On November 10, 2017, Taylor Swift released her sixth studio album titled "Reputation." Unlike any of her previous albums, "Reputation" offers a new perspective and the creation of a "New Taylor." This new persona is the Taylor who has been dragged through the mud through various dramas, scandals, and negative media attention. And this new Taylor is done with it all.

During early September, Taylor released her first single for this new album titled "Look At What You Made Me Do". After listening to this song for the first time, I remember thinking, "I don't like this –– this isn't Taylor." Once the music video was released a few weeks later, I still wasn't a fan. I thought the video was incredibly unnecessary, but I was just so wrong, just like everyone else that judged the new album based on this one song.

I watched the video a couple more times with my roommate who noticed the numerous hidden references Taylor made, such as her rivalry with Katy Perry, the anonymous name Taylor used to co-write "This is What You Came For" for ex-boyfriend Calvin Harris, I heart TS shirts, the $1 lawsuit, the Spotify streaming debacle, and the Kanye West/Kim Kardashian scandal. However, the depth of the video, the individual references to Taylor's life and career made me appreciate the song more.

Towards the end of the semester, "Reputation" became a topic of conversation during my philosophy class. After my professor played the video for "Look At What You Made Me Do", a large portion of the class was dedicated to answering questions such as, "What is a reputation, who determines it, and how should we value reputation as a society?"

By analyzing Taylor Swift's career, my class was able to have a meaningful discussion.

For me, I sympathized with Taylor. For someone whose life has been on public display since she was just a teenager, Taylor has dealt with a fair share of false headlines, brutal tabloid articles, and a vivid double standard that directly targets her, specifically how her music is directly inspired by her past and current relationships.

And over the years, I think Taylor has struggled with proving herself to this media who was out to target her. During her early career, she simply played the victim, as any other eighteen-year-old "America's sweetheart" would. However, after having her name dragged through the mud by the media and other celebrities, Taylor probably thought, "Maybe I am not who you think I am." And to Taylor, a change was necessary--a reputation which she has total control over.

By analyzing Taylor's life, I began to appreciate "Reputation" because of its relevance to my own life. For years, I was just like the "Old Taylor"--blonde, innocent, naive. In that sense, people were not afraid to take advantage of me because they knew I could never say "No" to them.

I was constantly doing favors for others, bending over backward for people who would never even consider returning the favor. But the worst part about this was that I let people step over me. I let people use me, over and over again.

"Reputation" was an album which represented the moment in my life where I said that I had enough, where I was finally in control. As Taylor sings in "Look What You Made Me Do", "But I got smarter, I got harder in the nick of time."

This was the moment where I was able to redefine myself in my own terms, and I was finally able to cut out all the toxic things from my life. For the first time, I was finally independent, not caring about what other people said or thought about me.

And for that, how can I not like "Reputation?" It's every badass anthem I need to blast in the car whenever I'm angry, upset, frustrated. It is the album that empowers me, the lyrics that soothe me, and the words that truly give me the confidence I desperately needed.

While other people ruthlessly compare "Reputation" to older Taylor Swift albums, I recognize her new album for what it is and what it means to her career in this given moment. For a twenty-eight-year-old woman, it is about time Taylor Swift matured her voice, creating her fresh new sound that is everything we need right now.

This new, badass Taylor Swift is something we should appreciate, not criticize. It's the new Taylor that she reveals in "Reputation" that is able to encourage true independence from false stereotypes, perceptions, and other people's opinions. I think that's the confidence we need, and the new Taylor is the perfect person to give it to us.

The only question is... "Are you ready for it?"