Taylor Swift surprises fans at 2am with 15 extra songs on secret double album

Taylor Swift has surprised her fans by releasing a secret “double album” expansion of her latest work at 2am.

The US pop star sparked a social media frenzy after revealing a larger version of her highly-anticipated 11th studio album, The Tortured Poets Department, containing 31 songs.

The announcement came just two hours after she unveiled the regular 16-song edition of the album.

Swift announced the news by sharing album artwork on social media which shows her with one arm wrapped around her head and her other hand caressing her face.

The move by Swift is expected to cost her fans, who are known as “Swifties”, after many of them rushed to buy the original 16-song album for £13.99 when it was released at Midnight on Friday.

They now face having to pay more money for the “double album”, although the price has not yet been revealed.

Swift, who is known for taking inspiration from past relationships for her music, has placed So Long, London at number five in the tracklist – the slot reserved for the most meaningful song on each of Swift’s albums.

The song is thought to offer new insight into her split with The Favourite actor Joe Alwyn after six years together.

In the lyrics, Swift hints at wedding plans, singing: “You swore that you loved me, but where were the clues, I died on the altar waiting for the proof”, as well as being upset at having to leave London, which she said she “loved”.

Meanwhile, fans have interpreted the lyrics to the first song on the album, titled Fortnight and featuring US rapper Post Malone, to be about British singer Healy, whom she was rumoured to be dating briefly last year after her split from Alwyn.

Hours before the release of the album, Swift announced that Fortnight would be the first single off the album with a music video set to be released at 1am on Saturday in the UK.

While Swift does not namecheck Healy, a number of songs appear to reference him, including Guilty As Sin, where she sings about having “fatal fantasies” for someone from her past while in a relationship.

Fans also believe the 15th track, The Alchemy, is a nod to her blossoming romance with NFL star Travis Kelce as the song references American football terms including the team, “warm benches, winning streak, trophy and league”.

The pop star began a high-profile romance with Kelce last year, with her rushing the field at the Super Bowl to kiss him after his third victory in five years, and they recently attended the Coachella music festival together.

Swift also namechecks Charlie Puth, the US songwriter, on the album’s title track.

‘Sensational and sorrowful’

The 34-year-old sings: “You smoked then ate seven bars of chocolate, we declared Charlie Puth should be a bigger artist.”

After the album was released, Swift wrote on social media: “An anthology of new works that reflect events, opinions and sentiments from a fleeting and fatalistic moment in time – one that was both sensational and sorrowful in equal measure.

“This period of the author’s life is now over, the chapter closed and boarded up. There is nothing to avenge, no scores to settle once wounds have healed.

“And upon further reflection, a good number of them turned out to be self-inflicted. This writer is of the firm belief that our tears become holy in the form of ink on a page. Once we have spoken our saddest story, we can be free of it.

“And then all that’s left behind is the tortured poetry.”

The album also includes a song titled Florida!!! featuring UK-based band Florence + The Machine.

Other song titles include The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived, and Clara Bow, while the bonus song is titled The Manuscript.

Before the album’s release, fans had speculated whether the album title was a reference to star Alwyn.

In December 2022, Alwyn and Normal People star Paul Mescal revealed they had a WhatsApp group chat with Fleabag actor Andrew Scott called The Tortured Man Club.

At the time, they joked they were not using it as much any more because they were less tortured before news of Alwyn and Swift’s split emerged less than four months later.

Swift is known for writing songs about her ex-boyfriends, with previous flames Joe Jonas, Harry Styles, Jake Gyllenhaal and John Mayer among those who have been linked to some of her biggest hits.

Swift will bring her Eras tour to the UK from June 7, when she kicks off with three shows in Edinburgh.

The run of London shows begins on June 21.

The Tortured Poets Department, review

A sharp, savage attack on Taylor Swift's British exes

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