Taylor Swift's "Cleveland!" has sparked a debate over a suggestive lyric about her husband, Travis Kelce. Fans are reading a double meaning into "The taste of me is acquired, but it's his favorite dish." Yet as listeners choose their favorite of the four new Encore songs, the track making them blush faces competition.
Released September 25, The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore adds "Patient Zero," "Cleveland!," "Pink Clouding" and "Babylon" to Swift's 2025 album. She wrote the new material with Max Martin and Shellback during a trip to Sweden to celebrate the original record's success.
"Cleveland!" has attracted the most immediate conversation. Its tribute to Kelce's hometown gives fans a glimpse of the couple's relationship, while Swift's responses to public criticism and that much-discussed lyric have kept the song in the headlines. Some listeners have already called it their favorite.
But fans are making a case for the quieter songs, too. One listener singled out "Pink Clouding" as the best of the four, and fans in Swift's Reddit community have named both it and "Babylon" as favorites. The reactions suggest that the song attracting the loudest attention is not necessarily the one every listener wants to play again.
"Patient Zero," meanwhile, had the strongest early showing among the four on Apple Music. HITS Daily Double reported September 25 positions of No. 4 for "Patient Zero," No. 5 for "Cleveland!," No. 9 for "Pink Clouding" and No. 10 for "Babylon." That gives Swift's new single an early listening lead, though a chart position cannot settle a question of personal favorites.
So which song is the fan favorite? There is no verified winner yet. Early listeners are divided, and a radio station has opened a poll asking Swifties to pick one of the four. For now, "Cleveland!" has the provocative lyric, "Patient Zero" has the early Apple Music lead, and "Pink Clouding" and "Babylon" have fans arguing that the best song lies elsewhere.
