Originally appeared on E! Online
Taylor Swift is a really tough kid, she can take her own s–t.
After all, the “Karma” singer became her own worst critic in the latest promotional material for The Life of a Showgirl album, which releases Oct. 3, where she gives herself some especially harsh feedback as she advertised The Crowd is Your King Target-exclusive edition.
“Alright we are still rolling,” Taylor, donned in director gear, joked in a video shared to her Instagram Sept. 29. “We’re elegant, we’re luxurious, we’re in front of the most beautiful pink vinyl we’ve ever seen. What is going on with the posture? It’s giving no-girl, not showgirl.”
The scene quickly cuts to an alter-ego Showgirl Taylor, who stands in a pink leotard and matching heels as she attempts to show off the Summertime Spritz Pink Shimmer Vinyl, an exclusive Target edition.
“Elegance,” Director Taylor yells as the Showgirl version of her awkwardly throws glitter and poses. “Charm. Not that.”
And then, as an aside, Director Taylor whispers to a crew member off screen, “She’s got cat hair all over her.”
More from E! Online
“Is there a school we could very quickly send her to?” Director Taylor asks into a megaphone. “Come on, honey, this is showbusiness.”
Showgirl Taylor is then seen posing with a poster for The Life of a Showgirl as she accidentally kicks over paint buckets.
“The Life of a Showgirl,” Taylor adds in a voiceover. “Exclusive edition, only at Target. And, it has a pretty big poster with it, too.”
Playing along with the joke, the 35-year-old adds in the caption along with a laughing emoji, “She’s got four days left to rehearse for her big moment.”
Ahead of the release of her twelfth studio album, Taylor has played up what it really means to be a showgirl, explaining that the upcoming LP will pull back the curtain on The Eras Tour version of herself.
Phil McCarten/CBS
“This album is really about what was going on in my life during this tour which was so exuberant and electric and vibrant,” Taylor explained during an Aug. 13 appearance on New Heights alongside fiancé Travis Kelce and his brother Jason Kelce. “I’m so proud of it. It just comes from the most infectiously, joyful, wild dramatic place I was in my life.”
As she put it, “That effervescence has come through on this record.”
For more on what Taylor has said about The Life of a Showgirl, keep reading…
Taylor Swift Put Up a Countdown Clock
Taylor Swift wouldn’t have had a countdown clock on her website ticking down to “12 AT 12:12 AM ET,” set against a glittery orange background, for no reason.
Taylor’s Version of an Elaborate Album Tease
On Aug. 12, 2024, Taylor was photographed in a matching plaid miniskirt and cropped jacket—but there was nothing clueless about it.
As pointed out by super-sleuth Kristen (@perfectlyfine89), not only could it be construed that Taylor is making very purposeful eye contact with the camera, but also the orange and green print of her outfit matches the color palette of the cover of The Life of a Showgirl, which Taylor revealed exactly one year later on Travis Kelce and Jason Kelce’s New Heights podcast.
In an episode teaser posted at 12:12 a.m. ET on Aug. 12, 2025, Taylor picked up a mint-green briefcase emblazoned with “T.S.” in orange and pulled out the cover of what will be her 12th studio album. Blurred for now, but obviously green and orange.
Of course, Taylor is pretty mad about plaid, and she also wore a tartan print to the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards—where she said the fateful words “my boyfriend Travis.”
Did Taylor Swift Subtly Reveal the Release Date of The Life of a Showgirl?
The Life of a Showgirl is already available to preorder from Taylor’s website, which notes that whatever hard copy you desire—vinyl, CD or cassette—will ship before Oct. 13.
Fair enough, Taylor’s connection to the number 13 well-established. But, as Kristen also noticed, Oct. 3 (a.k.a. 10-3) not only adds up to 13, it’s both National Plaid Day and National Boyfriend’s Day. See above.
Orange You Glad the Fans Are Always On It?
Hindsight is always 20/13 in the Taylorverse. On the morning of Aug. 11, the official Taylor Nation social accounts posted a carousel of 12(!) pics showing Taylor onstage in a variety of orange ensembles, captioned, “Thinking about when she said ‘See you next era…”
Travis Kelce’s Key Assist
Travis and Jason made a half-hearted trick play when they teased a “VERY special guest” on a “special episode” of New Heights—dropping Aug. 13 at 7 p.m. ET, mind you—including what to even amateur Swifties was obviously a silhouette of Taylor in the post.
New York Hearts Taylor Swift Right Back
The top of the Empire State Building was preemptively lit up orange in honor of the occasion. The official X account for the New York City landmark posted a photo of the color-coordinated building on Aug. 11 at 1:45 p.m. ET, captioned, “See you next era.”
Low-Hanging Orange Fruit
A TikTok from Oct. 18, 2024, her first Miami show of the Eras Tour, showed Taylor standing in front of section A12 (Aug. 12, album 12?!) at Hard Rock Stadium.
Then she proceeded to wear a glittery orange bodysuit when she declared, “Miami, we are so back!” and then a green skirt and orange bustier during the 1989 portion of the concert, not to mention a very show girl-esque white feathery costume as she belted “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart”?
Her way of saying that her next album was finished and this is what it looks like?
To be fair, orange and green are also the official Miami Hurricanes colors—but hey, two things can be true at the same time.
Spotted on Spotify
There’s already a Spotify playlist prophetically titled “And, baby, that’s show business for you,” featuring the now emblematic orange T.S. initials against a green background.
There are, ahem, 22 existing Taylor songs, all produced by Swedish hitmakers Max Martin and Shellback (a.k.a. Karl Johan Schuster), bolstering fans’ speculation that she wrote the entirety of The Life of a Showgirl while on tour in Europe and these two helped her pull it off.
Did You Catch These Possible Variants?
Fans noticed that the background of the New Heights podcast featured multiple boxes in orange, red, white and purple bearing her initials “T.S.”—hinting at possible variations of the album or more music to come.
Let’s Applaud These Lady Gaga Collab Rumors
Taylor herself liked a fan theory on X (formerly Twitter) that pointed out how Lady Gaga released her song “Applause” 12 years to the day on Aug. 12 when Taylor announced Life of a Showgirl. The significance? Taylor had used “Applause” as her lead-in song before opening the Eras Tour each night, along with Lesley Gore’s “You Don’t Own Me.”
Taylor liked a fan’s post that hinted at a possible Gaga collab: “Is this just the most insane coincidence or like is she clinically insane.”
Get a Taste of This Sabrina Carpenter Theory
Swifties began speculating Sabrina Carpenter may be involved on Life of a Showgirl after she appeared in the 12th slide of a photo gallery from Taylor Nation teasing the next era. Not to mention, Sabrina unveiled a message on her website with the date Aug. 12.
For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News App