anthem for bullies who were called out on their sh-t. It’s a smirk of “Yes, I’m everything you said I was and now I’m going to destroy you for knowing that about me.” It’s basically “Lemonade” for petty white Mean Girls. An anthem for our times.

My favorite lyric: “I’ve got a list of names/and yours is in red, underlined/I check it once/then I check it twice OH.” WHAT DID I TELL YOU??? Remember last summer, during The Glorious Tiddlebanging of 2016, when people were calling out Taylor left and right? Katy Perry, Calvin Harris, Kim Kardashian, the entire #TaylorSwiftIsOverParty people? I told you she was taking names. I told you she was keeping a list. So, yeah, it’s gratifying. I always knew she was this person.

Beyond the lyrics and the message, the actual hook of the song may sound familiar. Apparently, in the song credits, Taylor credited Right Said Fred because this song is “an interpolation of a melody” from ‘I’m Too Sexy.’

So, @taylorswift13's #LookWhatYouMadeMeDo kindof reminds me of something. Wait for it… pic.twitter.com/oC8RnBFsfQ

— Chase Holfelder (@chaseholfelder) August 25, 2017

Also: Taylor is now selling snake jewelry to go along with this album release. All of this makes me wonder… did she really not understand WHY certain people called her out on her bullsh-t last year? I’ve always said that Taylor is a marketing genius and arguably one of the greatest businesswomen of this era, but did chica only pay attention to the fact that people were dissing her, and she never bothered to figure out WHY? To all of the little girls: buy the Tay-branded snake jewelry if you must, but know this: you’re basically wearing the Mean Girl Bully talismans.

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Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Taylor Swift.


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