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Taylor Swift Says She’s ‘Free’ of Heartbreak After Writing ‘Tortured Poets Department’
Taylor Swift said she’s “free” of heartbreak after writing her 11th studio album, The Tortured Poets Department.
Just as the clock struck midnight on Friday, April 19, Taylor, 34, took to social media to explain the premise of her latest album. “The Tortured Poets Department. 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,” she wrote alongside several black and white photos of herself. “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.”
She continued, “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 caption concluded with Taylor announcing that the album had officially dropped.
The caption marks one of the few things the “Cruel Summer” singer has said about the album. While Taylor seemingly let fans use their imagination to decide what each song is about, many took to social media to speculate that the songs detailed her brief fling with Matty Healy. The pair dated from May 2023 until June 2023, though previously had a reported fling in 2014.
“It’s so good I want to forget it’s about matty healy so it’s not ruined,” one person wrote via X while discussing the album. Another added, “Omfg it’s about matty.”
The suspected inspiration behind several of the new songs likely shocks many fans, as Swifties assumed the album would detail the end of Taylor’s romance with Joe Alwyn. The former couple split in April 2023 after six years of dating.
While the “Enchanted” singer likely won’t break her silence on who inspired each song, she did announce the album’s first single just hours before it dropped.
“The first single from The Tortured Poets Department is … Fortnight featuring @postmalone,” she captioned a photo of herself with Post Malone via Instagram. “I’ve been such a huge fan of Post because of the writer he is, his musical experimentation and those melodies he creates that just stick in your head forever. I got to witness that magic come to life firsthand when we worked together on ‘Fortnight.’”
She concluded the caption by saying she “honestly can’t wait for you guys to hear this song at Midnight,” adding that the music video will be released on April 19 at 8 p.m. ET.
