‘Patient Zero’: The encore nobody needed

Illustration by Lexi Forman.

Apparently, Taylor Swift didn’t get the memo that the show was over.

On Sept. 25, Swift released her newest single, “Patient Zero,” as part of her extended album “The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore.” I don’t know why an album with a 3.8 reader score on Pitchfork needed an encore, but here we are. 

Written as a celebration of “The Life of a Showgirl,” having the largest debut week in Billboard chart history, selling four million album units in the U.S. alone, “The Encore” features four additional songs. Of the four, “Patient Zero” is the weakest.

Roisin O’Connor, music editor for The Independent, gave “The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore” two out of five stars. 

“Swift’s single ‘Patient Zero’ is the musical equivalent of an ‘I told you so’, addressed to a woman who’s been dating her ex,” said O’Connor. 

Indeed, the song falls short of what one might expect from a woman whose lyricism is important enough to warrant its own Stanford course. 

In “Patient Zero,” Swift sings, “I bet he burst into your life like fireworks.”

Creative, right?

Maybe the problem is that Swift’s lyrics are being judged against the standards she helped create for herself. With songs like “All Too Well,” “my tears ricochet” and “marjorie,” Swift has spent years proving she can turn simple heartbreak into memorable imagery. Here, she just sounds petty, and the lyrics lack any real depth. 

Billboard’s Co-Chief Content Officer Jason Lipshutz disagrees. In his review, he praises Swift’s songwriting. 

“The hooks hit, the outro contains some killer internal rhymes (and a smart bit of wordplay with ‘I see you’), and ‘free solo social climb’ should instantly become a catchphrase,” said Lipshutz. 

Music critic and YouTuber Anthony Fantano instead calls the lyrics egotistical. 

“Rather than painting this guy as like the greatest evil here, she only makes herself sound more narcissistic, and she isn't really aware of it,” said Fantano. 

I don’t think Swift has created any new catchphrases, nor do I think she paints herself as a narcissist. Instead, I think she’s just a woman nobody can say no to.

Both “The Life of a Showgirl” and “The Encore” are produced by Max Martin and Shellback, who have previously worked with artists like Britney Spears and Maroon 5. Their collaboration with Swift creates a polished, unmistakably pop-heavy sound, but “Patient Zero” rarely feels like it is pushing her songwriting anywhere new. And why would it? People are going to listen either way. 

Despite receiving poor reviews, “The Life of a Showgirl” still shattered commercial records. For Swift, critical approval is increasingly unnecessary when her audience is already large enough to guarantee attention.

“This being Swift, ‘The Life of a Showgirl: Encore Edition’ will immediately rush to the top of the charts,” said Platt. “Therein lies the biggest problem. She no longer has the incentive to take creative risks. No producer or record label boss would dare offer a critical opinion.” 

That much becomes clear when you listen to the backing track to “Patient Zero.” 

Upon first listen, the sound clashes with the lyrics, having a unique Celtic-style with a violin intro. The beat itself sounds like something made on GarageBand, feeling hollow and simple. 

Nonetheless, Billboard gave a largely positive review. 

“‘Patient Zero’ eases into a luxurious drum setup, and Swift glides across her verses before attacking the beat during the main hook,” said Lipshutz. 

If she really is attacking the beat, I’d say she’s losing the battle. The lyrics are clunky and don’t fit with the timing, leading Swift to take odd, breathy pauses. 

“The bigger clunker lands on the bridge, when she stumbles over: ‘I know he charmed your family and friends/ And you thought it’s ‘cause he loves you/ But it’s ‘cause he loves how everybody else loves him (uh huh).’ Huh?” said O’Connor. 

“Huh” indeed. Much of Swift’s recent work has left me wondering how this same woman wrote “Folklore.”

There is nothing inherently wrong with writing a mediocre song. Even the most talented artists have their misses. But “Patient Zero” feels unfinished, like a demo that got released on account of the mere fact that Swift created it. 

Swift has built an audience large enough to turn almost every release into an event. She has little to prove commercially, but that makes the moments when she stops challenging herself all the more noticeable.

An encore is supposed to give the audience something worth staying for.

“Patient Zero” makes me wish the lights had already come up.