3 min readTHE RUNDOWN
- Taylor Swift quietly launched a countdown on her site ending at 2 P.M. ET today.
- Once it finished, she revealed she is releasing a new single, “Patient Zero,” this Friday.
- Prior to the countdown’s conclusion, fans speculated that she could be announcing a deluxe edition of The Life of a Showgirl after noticing changes to her Instagram and Apple Music pages.
Much like she did throughout her The Life of a Showgirl era, Taylor Swift quietly launched a countdown on her site that ended at 2 P.M. ET to share big news: She is releasing a single called “Patient Zero” this Friday.
“I’ve been impatiently waiting to tell you that my brand new single ‘Patient Zero’ will be out on September 25 (!!!!!!!!!!!!) and it’s available to pre-order now on my website for 24 hours. 0️⃣0️⃣0️⃣0️⃣,” she wrote on Instagram.
Three versions of it appear on her site for preorder, and they will ship out on October 13:
The move comes after she fueled speculation this morning that she is on the cusp of announcing a new project by making some changes to her website, Instagram, and Apple Music page.
Taylor Swift’s countdown page earlier today.
Swifties noticed that a third piece of paper appears under her letter about getting back her masters for her first six albums on her site. They also noticed her Instagram bio has changed, with zeroes replacing the letter O in a few of the words. “And, baby, that’s sh0w business f0r y0u. ❤️🔥,” it now reads.
The 0 clearly is a nod to the new single’s title, “Patient Zero.”
In the past, Swift unveiled limited-edition vinyls of The Life of a Showgirl at the end of a countdown on her site. She also announced her Toy Story 5 song, “I Knew It, I Knew You,” at the end of her most recent countdown in June.
Several fans theorized that Swift planned to release a deluxe edition of The Life of a Showgirl today, noting that its lyrics have changed on Apple Music and now include 0 characters instead of the letter O, too. (The sale page for the single does include The Life of a Showgirl written below the title, suggesting the song is connected to her last album.)
Swift also dropped several Easter eggs during her Law & Order sketch during the Emmys earlier this month. Fans pinpointed several nods to Swift releasing the rerecorded Taylor’s Version of her debut album, which will mark its 20th anniversary on October 24.
One fan put forth a viral theory, decoding a November 10 release date in the cryptic message Swift said in the skit: “I think what we’re gonna be looking for is hiding in plain sight: Saccharide Aries from the vineyard north or south.”
That said, November 10 is a Tuesday this year, and Swift usually releases albums on Fridays. Other fans found clues pointing to different dates in the skit.
In addition to today’s single reveal, there may be even more news coming from Swift later this week as the singer will receive the first-ever Artist Director Honors at the MTV VMAs on Sunday—and Swift has a history of announcing new projects during that ceremony.