Exactly 89 minutes before Taylor Swift’s most recent merch drop, Taylor Nation posted a cryptic holiday-coded countdown on social media that sent Swifties into a frenzy. Fans theorized that this could hint at a new cardigan, signed CDs for 1989 (Taylor’s Version), or even the re-release of The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection. Christmas ornament enthusiasts prepared themselves for war on Swift’s website, knowing they’d have to battle for the latest addition to their collection. But what the merch drop actually consisted of blew numerous Swifties’ minds, and it was something no one saw coming.
When the clock ran out, various merch items were revealed, including old items sold during the Swift’s previous album drops. To say Swifties were speechless when they saw all of this would be an understatement.
A few new merch items were added to each album shop on Swift’s website, which fans were quick to snag. True to fans’ predictions, these items included the most adorable Christmas ornaments I’ve ever seen.
However, the reputation section of the store got fans talking on X (formerly known as Twitter) for an entirely different reason. Many sought-after merch items from the reputation tour — – including the white hoodie with the snake design, the black cropped hoodie with cutouts on the shoulders, and the grey crewneck with her name printed all over —- returned to the website and sold out within minutes. Swifties even crashed the website as they tried to secure the goods from this highly unexpected restock.
The restock of original reputation merch only fuels the fan theories that this will be the next re-recorded album to drop. Swift has re-released her first six albums to reclaim the rights to her masters, and has dropped numerous “easter eggs” along the way to hint at the order of the new versions.Â
Eagle-eyed fans noticed glitches in a black screen on Swift’s website after the announcement of 1989 (Taylor’s Version), which reminded fans of one of her Eras tour costumes. Plus, the second “S” in the 1989 (Taylor’s Version) album cover resembled a snake, a symbol of the Reputation era.
The crowd at Swift’s most recent concert in Buenos Aires, Argentina even began chanting “Reputation” during the surprise song set, much to Swift’s confusion. Others believe that Swift will surprise-drop Reputation with the message “there will be no explanation, there will just be reputation” – a clever callback to the introduction of the original album in 2017.Â
I, for one, hope that our delusional theories about Reputation (Taylor’s Version) are correct because I need to hear an updated version of my favorite album ASAP. I’m ready to shed my snake skin whenever Swift is.