base talk Taylor is the only MPG that could release a modern Ray of Light & you will deal

[AvadaKedavra]

Nah. Taylor is very innovative when it comes to melodies, lyricism but her productions are so bland.
I dont see a Ray of Light if she keeps workin with the same  producers like jack antonoff. With someone new and experimental maybe

Edited Friday at 03:36 PM by AvadaKedavra

[AvadaKedavra]

2 hours ago, Sawk said:

I think one of the more misunderstood or not talked about issues that Taylor has is her alcoholism; she's sort of talked about it on her records, but I have a theory it's lowkey deeper than what she leads us to believe and that aspect of her life has the potential to fuel an experimental and off kilter record in my opinion.

 

To your second point, yes, she has a couple of duds on some albums, more recently she's been on a bit of a decline, but I wouldn't count her out just yet. 
 

Also, I agree 2024 was a bad year for her artistically, she lowkey released her worst album in more than a decade, but Taylor isn't a one trick pony, she has another amazing record in her, trust. 

Taylor definitely has a lot of issues. Her addictions, her failure with relationships, her dramas with celebs, her titanic fame, Her bossy parents, Her insecurities, Her need for approval
I would love a Visual album for t13. Her lemonade but introspective

[Shelter]

 She could never 

[Witnessed ET]

21 hours ago, Dante Silva said:

When Madonna did ROL it stemmed from seeing life from a different angle after giving birth combined to an exploration of spirituality and mysticism as much as it was about growing sick of the superficialities of the excesses of fame.

 

The one thing Madonna and Taylor both share, is being the most ambitiously driven artists of their respective generations - however they are very different personalities and Taylor is simply not ready to experience childbirth and the change in perspective that experience brings.

 

In the video for "Drowned World/ Substitute For Love", when Madonna looks to camera, grabs Lourdes in her embrace and sings "this is my religion" - she is literally singing about motherhood and that sentiment exists today with her now expanded rainbow family.

 

Exactly. Idk if some people  here are forgetting or actively avoiding to acknowledge the fact that Ray of Light was mainly driven by Madonna's spirituality at the time and that reflected on the album in spades. It was like she was a whole new person with that album and it was experimental and deeper than anyone writing love songs or heartbreak songs. I don't think Taylor has that level of spirituality in her to spearhead something like ROL. She's quite content in being the all-American relatable white girl and that's basically her safe zone. 

[Dante Silva]

38 minutes ago, Witnessed ET said:

Exactly. Idk if some people  here are forgetting or actively avoiding to acknowledge the fact that Ray of Light was mainly driven by Madonna's spirituality at the time and that reflected on the album in spades. It was like she was a whole new person with that album and it was experimental and deeper than anyone writing love songs or heartbreak songs. I don't think Taylor has that level of spirituality in her to spearhead something like ROL. She's quite content in being the all-American relatable white girl and that's basically her safe zone. 

That's true. Madonna had never occupied the role of "America's Sweetheart", prior to her spiritual awakening.
 

That has never been her brand and with Taylor - that has always been part of hers. As if to reinforce that, she had a project called "Miss Americana".

 

The closest Madonna got to that was satirically in this 1990 "Rock The Vote!" Commercial. An advertising campaign to convince young Americans to go out and vote, which involves being draped in the U.S. flag and ended in her telling young Americans that if they don't vote, that they would "receive a spanky".

 

Madonna very visibly made her commercial for this cause a platform for queer culture. I don't think this is something Taylor would do for fear of alienating her core country audience.

 

Edited Saturday at 10:49 AM by Dante Silva

[Solaria]

33 minutes ago, Witnessed ET said:

Exactly. Idk if some people  here are forgetting or actively avoiding to acknowledge the fact that Ray of Light was mainly driven by Madonna's spirituality at the time and that reflected on the album in spades. It was like she was a whole new person with that album and it was experimental and deeper than anyone writing love songs or heartbreak songs. I don't think Taylor has that level of spirituality in her to spearhead something like ROL. She's quite content in being the all-American relatable white girl and that's basically her safe zone. 

Not just spirituality but also motherhood. Becoming a mother fundamentally changed a lot of viewpoints for her. It was no longer just about her, she had to care for another person unconditionally as well. I think that drove the idea for songs like ''Nothing Really Matters''.

 

Taylor is actually similar to Madonna in the sense that she's very self involved, but the difference is Taylor is more self-referential and loves the ''meta'' whereas Madonna was always more about the shock value and about provoking thoughts. I don't think Taylor has it in her to ever have that moment of awakening where she lets go of wanting success. The closest she's gotten was probably folklore, because she genuinely thought her career was declining after Lover.

[Blackout2006]

Madonna took a massive leap in sonic direction with Ray of Light. She retreated from the spotlight for a while and returned with one of the most experimental albums for an MPG at the time and pushed an entire music genre into prominence in the late 1990s. Taylor is not willing to compromise on her fame or success by taking a hiatus or leaving her safe zone. She has comfortably retreated into the bland Antonoff-styled synth-pop songs since the previous two album cycles and that's ok, she's the biggest star in the world, it's her prerogative. It's just reductive and not envelope-pushing. The closest she has ever come to being as perspicacious and introspective as Madonna in ROL (and by that, I mean ten miles) was with Folklore and she quickly ditched that as well. 

Edited Saturday at 11:15 AM by Blackout2006

[Kimi]

Lorde or Billie Eilish could do that, not Taylor 

[Dark Miracles]

1) she is unable

2) ROL is timeless, there is no such thing as a 'modern ROL'

[TouchinFree]

I mean at this stage? I'd be rooting for her. Just please end the long title eras and voice memos and lana try hard songs. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD. 

