Taylor Swift Fans Think She Dropped Hint About Her 12th Album in Note About Her Masters

Taylor Swift fans think they just decoded the pop star’s latest mastermind move — an Easter egg that hints TS12 might not be far off. 

Swift, 35, took to social media on Friday, May 30, with a message for fans to visit her website for a longer statement regarding her rerecorded albums. There, she revealed that she had officially bought back the masters to her first six records from Shamrock Holdings. (Shamrock previously bought the masters from Scooter Braun after he acquired them from Swift’s former label, Big Machine Records, in 2019.)

“I’m trying to gather my thoughts into something coherent, but right now my mind is a slideshow,” Taylor wrote in the open letter. “A flashback sequence of all the times I daydreamed about, wished for, and pined away for the chance to get to tell you this news. All the times I was thiiiiiiiiiiiis close, reaching out for it, only for it to fall through.”

While the message only revolved around her past work — in addition to her masters news, she gave updates on the rerecording status of her debut and Reputation albums — Swifties were quick to note that the pop star chose to use exactly 12 “i”’s for the word “this,” leaving them to wonder if she was hinting toward new music being in the works. 

“I feel like ts12 just got so much closer,” one fan declared via X, while another wrote, “Now THIS is an Easter egg!!.” A third pointed out: “S12 LOGO???? (those 12 i’s are already sending me spiraling).”

Swift is known for dropping clues and Easter eggs with her every move — and Friday’s note wasn’t the first time she chose to type a letter exactly 12 times. When longtime BFF Selena Gomez released her joint album with fiancé Benny Blanco earlier this year, Swift showed support via Instagram, writing, “I LOVE THIS ALBUM SO MUCH. OH MY GODDDDDDDDDDDD,” using exactly 12 “d”’s. 

In February, the “Fortnight” singer wore red earrings with 12 jewels to the Grammy Awards. 

Swift’s note wasn’t the only place her fans searched for TS12 clues. Looking at Friday’s social media posts, which featured photos of Swift sitting on the ground holding her first six albums, eagle-eyed Swiftie’s wondered if the specific color scheme of the snaps hinted toward a new “era.” 

In addition to her Easter egg games, Swift has also been known for reinventing herself with every album she releases, with the tone of the record dictating aspects of her fashion sense and more. Her recent photos, which featured her donning simple denim jeans, white sneakers and a lavender top against a white background, left fans wondering if the subtle, dreamy look could be a tease of TS12’s feel. 

“Lavender shirt, lavender nails, this new logo, the 12 i’s…. Ts12 is coming and it’s lavender,” one fan speculated. Another wrote, “no but guys the 12 i’s + the nails & sweater this is ts12 im so so so sat that’s such a gorgeous color.”

While the singer’s next era could be imminent, fans were also forced to reckon with the fact that the rerecord of Swift’s 2017 album Reputation is nowhere near complete. 

“Full transparency: I haven’t even re-recorded a quarter of it,” Swift wrote. “The Reputation album was so specific to that time in my life, and I kept hitting a stopping point when I tried to remake it. All that defiance, that longing to be understood while feeling purposefully misunderstood, that desperate hope, that shame-born snarl and mischief.”

Not all the news, however, was bad news. 

“To be perfectly honest, it’s the one album in those first six that I thought couldn’t be improved upon by redoing it. Not the music or photos or videos. So, I kept putting it off,” she wrote before adding: “There will be a time (if you’re into the idea) for unreleased vault tracks from that album to hatch.”