Taylor Swift reveals Elizabeth Taylor meaning on The Life of a Showgirl

13 October 2025, 10:26

Who is Elizabeth Taylor in Taylor Swift's song? Here is everything we know about The Life of a Showgirl track.

Taylor Swift has revealed the inspiration behind her song 'Elizabeth Taylor' from her album The Life of a Showgirl.

'Elizabeth Taylor' is one of the singer's most beloved songs on the record, joining other tunes including, 'The Fate of Ophelia', 'Father Figure', 'Wood', 'Cancelled!', 'Opalite', 'Actually Romantic', 'Ruin the Friendship' and 'Wi$h Li$t' on the The Life of a Showgirl.

Explaining the meaning of the song, Taylor revealed: "The song 'Elizabeth Taylor' is sort of half cosplay, half singing from your own perspective."

• Listen to Heart on Global Player, the official Heart app

She continued: "It's got to do with fame, attention, love, notoriety, anxiety that this isn't going to be forever and how heartbroken would you be then?"

The star added: "The first line that I came up with was 'I'd cry my eyes violet, Elizabeth Taylor' and from that point on I was just like 'oh my god i'm obsessed with this song'. And I kind of wanted to just tell a story that referenced some of the cool things about her life but that are also parallel to mine. I used details from her life, but the feelings of what it kind of conveys are things I've absolutely experience time and time again.

"We really went in on this track, the production of this is something that I'm so proud of cause it's equally luxurious and feminine and then goes really hard and really tough in the chorus. It's just one of my favourite songs."

• Read more: Taylor Swift reveals plans for her new era as Life of a Showgirl drops
• Read more: Taylor Swift reveals how Travis Kelce relationship has changed her music
• Read more: Taylor Swift fangirls over Spice Girl Emma Bunton in sweet interview

She also told The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: "I love Elizabeth Taylor, I love her so much. She is I think the ultimate sort of icon, role model that I look to when I look at somebody who had like, immense pressure on them, was extremely scrutinised everything she ever did. She kept making more and more daring art, like it's almost the more polarising people were about her the most she just kept doing even more challenging roles, taking bigger risks.

"And she's like out here at the height of whatever scrutiny she may have been under and the height of her fame, she's winning Oscars and not letting anything kind of stop her from doing it for the reasons she'd always done it. She was so funny, she used humour as like a device against any of her detractors, like I've done that with songs like Blank Space when people are like, 'man eating serial dater', and I would just be like let me write a song from that perspective that's hilarious.

"I think you have to be able to combat negativity with humour, that's my favourite thing about her, I just wanted to make a song that felt as luxurious and glamorous as she was. In the verses and the bridge we had a harp, we pulled out all the stops for her."

• Read more: Taylor Swift's engagement ring cost, design details and hidden meaning
• Read more: Taylor Swift reveals engagement details and shares bachelorette party plans
• Read more: Watch Taylor Swift's full interview on Heart Breakfast here

Elizabeth Taylor was an English actress best known for starring in films such as Father of the Bride, Giant, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Cleopatra, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? The starlet passed away at the age of 79 in 2011 and left behind a highly-acclaimed legacy.

Aside from her illustrious career Elizabeth was also famed for her eight marriages with seven men, with the thespian marrying Richard Burton for a second time in 1975 after the couple divorced in 1974. Some listeners have noted the similarities between Taylor and Elizabeth as their personal lives have been under scrutiny over the years.

In 'Elizabeth Taylor' the lyrics state that Taylor would cry her eyes violet, matching the actresses' unusual purple-ish eye colour. Fans believe this would be because Taylor's blue eyes would become red due to her crying and when the blue and red mix they create purple, therefore matching Elizabeth's eye colour.

• Read more: Inside Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's relationship: From how they met to engagement
• Read more: Taylor Swift's albums ranked
• Read more: Taylor Swift singing her first song 'Lucky You' aged 13, before anyone knew her name

The song has gone down a storm on social media, with fans taking to X, formally known as Twitter, to discuss the song.

One user penned: "Oh my god the vocals on Elizabeth Taylor."

Another wrote: "Elizabeth Taylor is the best song on the album and no one can change my mind."

While another added: "Elizabeth Taylor finally fully clicked for me."

• Read more: Taylor Swift's heartfelt speech at Selena Gomez's wedding revealed
• Read more: Taylor Swift's engagement ring cost, design details and hidden meaning
• Read more: Taylor Swift and Matty Healy's relationship timeline and dramatic split explained