You guys — it’s International Talk Like a Pirate Day! You didn’t think we’d forget that, did you? To celebrate, we wanted to fill you in on one of our favorite easter eggs on Facebook — the English (Pirate) language setting. Check out the photo how-to below and have some fun with yer mates!
Hilarious, huh? And to change it back…
Have yerself some rippin’ fun rigging your page. What be troublin’ ye? Blabber t’yer mates below!
We are now two for two on expecting Taylor Swift to announce Reputation (Taylor's Version) during an acceptance speech and getting an album announcement instead. After showing up to the 2022 VMAs in a "Look What You Made Me Do"-inspired outfit and announcing Midnights, Taylor Swift wore a black and white ensemble on the 2024 Grammys red carpet before telling the world her new album The Tortured Poets Department was on its way!
And while accepting the 2024 iHeart Radio Music Award for Artist of the Year, Taylor also promises the rest of 2024 will be just as exciting as 2023. "We have so many exciting things ahead of us," the 1989 (Taylor's Version)singer says after thanking iHeart and the fans. "Most importantly, I have a brand new album called The Tortured Poets Department, which comes out on April 19. I cannot wait to share it with you...I just can't wait to keep having fun with you guys because we have a lot of exciting things coming up."
One of those exciting things includes a music video, which Taylor revealed in a "TTPD Timetable" Instagram video. This first music video premieres April 19 at 8PM EST for "Fortnight." Here's everything else we know about the new Taylor Swift album, and all its pop culture references.(And everything you need to know about Taylor Swift (Taylor's Version) too ;)).
Image via UMG Store/Taylor Swift
Yes, you can order a Tortured Poets Department cardigan on Taylor Swift's website now (or at least, while supplies last!). The gray button down is in the same cable knit style as all her previous cardigans, which makes it the perfect collector's item! Plus, it's got that iconic "The Tortured Poets Department" patch on the bottom left of the sweater.
Image via Taylor Swift/Instagram
Taylor Swift released the full version of TTPD with The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology. After all those 2 references, some fans thought we'd get a Taylor Swift book, while others wondered if it was part of the TS12 countdown. Instead, it was a double album that features 31 songs instead of the initial 17! Some tracks the internet is already obsessed with are "thanK you aIMee" and "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived."
Image via Taylor Swift/Instagram
Taylor Swift dropped The Tortured Poets Department 's first song list February 5. "I Can Do It With A Broken Heart" is totally referencing Taylor Swift's Eras Tour performances following her split from Joe Alwyn (you can see her crying during the set), while "Florida!!!" is all about using the southern state as an escape. Taylor Swift's dad Scott Swift recently told fans he's most excited for Swifties to hear the title track and "Florida!!!"
While we were excited for these tracks, Taylor surprised us with even more at 2AM! The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology has all the songs from the original album, plus 15 more. Here's the full tracklist for TS11:
Image via Taylor Swift/Instagram
Taylor Swift has spent years talking about her anxiety, her sleepless nights, and her emotions. "My muses, acquired like bruises / My talismans and charms / The tick, tick, tick of love bombs / My veins of pitch black ink," she writes in her official Instagram post. "All's fair in love and poetry."
As far as the name, it looks like The Tortured Poets Department could be referencing her ex-boyfriend Joe Alwyn's group chat name — "The Tortured Man Club" with Paul Mescal (who starred in Normal People while Joe starred Conversations With Friends. Both series are based on Sally Rooney books).
Taylor Swift is also making major connections to the "poetry" aspect of TTPD because ahead of the album release, she gave us a limited library installation pop-upfull of Easter eggs and references!
Image via Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
The Tortured Poets Department dropped on April 19, 2024. Ahead of the release, Taylor Swift sent fans on a scavenger hunt to gather clues about the album. @eurosweetheart on TikTok points out that on Apple Music, certain song lyrics from Taylor's discography featured random capital letters. But when the letters were strung together, they formed words! The final message was “We hereby conduct this post mortem.”
At the Eras Tour shows in Tokyo, Taylor Swift explained when she started working on TTPD. “I’ve been working on Tortured Poets since right after I turned in Midnights,” she said onstage. “So, you turn in an album months in advance…and I’ve been working on it for about two years. I kept working on it throughout the U.S. tour and when it was perfect, in my opinion, when it was good enough for you, I finished it.”
"Soon you'll get to hear it, soon we'll get to experience it together," she continued. "I'm over the moon about the fact that you guys care about my music...Everyone’s like, ‘Why do you make so many albums?’ And I’m like, ‘Man, because I love it! I love it so much! I’m having fun, leave me alone.'”
