Bretton Rae is a Swiftie who has tracked every easter egg for "The Life of a Showgirl."

Britton Rae has slept about three hours.

It's the early hours of Oct. 3, and Taylor Swift's 12th album "The Life of a Showgirl" just dropped. After weeks posting her "Showgirl" predictions, Rae is still adjusting to this new era, which is a far more upbeat, less metaphor-heavy sound than Swift's previous album, "The Tortured Poets Department."

"I was completely shocked by it," says, Rae, who gets thousands of views on her content dissecting every outfit, color scheme, album cover and detail Swift gave eager fans in recent weeks. The album is not what Rae expected, but she's still happy.

Some early listeners aren't so sure yet, Rae says, posting the writing style doesn't feel like the Swift they know. But they just have to get used to the new sound, she adds. And a big reason they may feel initial disappointment is because fans feel they know Swift personally after decades of listening to her music — and can predict her every move.

"I do think it lets us in ... It's telling us what was going on in her life offstage during the Eras Tour ... It's an extremely different album. A lot of people forget she is such a reinventor."

How 'Showgirl' lets fans in

"Showgirl" peels back the curtain on Swift's life in a whole new way, according to Iona Murphy, a researcher of fan culture and Swift at the University of Huddersfield in England. The album gives details about Swift's life as we've never seen before, from her experiences as a performer, to her family, old and new friendships and engagement to Kansas City Chiefs Tight End Travis Kelce.

"I was really surprised it was that in-depth," Murphy says.

"Showgirl" is brimming with insights about Swift's relationship with Kelce, admitting in “Wi$h Li$t”: "I just want you / Have a couple kids." And she reflects on becoming a wife in the track “Eldest Daughter,” revealing “when I said I don’t believe in marriage, that was a lie.” She gives a clear nod to Kelce's "New Heights" podcast in "Wood" and dedicates an entire track to her future husband in "Opalite."

It's not only romantic relationships revealed. "Father Figure" gives an "unprecedented" glimpse into Swift's feelings about her place in the music business, Murphy says.

"I can't think of another song where we've gotten that sense of how women interact in the industry," Murphy says.

Beyond the songs, Swift is uniquely vulnerable through her numerous podcast, televsion and radio appearances set for "Showgirl," Rae says.

"She is really wanting to talk," Rae says.

Why some fans feel let down

Kaeli Dance, a Salt Lake City, Utah, content creator, understands some fans may feel let down.

"Some fans are definitely disappointed but they would have been disappointed regardless of how good each song is just because it is unfamiliar," Dance, 26, says. "In the coming weeks, those same fans will go through specific experiences and turn to these songs to feel understood. That is the magic of Taylor Swift. Each song comes to feel like a safe friend and refuge from this difficult world."

Disappointment is because "fan girls" feel they know Swift personally — called a parasocial relationship — her songs have narrated many of their milestones, heartbreaks and victories, Dance says.

"Fans are very shocked when Taylor says anything that contradicts the image of her they have built up in their heads," says Dance. "At this point the idea of Taylor Swift looms much larger than the actual person and they believe they understand her because of their devotion to her music. When in reality I don’t think many people know her deeply at all."

This is because Swift is increasingly a persona, Rae says.

"I think people have gotten to a point where they are building a character," Rae says. "It's growing into not even just theorizing about the concept of an album but really building her character and how much she's going to let us into her personal life ... People need to step back and realize she's not disappointing us, we are disappointing ourselves."

If you're not liking the album right away, that's OK, Murphy says. But give "Showgirl" another listen and revisit some of your favorite older tracks to find similarities or differences.

"Let her lyrics and her interviews do the speaking," Murphy says. "Keep listening to the music and appreciate what we've been given."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fans feel they know Taylor Swift. 'The Life of a Showgirl' gives them a whole new side.

Reporting by Nicole Fallert, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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