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30 August 2022, 14:47
Taylor Swift has begun her 'Midnight' era – here are all the fan theories about the upcoming album drop...
We were all sent reeling when Taylor Swift announced a brand-new album during the MTV Video Music Awards on Monday (August 29)!
Taylor won one of the most coveted awards of the night, taking home the Video of the Year Moonman trophy for 'All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version)'. During her acceptance speech, she announced her tenth studio album 'Midnights', which will be coming out on October 21.
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Of course, fans have already started coming up with theories about the pop icon’s newest record, collecting all the Easter eggs that Miss Swift has become so well known for.
From genre to tracklisting to all the clues – here is everything that fans think they’ve guessed right so far…
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Twitter and TikTok has been teeming with theories that 'Midnight' was the originally intended follow-up to 'Lover'.
Fans think that Taylor's tenth studio album is the belated 'B-side' to her 2019 album, a record that she dubbed "a love letter to love". The positive and uplifting album featured tracks like 'Daylight', a direct juxtaposition to the themes in the upcoming 'Midnight'.
The songstress famously said in a Jimmy Fallon interview in November: "How far is too far in advance? Can I hint at something three years in advance? Can I even plan things out that far?"
This has led fans to think that 'Midnight' has been in the works for quite some time.
MIDNIGHTS THEORY: the new album will be a sort of sister album to Lover. On Lover she discussed the brightness and the Daylight of love, but now she’s exploring the darkness, randomness, and maybe even loneliness of the night. #TaylorSwift #Midnights pic.twitter.com/zULSKIE1f0
— lucas⸆⸉ (@marjortay) August 29, 2022
Taylor revealed more information about the record, along with the cover art, at midnight after her iconic VMAs moment.
The 'Midnights' album cover showcases a close-up shot of the singer-songwriting peering at a lighter flame, with the tracks listed left of the moody photograph.
However, the songs are just labelled as Track One through to Track Thirteen, leading fans to believe that she will unveil the true titles in the coming weeks.
Some Swifties have even theorised that she's already hinted at the song names, forever a musician that pays attention to detail, fans believe that Taylor's paragraph about 'Midnight' was riddled with Easter eggs.
Words like 'Turmoil, 'Speak Back' and 'Sweet Dreams' could all be track names.
Midnights, the stories of 13 sleepless nights scattered throughout my life, will be out October 21. Meet me at midnight.
— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) August 29, 2022
Pre-order now: https://t.co/jjqUNkphuG pic.twitter.com/Fh96zK8vro
Another theory that's taking social media by storm is that the track titles could be named after hours in the early morning.
One tweet read: "WHAT IF the tracks are hours/time???!! track one: 1am and so on & track 13 is falling asleep (*meeting herself*)!??!!? [sic]."
Fans quickly realised that artwork to some of Taylor's songs on Spotify had been replaced with an animation of a clock ticking towards midnight, of course, everyone is convinced that its another Easter egg...
The numbers on the clock are separated into five colours, Swifties believe these colours could even correspond to her different album eras.
WHAT IF the tracks are hours/time???!! track one: 1am and so on & track 13 is falling asleep (*meeting herself*)!??!!? pic.twitter.com/YnW7nxnn37
— Sel (Midnights Version) (@butwhatcanitay) August 29, 2022
The musician wrote a cryptic post along with her 'Midnights' announcement, revealing that the album will the story of 13 sleepless nights thorughout her life.
However, theories swirl on Twitter, explaining that collectively the Side A and Side B of the album will tell an interconnected story – much like what Taylor did with characters on 'Folklore' in 2020.
She wrote: "This is a collection of music written in the middle of the night, a journey through terrors and sweet dreams. The floors we pace and the demons we face. For all of us who have tossed and turned and decided to keep the lanterns lit and go searching — hoping that just maybe, when the clock strikes twelve ... we'll meet ourselves."
So my theory is... the album would be two parts with one being pop like 1989 and rep, and the other being indie alternative like folklore #Midnights
— pacifico is awake at #Midgnights (@pacificoo_swift) August 29, 2022
Some Swifties even think that the album couple be split between 'terrors' and 'sweet dreams', showing both the good and the bad side of sleepless nights.
Others suggest that the record could be an eclectic one, separated by genre – with one side being a rock-influenced sound similar her rumoured unreleased 'Karma' album, and the other being a return to the 80s synth-pop sound of '1989'.
After Swift's announcement, fans began to worry that the pop sensation will be going off the map once the 'Midnights' era concludes.
One user posted to TikTok: "Is anyone else petrified that this might be her last album (other than the re-releases) the title midnight is like the ending of a day, it has 13 tracks about nights 'scattered throughout my life'.
"I cannot mentally cope with the concept of taylor swift not having an active career [sic]", the fan wrote.
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