Jackson Daignault ’18

Taylor Swift is back. After a year hiatus, the 27-year-old country singer turned pop star debuted the “new” Taylor in her two songs “Look What You Made Me Do” and “…Ready For It?” in late August. Swift’s album, titled “Reputation,” is set to release Nov. 10, according to her website. The album echoes the dark themes of her two most recent songs, where she hints at past personal issues, such as her sexual assault case, as well as feuds with artists Kanye West and Katy Perry.

Swift is often known for her works including “Shake It Off” and “You Belong With Me,” where she maintains an upbeat persona, but now her music seems to have taken a negative turn.

Alejandro Perez Elorza ’18 has taken a liking to Swift’s recent change in image. “New Taylor is feisty and frightening, but I dig it,” Perez Elorza said. “Her two new songs are good so far.”

But not all people are fans of the change. Swift’s actions have caused a scene in the pop culture world. Many seem to be surprised by her sudden transformation, and Perez Elorza believes it will be a hit or miss. “It really depends if you ask me,” Perez Elorza said. “There are those conservative Swifties that really don’t like new Taylor and will stop listening to her, but the more open-minded swifties — like me — will continue to listen to her.”

Grace Roseme ’19 is on board with Swift standing up for herself. “I like the new Taylor because she doesn’t care what people think of her,” Roseme said. “I think her new image and her statement about developing as a person is important.”

“Look What You Made Me Do” is currently ranked first on the Billboard top 100, and according to NPR, was played 43.2 million times in its first 24 hours, the largest one-day view total of all time. The song also broke first day records for views on Vevo, as well as plays on Spotify.

But despite the hype, some fans want the old Taylor back.Samantha Pacilio ’19 does not support Swift’s latest work. “I think she is crazy,” Pacillio said. “She is trying to be so different [than] her old self by basically roasting the ‘old her,’ but the old Taylor was better.”

Pacilio kept it frank on her opinion of Swift’s new songs. “Her new songs are horrible,” Pacilio said. “[They] sound like trainwrecks.”

Regardless of how people perceive Swift’s new work, Sydney Panzer ’19 believes that she made a great business move. “I believe that this rebranding will have a positive impact on her career,” Panzer said. “Taylor Swift is an extremely intelligent business woman, and I believe that in the next few months, this album will break many more records.”