George Michael’s estate responds to Taylor Swift’s new song ‘Father Figure’
What do you make of Taylor Swift’s new song, “Father Figure”?
Mark
Taylor Swift released her new album The Life Of A Showgirl on Friday. It’s sure to rocket to number one on charts worldwide: It’s achieved the biggest ever pre-save in Spotify’s history. The Taylor Swift store also pre-sold out its vinyl copies ahead of release.
Among its songs, many queer music lovers were excited to check out one track named “Father Figure.” The late George Michael received a co-writing credit on the track. This led many to wonder if it samples his hit of the same name or borrows some melodic elements.
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Michael died on Christmas Day 2016. Yesterday, the official social media accounts for the George Michael estate issued a statement. It expressed delight that Swift had approached it and asked for permission to include elements of the track in her new song.
“We were delighted when Taylor Swift and her team approached us earlier this year about incorporating an interpolation of George Michael’s classic song ‘Father Figure’ into a brand new song of the same title to be featured on her forthcoming album,” it said.
“When we heard the track we had no hesitation in agreeing to this association between two great artists and we know George would have felt the same,” the estate continued. “George Michel Entertainment wishes Taylor every success with The Life of a Showgirl and ‘Father Figure’.”
Taylor Swift’s ‘Father Figure’
Swift’s album contains 12 tracks and is her shortest in length (at 41 minutes), since her debut. It dropped at midnight worldwide. Check out “Father Figure” below. It’s clearly very different from the George Michael song. Besides a chorus that features Swift singing “I’ll be your father figure”, there’s very little similarity.
Internet sleuths are already debating what the song’s about. Some believe it relates to Swift’s early days in the music industry. Part of the lyric appears to come from the perspective of someone offering to take care of Swift.
“When I found you, you were young, wayward, lost in the cold / Pulled up to you in the Jag / Turned your rags into gold” and “This love is pure profit / Just step into my office / I dry your tears with my sleeve / Leave it with me / I protect the family / Leave it with me.”
However, Swift goes on to offer her own take, stating she can look after herself.
“You made a deal with this devil / Turns out my d*ck’s bigger / You want a fight, you found it / I got the place surrounded / You’ll be sleeping with the fishes before you know you’re drowning.”
“This empire belongs to me / Leave it with me / I protect the family / Leave it with me.”
Should you have forgotten about the original George Michael song, check out the classic below. It reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1987.
“His love was the key that opened my thighs”
Swift’s new album has received generally positive reviews, with many pundits praising it for its brevity and understated pop tone. Around half the tracks could be interpreted as concerning her love for her fiancé, football star Travis Kelce. One particular track to prompt much comment is “Wood,” which appears laden with innuendo.
Swift croons that she “ain’t gotta knock on wood” since she and her lover can “make our own luck.”
“And baby, I’ll admit I’ve been a little superstitious / The curse on me was broken by your magic wand / Seems to be that you and me, we make our own luck.”
“New Heights of manhood / I ain’t gotta knock on wood,” she continues, referencing the name of Kelce’s podcast with his brother, Jason, before adding that, “His love was the key / That opened my thighs.”
Related
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What’s gay about a single earring? Apparently, a lotThat time George Michael & Aretha Franklin joined forces to create a Grammy-winning #1 hit
The legends came together in 1987 for “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me),” one of the best pop duets, period.
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