Following one the arguably best, and least controversial, award shows of the 2024 award season so far, Taylor Swift broke records by winning four Grammy Awards for album of the year. Said record was broken when her album “Midnights” won album of the year for 2024. The album had also won earlier in the night for best pop vocal album. Following her first win, Swift announced that she would be releasing a brand new album on April 19. This was a major shock, seeing as many people were expecting her to announce the release date of “Reputation (Taylor’s Version)”. Swift has re-recorded 4 out of the 6 albums that she had released under Big Machine Records. Fans are still eagerly awaiting the arrival of “Reputation (Taylor’s Version)” and “Taylor Swift (Taylor’s Version)”. For now, we’ll have to wait a little while longer for those 2 albums to grace our ears. In the meantime, Swifties will be able to indulge in Swift’s new album “The Tortured Poets Department.” Let’s break down what we know so far and what we think is to come!

What We Know:

Following the announcement of the upcoming album at the Grammys, Swift provided fans with the name, release date, and cover of the album via Instagram. This immediately sparked excitement amongst the music community and fans instantly started to theorize about the style of music that the album would mostly revolve around. On top of that, everyone was curious as to who would be featured in a collaboration with Taylor Swift. Unfortunately, Swifties were not given much time to dwell on their theories, seeing as the night after the album announcement, Swift took to Instagram to surprise fans with the track list announcement and new cover art. 

Covers:

The cover to the left seems to be the official cover for the album, however, there will probably be various other covers on the vinyls or CD’s, much like the various covers after releasing “Midnights”. Her album announcement photo (on the right) may be a possible cover. Both photos are different from what fans have seen in the past from Swift, which has heightened the excitement about this album. There is definitely an element of the black and white softness that is depicted in the “Folklore” cover. However, the official cover reminds me somewhat of one of the “Midnights” covers. With this new mixture of her past eras solely on the cover, can we expect said mixture in the songs? Will Taylor have to add another era onto her tour?

Track List and Features:

“The Tortured Poets Department” is only going to feature 2 collaborations, one of which will be kicking off the album with the first track that is titled “Fortnight” featuring Post Malone. This is an interesting combination of artists, but I have a good feeling about it. The second track that will contain a collaboration is the eighth song that is titled “Florida!!!”. Swift will be collaborating with Florence + The Machine on this track, but I’ve got to admit, I was really expecting another Lana Del Rey collaboration, but this might just be better. I think their styles and vocals compliment each other perfectly. 

This track list has me extremely excited for this upcoming album. I can only hope that there is going to be a mixture of Swift’s music style throughout this album. Maybe some “Folklore” mixed with “Reputation”?!?! 🥹

Opinions and Thoughts:

It appears that I am not the only one who has a feeling that this album will mix some of her Eras into one. A common answer that I received when asking some friends what they expected regarding the “vibes” of the album was “Folklore” mixed with “Reputation”. Others mentioned the albums “Midnights” and “Evermore.” Maybe all of those styles of music will come together into one beautiful album. 

Focussing more on the public gossip, fan theories online are circulating regarding the title of the album. Many are under the impression that the album’s name is a reference to a group chat between Swift’s ex boyfriend, Joe Alwyn, and some of his friends. Said group chat was named “The Tortured Man Club”. I’m begging, can we please leave Joe Alwyn in the past. Swift and current boyfriend, Travis Kelce, seem to be really happy. There is no need to keep bringing Alwyn back into it.

Some fans are also speculating that Swift might do a double release. We know that “The Tortured Poets Department” album is coming on April 19, but some are more hoping, rather than speculating, that Swift will surprise everyone with the release of “Reputation (Taylor’s Version)”. When “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” was set to release, fans hoped for this same surprise. Alas, they were wrong in their speculating and wishing. I doubt that there will be a double, surprise release this go-round, but I can hold out hope.

Many people that I discussed this album with have felt a slight disappointment with name of the tracks. I’ll admit, they are a bit odd, but I don’t think that fans should judge the album solely based on the names of the tracks. Combined with everything else that Swift has released in regards to this album, and knowing how great of an artist she truly is, I would say that it’s going to be a lyrical piece of work.

Despite all the rumors and slight disappointment circulating about the album, I have high hopes for it. If there’s anything that we can count on, its Swift’s literary genius and impeccable ability to formulate words into a beautiful story.