美国国家公共电台 NPR The Old Taylor's Not Dead

 

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

You thought you knew Taylor Swift. On her newest album, the pop star says not so fast. The album's called "Reputation." And it's Swift's first album in three years. And it's an introduction to what Taylor Swift is calling the new Taylor.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "LOOK WHAT YOU MADE ME DO")

TAYLOR SWIFT: I'm sorry. The old Taylor can't come to the phone right now. Why? Oh, because she's dead.

MARTIN: The new Taylor, like the old Taylor, is still setting records. Target says "Reputation" is its largest music presale ever. And the video for the album's first single, "Look What You Made Me Do" racked up the most YouTube views of any video in its first 24 hours. At the heart of all that success is Swift's music, which NPR's Ann Powers has been writing about for a whole lot of years. Hi, Ann.

ANN POWERS, BYLINE¹: Hey, Rachel. How you doing?

MARTIN: I'm doing well.

POWERS: Look what you made me do - talk about Taylor Swift.

MARTIN: Do we like new Taylor?

POWERS: Well, we are fascinated by new Taylor.

MARTIN: That is true.

POWERS: The world is fascinated by her. And on "Reputation," she gives the world, her fans and her critics a giant earful of her own story.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "DELICATE")

SWIFT: (Singing) Third floor on the west side, me and you. Handsome, your mansion² with a view. Do the girls back home touch you like I do?

MARTIN: When Taylor Swift's last album was about to drop, you wrote about how pop stars need controversy³, that it propels them. On this new album, can you hear those controversies⁴ that have swirled⁵ around Taylor Swift?

POWERS: Oh, my goodness. Can you hear them? Can you drown them out? They're everywhere.

MARTIN: (Laughter).

POWERS: She is writing about her own tussles⁶ with Kanye West, the rapper with whom she has a feud⁷. She's talking about her own love life. So, you know, the controversy has been coming to her. She is just using her music as a form of weaponry to, if not fight it off, contain it and define it.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "END GAME")

SWIFT: (Singing) Big reputations, ah. And you heard about me, oh. I got some big enemies. Big reputation, big reputation.

MARTIN: There are some songs that are a little darker. She's trying to do something edgier⁸. Do you buy it?

POWERS: What I buy on "Reputation" is Taylor Swift's determination to explore every corner of pop that she wants to walk into. And the most, probably, shocking thing to some ears is going to be that she touches on hip-hop and urban sounds in a way she never has before.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "THIS IS WHY WE CAN'T HAVE NICE THINGS")

SWIFT: (Singing) It was so nice being friends again. There I was giving you a second chance, but you stabbed me in the back while shaking my hand.

MARTIN: I can't shake, however, banjo-playing-Romeo-and-Juliet Taylor Swift.

POWERS: (Laughter) Can't shake it off, huh?

MARTIN: Good one. I can't. And I'm having a hard time, like, allowing both of these Taylors to exist in my mind.

POWERS: Well, let me reassure⁹ you, Rachel. The romantic is still there. And the Romeo is still there. She has a lot of songs on this album about resolving all of her issues around becoming a figure of controversy by retreating into a romance with a new boyfriend.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "CALL IT WHAT YOU WANT")

SWIFT: (Singing) All the drama queens taking swings. All the jokers dressing¹⁰ up as kings. They fade to nothing when I look at him.

POWERS: Taylor is still at her heart that woman who believes in true love, believes in friendship and loyalty¹¹, believes in justice. And justice means treat Taylor right.

MARTIN: Treat Taylor right.

POWERS: Do it.

MARTIN: Do it now. Ann Powers of NPR Music. She joined us from Nashville, Tenn. Thanks, Ann.

POWERS: Thank you so much.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "...READY FOR IT?")

SWIFT: (Singing) Are you ready for it? Baby, let the games begin. Let the games begin. Let the games begin.

1 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

2 mansion   

n.大厦，大楼；宅第

参考例句：

• The old mansion was built in 1850.这座古宅建于1850年。
• The mansion has extensive grounds.这大厦四周的庭园广阔。

3 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

4 controversies   

争论

参考例句：

• We offer no comment on these controversies here. 对于这些争议，我们在这里不作任何评论。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史
• The controversies surrounding population growth are unlikely to subside soon. 围绕着人口增长问题的争论看来不会很快平息。 来自辞典例句

5 swirled   

v.旋转，打旋( swirl的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The waves swirled and eddied around the rocks. 波浪翻滚着在岩石周围打旋。
• The water swirled down the drain. 水打着旋流进了下水道。

6 tussles   

n.扭打，争斗( tussle的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They need no running fights with large, fierce rats or tussles with grown rabbits. 它们不必奔跑着与大又凶的老鼠搏斗了，也不必跟大兔子扭斗了。 来自辞典例句
• The magazine has had a series of tussles with Asian governments. 该杂志曾与亚洲多国政府发生争执。 来自互联网

7 feud   

n.长期不和；世仇；v.长期争斗；世代结仇

参考例句：

• How did he start his feud with his neighbor?他是怎样和邻居开始争吵起来的？
• The two tribes were long at feud with each other.这两个部族长期不和。

8 edgier   

adj.不安的，易激怒的( edgy的比较级 )

参考例句：

• The Hill is an upstart competitor that's a little edgier. 国会山是一个有点边缘化的新晋竞争者。 来自互联网
• Despite the edgier aspects of his personality, Anakin possesses a guileless charm. 除去他性格中的边缘性，阿纳金拥有一种坦率的魅力。 来自互联网

9 reassure   

v.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• This seemed to reassure him and he continued more confidently.这似乎使他放心一点，于是他更有信心地继续说了下去。
• The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe.航空公司尽力让乘客相信飞机是安全的。

10 dressing   

n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料

参考例句：

• Don't spend such a lot of time in dressing yourself.别花那么多时间来打扮自己。
• The children enjoy dressing up in mother's old clothes.孩子们喜欢穿上妈妈旧时的衣服玩。

11 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。