Taylor Swift seems like one of the few artists whose music videos are still a big deal, in
part because she's so enormously popular, but also because she goes all out every time.
The new video for "Delicate," the latest single off her multi-platinum album Reputation, is
no exception.
Here are some things you might have missed amid all the excitement of "Delicate's" video
debut.
Personal plot
It's no secret that Swift writes about her personal life.
Over the years, she's written songs about her romances with dudes like Jake Gyllenhaal
and Harry Styles — and her videos are just as revelatory and introspective.
In "Delicate," Swift plays a pop star — who may or may not be Taylor Swift — dealing
with paparazzi, reporters, fans, and security guards.
Then she discovers a magical note that makes her invisible.
Suddenly, she can come and go as she pleases without having to be "on" all the time — and
she can explore what a life without fame feels like.
By the end, she looks into a quaint bar, perhaps longing for the life she wishes she had, or,
in another life, could've had.
Completing an arc
"Delicate" might complete a story told piece-by-piece via Swift's three previous videos for the
singles off of Reputation.
According to a Taylor Swift superfan on Twitter, the story goes like this: The message of "Look
What You Made Me Do" was:
"This is what you think I'm like."
That was followed by the song "…Ready For It?" which was theoretically saying,
"I'm done letting my reputation take over."
Then came "End Game," saying:
"I'm having more fun than you and living my best life."
"Delicate," with Swift remaining oddly unseen despite being one of the most famous people
in the world, is about how, underneath the fame and fortune, she's just a person.
Welcome to LA
It appears Swift's "New York" era might be over — as it should be.
Her song "Welcome to New York" was on 1989 and that album is so 2014.
The pop star has seemingly moved on from the fascination with the concrete jungle to the
glossy, Hollywood-laced dream factory that is Los Angeles.
The majority of the action in the "Delicate" video takes place in and around the Los Angeles
Biltmore Hotel, also known as the Millennium Biltmore Hotel, which is a very fitting choice
for such a personal video.
The "Millennium" works because Taylor Swift is a voice of her generation, and also because
it's a classy, sparkly joint.
Like the Biltmore, Taylor Swift is equally rich and fancy, but, as the video implies,
beneath the surface, a normal entity with a heart.
A 'Gatsby' nod
The "Delicate" video rocks a distinctive 1920s Jazz Age feel.
At one point, Swift rips off the bottom part of her gown to transform her dress into something
Daisy Buchanan would wear in F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic novel The Great Gatsby.
In that story, the mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby is obsessed with Daisy and her
every move, which, as this video implies, isn't too different from the worldwide obsession
with Taylor Swift.
This isn't the only Reputation-era nod to The Great Gatsby.
On the song "This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things," Swift sings about a wild time in
her life when she was:
"...feeling so Gatsby for that whole year."
With the way the "Delicate" video plays out, that Gatsby fixation just might be over.
Joe Alwyn?
Whenever Swift drops a new album, fans and critics pick apart the songs to figure out
which celebrity boyfriend each track is about.
The consensus seems to be that "Delicate" is about British actor Joe Alwyn, Swift's
main squeeze since 2017.
Swift has been a bit more private, or "delicate," with this relationship than with boyfriends
past.
The lyric "never seen that color blue" is likely about the blue-eyed star — but even
more clues hide in the video.
When Swift receives the magic note that makes her invisible, she is shown wearing one of
her signature snake rings — on her ring finger, implying this guy might be "the one."
And at one point, she specifically glides by "Joe's Deli."
Shout out to Joe!
'Fearless' dancing
One of the most striking themes in the video is the cleansing power of water.
In the title track from Swift's album Fearless, she sings about a similar moment of dramatic
forward momentum with the lyric:
"I don't know why, but with you I'd dance in a storm in my best dress fearless."
Fans noticed that in "Delicate," Swift dances in a storm in her best dress, you know, fearlessly.
By the way, when she dances in the subway, "Track 5" is written on the pole behind her.
Bet you can guess which track is number 5 on Reputation.
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