What difference will marriage make to Taylor Swift's music?
Every fairytale needs a happy ending, and after 11 albums of love, heartbreak, and shattered dreams, Taylor Swift has found her Prince Charming. But after she announced her engagement to Travis Kelce, what will Swift's newfound happiness mean for her music?
Swift's greatest gift as a lyricist is the way she weaves her own story into her songs, balancing intricate, specific detail with universal themes of love, hope, heartbreak, and betrayal.
Her debut single, Tim McGraw, written during a school maths class, was all about her then-boyfriend, Drew Dunlap.
Believing they'd break up before he left for college (a premonition that came true), she wrote a song to commemorate the times they'd slow-danced in the moonlight to the car radio: When you think Tim McGraw, I hope you think of me.
It’s a timeless story - one that’s destined to be repeated at fresher's weeks across the country this autumn - and set in motion a career-long narrative about Swift's romantic tribulations.
She's written about emotionally unavailable men (Jake Gyllenhaal, All Too Well), falling for a bad boy (Harry Styles, I Knew You Were Trouble), and rebound romances (Tom Hiddleston, Getaway Car).
Swift has been aware of the obsessive level of debate around her relationships. In Shake It Off, she poked fun at the media's discourse: I go on too many dates but I can't make them stay; at least, that's what people say.
But what happens when she settles down? As her friend and collaborator Florence Welch pointed out: Contentment is a creativity killer. Yet, Swift has demonstrated she can also write affecting and moving songs from a place of happiness.
Her upcoming 12th album, The Life of a Showgirl, is said to be more upbeat and reflects joy infused by her relationship with Kelce, featuring the influences of her recent experiences.
As Taylor navigates this new chapter of her life, fans can expect to see how this engagement shapes her musical narrative going forward.
