Analysis of Taylor Swift's New Video

For those of you that have been under rocks and away from the internet, I'll fill you in. Last night, Taylor Swift premiered her new music video for Look What You Made Me Do on the VMAs. Tay came to SLAY! This video is legit. If you haven't seen in, you can see it here.
For those of you not OBSESSED with Taylor, let me fill you in on all the Easter eggs in the video and show you just how extra she is. There's a lot, so fair warning, this will be long.
1. The dress. At the beginning of the video, we see zombie Taylor popping up out of her own grave. If you look closely, you can see that the dress she is wearing bears a striking similarity to the one she wears in the Out of The Woods video. That was the last video of the 1989 era, which essentially makes that video the end of the 1989 era. Zombie Taylor is 1989 Taylor risen from the dead.
2. Nils Sjoberg. In the next scene we see zombie Tay digging in the cemetery she rose from. Behind her, you can see a headstone for Nils Sjoberg. This is the pseudonym Taylor used for her writing credit on Calvin Harris's This is What You Came For.
3. Met Gala Dress. For a brief second, Taylor can be seen lying in her own grave, wearing her custom Oscar de La Renta gown from the 2014 Met Gala. Multiple sources quote Taylor saying that working with the designer on the dress was a dream of hers. One fan on Tumblr suggested that this may demonstrate her having to put her former self and former dreams to rest in order to become the darker, no bull crap Taylor.
4. Bathtub of diamonds. The shot of Taylor in her grave immediately cuts to her lying in a bathtub full of diamonds and pearls. This may be a jab at all those who have called her greedy over the years.
5. Dollar bill. Next to Taylor in the bathtub, there is a single dollar bill, which is a reference to her recent legal battle with David Mueller, who allegedly groped her during a meet-and-greet in 2013. All she asked for in this fight was a single dollar. It was about the principle, not the money.
6. Et tu Brute. In the scene where Taylor is on a throne, under her right hand are the words "et tu Brute," a reference to Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, in which Caesar turns to Brutus, who is supposed to be his best friend, and says, "And you, Brutus?" before Brutus hits Caesar with the final. fatal blow. Taylor may be using this to show how she's been betrayed by people she thought she could trust.
7. Maserati and Grammy. Taylor drives full speed, in a gold Maserati, into a lamp post. This may be a reference to the title track off her 2012 album Red, in which she says "loving him was like driving a new Maserati down a dead end street." When the car door falls open, we see her holding a Grammy. This could be a jab at the fact that she didn't win a Grammy for Red, or maybe it's just her predicting the future for Reputation.
8. Paparazzi. After Taylor gets into the car accident, you see a group of people just standing there taking photos instead of trying to help. She may have used this to demonstrate how, when people were tearing her down, everyone just watched it happen instead of helping/defending her.
9. Cage. After the car accident, we see Taylor swinging in a bird cage. She also appears to be wearing an orange romper. This may be indicative of how she feels like a prisoner to the media and their scrutiny.
10.  Stealing money. In one scene, Taylor and her friends, who are all wearing cat masks (Tay LOVES cats), appear to be robbing a bank. This may be another jab at those who have called her greedy and money-hungry over the years, especially since that scene goes right into the Stream Co. one, which we'll get to next.
11. Stream Co. Tay and her friends are seen walking out of an office for "Stream Co." This is an allusion to the time she took her music off most major streaming sites in order to stand up for lesser known artists whose livelihood depends on record sales and money made from streams. She explained that it wasn't about her making money, it was about those other artists, and people still called her greedy.
12. Blind Follower. In the bank and Stream Co. scenes, Taylor is wearing a sweatshirt that at the bottom reads "Blind Follower." I think this may be an allusion to those who have accused her friends and fans of being blind followers who will do and think whatever she wants them to.
13. Squad. Taylor is seen standing in front of a crowd of identical women and the word "Squad" is up on the screens. During the past few years, many people have accused Taylor of forcing her friends to do what she wants them to do.
14. Mannequins. Immediately after the squad scene, we see a shot of Taylor next to a small pile of mannequins, like the ones in the squad scene. Further driving the fake, forced friends point.
15. Dancers. When Taylor enters the room of dancers, at first they are all just goofing around. Once she walks in, they straighten up and get behind her, which is yet another jab at the forced friends thing.
16. I hear TS. When the dancers take their jackets off, after Taylor snaps her fingers, they reveal that they are all wearing shirts saying "I <3 TS." Back when Taylor was dating Tom Hiddleston, he was seen wearing a shirt with the same phrase on it at her 4th of July party. People accused Taylor of brainwashing him and forcing him to wear it, even though Hiddleston himself has said that that was not the case. Her snapping and having the dancers reveal their shirts is a solid depiction of that accusation.
17. Fearless Tay vs. Red Tay. During the bridge of the song, Taylor is seen standing on top of a mountain of her past selves. Two of these are Fearless Tour Taylor and Red Tour Taylor, who begin to fight each other. This could be a depiction of her struggle to choose between pop and country.
18. Phone. When Taylor says, "I'm sorry, the old Taylor can't come to the phone right now. Why? Oh, 'cause she's dead," she is speaking into a phone that looks very similar to the one in the Our Song video.
19. Boob grab. When dancing during the last chorus, you see Taylor reach up, touch her chest, and push her boobs up for just a split second. While this may seem like just another dance move, it may also be a jab at the rumors going around a while back that she had gotten a boob job.
20. Real Taylor. In the final scene of the video, Taylor is seen spray painting the word "Reputation" across a jet. However, this Taylor doesn't look like a past Taylor or Reputation Taylor. This had led many to believe that this is the real Taylor, but nobody listens to her and she is forced into the background.
21. Junior Jewels. In the final Taylor lineup, we see You Belong With Me Taylor wearing the same t-shirt from the video. However, there is a major change. The names on the shirt are no longer random signatures of made-up classmates. They are the names of people in Taylor's life that have stuck by her through everything. We see names like Ed, Selena, Ryan, and Blake, just to name a few.
22. Final Taylor Lineup. At the end of the video, multiple past Taylors are lined up and start saying things to each other that people have said to/about Taylor in real life, from telling her to stop acting so surprised all the time to telling her to shut up when asking to be excused from the Kanye feud narrative.
23. "Getting receipts." During this final lineup scene, one Taylor, who looks vaguely Kardashian-like, is seen recording everything on her phone. When asked what she's doing she says, "Getting receipts. I'm gonna edit this later." This could be a jab at Kim Kardashian, who, unbeknownst to Taylor at the time, recorded Taylor and Kanye's phone call where Kanye asked Taylor for permission to use the "I think me and Taylor might still have sex" line in his song Famous.

