Taylor Swift.Photo: Kevin Mazur/Getty
Loveris set to be released on Aug. 23, which seems like a totally innocent date, right? Well, it actually has some significance. The singer loves the number 13. She was born on Dec. 13 and even used to write the number on her hand before performing. The numbers of the release date, 8/23, add up to — you guessed it — 13. But that’s just the beginning.
Peep her necklace in the “You Need to Calm Down” video. Or the number of stars on her jacket in the same video.Orthe number of homophobic protesters picketing her colorful trailer park. Swift is nothing if not consistent! But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
The first single that Swift dropped from the album was“ME!”featuring Brendon Urie, and along with it came hint after hint about upcoming music and allusions to her personal life, past work and more. Here’s what fans believe she’s hinted at so far:
So Many Snakes
At the start of the music video, you can see Karyn (the snake who became the official mascot of theReputationera) bursting into butterflies. BTW, did you know that a group of butterflies is called a kaleidoscope? More on that in a second.
via GIPHY
Also seen in the clouds? The “Look What You Made Me Do” phone.
Speaking of, Swift Also Makes a Reference to Her Song, ‘Welcome to New York’
Remember when I mentioned kaleidoscopes? At one point in “ME!” Urie opens up his jacket coat to reveal a wooden heart, which opens to reveal a kaleidoscope.
We already covered the fact that butterflies play an important role in this new Swift era, and that a group of butterflies is a kaleidoscope, but one fan points out that the imagery holds another meaning — it’s a lyric from one of Swift’s songs, “Welcome to New York.” Urie actually has a “kaleidoscope of loud heartbeats under coats.”
A Collaboration with the Dixie Chicks
In the “ME!” video, there’s a wall of framed chick photos and, in the middle of them all, the Dixie Chicks. Sure, it could be a play on words because Swift is singing, “There’s a lot of cool chicks out there,” but then again … nothing is an accident in Swift World. The Dixie Chicks even responded on Twitter!
And sure enough, when Swift released herLovertrack list in mid-August,she confirmed the collab.
A New Member of the Swift Family
When Swift released “ME!” she also showed off a mural that contained all sorts of clues about the video. The most obvious? There are three cats in the wings of the huge butterfly. Swift, in case you didn’t know, is the proud mom of Meredith and Olivia,twoadorable cats. Where did thatextra catcome from? It had fans speculating that Swift brought home a third furry friend.
And Swift did, indeed, welcome a new addition to her home. In fact, she adopted him right off the set of the video. His name isBenjamin Buttonand he is, as Swift puts it “a good boy.”
A Homage to Her Country Roots (and Christmas Tree Farm Upbringing)
Swift is seen wearing a pair of cowboy boots in a scene from the music video. Though the song is pop at its finest, could the singer be returning to her country roots on this album?
Plus, eagle-eyed fans noticed that there is a Christmas tree in the background of her fight scene with Urie. Swift grew up on a Christmas tree farm, so we’re pretty sure that this is an homage to her past and not a clue about a potential Christmas song. (Although, I would not be angry if Swift decided to rerelease her cover of WHAM’s “Last Christmas,” because it is a bop.)
People were speculating that the word “lover” would either be the title of a song or the title of the album itself. They were right!
The Title of Her Next Single, ‘You Need to Calm Down’
It wasn’t obvious when “ME!” first dropped, but in the music video’s opening scene, Urie exclaims, “You need to calm down!”
Which brings us Swift’s second single off ofLover,“You Need to Calm Down.”
Let’s get right to it. Aside from thecountless celebrity cameos, Swift hid all sorts of hints and clues in thePride anthemthat her fans continue todissect.
It’s 13 O’Clock!
Ah, 13, how we love you. Swift made the 1 in her watch (which has a photo of sweet Benjamin Button) read 13.
She’s also seen wearing a ’13’ necklace, her jacket has 13 stars … if you pause the video at any point, you’ll probably find a nod to the singer’s favorite numeral somewhere.
‘Mom, I Am a Rich Man’
When Cher’s mom told her that she should settle down and marry a rich man, Cher responded iconically, “Mom, I am a rich man.”
And Swift took notice. The singer put the iconic one-liner up on the walls of her “You Need to Calm Down” trailer. Does this mean that we are about to get a Cher collab? Probably not, though there isa song called “The Man”onLover.
That Back Tattoo
Ellen DeGeneresIs Getting Tatted Up
The talk show host is seen getting a tattoo (from Adam Lambert) of the words “Cruel Summer” in the video, and, in fact,it’s the name of another song.
What Does Her Hair Mean?
