Taylor Swift was with Travis Kelce when she was inspired to write ‘Elizabeth Taylor’
When inspiration for a song strikes Taylor Swift, she’ll just start singing on the spot, even if she’s riding in a car with Travis Kelce.
That’s the backstory for “Elizabeth Taylor,” the third single from “The Life of a Showgirl” that began its U.S. radio rollout Tuesday, coinciding with Kelce confirming his return to the Kansas City Chiefs for a 14th season.
“Elizabeth Taylor” follows the album’s first two singles, “The Fate of Ophelia” and “Opalite.”
On the first day of its official release it became the most-added song on playlists at Hot Adult Contemporary radio stations in the United States.
The song debuted on Billboard’s Hot 100 on Oct. 18 after the album was released. According to Heavy, it spent 18 weeks on the charts — based on streaming and download purchases — and reached No. 3 even without a promotional campaign.
“Now that the ‘Elizabeth Taylor’ single received its official release today, it is expected to make another run up the charts, potentially reaching the No. 1 spot on the Hot 100,” Heavy wrote Tuesday.
The song pays homage to the Hollywood actress whose Oscar-winning film career spanned six decades and whose eight marriages to seven men attracted tabloid attention long before the Kardashians Era. (She married British actor Richard Burton twice.)
“I think one of the most random places I came up with an idea for a song for this album was the song ‘Elizabeth Taylor,’” Swift revealed last fall in a Pandora TikTok interview.
She said, “My parents sent me this clip of Elizabeth Taylor’s son saying something very flattering, that basically if there was one person he would say he might compare to his mother in modern day in terms of just, I guess, the persona and the whole, you know, chaos going on around us, he said he would say me.”
She happened to be in a car with Kelce at the time.
“I was so flattered by that when I read it, I just immediately started talking to Travis about it,” she said. “I was just like going on and on about Elizabeth Taylor, like talking about all the things about her that I love, all the things that made her so glamorous and funny and witty and interesting, and how she kept challenging herself late into her life, like kept taking on roles that were different and brave and raw. And I had to get out of the car.
“I was like, ‘One second, we’re parked.’ I was like, ‘I have to get out of the car for a second.’ And just sang this melody into my phone, got back into the car and just, that’s what that’s like when it happens.”
Swift didn’t say when exactly that moment happened. But in September 2024, The Guardian, a British daily newspaper, published an interview with Taylor’s son, Christopher Wilding, in which he declared himself a Swiftie.
Wilding is the second son of Taylor and British actor Michael Wilding, her second husband.
He described the media attention his mother attracted during her time in Hollywood — photographers waiting outside their home, magazines and newspapers putting her on front pages, often with scandalous headlines about her dramatic relationship with Burton. “None of us liked it,” he said.
The Guardian asked if any of today’s stars remind him of his mother.
“Well, I can’t tell you how much I admire Taylor Swift. I’m now a Swiftie,” he said.
He mentioned Swift’s Instagram post of Sept. 10, 2024, endorsing Kamala Harris for president, which she signed “childless cat lady,” referencing a 2021 J.D. Vance quote calling Democratic leaders “a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives.”
“Huge props to her. That reminds me a little bit of the same spirit my mom had,” Wilding said.
In October, after “The Life of a Showgirl” debuted, Wilding told People he was surprised and delighted that Swift had included a song about his mother on the album.
“She and my mom do seem like kindred spirits,” he told People. “They are both the very embodiment of female empowerment. The way (Swift) has deftly captured the similarities and parallel tracks in their careers and personal lives is delightful.”
The House of Taylor, run by his mother’s official estate, broke down Swift’s lyrics on the website, ElizabethTaylor.com:
“The view of Portofino was on my mind, when you called me at the Plaza Athénée,” for instance, refers to two locales important in Taylor’s life. She frequently vacationed on the beaches of Portofino, Italy, with Burton, who proposed to her there in 1964.
“Babe, I would trade the Cartier for someone to trust,” speaks of Taylor’s affinity for Cartier jewels. The French luxury jewelry house created some of the most memorable pieces in her famous collection.
Another lyric mentioning “white diamonds” also references Taylor’s love of precious stones, which led to the name of her iconic White Diamonds fragrance. And of course, there’s a lyric referencing Taylor’s famous violet eyes.
“Elizabeth famously had deep blue eyes that often appeared violet,” the actress’s estate says. “Not only were they uniquely pigmented, they were big, beautifully shaped, and framed by a rare double row of lashes and thick eyebrows, which all contributed to the drama and expressiveness of her eyes, making her gaze unforgettable.”
Swift will pay homage to those famous eyes on Record Store Day, April 18, when “Elizabeth Taylor” is released on a purple, 7-inch vinyl disc titled “Cry My Eyes Violet” after one of the lyrics.
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