Back to School Survival Guide

Here in my hometown, summer is officially over. Students headed back to school this morning. For some, this is an exciting time. Reuniting with friends and being back on a regular schedule is fun for a lot of people. For others, back to school can mean back to stress. Have no fear! I'm here to help! Having survived school up through undergrad, I have plenty of tips for getting through the school year.
1. Breathe. This is so important. Things get busy fast when school starts. Remember to breathe.
2. Make time for you. Between homework, extracurriculars, and trying to keep up with your social life, it can be hard to find time for yourself. Whatever you do, make sure you're taking care of you.
3. Keep an agenda. If your school doesn't provide you an agenda, go to Walmart or the dollar store and get yourself a planner. This makes it way easier to keep up with assignments, due dates, and activities.
4. Get some sleep. This is another one of those things that can be hard to do in the midst of all the craziness, but it's important for your physical and mental health.
5. Don't be afraid to ask for help. Whether you're dealing with bullies or falling behind in a class, don't be afraid to speak up and ask for help. Go to tutoring (if your school offers it, or ask a friend or teacher for help), talk to your teachers, go to the counselor. Do whatever you need to do.
6. Be yourself. Don't let anyone tear you down for being you. Own it! You are awesome!
7. Pay attention in class. I know, some classes are boring things you're required to take. Trust me, I understand. It's still important to pay attention. If you don't you may miss some key information needed for the exam.
8. Study. Even if it's only for a few minutes a day, make sure you study. It'll pay off in the long run. (Hint: flashcards are your friend. You can also try quizlet.com, it's free and saves you from buying tons of index cards!)
9. Do your homework. I'm sure your mom and your teachers ride you about this already, but if you don't get your homework done, your grade will suffer.
10. Get involved. Don't just sit idly by and let the school year pass. Find a club/activity that interests you and get involved. It can help you to find friends with similar interests while also having a good time at school.
11. Have a presentation coming up? Make note cards. And number them. It will help you stay on track when you present.

