As most people on the Internet know, yesterday (Dec. 13) was Taylor Swift’s birthday. All day, fans awaited an announcement, with most theorizing that Swift would announce Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) after teasing its release in the “Bejeweled” music video. As of recently (did you see what she was wearing at the AMAs?), Taylor has been a walking Speak Now Easter egg — but unfortunately, there were no major announcements on Swift’s birthday, leaving fans to call themselves clowns once again.
But even though there was no album release or announcement, Swift still didn’t disappoint on her birthday. On the evening of Dec. 13, Taylor uploaded a photo of herself and producer Jack Antonoff in the recording studio, instruments in hand. In the photo, Taylor holds up the number 3 on both hands as a celebratory sign of her turning 33 (or… is it?). Finally, the photo is captioned, “Thanks for all the beautiful wishes today!! I spent my 33rd birthday in the studio of course [smirk emoji] Wouldn’t have it any other way. Love you!”
Now, although this may seem like an ordinary birthday post, fans are onto Taylor, noting any and all possible Easter eggs in this photo. And let me tell you, some of these are pretty convincing — especially considering Taylor is known to leave dozens of Easter eggs in every post, statement, or release. Besides, Taylor explicitly told us in the caption of this photo that she was recording music — the only question is, which album?
In just this one Instagram photo, there are tons of new Easter eggs that give us new information (and more cause for debate) about which album she’ll re-release next. In general, fans are torn between Speak Now and Reputation as the subject of this post’s Easter eggs.
Taylor’s hand gesture could signify Speak Now or Reputation.
The first thing Swifties decoded is Taylor’s hand gesture: two number 3s, supposedly signifying her turning 33. But fans quickly came to the conclusion that she is just as likely to be celebrating her third album’s re-release, which, not-so-coincidentally, is Speak Now — you know, the one she’s been teasing for months now. Since there are already so many Speak Now Easter eggs out there, this isn’t so far-fetched. Fans have also gone as far as to predict the date of the re-release based on her hand gesture (but TBH, that part does seem far-fetched to me).
However, others noticed that Swift may also be gesturing the number 6, to signal the re-recording of Reputation. IMO, this is even more likely than a nod to Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) — not only because Jack and Taylor are in the studio in the photo (and it’s likely Speak Now has already been re-recorded), but also because as of recent, Taylor is now legally allowed to re-record Reputation. This lines up way too perfect to be a coincidence.
The dollar bill in the background is a clear reference to Reputation.
Yet another obvious sign (or, at least, obvious to obsessed, detail-oriented Swifties) that Taylor spent her birthday re-recording Reputation is in the background of this photo. On one of the pianos behind Swift and Antonoff lies a dollar bill — which, under normal circumstances, would be a pretty odd thing to find in a professional music studio. But in this case, fans realized this dollar bill references the music video to “Look What You Made Me Do,” the lead single on Reputation. And if you know anything at all about Swift’s eras, you know there’s nothing else that dollar bill could mean.
The bass on Taylor’s lap could reference either “Mean” or “Look What You Made Me Do.”
And what’s more, the giant bass on Taylor’s lap can’t be overlooked, either, because it gives us a big hint as to what song she could be re-recording. Fans have suspected that this aligns with the theory that this post hints at Reputation, as “Look What You Made Me Do” features the bass (fans even went as far as to check the instrument details of the song).
However, don’t bet all your money on Reputation quite yet — because just as many fans are convinced this post is yet another reference to Speak Now (Taylor’s Version). Swifties noticed that Antonoff is playing a C chord, which is the third letter of the alphabet — and, if you’re not aware by now, Speak Now is Taylor Swift’s third album. Plus, some assert that the bass on Swift’s lap is instead a nod to the “Mean” music video, in which this instrument is played. This also aligns with Swift’s hand gesture, because “Mean” is the sixth song on Speak Now. So, is Swift recording “Mean” or “Look What You Made Me Do”? Your guess is as good as mine.
Swift has outdone herself again with all of these Easter eggs — and quite frankly, so have her fans for creating these theories so quickly. One thing’s for sure: I’ll be keeping my eyes open for any more Easter eggs in Swift’s future posts.