Today, in the wake of her wildly successful Eras Tour (and the corresponding film, released Oct. 13), Taylor Swift released 1989 (Taylor’s Version) to remind us, yet again, of all the reasons we love her music so much: the magic, the madness, the heaven, and the sin. And just like in the original album, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) assembles the musical genius of Swift and none other than Imogen Heap, another renowned musician and songwriter.
Almost a decade apart from their original collaboration in 2014, 1989 TV dropped at midnight, Oct. 27, to millions of eagerly waiting Swifties around the world. On the morning of Oct. 27, Heap posted on Instagram an appraising tribute to her work with Swift, with a mention of behind-the-scenes details of the recording process back in the early 2010s and last year.
“Today marks the release of “Taylor’s version” of 1989 …the album originally released in 2014. The latest in line towards @taylorswift’s endeavour to re-record every album she’s ever done as part of an old record deal,” Heap wrote in the Instagram post. “I worked on through the night adding some backing vocals and tweaking away on the mix, then sent to Taylor for when she woke up and tada… it found a home on her album.”
Imogen Heap produced “Clean,” the closing track for Taylor Swift’s fifth studio album in 2014. The song was meant to have the sound of a steady soft rock ballad with electronic instrumentals. The unique production and beautiful lyricism made the song an album favorite from the first day of its release; and the re-record has stuck with us, like a wine-stained dress you can’t wear anymore…
When they originally collaborated, Heap publicly commented on the wonderful experience she had with Swift; she described their first encounters and her fondness for the young artist, which would ultimately lead to their legendary partnership on the 1989 re-record.
In her Oct. 27 post, Heap once again raves about her admiration for Taylor Swift and the era of Taylor’s Version. The self-proclaimed swiftie puts the practice into flawless words: “This is Taylor playing a badass card to stay in control of her music.” Couldn’t agree more, Imogen.
Ten years older, and the flowers they’ve grown together have bloomed and thrived. Now that 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is out, I think we Swifties can finally breathe!