It has been three years since Taylor Swift dominated the music business with her fifth album “1989,” which spawned hit singles including “Shake it Off,” “Blank Space,” and “Bad Blood,” and then won her a historic second Grammy for Album of the Year (she was the first woman to win twice as a lead artist). This week she announced plans to release her sixth album, “Reputation,” on November 10, and early in the morning on August 25 she released its first single, “Look What You Made Me Do” (watch the lyric video above). As of this writing it’s been out for only a few hours, but discussion about the new song is already lighting up our forums. You can join the discussion here. So what do our readers think? Well, it’s a mixed bag.
Reactions to the song are all over the map, with some Derbyites saying that it’s “not a good song,” “underwhelming,” or even “awful,” while others defend the song as “catchy.” “I think over time it will grow on me,” says one, while another admits, “I kinda love it.” So can it still continue Swift’s winning streak with lead singles? The debut song from her 2012 album “Red” was “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” which hit number-one on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and earned a Grammy nomination for Record of the Year. Then the debut song from 2014’s “1989” was “Shake it Off,” which also hit number-one and earned Grammy noms for Record and Song of the Year.
From the sounds of these reactions, “Look What You Made Me Do” may not replicate those successes, but underestimate Swift at your own risk. Read some of the reactions to the new song below, and join the discussion in our forums.
GusCruz: “Not a good song frankly. The fans will love it naturally.”
WildforFilm: “I think overtime it will grow on me like ‘Shake It Off’ did, but its certainly no ‘Blank Space,’ ‘Style,’ or ‘Out of the Woods’ from her last album. I’m just hoping it can knock ‘Despacito’ from taking the all-time record on Billboard.”
circa 1993: “This is her most underwhelming first single to date. Pretty disappointed.”
vinny: “I kinda love it. Wasn’t expecting it to be so not like her past stuff.”
SkyLight: “The chorus is horrible. Will this debut at #1? I’m not sure now.”
Marco B.: “This is not so bad as lot of people are saying; of course it’s not a very good song, but nothing terrible. It is slightly more interesting than most pop I’ve listened to recently. Maybe Taylor Swift is not as bad as I thought.”
Atypical: “NOPE. Mess. Just listen to Lorde instead.”
Final2: “The reactions seem so split, either people like it or hate it. I think it’s catchy, not her best, but her lead singles never are (save ‘Love Story’).”
Djoko: “I think it’s very catchy. I’ve been listening to it all morning.”
Xtina: “Honey, what in the Noah Cyrus is going on here! Her new song is beyond awful. The Grammys would hit an all-time low nominating this.”
Lance: “It’s okay. For me, it’s on the level of ‘Bad Blood,’ like a 4th or 5th release. It’s not on the level of ‘Blank Space’ or ‘Shake It Off.’ I wouldn’t be surprised if this isn’t her strongest song from the album because it will be a bigger hit than it should be, based on hype. Then, she can release some songs that will stand more on their quality. At least, that’s what I’m hoping.”
