4 Swifties Track Their Screen Time On The Life Of A Showgirl Release Day
When you found me I said I was busy... listening to Taylor Swift’s new album.
In Chronically Online, Elite Daily asks people to get real about their phone habits, tracking their screen time over a specific period of time. Here, four members of Elite Daily’s staff — who all had a busy day Oct. 3 after Taylor Swift released her new album — share the apps they used, the time they spent scrolling, and why their screen time was all over the place on Friday.
A Taylor Swift album release is not a normal day on the internet. Usually, you can find an array of topics trending and conversations flowing, but when Swift puts something out, everyone tunes in. On Oct. 3, Swift put out her 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl, and proved yet again that the world will cancel its plans in case she calls.
“Opening up any app on Friday morning and you were met with a barrage of reactions to the new music, Easter eggs, theories, and memes,” Ed Watson, the former social media lead at BBC Radio 1 and Vevo, tells Elite Daily of Swift’s online response. “Take fan account @dani_readyforit, for example; on X, they posted 68 times on the day of release. Meanwhile on TikTok, there have been 360,000 posts on the official #TSTheLifeOfAShowgirl hashtag since Friday.”
But fans don’t just use their screen time to share their thoughts or favorite jokes — they’re also heading over to Google to dig deeper into the songs’ meanings. “Fans have gotten so specific in their online analysis that ‘what happened to Ophelia’ spiked 3200% on Google Trends and — for the first time ever — ‘Opalite’ searches surpassed ‘Opal,’” Watson explains.
Curious to see how a few Swifties were really spending their screen time on the day of Showgirl’s release, below, four Elite Daily staff writers and editors (who are also big Swift fans) break down their phone usage on Oct. 3.
Hannah Kerns, Associate Editor
Like the Swiftie that I am, I refused to listen to the Showgirl leaks on Oct. 2, so I stayed up until midnight to listen to the album all the way through. The next morning, I woke up early to listen some more while I got ready to write about the album, fan theories, and anything Taylor-adjacent. I also spent a fair amount of time trying to learn the “Fate of Ophelia” dance from the music video, after seeing a clip of it on X.
Most of my day was spent working on my computer, but I signed off at 6 p.m. and then focused on figuring out my dinner (and wine) order for a fun evening at home before a late-night house party. All day, I was talking about Showgirl feeling like a white-wine drunk album — and the rest of the night was proof that I was right.
Most Used Apps: TikTok, Safari, X
Screen Time: 6 hours, 8 minutes
Final Thoughts: I am trying to cut back on my screen time, but I think I can make an exception for a Taylor album-drop day. But arguably the best part of looking closer at my screen time for the day was noticing that I was on Spotify for exactly 13 minutes — is it dramatic to call that kismet?
Rachel Chapman, Staff Writer
This was an unusual Taylor Swift album release day for me, because I was spending most of it traveling to different pop-ups and events for The Life of a Showgirl in L.A. This is why my Maps is so high. I went to an Uber pop-up, a TikTok activation, the AMC movie, and then a listening party with my friends in the evening. Don’t worry, I stopped at Krispy Kreme along the way to pick up the special Spotlight Dozen. When I wasn’t driving, I was looking at fan reactions on TikTok and posting my own thoughts on Threads.
Most Used Apps: TikTok, Threads, Maps, Instagram
Screen Time: 12 hours, 56 minutes
Final Thoughts: I was not expecting my screen time to be this high. I also thought my Spotify would have been more than just 36 minutes, but since my map was on the screen while TLOAS was playing in the background, I guess my phone counted that instead. Basically, what I learned is I am pretty much glued to my phone the day of a release to see what other Swifties are saying and to join in the conversation. (Not while I’m driving, though.)
Courteney Larocca, Editor
I developed a bad cold earlier in the week, which definitely affected my listening and screen usage on Showgirl release day. Normally, I’d be up for a few hours past midnight dissecting the album, but instead, I turned it on promptly at midnight and fell asleep as soon as I got through my first listen. As with any Taylor Swift album release, I woke up to texts from friends asking me for my thoughts on The Life of a Showgirl, eager to exchange theirs as well. Throughout the day, I found myself scrolling through social media to see what other fans thought of the album and to share the funniest posts with my friends. Unfortunately, I couldn’t make my 7 p.m. showing of The Official Release Party of a Showgirl because I was still too sick to go out, so I watched Friday night’s episode of Love Island Games instead.
Most Used Apps: X, Messages, Peacock, Instagram
Screen Time: 11 hours, 24 minutes
Final Thoughts: I could tell my screen usage was going to be pretty high since I was basically stuck in bed all day, but I was pleasantly surprised to see that most of my phone time was spent communicating with my friends. Sometimes it feels like we’re on completely different sides of TikTok, so I love when someone like Swift swoops in and gives everyone something to bond over.
Jake Viswanath, Staff Writer
Like any sane Swiftie, my Oct. 3 was almost entirely taken over by The Life of a Showgirl, with a brief acknowledgement of another sacred holiday in my household, Mean Girls Day. I started my morning listening to Showgirl, then wrote multiple stories about Showgirl, before heading to my nearest AMC to experience the Showgirl release party in theaters with my fellow Swifties (plus a Showgirl hater who still came along). However, my evening was taken over by a different showgirl, as I went to dinner with a friend before heading to Addison Rae’s New York show, which felt oddly fitting given that her tour feels like an artsy pop-burlesque hybrid that only a true showgirl could pull off. Perhaps she also jammed out to “Cancelled!” before her show and listened to “Father Figure” on her way home, like me.
Most Used Apps: Instagram, Slack, Music, Camera
Screen Time: 2 hours, 20 minutes
Final Thoughts: Honestly, given that it was Taylor day, I’m proud that my screen time was still relatively low. It probably helped that I was soaking in the experience with Swifties (and Addison Rae fans) in real time, and only used my phone to capture the moments.
