Taylor Swift Channels Renée Zellweger's 'Chicago' Glam with 'Shake It Off' at VMAs

The music superstar gave fans a déjà vu of Zellweger's "Roxie" number from Chicago with her flapper-inspired performance at the VMAs

Published on August 24, 2014 10:20 PM

There’s someone Taylor Swift couldn’t quite seem to shake off at the MTV Video Music Awards: Renée Zellweger.

The music superstar seemingly channeled the actress Sunday night when she unveiled the first live performance of her new retro-inspired single "Shake It Off".

The déjà vu? Zellweger’s toe-tapping performance of “Roxie” from the Oscar-winning 2002 movie Chicago.

Swift, 24, busted out onto the stage in a neo-flapper frock that echoed Zellweger’s shimmying getup in the film’s showstopping number.

The double-take didn’t stop there: A bevy of tux-clad backup dancers – à la Chicago – then hoofed it up onstage alongside Swift, forming a conga line of Jazz Age panache as Swift belted out her hit song, the lead track from her upcoming album 1989.

The kicker? Swift then scrambled onto a large “1989” sign that was a virtual redo of the “Roxie” logo that Zellweger cooed atop in her Chicago number.

According to Swift, the song is inspired by her experience in the spotlight – especially the attention on her personal life.

“I had to learn a pretty tough lesson in the past couple of years, that people can say anything they want about us at any time and we cannot control it,” she said. “You can descend into insanity over it if you want. Option two is you can just shake it off.”