The highly anticipated re-release of Taylor Swift’s fourth studio album has finally arrived. On Nov. 12, Swift dropped the second of her re-recordings: Red (Taylor’s Version). If you are looking for context on why she is doing these re-recordings, catch up with this article. Red, the classic 16-track album, was made even deeper, more emotional and casually cruel with a total of 30 stupendous tracks. Swift unlocked the vault and gave her fans un-released masterpieces, including the very first song she and Ed Sheeran ever wrote together, “Run.” The album also features several other artists, both expected and unexpected. Among these surprising but beautiful features is Phoebe Bridgers in the haunting, acoustic song from the vault, “Nothing New.”
After its midnight release, overwhelmingly positive reviews are already flooding in. Fans have taken over social media to rave over the reimagined classic album. Rob Sheffield from Rolling Stone has given it five stars, calling the album “a tribute to how far she’s traveled.” But the real star of the show is the last track: a ten-minute, explicit version of the heart-wrenching, emotional roller-coaster that is “All Too Well.”
The original version takes fans into the story of a heartbroken Swift. Sheffield explains that in this new ten-minute version, “she goes deeper into the story … getting so savage it makes ‘Dear John’ sound like ‘I Will Always Love You.’” Earlier this week, Swift announced that the eagerly awaited epic of a song will be accompanied by a short film written and directed by Swift herself. The cinematography was done by the renowned Japanese-Korean-British cinematographer Rina Yang and the film will star Stranger Things actress Sadie Sink and Dylan O’Brien. Fans have already theorized about the significance of the two actors’ age gap that is reflected in the lyrics of the song.
Swift made sure to paint the world red in honor of her release. She appeared on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon leading up to the release. She then went on to Late Night with Seth Meyers just over 30 minutes after the release. Lastly, she will be the musical guest on Saturday Night Live on Nov. 13. If you think that date is a coincidence, think again. Additionally, the singer has partnered up with Starbucks to commemorate the event (not a surprising collab considering the coffee company has just started using their holiday red cups)! Go to any Starbucks and simply order “Taylor’s Version” or “Taylor’s Latte” to get Swift’s go-to Starbucks drink: a Grande Caramel Nonfat Latte. Not to mention, the coffee stores will be playing a playlist comprised of the new songs and other Swift classics on Friday.
The eagerly anticipated album has exceeded fans’ and critics’ expectations, featuring several other incredible singers and introducing new dimensions into beloved songs. In what feels like an irrevocable pattern, Taylor Swift has taken the music industry again by storm with an undeniably emotional album, and it’s burning red.
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