Fans read into the color of Taylor’s wig, which coincidentally features the colors of the bisexual pride flag. No confirmation on this one, though.
And now, let’s talk about “The Archer,” which is the fifth track on Swift’s seventh album.
Swift Was Always Hinting at the Track’s Title
While everyone was focused on the word “Lover,” they missed out on one minuscule detail: the arrow going through the heart. An allusion to the fifth track and third single of the album, “The Archer,” perhaps?
Where Does Hayley Kiyoko Fit Into This?
Fans started speculating that the fifth track would be a collaboration with Hayley Kiyoko, because her cameo in “You Need to Calm Down” included her shooting an arrow through a target with a number 5 on it. Instead, the clue was a bit more metaphorical: Kiyoko is an archer, shooting her arrow into the fifth track. Get it now?
Dive Bars, Dive Bars Everywhere
In “Delicate,” Swift sings, “Dive bar on the East side, where you at?” Because they are geniuses and know thatnothingis a mistake, fans put two and two together and it’ll blow your mind. First of all, it turns out that The Archer is a dive bar in East London. Literally a dive bar on the East side. And as if that’s not enough, another fan found out that Lovers isanotherdive bar on the East side of New York City.
A Clue from a Past Easter Egg
A Tiny Cupid
Swiftalsodances around in front of a statue of cupid who is, as one fan pointed out, “A LITTLE ARCHER ANGEL.”
Invisibility!
Upon further analysis of the lyrics, Swift sings, “I see right through me, I see right through me,” which, if you watched the music video for “Delicate,” is about a girl who is, get this,invisible.
Taylor’s Zodiac Sign
Another little morsel to mull over?Taylor Swiftis a Sagittarius a.k.a. — you guessed it! — thearcherof the zodiac.
Unfortunately, Miss Swift hasn’t announced that there’s a video for “The Archer,” so we’ll be over here looking like this until the end of time:
We don’t have much time to focus on the Easter eggs of the past because Swift released another song. “Lover” is the fourth single off of Taylor’s album of the same name, and from the moment that fans heard it, they’ve been digging up clues and yes, finding Easter eggs.
Thirteen Plays a Role in the Song
With the release of “Lover,” that means fans have heard 13 minutes total of Swift’s upcoming album. At one point, Swift had also released just five of the song titles from the 18-song album. Do the math and that meant fans had 13 song titles left to learn! (She did eventuallyrelease the whole track list.)
Remember the Tree from “ME!?”
Fansknewthat something was afoot when a Christmas tree appeared in Swift’s firstLovervideo and they were right! In the video, Swift is standing in front of a Christmas tree, yelling at Brendon Urie, who is herloverwho thinks Taylorneeds to calm down. The first lines of “Lover” are “We could leave the Christmas lights up ’til January / This is our place, we make the rules.”
It was a clue the. Whole. Time.
It’s a Love Song for Joe Alwyn
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If the title didn’t make it obvious, fans have pointed out that the length of the song is 4:31, and if we know anything about Taylor, nothing’s a coincidence. 4:31 backwards is 143, which anyone who had an AOL Instant Messenger account could tell you means, “I love you.”
But that’s not all! There are lyrics that directly allude to the length of Swift’s relationship to the British actor. She sings, “I’ve loved you three summers, honey / But I want them all.” Swift started dating Alwyn in 2017. Count the summers since then, people! There are three of them!
Is Swift Hinting at an Engagement?
When Swift previewed the track forVoguein early August 2019, fans immediately latched on to the lyrics, “My heart’s been borrowed and yours has been blue / All’s well that ends well to end up with you.”
Swifties were — to put it lightly —freaking outabout the lyrics. It’s a wedding tradition for brides to wear something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue on their big day, so the assumption is that either Swift is engaged or already married to Alwyn.
Adding to the speculation? At Swift’s “Secret Sessions,” which is where she gives fans a first glimpse of her upcoming music, the singer reportedly said that the song is her favorite of all the songs she has written.
She had already toldVoguethat it was “one of her favorite bridges.” She also told fans in attendance that she “wanted to use instruments that would be found in a wedding band.”A wedding band!
Not to mention the lyrics that sound exactly like wedding vows. In the bluesy, soft ballad Swift sings, “Ladies and gentlemen / Will you please stand / With every guitar string scar on my hand / I take this magnetic force of a man / To be my lover.”
We’ll just have to wait forLoverto drop on Aug. 23 to see what else Miss Swift (or is it soon-to-be Mrs. Alwyn? Mrs. Alwyn?!) has up her sleeve.
source: people.com
