Taylor Swift‘s fans are notorious for their sleuthing abilities. The singer is dropping her fourth re-recorded album “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” tonight at midnight, and while the track listing was already announced, some true blue Swifties are digging for clues of one collaboration in particular.
Ahead of the original “1989” release in 2014, the singer shared hand written snippets of lyrics on her Instagram account. Now, nine years later, Swift has continued the tradition. Some sense that the handwriting is a clue that Swift was not alone when she wrote the lyrics–and that she could have been in the company of none other than Harry Styles.
@repudaytion Replying to @The Lewis Fam ITS HAPPENING YALL. ITS HAPPENING!! #taylorswift #whatiffeatharrystyles #taylorsversion #alexday #repudaytion
TikTok creators and X users are noting a similarity in the letter f between the handwriting on Swift’s lyrics and a previous handwriting sample from Styles. The Grammy winner and Swift were in a relationship between 2012 and 2013, when Styles was still a member of world famous boy band One Direction. Listeners have long alleged that the pair has each inspired several of each others’ songs.
Styles’ track “Two Ghosts” from his debut eponymous solo album references “same lips red, same eyes blue,” which has long been thought to be a Swift reference. On the other hand, the aptly named “Style” on Swift’s “1989” is rumored to be about the singer’s relationship with Styles, not only because of its name, but because of the descriptions. The lyrics describe a man with “long hair, slicked back, white t shirt/and I got that good girl faith and a tight little skirt.” Styles’ long hair and Swift’s miniskirts were style staples for each of them during their early 2010s relationship.
Swift and Styles never wrote outwardly negative lyrics about their relationship. The pair even reunited at the Grammys for the past two years, with Swift congratulating Styles on winning Album of The Year in 2023. Fans of both artists applauded their friendly interaction.
Fan Reactions And Social Media Theories
Outside of hope for a Styles collaboration, some hope for the return of a Kendrick Lamar featured track, and possibly even a duet with Lorde. The former was previously featured on a remix for “Bad Blood” upon the album’s initial release, with the latter forging a friendship with Swift during the same first rollout.
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guys what if these aren't lyrics but 4 extra songs? pic.twitter.com/XE3Y3moZrG
— maddie🪩🩵 (@icanseemaddie) October 25, 2023
Others theorize that a double album drop is in the works. Swift still has to re-record “Reputation” and her self titled debut album “Taylor Swift.” The re-releases come after music tycoon Scooter Braun purchased Swift’s original masters without her consent in 2019. Due to some of the black and white imagery in the background of “1989” performances and artwork, some suspect that there are so many vault songs for “1989” that a deluxe album is already finished and will drop tomorrow.
@alexantonides We got 8/9 right clowns, let’s do it again! #fyp #swifttok #1989taylorsversion #1989tv #taylorswift #erastour #erastourmovie
As usual, Swift has not confirmed or denied any of these theories, but she sure loves the players, and the fans love the game.
