Pop queen Taylor Swift just dropped her new video for "Delicate," a delightfully lighthearted and romantic song from her new record, "Reputation," and just like any of her work, the video has come under scrutiny by fans and critics alike.
The music video is another collaboration between Swift and famed director Joseph Khan, who's also known to be very vocal about his support for the female Grammy Award-winning artist.
News outlets were quick to point out similarities between Swift's "Delicate" music video and some other videos that came before it. But whether or not she was in fact copying or paying homage to previously released materials by other artists, Swift remains the talk of the town with her new video. Here are three things that Swift calls back to in her new video for "Delicate."
1. Britney Spears' 'Overprotected'
Released in December 2011, Britney Spears' "Overprotected" had not one but two videos with a recurring theme: a pop star trying to escape the clutches of her superstardom. The first video was directed by Billie Woodruff and showed Spears running away from paparazzi before meeting up with her dancers in an abandoned warehouse and delivering a sick choreography to the song.
The Darkchild Remix of the song also had its own video, this time directed by Chris Applebaum. In it, Spears is seen at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, where she tries to escape her bodyguards so she can have a fun night out with her friends. Sounds familiar? Taylor Swift's "Delicate" music video also shows the pop star getting tired of being surrounded by bodyguards to mimic her every move—quite literally.
2. Sia's 'Chandelier'
Back in 2014, Sia released a song she would be known for, for life. While "Chandelier" was from Sia's sixth studio album, it would be the track that she would be truly known for in this decade. The video also launched the career of "Dance Moms" star Maddie Ziegler, who since then has been part of a number of Sia's videos.
The "Chandelier" video shows Ziegler impressively dancing around in an empty apartment in what looks like one very long take, lasting the whole song. In Taylor Swift's "Delicate" music video, viewers can see her dancing alone as well, and some of her dance moves look a lot like Ziegler's.
3. Kenzo World's Spike Jonze-directed commercial
Speaking of dancing, Taylor Swift's "Delicate" music video might be the artist's first major foray into dancing, as Swift only hinted at her talent for dance in the "Look What You Made Me Do" video. But in "Delicate," she truly let herself go, just like Margaret Qualley did in the Spike Jonze-directed ad for Kenzo World. According to Esquire, the similarity between the ad and "Delicate" is the fact that "Formally dressed-up women feel alienated by too-fancy events, and turn to spastic dance moves as a result." Qualley even did some goofy faces, just like Swift did in "Delicate."
What do you think? Did Taylor Swift's "Delicate" music video pay homage to these three videos or did she come up with these ideas on her own? Watch the new video for "Delicate" below.