Taylor Swift released her newest single “Look What you Made me do” on Aug. 24. Three days later she released the music video. It was recently announced that she broke another World Record by having the most views in 24 hours on a Youtube video.
Although the graphics were appealing and her outfits were flawless, this isn’t what helped her break the record by having over 43 million views in one day. No one was safe with this new chart topper — Swift used what fellow artists have said about her in the media as material and her hints in both the song and video were not subtle.
Setting the Scene
Swift used the VMAs as her platform to premiere her new video, but the week leading up to the release she warned the public that she was back by deleting all of her social media content and posting new videos of snakes.
These snakes were in light of all of the backlash she received after the Kanye and Kim West phone conversation and how the media began to refer to her as a snake after this.
Is Taylor Dead?
The singer gets right down to it in the opening scene of her video. In the first shot, she is in a graveyard with a tombstone in the background that read “Here lies Taylor’s reputation.” This is referring to all of the bad press she has received in the last year. The roller coaster of media attention she received began after her breakup with producer and DJ Calvin Harris.
Next to the first gravestone is another that read "Nils Sojoberg." Fans will know that this refers to her infamous song-writing pseudonym that she used to ghost-write her then boyfriend’s summer time hit “This is What you Came For.”
The camera then shifted to Taylor in a grave in her 2014 Met Gala dress which suggests that this new video and her upcoming album “Reputation,” which will release Nov. 10, will mark the beginning of a new era for the pop star.
Bath Tub Full of Bills
The next scene showed Taylor Swift in a bathtub full of diamonds. Subtly laying on Swift’s right in the tub is a dollar bill, which she was awarded for her recent groping trial against a radio DJ she accused of touching her inappropriately during a 2013 meet-and-greet.
Many can not forget the Taylor Swift and Katy Perry feud. This, of course, made a subtle appearance on Taylor’s throne in the next scene, with a Latin phrase “Et tu Brute” carved in the arm rest of the throne. The phrase translates to “Even you, Brutus?” and refers to Katy Perry’s tweet which stated “Watch out for the Regina George in sheep’s clothing,” suggesting that Taylor is not as innocent as she seems.
Crash and Burn
When someone does Taylor wrong, she doesn't just stop at one song, she releases an entire album. In the new video Swift dresses as “Prisms” tour Katy holding a Grammy, in reference to the fact that Swift has many but Perry has none.
This Perry-dressed-Taylor crashes her car in a light pole and is surrounded by paparazzi. This is a shot at the media and how they do not care for well-being but instead for the drama.
To bring Kanye West into the mix — West had a car crash early on in his career and broke his jaw, which inspired his song “Through the Wire."
Consider you Dually Noted, Spotify
Swift can not forget the music streaming service she claimed to have robbed her by underpaying her for her songs. In this scene, Taylor is covered in a plush cat head along with her accomplices, possibly in reference to the fact that she has been called a cat lady.
Swift and her crew are shown robbing a company called" Streaming Co." which is a clear referral to Spotify underpaying artists, causing Swift to remove her music from the service in 2014.
Squad Up
In the video there is a scene that shows a leather-clad, baton-wielding Swift giving orders to her squad which is labeled to “Squad U." All of the squad members shown in the scene are plastic dolls because the media scrutinized Swift and her friends for being fake.
The Army of Exes
In a hit music video there are always backup dancers, and this video is no exception. Swift’s backup dancers are eight males dressed in “I Love T.S.” tank tops, similar to the one worn by her then-boyfriend Tom Hiddleston during her Fourth of July party. There are eight dancers in reference to the eight high-profile beaus that she had in her career.
RIP Old Taylor’s
Taylor has come a long way ever since she was a curly haired country music star, and all of these Taylors have an iconic era.
From “You Belong With Me” Taylor in her band shirt, to “Red Tour” Taylor in her infamous ring-leader ensemble and finally the infamous MTV awards Taylor on the night Kanye West stole the show.
This scene showed the “new” Taylor with slicked back hair and an outfit which read “Reputation” across her chest standing on a mountain of bodies that are actually old Taylors.
The Big Finale
The final scene is the most savage part of the video. Not only do the old Taylors all make a reappearance, but they all say quotes from the media, stars and even Taylor herself.
Many have debated one of her quotes which says "I would very much like to be excluded from this narrative.” This quote actually comes from Swift’s Instagram post that she published after the Kanye West phone call recording went public. Then began the snakes, and there the full circle is made.
When making this video, Swift wanted to make sure that she did not leave anyone out because that would just be rude, wouldn’t it.
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