Taylor Swift has premiered her new music video for “Delicate”, the fourth single from her 2017 album Reputation. The video aired exclusively at the iHeart Radio Music Awards tonight after Swift picked up the award for Best Female Artist.
The video isn’t what you may expect after hearing the song. It begins with a hectic red carpet and press junket, with Swift sporting a polite smile and being escorted by her bodyguards. She’s interrupted while taking a selfie with fans and resumes her trek down the hallway of a fancy hotel, wearing an elegant blue dress.
But like many songs on “Reputation” discuss, the version of her portrayed by the media usually isn’t the real Taylor. There’s a hilarious scene of her making funny faces in a mirror, reminiscent of her quirky side we see in the “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” video. This is when she notices that a note someone slipped her on the red carpet had some magical qualities.
Swift quickly realizes she’s invisible, ditches her heels and the bottom half of her dress, and proceeds to literally dance like no one’s watching. She makes her way out of the hotel, into a crowded subway station, and eventually outside in the pouring rain. Many fans have drawn parallels to previous songs where Swift mentions dancing in the rain, most notably the line in “Fearless”: “I don’t know why / but with you I’d dance / in a storm in my best dress.”
The video ends when Swift finds herself at the dive bar she mentioned at the beginning of the song, suddenly visible again and locking eyes with the writer of the magical note.
Watch the “Delicate” video below!
Here are what some fans have been saying on Twitter about the video:
https://twitter.com/13swift1989/status/973007109192261632
DANCE LIKE THE WORLD ISN'T WATCHING. The #DelicateMusicVideo has me in tears, so proud of you @taylorswift13! ? @taylornation13 pic.twitter.com/3xdEqMqgKH
— Taylor Swift Updates (@SwiftNYC) March 12, 2018
https://twitter.com/SwiftiesUnite13/status/973007615461593088
https://twitter.com/alltoobrien/status/973006840731783168
While the video is carefree and quirky on the surface, it seems to have some deeper subtext as well. Adhering to the theme of this Taylor Swift era, the video addresses her struggle to genuinely connect with others while also being so heavily scrutinized in the public eye. At times, her real self was invisible. But on “Reputation”, songs like “Look What You Made Me Do” show how Swift has grown in recent years and let go of the persona the media crafted for her. The carefree dancing and ultimate ending of the song represent Swift’s journey towards embracing herself and sharing that with the world.
The “Delicate” video follows up the three previous music videos from the Reputation era. In late August, Swift delivered the much anticipated “Look What You Made Me Do” video, which set the tone for her new era and surprised many with its self-awareness. In October Swift returned with “Ready For It”, which many are deeming the least memorable video of the four to date, despite its high-tech concept. Finally, in mid-January, 2018 started off with a bang with the “End Game” video, which featured Swift, Ed Sheeran, and the rapper Future partying at several different locations worldwide. Each video has racked up at least 120 million views, with “Look What You Made Me Do” sitting well above at 820 million.
“Delicate” officially impacts pop and adult contemporary radio as of March 12th. Many fans have high hopes for the mid-tempo tune. A clear fan favourite since the album’s release, “Delicate” is vastly different from the previous three singles. It documents the fragile stage of a relationship where everything is new and overwhelming, and you’re not quite sure which lines you can cross. It is essentially the transition between the initial attraction described in “Gorgeous” and “Ready for It” to the committed relationship depicted in “Call It What You Want” and “New Year’s Day”. The chorus sees Swift asking the same questions we’ve all faced at one point or another: “Is it cool that I said all that? / Is it chill that you’re in my head?”.
While “Look What You Made Me Do” and “End Game” set the tone of the album, “Delicate” is a snapshot of a couple on the verge of something more, which is a much more relatable subject. We can definitely see it taking off even more than it already has especially with the help of this amazing music video that gives the “Reputation” era a whole new meaning.
We think it’s one of the best songs on the album.
Isn’t it?
Are you a fan of Taylor Swift’s music video for “Delicate”? What is your favourite single off “Reputation” so far? Let us know on Twitter @CelebMix.