Entertainment
9 things Taylor Swift revealed about “The Life of a Showgirl” on “New Heights” podcast with Travis and Jason Kelce
Taylor Swift gave fans a lot to look forward to after she appeared on “New Heights,” the podcast hosted by her boyfriend and Kansas City Chiefs star, Travis Kelce, and his brother, former Philadelphia Eagles star Jason Kelce, Wednesday night.
Swift used the podcast episode to announce her 12th studio album, “The Life of a Showgirl,” which she was working on during the European leg of her record-breaking Eras Tour in 2024.
“This is the record I’ve been wanting to make for a very long time,” Swift said.
Here are more details Swift shared about the upcoming album:
“The Life of a Showgirl” release date
The album will be released on Friday, Oct. 3. Fans of Swift know the dates she chooses to announce and release music almost always have meaning and often have a 13, her lucky number, somewhere.
“Never not annoying,” she said about herself on the podcast. “Always going to try to force a 13 into the situation and this one was right there.”
Swift, Max Martin and Shellback produced the album
Swift made “The Life of a Showgirl” with Max Martin and Shellback, producers she has worked with in the past but never for the entirety of an album.
“The three of us have made some of my favorite songs that I’ve ever done before,” Swift said. Those songs include “22,” “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” “Blank Space,” “Style,” “Shake It Off,” “…Ready For It?” and “Delicate.”
The three hadn’t produced music together in seven or eight years, but returning to work with them “felt like catching lightning in a bottle,” Swift said.
“By the time we came back together, I feel like we had so much more dexterity to what we do,” she said. “This was the time where it felt like all three of us in the room were carrying the same weight as creators and it was really special.”
Martin and Shellback have also worked with pop artists like Britney Spears, Ariana Grande, P!nk and more.
“The best ideas we’ve ever had”
Swift said she approached Martin, who she described as her mentor, about doing an album at her Eras Tour show in Stockholm in May 2024.
“I essentially said to him, ‘I want to be as proud of an album as I am of the Eras Tour and for the same reasons,’ and he was like, ‘Do you understand what kind of pressure that is?'” Swift said.
But Swift is confident in the outcome.
“We knew that we had to bring the best ideas we’ve ever had, and I also know the pressure I’m putting on this record by saying that, but I don’t care because I love it that much, and I’m so proud of it, and it just comes from like the most infectiously joyful, wild, dramatic place I was in in my life, and so that effervescence has come through on this record,” she said.
“The Life of a Showgirl” theme
Swift described the theme of “The Life of a Showgirl” as “everything that was going on behind the curtain” during the Eras Tour.
Asked by Jason Kelce why she chose orange for the color scheme of the album, Swift said, “I’ve just always liked it, Jason.”
“It feels like kind of energetically how my life has felt, and this album is about what was going on behind the scenes in my inner life during this tour, which was so exuberant and electric and vibrant,” she said.
There are 12 songs on the album
Swift shared the titles of the 12 tracks on the album: “The Fate of Ophelia,” “Elizabeth Taylor,” “Opalite,” “Father Figure,” “Eldest Daughter,” “Ruin The Friendship,” “Actually Romantic,” “Wi$h Li$t,” “Wood,” “Cancelled!,” “Honey” and “The Life of a Showgirl (Feat. Sabrina Carpenter).”
The pop star added that there are no additional songs, a departure from past albums. Her most recent release, “The Tortured Poets Department,” had 31 songs.
“Every single song is on this album for hundreds of reasons. … It’s just right,” she said. “That focus and that kind of discipline with creating an album and keeping the bar really high is something I’ve been wanting to do for a very long time.
“I tend to love to write lots and lots of music, so it’s a temptation to release lots of music. I wanted to do an album that was so focused on quality and on the theme and everything fitting together like a perfect puzzle.”
Melodies and lyrics were key goals
Swift opened up about the primary objectives she had making “The Life of a Showgirl.”
“My main goals were melodies that were so infectious that you’re almost angry at it and lyrics that are just as vivid but crisp and focused and completely intentional,” she said
Martin had made a point to tell Swift he didn’t want her to leave behind the type of writing and storytelling she did on “folklore” (released in July 2020) even if the sound of this album was different. Swift said she replied, “I couldn’t if I tried.”
“So it was really amazing that we were able to, without doing too much overthinking, we were able to get in there and it was just ideas flying and all of these ideas were like, we’ve been waiting years to come back together and make this project.”
The album art
The cover of “The Life of a Showgirl” is a layered picture of Swift submerged in water.
“This represents the end of my night,” she explained. “When I’m on tour, I have the same day every single day … and my day ends with me in a bathtub.”
Swift wanted the cover to show something offstage to represent the theme of the album.
“This album isn’t really about what happened to me on stage, it’s about what I was going through offstage,” she said. “It’s the life beyond the show.”
The images were captured by photographers Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott, who Swift previously worked with for the album art for her sixth studio album, “reputation,” released in 2017.
“I loved what they did with those photos, so I called them up for this one, and I’m so happy with the way that the photos came out for this one,” she said.
The album was recorded in Sweden during the Eras Tour
Swift traveled to Sweden on her off days while touring Europe during the Eras Tour to work on the album.
“I would be playing shows, I’d do like three shows in a row. I’d have like three days off, I’d fly to Sweden,” she said. “I was physically exhausted at this point in the tour but I was so mentally stimulated and so excited to be creating.”
“This album is going to make you dance”
Some additional details about “The Life of a Showgirl” came from Travis Kelce, who revealed he has heard the whole album.
“I know they’re all 12 bangers,” he said. “It’s a lot more upbeat, and it’s a lot more like fun pop like excitement. … I think it’s a complete 180 from a lot of the songs on ‘Tortured Poets’ for sure.”
Swift confirmed that was a good way to describe the album, adding, “Life is more upbeat.”
Travis later told Jason, “you are going to move.”
“This album is going to make you dance,” he said.
Teyana Taylor is clearing the air about Leonardo DiCaprio’s animated Golden Globes moment that took over social media, revealing that the viral clip didn’t quite unfold the way fans initially thought.
The actress and singer addressed the buzz during her appearance on The Tonight Show on Wednesday, Jan. 14, where she continued celebrating her first-ever Golden Globe win.
The clip in question, shared on the ceremony’s official TikTok page, showed DiCaprio laughing and gesturing enthusiastically during the broadcast, leading many viewers to assume he was chatting with Taylor.
She admitted she initially thought the same.
“Okay, so look, yesterday, I thought I broke the Da Vinci Code, right?” Taylor told Jimmy Fallon, referencing her earlier comments that suggested they were bonding over KPop Demon Hunters during the show.
Taylor explained that her excitement stemmed from the fact that her daughters, Iman “Junie” Tayla Shumpert Jr., 10, and Rue Rose Shumpert, 5, are huge fans of the Netflix animated film, which won Best Motion Picture (Animated) and Best Original Song that night.
At first glance, she assumed DiCaprio was reacting to her.
“So when I first seen it, I didn’t watch the whole thing. So I was like, ‘Oh you’re talking about Kpop Demon Hunters, he’s talking about me,’” she said.
But after watching the full clip, and seeing fans attempt to lip-read the exchange, Taylor realised she needed answers.
She picked up the phone and called her longtime friend.
“I was like, ‘You can’t be talking to me, were you talking to me?’ Because I already told people you was talking to me,” she admitted.
According to Taylor, DiCaprio had apparently discussed KPop Demon Hunters more than once that night.
“So apparently he had two KPop Demon Hunter conversations that night, so KPop Demon Hunters was just in his mouth all night,” she joked.
The situation sparked some playful jealousy on Taylor’s part.
“Who else is you chewing your invisible gum with?” she teased, adding that DiCaprio didn’t even remember who he had been talking to at the table.
Despite the confusion, the moment only added to the buzz surrounding their film One Battle After Another, which picked up four Golden Globe wins, including Best Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy) and Taylor’s award for her role as Perfidia Beverly Hills.
Both stars are now heading into the 2026 Actor Awards on March 1 with individual nominations, proving that even a misunderstood viral moment can end on a high note.
A$AP Rocky is opening up about the unexpected person who helped steer him toward a life-changing romance with Rihanna, his mother.
During a recent appearance on the Jan. 15 episode of Popcast, the rapper, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, revealed that his mom, Renee Black, was the first to suggest he should date the global superstar long before their friendship turned romantic.
Looking back, A$AP shared that his mother was surprisingly direct about it.
“My mother used to say s–t like, ‘I know you like this girl that you with right now,’” he recalled, adding that she would then say, “‘But I want you with Riri.’”
At the time, he brushed it off, insisting they were just friends.
“‘Ma why you keep saying that? That girl don’t even want me like that. Like be cool, Ma. Like that’s just my friend. Chill,’” he remembered telling her.
But his mom didn’t back down. “‘I’m telling you, she real,’” A$AP said, before adding with a laugh, “And mothers know best.”
Their bond eventually evolved into a romantic relationship in late 2019, and since then, A$AP Rocky and Rihanna have built a family together.
The couple now share three children: RZA, 3, Riot, 2, and Rocki, who is just three months old.
For A$AP, the connection has always felt natural, even inevitable.
“It was just like we were on the same page,” he explained. “Born the same year. My dad is from her country. My family, when I go back, I get to see both sides of my family. It’s so many similarities, it’s just funny. We laugh about it a lot.”
Even before romance entered the picture, he admitted there was always something special there.
“She was always my boo, you know what I’m saying?” he said. “Like I always f–ked with her.”
Still, A$AP believes the timing mattered.
“I’m thankful that she was put in my life at that time,” he shared, explaining that neither of them was ready earlier.
Rihanna has echoed that sentiment, later saying the pandemic played a role in accelerating their relationship. “COVID sped up our relationship,” she told Interview Magazine in 2024. “There was no denying it… It just happened.”
In the end, it seems his mother saw the love story coming long before either of them did.
William’s wife Kate brought charm back to the royal family with her heartwarming gesture, receiving powerful titles after her latest royal engagement.
The Princess of Wales appears in the lioness spirit as she represented the modern monarchy with a reception at Windsor Castle for the England Women’s Rugby team, celebrating their World Cup win.
As the patron of the Rugby Football Union, Princess Kate led the way at her first solo royal engagement of 2026 with a celebratory reception.
She looked glam in a red pantsuit, seemingly sending a nod to the team’s Red Roses nickname.
Kensington Palce shared the stunning photo of Kate with the team on her and Prince William’s official Instagram page, which brought her England’s great title from fans.
The post garnered massive likes and hearts from fans, with some honouring the Princess with powerful titles.
One described the picture a “brunch of beautiful English roses,” calling Kate “beautiful princess.
“God bless them make England great.”
Another admired the future queen as “A perfect England Red rose in the middle.”
Kate previously wore the red ensemble, featuring an asymmetric jacket and wide-leg trousers, for the launch of her Shaping Us campaign in 2023.
While Kate was hosting the rugby team, her husband William had a solo engagement of his own on the same day in his role as patron of We Are Farming Minds, which works to support farmers’ mental health.
The heir to the British throne visited a farm in western England, where he took on tasks like pruning apple trees and feeding sheep.
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