Taylor Swift first referenced late screen icon Elizabeth Taylor and her great love, Richard Burton, in her Reputation song “…Ready For It…?” singing, “He can be my jailer / Burton to this Taylor.”
Her new single, “Elizabeth Taylor,” talks more about the actress’ life and legacy and is paired with a video made entirely from scenes from her famous movies.
In an audio commentary track about the song, Taylor shares what she finds compelling about Elizabeth Taylor and explains why she includes a song about her on The Life of a Showgirl.
She explains that before everyone speculated about her own love life, Elizabeth’s love life captivated the world, as she was married eight times to seven men.
“Elizabeth Taylor is one of the most ultimate quintessential showgirls I could ever imagine,” says Taylor in the audio commentary. “You know, not in a literal sense as much as she was under a microscope so, so intense, and she handled it with humor, and she got along with her life. And she continued to make incredible art.”
“And so this is a love song kind of through the lens of the motif of what she had to go through in her life,” she continues. “And sort of the parallels that I feel in my own life.”
“You know, role models are pretty hard to come by,” Taylor adds. “But I would absolutely say that she’s one of mine.”
Elizabeth Taylor’s estate is a fan of Taylor Swift’s, too. The actress’ official Instagram account posted stills from the video and referenced a lyric in the song, writing, “We think it’s forever, @taylorswift.” The estate even sells an official Taylor Swift-inspired “Elizabeth Taylor” friendship bracelet.
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