When is Taylor Swift releasing her 12th album? TS12 release date theory goes viral among fans

16 May 2025, 16:59 | Updated: 16 May 2025, 21:11

By Sam Prance

What is Taylor Swift's 12th album? Here's everything you need to know about the TS12 release date, tracklist and more.

Another Taylor Swift new album already? Just over one year since The Tortured Poets Department came out? We're listening...

You don't have to be a Swiftie to know that Taylor Swift is one of the most prolific artists in music right now. Over the course of the past five years, Taylor has released five albums (Lover, folklore, evermore, Midnights, The Tortured Poets Department) and four Taylor's Version re-recordings (Fearless, Red, Speak Now, 1989).

The Tortured Poets Department may have only come out last year with a whopping 31 tracks, but fans already think that a 12th album is on the way and it has to do with the colour orange and the 'I Can Do It with a Broken Heart' msuic video. If that weren't enough, Taylor has now dropped several major easter eggs on her website that seemingly point to an announcement.

With that in mind, here's every single thing we know about 'TS12' so far, including the release date, title, tracklist, collaborators, theories and so much more.

• Read more: 318 Taylor Swift lyrics for your next Instagram caption
• Read more: Every Taylor Swift Song About Travis Kelce (So Far)

Is Taylor Swift releasing a new album?

Taylor Swift drops TTPD easter eggs in tour rehearsal video

When is Taylor Swift releasing her 12th album? - 'TS12' release date

After a well-earned hiatus, brand new easter eggs have started popping up that appear to be pointing towards the American Music Awards on May 26th.

Now, there's several different things that Taylor could announce if she has something planned (she may not have anything planned, mind you!) and one of those things could be a brand new album.

Swifties spotted on May 12th that Taylor put "26% off" 12 items on her official store. 12 items appearing to be a reference to TS12 and "26% off" pointing to May 26th.

For reference, Taylor has announced her past two albums at awards shows. She announced Midnights at the MTV VMAs in 2022 and The Tortured Poets Department at the Grammys in 2024.

Could she be announcing TS12 at the AMAs?

During The Eras Tour, fans noticed that Taylor introduced orange confetti to her performance of 'Karma' at the end of the shows in Argentina in 2023. Fans then began theorising that Taylor's next official era would use an orange colour template.

However, 'The Tortured Poets Department', which was released in April 2024 after the new confetti drop, had a distinctive white colour palette.

As a result, people thought Taylor was already teasing TS12. It's also worth noting that the long-standing lost 'Karma' album theory – which Taylor was rumoured to have written before scrapping it in favour of 'Reputation' – is closely associated with the colour orange.

To add fuel to the fire, fans now think that the TS12 colour palette could be orange and lilac based on outfits that she wore towards the end of the tour and the 'I Can Do It With a Broken Heart' Eras Tour performance and video. On stage, Taylor is surrounded by orange feathers and she wears lilac in the rehearsal video.

A fan tweeted: "i’m sorry but there was simply no reason for them to make these [feathers] orange when the theme of the album is grayscale and SURE they could be dummies but bsfr…orange? oh ts12, you gorgeous lilac sunset."

What is the TS12 glitter gel pen theory?

Based on Taylor wearing glitter makeup on her cheeks at Travis Kelce's 7th October Kansas City Chiefs game, there's a theory that Taylor's next era will be a glitter gel pen era. In other words, TS12 may feature big pop bangers - think 'Blank Space', 'Style' and 'We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together'.

For fans who don't know, Taylor previously categorised her songs in three different pen types based on their vibe in terms of lyrics. In 2022, she created three Apple Music playlists: Fountain Pen, Quill Pen or Glitter Gel Pen.

Describing her Glitter Gel Pen songs at the Nashville Songwriter Awards, she said: "Glitter Gel Pen songs have lyrics that make you want to dance, sing and toss glitter around the room. They remind you not to take yourself too seriously, which is something we all need to hear these days."

Glitter gel pen bops on TS12? I'm listening!

During one of Taylor's Eras Tour shows in California, she also teased that she wants to make "as many albums as humanly possible". So, the prospect of another brand new Taylor album being in the works isn't so farfetched.

If so, she may release TS12 at some point in 2025, or even this year. Of course, she still has two more re-recordings to share with the world so we'll have to sit tight and see what's she's got planned for us.

What is Taylor Swift's 12th album called? - 'TS12' title

As it stands, there's no information around the title of Taylor's next project. For the most part, she tends to favour one word album titles but with her 11th album being called 'The Tortured Poets Department', anything is possible.

Given that The Tortured Poets Department is a dark album that explores Taylor's heartbreak in the wake of her splits from Joe Alwyn and Matty Healy, it's possible that TS12 will return to lighter themes like Lover did after Reputation.

No doubt her relationship with Travis Kelce and the success of the Eras Tour will have inspired her latest writings.

The Tortured Poets Department only contains two songs about Travis so it's possible that Taylor could already have several more 'So High School' type bops up her sleeve.

• Read more: Every Taylor Swift Song About Travis Kelce (So Far)

Who has Taylor Swift worked with on her 12th album?

There is no word just yet on who Taylor's 12th album collaborators are. Based on her recent albums, Taylor is possibly working with Jack Antonoff, who's been part of every Taylor album since 1989, and Aaron Dessner, who's been part of every Taylor album since folklore, again.

Elsewhere, Taylor is still on good terms with Max Martin who she worked with on Red, 1989 and Reputation. Taylor even performed a Max Martin medley at a recent Eras Tour show in Sweden with Max in the audience so he could return to making music with Taylor.

It's also possible that Taylor will work with entirely new people.

What is Taylor Swift's TS12 tracklist?

Until the album is announced, it's unlikely that we'll know anything about the TS12 tracklist.

Bookmark this page and we'll keep you posted with any updates as and when they happen.

Read more Taylor Swift news here:

• Taylor Swift Eras Tour Setlist 2024: All 46 Songs Played By Taylor
• Taylor Swift And Travis Kelce Dating: A Complete Timeline Of Their Relationship So Far
• Taylor Swift Reveals Real Meaning Behind 'Who's Afraid Of Little Old Me?' Lyrics
• Taylor Swift Explains "Tragic" Meaning Behind Her 'Fortnight' Lyrics
• What Is Taylor Swift's 'Guilty As Sin?' About? The Spicy Lyrics Meaning Explained

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