The music world was rocked this week by an announcement that Taylor Swift’s cat is recording an album.
The famous feline is already the subject of much media attention just for belonging to the world’s most popular pop star, of course. Still, few were expecting the animal to go into music, just because so few cats do.
Named Olivia Benson, the cat is a Scottish fold. With a net worth of $97 million, Taylor’s cat is believed to be one of the wealthiest cats in the world. She will be recording as simply Olivia, after initially flirting with the idea of calling herself Olivia Ben$on.
One song, “Kitty Litter,” has already leaked out, and the tune is surprisingly haunting and wistful. The lyrics are described by Rolling Stone’s Brittany Spanos as “both insightful and perhaps even a little playful.” Here’s a sample:
I have this dream, I run out of cat food
I have to kill a mouse
It gets real cold outside
And so I run back in the house
It’s me, oww, I’m the problem, meow
It’s sure exhausting
Always peeing in the kitty litter.
It's me, ow, I'm the kitty, that's me.
It must be exhausting
Always having to pet me.
Some music insiders have been skeptical about the idea of a cat recording an album. “Cats generally aren’t very good singers,” said Billboard’s Jason Lipschutz. “Let’s just say their voices aren’t very melodic.” Others have debated whether the cat really wrote the songs. There’s been speculation that the cat had help from Taylor, but this has only served to increase interest.
Still, many of Taylor’s fans are excited about the album. Rickey Tapocca, president of the Taylor Swift Fan Club, defends the album, telling us, “Look, Taylor is not like other people. She’s not just some mere mortal. If she says her cat can sing, I believe her.”
