Taylor Swift’s 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl is out and many are calling track #2 Elizabeth Taylor their favourite. The song seems to be about how one feels nervous in matters of the heart and wants reassurances from someone experienced.
Let’s dissect the song:
Elizabeth Taylor lyrics
[Intro]
Elizabeth Taylor
Do you think it’s forever?
[Verse 1]
That view of Portofino was on my mind when you called me at the Plaza Athénée
Ooh, oftentimes it doesn’t feel so glamorous to be me
All the right guys promised they’d stay
Under bright lights, they withered away, but you bloom
Portofino was on my mind (And I think you know why)
And if your letters ever said, “Goodbye”
[Chorus]
I’d cry my eyes violet,
Elizabeth Taylor, Tell me for real, do you think it’s forever?
Been number one, but I never had two
And I can’t have fun if I can’t have (Uh)
Be my NY whеn Hollywood hates me
You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby
Been numbеr one, but I never had two
And I can’t have fun if I can’t have you
[Verse 2]
Hey, what could you possibly get for the girl who has everything and nothing all at once?
Babe, I would trade the Cartier for someone to trust (Just kidding)
We hit the best booth at Musso and Frank’s
They say I’m bad news, I just say, “Thanks”
And you look at me like you’re hypnotized
And I think you know why
And if you ever leave me high and dry
[Chorus]
I’d cry my eyes violet
Elizabeth Taylor, Tell me for real, do you think it’s forever?
Been number one, but I never had two
And I can’t have fun if I can’t have (Uh)
Be my NY when Hollywood hates me
You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby
Been number one, but I never had two
And I can’t have fun if I can’t have you (Uh)
[Post-Chorus]
Elizabeth Taylor (Oh)
Do you think it’s forever? (Oh)
If I can’t have you
All my white diamonds and lovers are forever
In the papers, on the screen, and in their minds
All my white diamonds and lovers are forever
Don’t you ever end up anything but mine
[Chorus]
I’d cry my eyes violet, Elizabeth Taylor
Tell me for real, do you think it’s forever?
Been number one, but I never had two
And I can’t have fun if I can’t have (If I can’t have you)
Be my NY when Hollywood hates me
You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby
Been number one, but l never had two
And I can’t have fun if I can’t have (If I can’t have you)
[Post-Chorus]
All my white diamonds and lovers are forever (Elizabeth Taylor, do you think it’s forever?)
In the papers, on the screen, and in their minds
All my white diamonds and lovers are forever
Don’t you ever end up anything but mine
[Outro]
Oh, oh, oh
About Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor’s career spanned over six decades, making her one of Hollywood’s most iconic stars. She began as a child actor in National Velvet and went on to win two Academy Awards for Butterfield 8 and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? She was known for her beauty and talent and also her scandalous love life.
She was married eight times to seven men, famously wedding Richard Burton twice. Her relationships were marked by grand romance, public scandal, and heartbreak, making her the epitome of glamour and passion. Taylor’s marriages included alliances with hotel heir Conrad Hilton, actor Eddie Fisher, and politician John Warner. She died in 2011.
What is the song about?
She is the second starlet that Taylor Swift has referenced in her songs after Clara Bow. In Clara Bow, a song from her 11th album, The Tortured Poets Department, Taylor compared her own life journey and career to Clara Bow, a Hollywood actress of the 1920s and early 1930s. She talked about how studio execs treated them like replaceable names, trying to find the next star after their shines dulls over the years.
But in Elizabeth Taylor, Taylor seems to be talking to her like a friend. A friend who had similar experience in the matters of the heart, while living under the spotlight.
She also seemingly speaks of her now-boyfriend Travis Kelce, who blooms under the glare of fame rather than grow scared by it.