The brand new album follows Speak Now (Taylor's Version) and 1989 (Taylor's Version). When Midnights was announced after Fearless (Taylor's Version) and Red (Taylor's Version), I wondered whether she'd have a two rerecordings, one new album pattern and it looks like that's what we're getting!
Image via Taylor Swift/Instagram
Taylor Swift's new album (which is also referred to as TS11) is called The Tortured Poets Department. Taylor Swift announced the album while accepting the award for Best Pop Album at the 2024 Grammys. Just like "Daylight" at the end of Lover sets up Midnights, I think "Dear Reader" sets up The Tortured Poets Department.
In honor of the eclipse on April 8, Taylor Swift posted the first lyrics from TS11! "Crowd goes wild at her fingertips // Half moonshine // Full eclipse," the lyric post (which ended up being from "Clara Bow") reads. "The first line makes you think of someone who’s famous (Clara Bow was an actress) and...moonshine was a type of alcohol that was popular during prohibition during the 1920s which is when Clara Bow was famous," one comment reads.
Taylor's official announcement features even more beautiful language that evokes the same emotion "The Lakes" does, and TTPD is very similar to Folklore and Evermore in terms of lyrics, but the sound reminds me of 1989. It also has ties to Reputation.
"I think the two albums are sisters albums, but in like an opposite way," one Reddit user says. "Reputation is all black, this one is going to be all white and softly coded." Another agrees: "Reputation is presented as a dark album but is truly a love album...This one is presented as soft and white but I bet the lyrics will be devastating."
TS11 has the same lyrical prowess as songs like "Would've, Should've, Could've," The National's "The Alcott" (on which Taylor's a featured artist), and "You're Losing Me." Taylor is all about looking past appearances and telling a complex story, and The Tortured Poets Department will be no different. Just like Reputation is an edgy, glittery, emotionally-charged version of the beginning of her relationship with ex-boyfriend Joe Alwyn, I totally agree that TTPD looks grounded, airbrushed, and dreamy from the outside, but the lyrics are SAD.
During her Eras Tour show in Sydney, Australia, Taylor played another round of suspicious surprise songs. While sitting at the piano, Taylor Swift takes her earpiece out and calls attention to the keyboard. "Do you hear that?" she says (via TikTok). "My damn keyboard's playing a synth sound." She then does what she almost always does when dropping an Easter egg: she smirks.
"That sound is how the album starts, mark my words," one comment reads. Another says, "That smirk tells me everything I need to know."
Image via Taylor Swift/Instagram
There are 7 explicit songs on the original The Tortured Poets Department: "The Tortured Poets Department," "Down Bad," "But Daddy I Love Him," "Florida!!! (feat. Florence + The Machine)," "loml," "I Can Do It With A Broken Heart," and "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived."
On The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology, "The Black Dog," "thanK you aIMee," "Cassandra," and "The Bolter" are also explicit.
Image via Taylor Swift/Instagram
During one of her Eras Tour shows in Sydney, Australia, Taylor Swift announced a new version of The Tortured Poets Department featuring exclusive bonus track "The Albatross." This new album already has some crazy track titles — all with pretty noteworthy meanings.
According to Collins Dictionary, if you call someone an Albatross, "they cause you great problems from which you cannot escape, or they prevent you from doing what you want to do," while a Bolter could refer to someone bolting out of a relationship (or bolting from a restaurant to a car like in this viral clip 🤨).
Meanwhile "The Alchemy" refers to the continual process of trying to turn something into gold — remember how Taylor Swift spent 6 years saying her relationship with Joe Alwyn was golden? Buckle up Swifties, TS11 is one wild ride.
Image via Taylor Swift/Instagram
At first glance, the twelfth song on The Tortured Poets Department, "loml," means "love of my life." Some fans were wondering if the song was a nod to Harry Styles since his Harry's House finale track is "Love of My Life" (the album also features a track named "Daylight" which is another funny connection to Taylor Swift). But Taylor ends the song saying he's the "loss of my life" and I will never be the same.
Image via Taylor Swift store
You can order a bunch of different versions of The Tortured Poets Department on Taylor Swift's website right now, includingThe Tortured Poets Department CD + Bonus Track "The Manuscript" and The Tortured Poets Department CD + Bonus Track "The Manuscript".
Image via Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Yes, The Tortured Poets Department will feature Florence + The Machine on the song "Florida!!!" and Post Malone on the song "Fortnight." And after Taylor Swift teased a variety of collaborations by posting handwritten lyrics from artists like Harry Styles and Lorde, Swifties wondered if The Tortured Poets Department will be the "collab album" we never got.
