Taylor Swift's fans hadn't quite recovered from the surprise announcement of her twelfth album, "The Life of a Showgirl," when she unveiled the cover of the LP during an appearance on Travis Kelce and Jason Kelce's "New Heights" podcast. The pop star explained that the cover "[represented] the end of [her] night" as she tried to unwind in a bathtub after giving an electrifying but exhausting performance at the Eras Tour.
Get a first look at the cover of Taylor's new album The Life of a ShowgirlAvailable
for pre-order now at https://t.co/aYNn7lTXv8 and releasing everywhere 10/3NEW EPISODE OUT NOW ... And, baby, that's show business for you ❤️🔥 pic.twitter.com/BULHWUkDC4
— New Heights (@newheightshow) August 13, 2025
The "Blank Space" hitmaker reflected on her complex feelings from those quiet moments, saying, "You won't be able to get to bed 'til 4 in the morning after this, but you had to jump through 50 million hoops in this obstacle course that is your show. And you did it." Although Swift knew she would likely endure similar struggles for as long as she remained on the road, she could still find solace in knowing that she managed to power through the night.
The Grammy winner elaborated that she did not want the album's artwork to feature a photo of her on stage because the lyrics would delve into her personal feelings from that time and not what she felt while performing. Alternate covers of "The Life of a Showgirl" flaunted some of her sexiest looks that gave the ultimate middle finger to haters while still staying in line with the album's themes. On the whole, though, the covers sparked mixed reactions from fans. While some were delighted to see some of Swift's sexiest looks of all time, others were rather underwhelmed.
All four covers for Taylor Swift's upcoming album 'The Life of a Showgirl.' pic.twitter.com/rqqOV7wmWv
— Pop Base (@PopBase) August 14, 2025
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The Album Cover Reveal Led To A Lot Of Memes
After viewing Taylor Swift's album covers for "The Life of a Showgirl" on X, many fans found themselves declaring, "MOTHER IS MOTHERING." Many fans believed that the pop star may have outdone herself with the artwork, with one person writing, "This is one of the most intriguing aesthetics she has ever evoked for an album I'm so excited." Safe to say that Swift's beau, NFL tight end Travis Kelce, and his brother, Jason Kelce, shared the same sentiment because they both seemed ecstatic over the cover reveal.
Meanwhile, another commentator joked that Swift had decided to use an orange color theme for her latest work to poke fun at Donald Trump's orange tan. Someone even edited Nicole Kidman into the artwork of Swift hovering over seats in a theater as a reference to the actor's infamous AMC ad. Some found the alternate cover to be reminiscent of Spiderman's iconic pose and left one person to quip, "Well they both ended Jake Gyllenhaal on a bridge."
Moreover, the album's name sparked references to everything from "Mamma Mia" to "The Suite Life on Deck" and "High School Musical." Even Cardi B joined in on the fun, sharing a photo of Spongebob Squarepants breathing a sigh of relief and a clip of a woman celebrating, likely expressing her happiness that her album "Am I The Drama?" would release in September and she wouldn't have to compete with the pop powerhouse on the charts.
Fans Found Several Easter Eggs Hidden In The Life Of A Showgirl Cover
While fans admired "The Life of a Showgirl" covers and poked some light-hearted fun at them, critics weren't impressed and believed that Taylor Swift would have been better off selecting any of the alternate covers as the primary artwork. However, an X commentator pointed out the choice may have been a reference to John Everett Millais' iconic painting of "Ophelia." And their theory seemed plausible considering that the opening track of the LP is titled "The Fate of Ophelia."
Taylor Swift's album cover references "Ophelia" by John Everett Millais, which depicts Ophelia in Hamlet by Shakespeare, who drowned after climbing a willow tree and falling, after Hamlet rejects her. Taylor has a song on #TSTheLifeofaShowgirl called "The Fate Of Ophelia" too. pic.twitter.com/EiiUd60MIJ
— Kate 🩷❤️🔥 (@ifkate) August 13, 2025
Meanwhile, another person drew attention to the fact that Swift's posing on an alternate cover was the same as the cover of her 2017 album "Reputation." Once again, the reference may have been intentional since the pop star worked with the same photographers who shot the older album cover. A Swiftie even realized that the artwork of "The Life of a Showgirl" aptly seemed to follow the style of The Eras Tour poster.
Some fans believed that Swift may have foreshadowed her newest era in 2022 by donning glitzy clothes similar to the ones she wore on the album's cover for her "Bejeweled" music video. Additionally, another promotional shot for the album was likely a reference to The Eras Tour since it saw Swift sitting on the same chair that she used for her performance of "Vigilante S**t" on the road. Despite all the Easter eggs and revelations, there's still no telling what Swift's newest era may bring.
Read the original article on The List.