 

She needs to recruit William Orbit, Bloodshy and avant and Ray of light producers.... and she's set. I'm all here for it. 

[Hey Babes]

On 1/3/2025 at 10:27 AM, KillingYourCareer said:

But she won't & you will deal. Go stan someone else if you want a Ray of Light, they might not provide the commercial success you need to win online arguments but they'd at least make music you enjoy.

you clockedt sis 

 

 

[TouchinFree]

14 minutes ago, Kimi said:

Lorde or Billie Eilish could do that, not Taylor 

WAITTT i forgot about Billie. I mean after that master piece she dropped last year. I can totally see her and Finneas making a ROL inspired album. She's artistic enough to do so. Love that she'd also cracked the door wide open for electro/ dark electro pop. 

[Hey Babes]

How can Taylor release a ray of light album when her last is already her MDNA with 30+ awful songs  

 

Edited Saturday at 12:01 PM by Hey Babes

[Dark Miracles]

22 hours ago, Dante Silva said:

In the video for "Drowned World/ Substitute For Love", when Madonna looks to camera, grabs Lourdes in her embrace and sings "this is my religion" - she is literally singing about motherhood and that sentiment exists today with her now expanded rainbow family.

 

Wow this kinda made me stop in my tracks. Beautiful comment

[John Slayne]

she doesn't have the range nor the passion. Ray of Light is an artistic statement, McDonald's will never serve filet mignon! 

[sugarysunflower]

Again, just proving that Madonna is the barometer and blueprint for success for pop stars, especially to swifties…….this is the testament of a 26-year old album…….

 

Even if Taylor has the numbers via units and variants to surpass Madonna, it's the simple fact that she doesn't embrace risk-taking or innovation musically, visually or fashionably because everything is pretty much handed to her on a plate, and if not she storms up a tantrum until she gets her way with the inner circle whose been her yes men. Rather than channeling those frustrations into a sonically-and-lyrically provocative projects. 
 

She could choose to use other areas of her life such as her relationship with her mother, the pain of fame, her experience of the burgeoise and proletariat, environmental issues. And to vary her musical song structure. But it's…… just not there. It would be like Madonna putting out Like a Prayer, then going straight into Hard Candy and MDNA. 

[John Slayne]

On 1/3/2025 at 8:55 AM, PartyFavor said:

The only people that care about Ray of Light are stans. Literally no one else in real life knows that album exists and its not even a top 3 best selling madonna album.

 

stans really need to let this fantasy go 

 

please spare me the essay replies. this isn't shade, its the truth.

Adele's 25, the 4th best selling album of this century, was heavily inspired by RoL, as was Nelly Furtado's Loose 

 

the album is also featured on several 'greatest albums of all time' lists

[Kayseri Mantisi]

the way the OP made this interesting take and then vanished 

[Mark Rih]

Girl bffr, she has like not even half of the edge required to create such a masterpiece 

[bestfiction]

I don't think that Taylor or any current pop girl can pull off a Ray Of Light. For that you have to not only have a will to experiment and get out of your comfort zone but also have a unique perspective on things, and then have it challenged. I can't think of a single pop girl who could deliver something like Mer Girl, for exmaple

[Jay07]

The appeal of Ray of Light is that the biggest star in the world pulled of a radical reinvention, musically and image-wise. The thing is Madonna had been doing that her entire career. I can't think of a single time Taylor took a risk or moved outside her comfort zone so no, there is no indication she would ever pull off a Ray of Light. 

[Blumoon]

She has the depth of a puddle.

[4Real]

First of all she would have to find inspiration for that and her current football attending celebrity persona is certainly not the way as it's shallow and gives brainless middle-america. Madonna was always interested in different things both in musical identity and in lifestyle, while Taylor only really views the world through an american lens, which is ok, but it limits her possibilities when it comes to variety in artistry. Folklore was already her "ray of light" in a way, of course both albums are completely different but as far as we've seen of Taylor that is the further she can come to when it comes to reinvention. Taylor also seems to have a certain aversion to electronic dance music, maybe she just doesn't like it, i wish she did. But who knows what's on the table for her in the future...

[JO1s]

She can't with jack to start…

[4Real]

4 hours ago, sugarysunflower said:

She could choose to use other areas of her life such as her relationship with her mother, the pain of fame, her experience of the burgeoise and proletariat, environmental issues. And to vary her musical song structure. But it's…… just not there.

That's because Taylor has never had any hardships related to those things. She's always had an amazing relationship with her mother, good relationship with her father, with her younger brother. She was born in comfort. She had to work for her career, sure, but her results were almost always very positive. It's like the antithesis of what Madonna's life was. The only thing that didn't go "right" in Taylor's life was her romantic relationships with men, and that's the reason why she writes mostly about that. That's also why she's still writing songs about Kanye West/Kim Kardashian, cuz that's probably the apex of drama she's had in her life. Her mother has cancer, which is a pretty big deal and I'm sure it's haunting for her but she has written one single song about it, maybe bc that's way too real and she doesn't want to deal with those thoughts.

 

I'm not saying all this to drag her or anything, just to point out that Taylor seems to have a had a really great life so far and as she writes mostly about her own life i don't think she has that much to say. I know she reads a lot, i think she should go further and further into whatever she was doing with folklore/evermore and write more about fiction. That could help her bring some more variety to her lyrical content.