Another clue that leads me to believe this is true is the fact that the title of this album is so much longer than her other titles — and she refers to herself as "Chairman" of the department. Who are all the constituents?! Are they all the same artists who left Scooter Braun's management last year? Only time will tell, because as far as I'm concerned, surprises aren't out of the question until the TS11 era is over!👀
Image via Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images
Throughout her stay in Sydney, Australia for the Eras Tour, Taylor Swift dropped lots — and I mean lots — of twos. @v_swiftie_ points out that in addition to holding up the number two while announcing The Tortured Poets Department, she's been playing more surprise song mashups than normal, and Taylor Nation has been posting Instagram stories featuring the number 2 instead of the number 13. And it turns out, we were right about this leading to a double album! Taylor dropped the second half of TTPD — The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology — at 2AM EST.
Are you excited for The Tortured Poets Department? What kinds of collabs or songs are you hoping for? Let us know in the comments and check out these Taylor Swift Disney Movie Posters Inspired By Her Songs for more fun content!
Lead image via Taylor Swift/Instagram
This post has been updated.
I never thought we'd get a Taylor Swift album with multiple songs referencing Matty Healy, but after multiple listens, the internet is convinced The Tortured Poets Department(the first edition, at least) has a ton of references to The 1975 frontman. One song in particular has sent everyone into a tizzy: "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived." Here's why fans think the song is about Taylor Swift & Matty Healy.
Image via Francois Durand/Getty Images For Christian Dior
While Taylor Swift & Matty Healy never publicly dated until 2023, they were friends for years before that. In 2014, Taylor Swift went to her first The 1975 concert with Selena Gomez and Ellie Goulding. Then, Taylor was seen wearing one of their band shirts while Matty was spotted in a 1989 shirt. "I met Taylor Swift," Matty told Shazam Top 20 in November (via E! News). "That was really nice. We exchanged numbers. Let's see what happens."
Matty Healy & Taylor Swift continued referencing each other over the next couple years, and fans lost their minds when Matty revealed he'd collaborated on a Midnights song — even if he went on to say it was cut. After Taylor Swift performed "Anti-Hero" during a 1975 concert, and then split from boyfriend Joe Alwyn split in the spring of 2023, Taylor & Matty quickly connected. They went on to date from May to June. That brings us to "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived."
In the song, Taylor wonders if "rusting my sparkling summer was the goal" and talks about "your Jehovah's Witness suit" (Matty is famous for wearing suits during his concerts). She also mentions how the relationship "wasn't sexy once it wasn't forbidden" — which totally ties into the themes within "Guilty As Sin?" (about imaginary trysts she thought about while dating someone else).
"[These Matty Healy-focused songs] started out being like 'f*ck all of you, I love him, I’ll fix him, I don’t care what you say' to ending here basically saying 'alright yeah this guy sucks,'" one Reddit user says. "I think the order of these songs plays a huge role in this throughline of that relationship."
"Heavyweight rappers J. Cole, Drake, and Rick Ross all released diss tracks over the last couple of weeks, and none of them were as scathing as this one," another says.
Image via Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
While Taylor Swift & Matty Healy officially dated during the summer of 2023, another song on TTPD, "Fresh Out The Slammer" makes me think they connected before then. Referring to her relationship as a jail, she sings about how she's connected with this person before she started dating her ex. "I'm runnin' back home to you // Frеsh out the slammer // I know who my first call will be to." (Does this mean "Illicit Affairs" from Folklore is actually about Matty Healy too?)
Image via Francois Durand/Getty Images For Christian Dior
It looks like "Fortnight," "The Tortured Poets Department," "I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)," and "loml" are just a few of the songs that could be about Taylor Swift & Matty Healy's relationship.
Image via Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
Verse 1: Was any of it true? // Gazing at me starry-eyed // In your Jehovah's Witness suit // Who the f-ck was that guy? // You tried to buy some pills // From a friend of friends of mine // They just ghosted you // Now you know what it feels like
Chorus: And I don't even want you back, I just want to know // If rusting my sparkling summer was the goal // And I don't miss what we had, but could someone give // A message to the smallest man who ever lived?
Verse 2: You hung me on your wall // Stabbed me with your push pins // In public, showed me off // Then sank in stoned oblivion // 'Cause once your queen had come // You'd treat her likе an also-ran // You didn't measure up // In any measurе of a man
Chorus: And I don't even want you back, I just want to know // If rusting my sparkling summer was the goal // And I don't miss what we had, but could someone give // A message to the smallest man who ever lived?