You got this! Have a great school year!

Finally, We Have New Taylor Swift Music!

As I'm sure many of you know, Taylor Swift just dropped the lead single, Look What You Made Me Do, off her upcoming album, Reputation. I've seen mixed reviews of the song, but, personally, I've had it on repeat for the last 24 hours.
If you live under a rock and have not heard the song yet, you can see the lyric video here.
A lot of people have been hating on Taylor (surprise surprise) for this song. I've seen a lot of "oh, it's just more of her playing the victim and blaming others for her actions." No. It's her saying she's done taking everyone's crap. She's not going to let the media, or anyone, walk all over her anymore.
For years, Taylor has been "America's Sweetheart," but now? Now, she's showing us what being taken advantage of and dragged through the mud for a decade does to a person. Everyone has been giving her so much crap for simply writing about her experiences.
NEWS FLASH! That's what literally every artist does. Do they get told they're just "playing the victim card"? No. And no, not every Taylor Swift song is dissing an ex-boyfriend.
I'm proud of Taylor for finally standing up for herself, but I am sad that she had to do it in such a dramatic way. I guess that's the only way to really get her point across.
I'm excited to hear the rest of the album, which drops November 10th. You bet I'll be at Target ASAP that day!

Everything I Need to Know About High School, I Learned From Taylor Swift

Way back in 2008, Taylor Swift was a country singer and she released a little album called Fearless. The second song on the album, Fifteen, was written about Swift's early days of high school, from meeting her best friend, Abigail Anderson, to the ups and downs of teen romance. If you really listen to the lyrics of the song, you can learn a lot about how to survive high school.
1. "You take a deep breath, and you walk through the doors." This is important if it's your first day of high school and you're a little nervous. Just take a deep breath before you walk inside.
2."Hoping one of those senior boys will wink at you and say, 'you know, I haven't seen you around before.'" There's a good chance you are hoping for this. However, if a senior boy is flirting with you, run. He's almost 18, if he isn't already, and you're 14-15. That is not okay.
3. "Count to ten, take it in, this is life before you know who you're gonna be." Yes. This. Freshman year, and high school as a whole, doesn't last forever. Use this time to explore new things and figure yourself out. Enjoy it.
4. "In your life, you'll do things greater than dating the boy on the football team." So true. If you do end up dating the boy on the football team and it works out, that's great. Just don't get so focused on making that happen that you lose yourself. There are way more important things like friends, doing things you love, and figuring out who you want to be.
5. "Don't forget to look before you fall." This is one of my favorite lines in this song. Before you do something or date someone, really think about if it's right for you. Ask yourself, is this going to lead me closer to who I want to be? Will I be happy if I do this, or just end up hurt? These are important questions. If all else fails, ask your friends and family.
6. "I've found time can heal most anything." My other favorite line. It's 100% true. You're going to make mistakes. It's what teenagers (and humans in general) do. What's important is that you don't let those mistakes define you. Just give it time and move on. You'll be fine.
Now, go own this school year like the rock star you are! You've got this!