"1989 (Taylor's Version)" will be released on 27 Oct.
The ultimate release date comes after the "Shake It Off" singer dropped a lot of clues about it. In June 2022, Swift seemingly dropped more Easter eggs about its release at the Las Culturistas Culture Awards, hosted by "SNL" star Bowen Yang and comedian Matt Rogers. She recorded two acceptance speeches for the show, and in those videos, her home was full of items that seemed to reference the "1989" original era, per Vulture.
Then, this May, Swift surprise released the music video for "Karma" (feat. Ice Spice), and fans thought it included even more Easter eggs that pointed to an upcoming drop. In the video, she plays a vinyl copy of "Midnights," but the album is a light blue, which fans associate with "1989." In another shot, Swift is the Greek goddess Nemesis, and her pedestal has "MCMLXXXIX" carved into it; that's 1989 in Roman numerals.
Fans have also found meaning in a scene where Swift appears as three lit lightbulbs. "Speak Now" was Swift's third album. Then Swift appears as five lightbulbs; "1989" is her fifth album.
One of the video's last shots has also been interpreted as a clue. Swift holds a coffee cup; inside, her latte has art that looks like a clock. A finger with light-blue nail polish is by the eight on the clock, while a finger with black polish is by the two. Many fans thought that meant a "1989 (Taylor's Version)" announcement would come in August and "Reputation (Taylor's Version)" would come in February 2024.
The video for the "Speak Now (TV)" song "I Can See You" also had a "1989 (TV)" clue — at the end of the video, a sign over a bridge read, "1'-9" 8.9 tv."