If Taylor Swift is the perpetrator, her fans are the detectives. The pop star — who is notorious for dropping cryptic messages in her liner notes, music videos and social media posts — seems to have left several clues that 1989 (Taylor’s Version) will be the next album she’ll release.
In May 2022, the singer-songwriter gave her followers the most ammunition for their theories yet when “Taylor’s Version” of the 1989 track “This Love” was featured in the trailer for the teen drama The Summer I Turned Pretty.
“Thank you [director] @jennyhan for debuting my version of ‘This Love’ in the trailer for @thesummeriturnedpretty!! I’ve always been so proud of this song and I’m very 🥺🥺🥺 about this turn of events,” the Grammy winner shared via Instagram. “‘This Love (Taylor’s Version)’ comes out tonight at m i d n i g h t!”
The updated single isn’t the first song Swift has released from 1989 (Taylor’s Version). In September 2021, she shared a glimpse of her new version of “Wildest Dreams,” which was the first hint that the 2014 album could be the next rerelease on her list.
As The Summer I Turned Pretty trailer premiered in May 2022, an entire “1989 Shop” appeared in the “Shake It Off” singer’s official merch store, with the album title emblazoned on everything from sweatshirts and tumblers to blankets and sunglasses. One of the many items available on Swift’s website is the “1989 seagull necklace,” which appears to represent the shirt she is wearing on the album cover. It could also be a nod to the matching silver airplane necklaces that she and ex Harry Styles both owned, which she sings about on “Out of the Woods” — one of the 1989 tracks heavily rumored to be about the “Watermelon Sugar” singer.
If the Evermore artist is anything, it’s cryptic — and even she’s admitted to it. Fans believe that there are plenty of other clues Swift has dropped along the way, including little phrases and visuals hidden in interviews and music videos. (Even a box of apple juice holds potential meaning to Swifties!)
“Can’t stop won’t stop being cryptic and weird,” the Pennsylvania native commented on a fan’s November 2021 TikTok, which pointed out that her “All Too Well” short film featured a car made in 1989. “That’s just the beginning.”
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Keep scrolling for all of Swift’s hints, clues and Easter eggs about the release of 1989 (Taylor’s Version):
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