Analyzing Taylor Swift's NYT 30 Greatest Songwriters Interview

Every month, our patrons send in their most controversial pop culture takes, and we are legally obligated to react. This month’s voicemails broke us. Topics include: whether JoJo Siwa’s “Karma” is actually better than anything KATSEYE has released (and what that says about the music industry machine behind KATSEYE and Manon), Ice Spice’s entire catalogue being for children, the “pity artist” tier list (Sabrina Carpenter, Tate McRae, Addison Rae — your words, not ours), whether Taylor Swift’s re-recordings are a scam, Olivia Rodrigo’s next era, and the great Coachella influencer crisis.Phone a Snake drops monthly — but the full, uncut, unhinged version lives exclusively on our Patreon for subscribers: patreon.com/evolutionofasnake

FREE TOYS AND GIFT CARDS! Everyone who signs up to our giveaway with @bellesaco wins something! https://www.bboutique.co/vibe/swiftologist-podcast  In 2020, Taylor Swift was supposed to headline her first-ever stadium tour. Then COVID happened. Lover Fest was cancelled — and Taylor Swift as we knew her never came back. We built the version of Lover Fest that never was. Full concept setlist, era breakdown, staging ideas, and our honest take on what this tour would have meant for her career trajectory. This is the show Taylor was forced to cancel. We're finishing it for her.

In this episode, we're back — and it gets worse. We're brutally ranking every Taylor Swift music video from the "new testament" era: Lover through The Life of a Showgirl. After spending last episode celebrating the visuals that defined her career, it's time to confront the ones that didn't. From the cosy-but-forgettable to the genuinely embarrassing, we rank them all — worst to best — and we don't hold back.Cardigan vs. Anti-Hero. Bejeweled vs. Fortnight vs The Fate of Ophelia and Opalite. The highs, the lows, and the ones we've collectively agreed to forget.Did Taylor Swift lose the plot visually? We discuss.

GET TICKETS TO SEE US ON TOUR NOW: https://www.evolutionofasnake.com We watched every Taylor Swift cringe moment so you don't have to…and we have notes. Divas, this week we're counting down the Top 5 cringiest Taylor Swift moments that had us genuinely squirming: the Grammy meltdown that critics called "wretched," the safest political anthem ever written, and yes — THAT! Cats performance. Buckle up.

WE’RE ON TOUR NOW, COME SEE US: https://www.evolutionofasnake.comTaylor Swift just gave the New York Times her most candid interview yet — and we watched every second so you didn't have to. This week on Evolution of a Snake, we're breaking down the real story behind how All Too Well (Ten Minute Version) actually got made, how Taylor defines her own greatest songwriting, why Speak Now, Evermore, and Love Story keep getting overlooked even by her own fans — and whether this interview is the final proof that she is the greatest living American songwriter. We have receipts.

GET TICKETS TO SEE US ON TOUR NEXT WEEK: https://www.evolutionofasnake.com Welcome to 2019: Part 3, the latest installment of our in depth analysis of every year of Taylor Swift’s career. This is the one where the woman they thought they had cornered gets a white shirt, embroiders every album she's about to take back onto it, and walks onto the AMA stage in front of the entire industry. There will be a notes app letter. There will be a Billboard speech about toxic male privilege and private equity. There will be a re-recording announcement that makes two very rich, very powerful men realise they have made the most expensive mistake in music history. Scooter Braun will write an open letter asking for sympathy. She ends the year in the Maldives with someone who does not deserve a vacation. Enjoy! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Tortured Poets Department is officially two years old...which means the recency bias excuse has LOGGED OFF. Today, we’re putting Taylor Swift’s most divisive era on trial. From the overstuffed track list allegations to the Matty Healy of it all, we are prosecuting and defending the most insane, unpopular, and frankly unhinged opinions you sent in. Was TTPD a bloated career mistake or a misunderstood masterpiece that required two years to breathe?SPECIAL TOUR PREVIEW: This segment is a first look at what we're bringing to the stage for our new tour, The Showgirl Experience! In our live show, one of us will be defending and the other will be prosecuting your most controversial TLOAS opinions. Consider this TTPD trial your opening statement for what's coming to a city near you.GET TICKETS: https://www.evolutionofasnake.com  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

GET TICKETS TO SEE US ON TOUR THIS SUMMER: https://www.evolutionofasnake.comIn today’s episode, we delve into our findings from one of music’s biggest nights…or should we say…one of the influencer’s biggest nights: Coachella 2026. It was Sabrinachella and Addisonchella as far as we’re concerned, but we take a critical look at Justin Bieber and KATSEYE’s performances for a little extra sauce.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

GET TICKETS TO SEE US ON TOUR THIS SUMMER: https://www.evolutionofasnake.com We’re rewinding to Taylor Swift's NYU Commencement Speech 2022 and reading it like a prophecy. At the time, it felt like a charming, self-aware victory lap. But in hindsight? It’s loaded with real easter eggs about everything that followed: the emotional architecture of Midnights, the meta-theatre of The Eras Tour, the unraveling of her long-term relationship with Joe Alwyn, and the chaotic re-entry of Matty Healy. We’re dissecting the language, the tone, the “mistakes” motif, the self-mythologizing — and asking: was Taylor already preparing us for the next era… or trying to convince herself of it? ⁠⁠⁠https://www.patreon.com/swiftologist Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

GET TICKETS TO SEE US LIVE THIS SUMMER: https://www.evolutionofasnake.comIn this episode of Evolution of a Snake, we’re brutally ranking Taylor Swift’s concert tours — from the baby curls and band sets of the early years to the maximalist pop spectacle of her stadium domination. We’re revisiting the fairytale gowns, the surprise song moments, the costume changes, the iconic staging, the crowd work, the live arrangements, and the eras that defined what a Taylor Swift tour even is. We’re not just ranking based on nostalgia. We’re talking ambition, execution, cultural impact, setlists, production value, and whether each tour actually holds up as a live experience. Some of them changed her career forever. Some of them walked so others could run. And yes, our opinions may SHOCK and HORRIFY you!Get 10 free meals + a FREE Zwilling Knife (a $144.99 value) on your third box at https://HelloFresh.com/snake10fm Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices