Evolution of a Snake: The Taylor Swift Podcast

By some miracle, 2015: Part 2 has emerged. In this episode, Zack and Madeline delve into the second half of Taylor’s most chaotic year. In hindsight, it’s full of powerful foreshadowing, embarrassing blunders, and the beginning of a shift that drastically changed Taylor Swift’s relationship with fame. We begin this episode with the Apple Music letter, and go on to discuss some 1989 tour gossip, the absolutely unhinged Nicki Minaj/Katy Perry feud, and the fateful 2015 #SQUAD VMAs. Throughout, interviews are analyzed with a critical gaze, and so is the rise of a new genre of think piece: the Taylor Swift Takedown. There was so much going on we had to make 2015: Part 3...stay tuned!  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In a series first for The Evolution of a Snake, Madeline and Zack dive deep into another artist's discography. Well, if you can call it that. In the wake of another round of comparison, Olivia's potential as the heir-apparent to the diaristic songwriting throne is discussed judiciously but with skepticism. With three smash hits and a headlining tour underway...is Olivia ready, willing, or able to take over? Not if The Snakes have anything to say about it. After all, heavy is the head that wears the crown.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Well, back by popular demand, here is the year-by-year update. We've finally reached the most chaotic (and potentially...dislikable?) time in Taylor Swift's career. She is quite literally, girl bossing too close to the sun. We begin the year with a PR spin from Tree Paine and a few red carpet events. Surprisingly, this half of the year is FULL of great gowns, beautiful gowns. Later on, Taylor gets her first VOGUE cover but unfortunately has to share it with the crook who was caught. She's Instagramming all day long. She's refreshing her dashboard on Tumblr. And that's where we get into some ancient history on the origins of the swifties eating each other alive. Regrettably this is the year where we must start talking about Calvin Harris, AKA flop DJ and/or The Evil Man. There are award shows, announcements, music videos, and a whole new tour to digest and dissect. Join us for this first part and thank you for your patience! Keep up with us on IG @evolutionofasnake.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome back to another episode of The Evolution of a Snake. Due to production constraints (Zack being tired) we were unable to squeeze in 2015: Part 1 before the end of the year. But fear not, we're back with a special holiday treat. In this episode we revisit Sounds of the Season and rank our top 10 Taylor Swift songs with a fun little twist. Thanks for listening this year and we can't wait to keep it going for our fourth year (!!) in 2022.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, Madeline and Zack dive into the re-release of Taylor's most confounding record: the bright, burning, Red. On the agenda today is a plethora of topics; there are some throwbacks to Easter eggs from the past, a review of Taylor's recent (and excellent) promotional appearances, and some reminiscing about the original release week with the context of what we know now about her emotional state in 2012. Things heat up when they discuss the copycat recordings (which, like Red, are completely all over the place) and excessive praise is lavished over the truly compelling and wonderfully intricate vault tracks. Madeline gives a blow by blow account of experience with her "white boy of the millennium" being cast in a Taylor Swift production. To top it off, they dissect the All Too Well: Short Film and psychoanalyse Jake x Taylor. Catch up with us on Twitter @tswiftpodcast, and on Instagram @evolutionofasnake. https://www.buymeacoffee.com/thesnakes donate here if you'd like to support this ad-free, long form podcast.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's the most wonderful time of the year: album release season. Join us on an incredibly convoluted journey through many a revealing interview (Rolling Stone, WSJ, British Vogue) and Taylor Swift The Girlboss rises to the apex of her power. We begin at the 2014 VMA's, where Taylor begins an embarrassing trend of being completely unable to hit the Shake it Off high note. We move on to the ignition of a monumental beef with Miss Katy Perry, and discuss what the true motivations behind this smear campaign were. Taylor's general neuroses about privacy and safety are discussed at length. The Secret Sessions make their first appearance and shake the music industry for years to come. We go through the motions of building hype for 1989, reviewing her choice of pre-release tracks and eventually getting into the entire album. Spoiler alert: back to back bangers, it slaps, probably a bulletproof album in hindsight. We receive a groundbreaking music video and discuss the power of her pen in Blank Space. Of course, there is some Haylor tea. The year ends with the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, and a fall down the stairs on NYE. If you're interested in supporting this podcast, visit http://www.buymeacoffee.com/thesnakes                Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Well, we've finally made it to the legendary 1989 era. It's perhaps the juiciest, and most significant landmark in the life and times of Taylor Swift. In this episode, we discuss some major shifts in the Snake's personal life: moving to New York, cutting her hair short, and becoming friends with Karlie Kloss and Lena Dunham. Throughout the year, we see many sartorial shifts which renegotiate her public image. The famed crop tops, remember them? A new cat is purchased, there's a bug in her hair in the last leg of The Red Tour, and after months of clues and build-up the 1989 livestream on Yahoo finally takes place. Tune in to hear Madeline and Zack's analysis on what this all means, and how it potentially sets the Snake up for disaster in later years.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Fearless (Taylor's Version) was a stroll down memory lane, so we're taking one with you in this episode. We revisit the highs and lows of the iconic, faux country extravaganza, and express our dismay towards the vault songs and *certain* re-recordings which were perhaps recorded in a toaster. As always, we extend our congratulations to The Snake on the maintenance of her status as The World's Most Insane Person. There is some chatter about the new merch (and Austin Swift's secret side gig) as well as some speculation on where we go from here. @tsfolklore and @hoaxlakes on twitter.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After our surprise evermoreology drop, we've been inspired to keep chatting nonsense about our favorite reptilian. Take a journey with us through the tumultuous year of 2013, with its plethora of highs, lows, dramas, and bad looks serves. We begin the year with the iconic shot of Taylor sitting alone on a boat, post the mysterious (and evidently explosive) fall out from the Haylor Drama, which continues to plague us at the Grammy's and the VMA's. Some seeds are planted this year, or Easter Eggs if you will, that lead to the absolute carnage of 2014. We've got good and bad performances, a full run-down of the red tour including random fans on stage and rule discourse, and many perplexing outfits to dissect. podcast twitter: @tswiftpodcast host twitters: @hoaxlakes & @tsfolklore Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Well, here's another unplanned episode spurred on by Taylor Swift's lockdown insanity. Zack and Madeline dive into evermore, drawing comparisons between its predecessor and the rest of the discography. Certain tracks are hotly debated, fawned over, or despised. The new transition to fictional narratives is one that proves fruitful for discussion, as clues are given to potential real life inspirations. Two recent swiftie dramas are discussed, and the fandom elders are displeased with recent events. Who is the ultimate grand supreme, folklore or evermore? Tune in to find out!  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices