This send-up of patriarchy relates to Taylor Swift struggles as a woman in the music business. Over pulsing, stabbing synths, the songstress wages war against the double standards she faces as a female artist.
Swift kicks off the song by ripping into the media's double standards about men and women writing about their love life. They'd say I played the field before I found someone to commit to And that would be okay for me to do Later, she imagines being in a position of power. Nobody pays attention when the alpha male leader is rude. They'd say I hustled, put in the work They wouldn't shake their heads and question how much of this I deserve During the pre-chorus, Swift compares the way the media outlets call out her various dates with their lack of interest in Leonardo DiCaprio's love life. And they would toast to me, oh, let the players play I'd be just like Leo in Saint Tropez Swift previously sang about "players gonna play" on her 2014 hit single "Shake It Off," which this lyric seems to reference.
Swift revealed to Vogue the song was written with the concept of how her career would play out if she were a man. "If I had made all the same choices, all the same mistakes, all the same accomplishments, how would it read?" she explained.
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