TS12 IS REAL!! (The Life of a Showgirl Discussion)

Hello everyone, and welcome back to another post! TS12 is real!!! I never thought I'd be saying that, but as of yesterday, TS12 is real and titled The Life of a Showgirl. The theme seems to be glittery, happy, and hopefully will feature TRUE upbeat, pop songs. That seems likely, as it is also rumored that Max Martin and Shellback (1989, reputation, etc.) will be fully producing this album. I also think it may be a more reflective album on the struggles of being a huge celebrity. In this post, I will be discussing my predictions and theories. Sorry if this post is rushed, I need to get it out before all of this becomes obsolete after the New Heights episode tonight.

Predictions

I created this bingo card for my predictions, and I will briefly explain each of my predictions.

3+ Songs About Travis: Taylor seems the happiest she's been in a LONG time, so multiple love songs are basically a given.

October Release Date: Physical copies will ship before October 13, so it would make since for the album to release around then. I think it will release on October 3rd, which also happens to be National Plaid Day. She wore the Orange/Green 1989 combo in Cardiff, the 103rd show of the tour, which only strengthens this theory.

Special Merch Collection: This is basically a freebie; I just think there will be a merch collection dedicated to The Life of a Showgirl.

At Least 1 Song about The Eras Tour: If we don't get a song about her tour on an album about being a showgirl...

Tracklist Revealed on New Heights: I think the tracklist might be revealed tonight on Travis and Jason's podcast, but I wouldn't be surprised if she spread out the reveals.

Sabrina Carpenter Collab: This is obvious. Sabrina's team posted "Go put some clothes on" yesterday, which was a direct reference to when they performed together on The Eras Tour, which just so happened to be a day where Taylor wore the orange Surprise Song dress. This photo was the twelfth image in the carousel Taylor Nation posted Monday, so a collab is basically confirmed.

1 or More Pre-Release Singles: I think there is a good chance we get a single as early as Friday, because this era really seems to be a return to the public eye for her. We haven't gotten a pre-release single since Lover either, so it's about time.

Album Cover Revealed on New Heights: This should've been the free space, since we already know she reveals the vinyl during the podcast from a preview posted Tuesday.

Extra Songs Released on Release Day: She did this with Midnights, TTPD, and even from 1989 TV with the Bad Blood remix, so why not do it for The Life of a Showgirl?

12:12 a.m. Release: This is when the first countdown expired, so it would make total since for the album to release at this time.

3+ Songs with Jack Antonoff: The rumors say Jack isn't involved in this album, but maybe he is? It wouldn't surprise me if he wasn't, but I could totally seem him working on a few songs.

Gracie Abrams Collab: Travis is wearing Gracie merch during the podcast, and with Taylor featuring on The Secret of Us, I could totally see Gracie returning the favor for this album! Plus we already know they spent time together at one of their houses (and almost burnt it down in the process...), so they totally could have made multiple songs.

Free Space: ...come on, do you really need me to explain this?

Release Date Revealed on New Heights: I see this as one of the most likely predictions for obvious reasons, and this is also the last of the predictions for tonight's podcast.

Song with Previous Collaborator: I could totally see someone who performed with her on the tour, such as Florence + The Machine, Phoebe Bridgers, or HAIM collaborating with her again on an album presumably about her life performing.

Song about Blake Lively: Even thought this is likely a happier album, I could see her letting out her feelings about what happened earlier this year with Blake Lively.

3+ Songs Produced by Max Martin: This album, at least to me, seems like 1989 meets Lover, so Max Martin production would definitely make sense. Plus, with Taylor Nation's playlist, this almost seems gurannted.

15+ Songs: Every single album since Fearless has had 15 or more songs including deluxe editions, so I see no reason this album would break that pattern.

The Life of a Showgirl Tour: I would totally understand the lack of a tour after the 149 shows she just performed... but come on, it's an album about performing. How could there not be a tour, or at least a few performances?

5+ Different Physical Releases: Most albums have four different variants, and a Target exclusive, so I believe this is a given. This is even more likely with the new countdown on Taylor's website, with four keys (one appearing every hour) that match the four T.S. boxes in the previews for the podcast tonight.

3 or More Collaborations: I could definitely see a large number of collaborations on this album, including Sabrina, Gracie, and likely one new collaborator.

Song with New Collaborator: If she's going to keep doing collaborations, she'll need to do one with a person who hasn't collaborated with her before eventually, right?

Double Album: I could totally see a double album, especially with all the plaid and two-colored outfits she's been wearing, as well as the fact she probably has a lot to write about.

One or More Leaks are True: I won't discuss the leaks, but I could totally see one of them being true.

Track 5 is Heartbreaking: Even though this album will likely be happier, I think Track 5 will still be devastating, and one of the most heartbreaking yet.

Theories

I will now talk about my theories for this album. None of this is confirmed as of yet.

I think the color palette will be the orange and mint-green we've already seen, alongside a happier theme than her last album. I've seen people on here and on other platforms describe this as her "glitter gel pen" era, and I could totally see that. I think this album will be upbeat, and more reminiscent of 1989/Red than folklore/evermore/TTPD. I think there will be four variants, all with a special song. This is mainly because of the four locks/boxes found in Travis's room and Taylor's website, but I think this album could also be the soundtrack to an Eras Tour documentary. The locks on her website (which just so happen to be alongside a countdown with the Karma door from the Eras Tour stage that she walked through on the last show, 12/8, which foreshadowed the 8/12 announcement) have keyholes shaped like the Eras Tour stage, which definitely means SOMETHING. I also think there will be a pre-release single, a single on release day, and 1-2 singles after release day. So yes, this will be a fully-fledged era.

Wow, that was a long post! Thanks for reading, and I'll see you tomorrow with more content about The Life of a Showgirl!