Image via Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Bridge: Were you sent by someone who wanted me dead? // Did you sleep with a gun underneath our bed? // Were you writin' a book? Were you a sleeper cell spy? // In fifty years, will all this be declassified? // And you'll confess why you did it and I'll say, "Good riddance" // 'Cause it wasn't sexy once it wasn't forbidden // I would've died for your sins, instead, I just died inside // And you deserve prison, but you won't get time // You'll slide into inboxes and slip through the bars // You crashed my party and your rental car // You said normal girls were boring // But you were gone by the morning // You kicked out the stage lights, but you're still performing
Outro: And in plain sight you hid // But you are what you did // And I'll forget you, but I'll never forgive // The smallest man who ever lived
Tell us your hottest Taylor Swift & Matty Healy take on Facebook, then read up on The Taylor Swift Boyfriends You Love, And The Ones You Didn't Know She Dated.
Lead images via Francois Durand/Getty Images For Christian Dior/Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
Since Taylor Swift & Travis Kelce started dating, Swifties have wondered when we'd get songs about her new beau. Well, it looks like the time is now! We all know Taylor Swift's boyfriends inspire her songs — in fact, her boyfriends have been more of a topic of conversation in the past than her actual music — but thanks to Midnights and the Eras Tour, Taylor's career is top of mind for everyone.
The Tortured Poets Department brings the two together by mourning the loss of a relationship (or two) on songs like "Down Bad" while also having to perform for fans, like in "I Can Do It With A Broken Heart." But there are two songs that have a shiny, hopeful quality to them as Taylor looks to the future — and we can thank Travis Kelce!
Image via Patrick Smith/Getty Images
Taylor Swift released "The Alchemy" on the original edition of The Tortured Poets Department, and there is no doubt in my mind the song is about Travis Kelce! This track is my current fave on the album, which means I've listened to it a dozen times and spent *way* too much time analyzing the lyrics.
Merriam-Webster defines alchemy as "a power or process that changes or transforms something in a mysterious or impressive way." Taylor sings about how this new love is something so unique, it "happens once every few lifetimes" (which reminds me of how cats have nine lives — we know Tay loves cats!). It's also so powerful that they can't even fight it. That sounds like love if you ask me!
The production and lyrics of the song call back to Lover's "Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince" as she talks about school, football, and royalty. "Call the amateurs and cut 'em from the team // Ditch the clowns, get the crown // Baby, I'm the one to beat" is taking me back to my own homecoming days!
While my first listen of "The Alchemy" made me think "I haven't come around in so long // But I'm making a comeback to where I belong" was about a return to a past relationship (similar to "Fresh Out The Slammer"), I think she's talking about how she's dating an American for the first time since 2016. Everything we've seen from Taylor Swift & Travis Kelce feels like a high school rom-com from the early 00s and I love them for that.
My personal favorite lyric from the song references how Taylor literally made his game better during the NFL season. Because in true Taylor fashion, instead of just saying the line in a straightforward way, she goes totally Shakespearean: "We've been on a winning streak," she sings. "He jokes that it's heroin, but this time with an 'E.'"
Image via Taylor Swift/UMG
Verse 1: This happens once every few lifetimes // These chemicals hit me like white wine // What if I told you I'm back? // The hospital was a drag // Worst sleep that I ever had // I circled you on a map // I haven't come around in so long // But I'm coming back so strong.
Chorus: So when I touch down // Call the amateurs and cut 'em from the team // Ditch the clowns, get the crown // Baby, I'm the one to beat // 'Cause the sign on your heart // Said it's still reserved for me // Honestly, who are we to fight thе alchemy?
Verse 2: Hey, you, what if I told you we'rе cool? // That child's play back in school // Is forgiven under my rule // I haven't come around in so long // But I'm making a comeback to where I belong.
Chorus: So when I touch down // Call the amateurs and cut 'em from the team // Ditch the clowns, get the crown // Baby, I'm the one to beat // 'Cause the sign on your heart // Said it's still reserved for me // Honestly, who are we to fight the alchemy? // These blokes warm the benches // We've been on a winning streak // He jokes that it's heroin, but this time with an "E" // 'Cause the sign on your heart // Said it's still reserved for me // Honestly, who are we to fight the alchemy?
Bridge: Shirts off and your friends lift you up over their heads // Beer stickin' to the floor, cheers chanted 'cause they said // "There was no chance trying to be the greatest in the league" // Where's the trophy? He just comes runnin' over to me.
