Sorry, the old Taylor can’t come to the phone right now. Why? ‘Cause the new era of Taylor Swift is here!
The Grammy winner, 29, dropped her first single and music video for “Me!” from her upcoming seventh album at midnight on Friday, April 26. The song, which features Brendon Urie from Panic! at the Disco, is all about being proud of who you are. “I’m the only one of me, that’s the fun of me,” she sings.
The video kicks off with a scary snake slithering through the street. However, the snake then turns into butterflies. While the first moments feature Urie and Swift screaming at each other in a different language — in front of her cats, of course — the rest of the video is much happier and has a whimsical tone.
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The 1989 artist announced the name of the single, as well as her rock star collaborator in an interview with Robin Roberts on the rooftop of Rock Bottom Brewery in Nashville on Thursday, April 25, during the 2019 NFL draft.
The “Blank Space” songstress teased the tune on April 13 by posting a mysterious countdown clock on her Instagram Stories. Swift spent the following days uploading pastel-colored pictures of jewelry, cats, flowers and more, all with the caption, “4.26.”
On Thursday, April 25, the Valentine’s Day actress made a surprise appearance at The Gulch in Nashville, where she had artist Kelsey Montague create a special mural in honor of the music. “So… @kelseymontagueart helped me pull off the best surprise clue reveal today in Nashville,” Swift captioned a picture of herself standing in front of a colorful painting of butterfly wings. “Thank you to everyone who showed up, I’ve never been more proud of your FBI level detective skills.”
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The illustration features 13 hearts, in honor of the singer-songwriter’s lucky number, and the other symbols represent her favorite things: cats, rainbows, flowers and more. It also has the word “Me!” printed in bold, black letters at the center of the wings.
Fans have been speculating about new music for several months. On February 24, they noticed that Swift posted an Instagram picture of seven palm trees beneath a turquoise sky filled with 61 stars, and did not provide any details. Some Swifties thought the photo symbolized a shift in tone for her seventh studio album, as well as a countdown to April 26, exactly 61 days from the date it was posted.
The upcoming musical creation will be the “Love Story” singer’s first since Reputation, which was released in November 2017. The CD went triple Platinum and was nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album at the 61st annual Grammy Awards.