Gather round, friends. Take a seat while you're at it because Taylor Swift's 11th studio album is here.
The singer first announced her brand new album while onstage at the 2024 Grammy Awards, where she accepted the 'Best Pop Vocal Album' for her 2022 release, Midnights.
Watch Taylor Swift announce her 11th studio album here. Post continues after video.
"This is my 13th Grammy, which is my lucky number," she said during her acceptance speech. "I don't know if I've ever told you that.
"I want to say thank you to the members of the Recording Academy for voting this way, but I know that the way that the Recording Academy voted is a direct reflection of the passion of the fans," Swift continued. "So I want to say thank you to the fans by telling you a secret that I have been keeping from you for the last two years."
"My brand new album comes out April 19th. It's called The Tortured Poets Department [TTPD]. I'm gonna go post the cover right now backstage. Thank you, I love you."
On April 17, Spotify hosted a pop-up exhibition in Los Angeles, where fans got to walk through a library-themed room that had countless clues about the new album and already, Swifties have uncovered a whole lot of Easter eggs.
Swift also announced that, along with her album, she will be releasing a music video, and dropped a teaser just two days out.
Here are the biggest Easter eggs, from the Spotify exhibit to the album teaser, and everything else you need to know about Swift's new album, The Tortured Poets Department.
Taylor Swift's new music video.
In the teaser trailer, we got confirmation that a new music video will be dropping at 8pm ET on release day (that means those on Australia's east coast will get to watch it for themselves on Saturday at around 10am, while in WA it will be 8am and for South Australians and those in the Northern Territory, 9:30am).
Right underneath the time the song will drop are 14 tally marks, which suggests the music video will be for the 14th track on the album, 'The Smallest Man'.
However, some fans also think that the 14 lines could symbolise 14 days, indicating the music video will be for her song with Post Malone, 'Fortnight'.
Lyrics that are connected to old songs.
In the middle of the Spotify exhibit, there's a big open book with lyrics from Swift's newest album — and depending on what time attendees were at the event, the lyrics might have been different.
The first set of lyrics read, "Even statues crumble if they're made to wait."
This was then swapped out for a different line: "One less temptress. One less dagger to sharpen."
Fans have guessed that the new lyrics are connected to Swift's older songs, including 'Reputation' where she sang about her castle crumbling overnight.
Swifties also think the new lyrics have something to do with her other singles 'Daylight' and 'Tolerate It', as she mentions daggers in those songs, too.
A jar with puzzle pieces.
Among the items on one shelf in the exhibit is a glass jar filled with puzzle pieces featuring lines and letters.
Some fans have theorised that the puzzle is actually a specific Bgraamiens puzzle called "The Lines" — it's infamous for being super tough to solve. Maybe, just maybe, the singer is telling us her new album is all about a broken relationship that proved just too hard to repair.
A Story Of Us book.
Another nod to her upcoming album are the books on the shelves within the exhibit, which have titles of her new songs such as 'The Manuscript' and 'The Albatross'.
What stood out to Swifties, though, was a simple notebook that had 'US' written in permanent marker. It's likely a reference to her song 'The Story Of Us', from the album Speak Now.
Swift has also since unveiled three other alternate covers for TTPD, each with another "exclusive" bonus track including, 'The Bolter', 'The Albatross' and 'The Black Dog'.
These songs will only be available on their respective vinyl releases, which is a strategy to boost sales, Business Insider said.
And of course, Swifties have already decided what some of the track names mean.
The theory about Taylor Swift's 'So Long, London'.
'So Long, London' is an obvious nod to Alwyn, say fans, who presumably inspired 'London Boy' on the Lover album, as the actor was born and raised in North London. Swift also promptly moved to the city after they began dating.
The theories about Taylor Swift's 'The Bolter'.
For 'The Bolter', fans believe it is either another one about her famous ex, or folklore (no, not the album... literal folklore) as in traditional stories, "The Bolter" symbolises a hare running.
"In folklore, farmers would burn the stubble of their crops in the fields to regenerate the earth into spring, and hares would often be seen to run into the flames, yet not be burned and be reborn," one X (formerly Twitter) user wrote.
"Hares are a symbol of rebirth. This album is Taylor running headfirst into the flames that burnt down her relationship, tackling them head-on and walking away reborn."
ORRR it could be a song referring to Alwyn famously running away from the paparazzi with his ex-girlfriend hot on his heels.
The theory about Taylor Swift's 'The Albatross'.
Sydney fans were among the first in the world to find out about the singer's bonus track 'The Albatross'.
Quickly, they surmised the song must be about Alwyn because, according to X users, an albatross is a bird "that can fly for [six] or more years without touching land". Considering the former couple dated for exactly six years, this all feels a little... suspicious, don't you think?
However, some people think the song is referring to a metaphor — if a person is called an "albatross", it means they are a "psychological burden that feels like a curse".
Which could... also be a jab at Alwyn. So there's that.
The theory about Taylor Swift's 'But Daddy I Love Him' and Harry Styles.
Swift and Styles dated from November 2012 to January 2013, so it's not all that farfetched to think Swift might want to write a song about him. And fans think this particular tune is about Styles because he wore a shirt with "but Daddy, I love him" emblazoned across it in back in 2020.
(ICYMI, the phrase, "but Daddy, I love him" is a famous line from Disney's The Little Mermaid.)
Look, we can never be too sure about anything when it comes to Swift, as the girl loves to drop clues about who and what she is singing about.
But considering we're mere hours from having the album in our eardrums, we shouldn't be guessing for much longer!
Feature Image: Getty/ X@TheSwiftSociety/ Instagram @taylorswift.
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