by Daniela
The people who know me know that I've always loved Taylor Swift's music. One look at my iTunes and it's pretty obvious. I may or may not have woken up early to watch the live stream on Monday (or Sunday, depending where you live). Taylor explained how she woke up everyday during the production of the album, NEEDING to create a new sound for herself. Inspired by the vivaciousness of the late 80s and armed with infamous co-writers, 1989 (her birth year) was born. Just to show how much of a freak I am, as soon as she mentioned 80s music, I was screaming in my head "IT'S GOING TO BE NAMED AFTER YOUR BIRTH YEAR ISN'T IT?" I even embarrass myself.
Shake it Off is Taylor's first single from her fifth studio album, 1989, set to be released worldwide on October 27th. Long gone is the curly-haired, cowboy boot wearing, country singer as Shake is her biggest departure from the genre she once originated from.Taylor even admits that 1989 is going to be her first solely pop album, so anyone who says "omg wtf this isn't country," ...she doesn't even claim herself to be country anymore. Taylor teams up with Max Martin and Johan Shellback another time (and certainly not the last) after writing singles together such as We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together and 22 from her previous album. The trio wanted to achieve something like they had never written before and well, they sure achieved that.
Watch "Shake it Off"
Shake it Off is a horn heavy song that follows the trends of many of today's songs. There's something about a good horn line that instantly makes it better followed by a this... sick... beat. I've always loved big bands! It's a mish mash of all of the elements on the radio with one hell of a catchy chorus. It shouldn't work... but it does!. It's something so left-field for Taylor but I guess shocking people is one way to grab people's attention. My only issue is that Taylor's voice can come off quite shrill in the verses and it does catch you off guard. But man.. those lyrics will stick in your head like nobody's business!
The lyrics are nothing too serious with mentions about haters and fakers, complete with a spoken verse rap with a twist of cheerleading chants. It's a far cry from the love songs that she's known for. They're positive and uplifting with a bit a tongue and cheek towards herself. No one makes fun of Taylor Swift like Taylor Swift. "I go on too many dates but I can't make them stay," shows that she doesn't take herself too seriously and despite everything the media throws, nothing can touch her.
How ballerinas drop it low.
I'm going to admit that I may have watched the video way too many times. I haven't been in the best of moods for a while and this definitely put a smile on my face and had me laughing. Taylor explains the concept of the video as just throwing herself into the middle of a group of professional dancers and just seeing what happens. We all know she's an awkward dancer and it's adorable. Taylor tries her hand as a bunny-hopping ballerina, a "less than hip" hip hop dancer, trying to tut, twerk, work magic with silks in modern dance and at some sort of ode to Lady GaGa. If anything it teaches her audience that you can't take yourself too seriously and do what makes you the most comfortable while you're finding out where you belong.
Expectations vs. Reality.
My favourite parts of the video were Taylor "tutting" and the elegant leap she does as a rhythmic gymnast. Work that ribbon! We've all been that awkward dancer at a party who most definitely won't win So You Think You Can Dance... because we most certainly think we can't. Also, the ending with the group of fans was a cute touch! These were all hand-picked fans from instagram, twitter, facebook etc. who were sworn to secrecy after appearing in this music video. But seriously, HOW DID THOSE FANS KEEP THAT SECRET FOR TWO MONTHS?
Oh yeah and this song may have been on repeat the whole day yesterday and today... maybe.
FUN FACT(S): Taylor also hosted a pizza party after her live stream for her fans. She invited them over to her NYC apartment to hang out. WHO DOES THAT?! (Also according to fans who were there: she has a large photo of Ed Sheeran pulling the middle finger and owns Frozen on Blu-Ray.)
KEEP
9/10
(Oops... I don't even know if we do funny decimals for ratings.)
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