Chorus: Touchdown // Call the amateurs and cut 'em from the team // Ditch the clowns, get the crown // Baby, I'm the one to beat // 'Cause the sign on your heart // Said it's still reserved for me // Honestly, who are we to fight the alchemy? // These blokes warm the benches // We've been on a winning streak // He jokes that it's heroin, but this time with an "E" // 'Cause the sign on your heart // Said it's still reserved for me // Honestly, who are we to fight the alchemy?
Outro: This happens once every few lifetimes // These chemicals hit me like white wine
Image via Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
When we got The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology, and 15 more Taylor Swift songs, we got our second track about Travis Kelce: "So High School." This track's production feels like a song from when Taylor was in high school herself, and it's totally giving 00s movies like A Cinderella Story. She really hypes up the football and queen bee tropes we see in "The Alchemy" to emphasize how her relationship with Travis feels youthful and carefree — and how he makes her "feel like laughin' in the middle of practice."
Just like "The Alchemy" has ties to "Miss Americana," "So High School" reminds me of a number of songs from Fearless or even Taylor Swift. Taylor spent so much time singing about heartbreak and how, at 15 years old, she didn't realize she'd "do things greater than dating the boy on the football team." Life really is full circle because right now, she's doing it all — breaking records, releasing new music, completing a historic world tour AND dating the boy from the football team ;).
Taylor's known for the bridges of her songs and this is one of the strongest on the whole album — it's also one of my favorite from her whole discography! "Truth, dare, spin bottles // You know how to ball, I know Aristotle" has been on repeat in my head for literal days. I love how she emphasizes how different she is from Travis, and that it's not a bad thing.
And it wouldn't be a Taylor Swift song without an Easter egg! Taylor references one of Travis Kelce's previous interviews where he says he'd want to kiss Taylor during a game of Kiss, Marry, Kill.
Image via Taylor Swift/UMG
Intro: I feel so high school every time I look at you // I wanna find you in a crowd just to hide from you
Chorus: And in a blink of a crinklin' eye // I'm sinkin', our fingers entwined // Cheeks pink in the twinkling lights // Tell me 'bout the first time you saw me // I'll drink what you think, and I'm high // From smokin' your jokes all damn night // The brink of a wrinkle in time // Bittersweet sixteen suddenly
Post-Chorus: I'm watchin' American Pie with you on a Saturday night // Your friends are around, so be quiet // I'm trying to stifle my sighs // 'Cause I feel so high school every time I look at you // But look at you // Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah
Verse 1: Are you gonna marry, kiss or kill me? (Kill me) // It's just a game, but really (Really) // I'm bettin' on all three for us two (All three) // Get my car door, isn't that sweet? (That sweet) // Then pull me to thе backseat (The backseat) // No onе's ever had me (Had me), not like you
Bridge: Truth, dare, spin bottles // You know how to ball, I know Aristotle // Brand-new, full throttle // Touch me while your bros play Grand Theft Auto // It's true, swear, scouts honor // You knew what you wanted and, boy, you got her // Brand-new, full throttle // You already know, babe
Verse 2: I feel like laughin' in the middle of practice // Do that impression you did of your dad again // I'm hearing voices like a madman
Chorus: And in a blink of a crinklin' eye // I'm sinkin', our fingers entwined // Cheeks pink in the twinkling lights // Tell me 'bout the first time you saw me // I'll drink what you think, and I'm high // From smokin' your jokes all damn night // The brink of a wrinkle in time // Bittersweet sixteen suddenly
Post-Chorus: I'm watchin' American Pie with you on a Saturday night // Your friends are around, so be quiet // I'm trying to stifle my sighs // 'Cause I feel so high school (Feel so high school) every time I look at you // But look at you
Outro: Truth, dare, spin bottles // You know how to ball, I know Aristotle // Brand-new, full throttleTouch me while your bros play Grand Theft Auto // It's true, swear, scouts honor // You knew what you wanted and, boy, you got her // Brand-new, full throttle // You already know, babe // You already know, babeImage via Al Bello/Getty Images
While "Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus" doesn't sound like it's directed at Travis Kelce, I do think she references him in the lyrics. "You saw my bones out with somebody new // Who seemed like he would've bullied you in school // And you just watched it happen" emphasizes the anxiety of high school stereotypes and Travis' football stardom.
What do you think about these Taylor Swift songs? Do you want to see more music about Travis Kelce? Check out our Facebook for the latest pop culture news — and don't forget to read up on how "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived" Just Spilled So Much Taylor Swift & Matty Healy Tea.
Lead images via Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
