On Nov. 11, 2008, a then-18-year-old Taylor Swift released her blockbuster sophomore album Fearless, which would go on to earn the country-pop singer her first No. 1 on the all-genre Billboard 200 chart, where it spent 11 nonconsecutive weeks at the top.

Fearless also led Billboard’s Top Country Albums tally for 35 weeks, the second-longest run by a woman and the fifth-lengthiest overall. It became the best-selling album of 2009, gained diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and scored Swift her first album of the year win at the 2010 Grammy Awards.

Now, 13 years later (very on brand for her), on Friday, Swifties will stay up late and relive the magic behind the LP that first hinted at the 31-year-old superstar’s remarkable crossover from country to pop when she releases Fearless (Taylor’s Version), her first re-recorded album of six. “I’m counting down the minutes til we can all jump into this brave world together, filled with equal parts nostalgia and brand newness. Head first, Fearless,” she wrote on Twitter while announcing the track list on April 3.

There will be something old, something new, something borrowed and maybe something blue on the latest edition of Fearless, but before Romeo even kneels to the ground and pulls out a ring like on “Love Story (Taylor’s Version),” the first re-recorded song she released from the upcoming album, Billboard has you covered on everything we know so far about Fearless (Taylor’s Version).

Release Date

Fearless (Taylor’s Version) will be released on April 9, 2021, via Republic Records. She hinted at the specific date via strange capitalizations in her letter to fans on Feb. 11 about traveling back in time to re-record Fearless.

“When I think back on the Fearless album and all that you turned it into, a completely involuntary smile creeps across my face. This was the musical era in which so many inside jokes were created between us, so many hugs exchanged and hands touched, so many unbreakable bonds formed. So before I say anything else, let me just say that it was a real honor to get to be a teenager alongside you,” she wrote. “This process has been more fulfilling and emotional than I could’ve imagined and has made me even more determined to re-record all of my music. I hope you’ll like this first outing as much as I liked traveling back in time to recreate it.”

New Collabs

The first song she released “From the Vault” was “You All Over Me,” featuring Maren Morris, on March 26. The song was written back in 2008 during the sessions for Swift’s Fearless album. The rest of the “From the Vault” offerings give Swift the freedom to “experiment, play, and even include some of my favorite artists,” she wrote on Twitter while announcing their collab.

“You All Over Me” earned Swift her 25th top 10 hit on the Hot Country Songs chart (dated April 10) and Morris her seventh top 10 with its No. 6 debut. Her first offering from Fearless (Taylor’s Version) that she released on Feb. 12, “Love Story (Taylor’s Version),” marked the singer’s first No. 1 debut on the airplay-, sales- and streaming-based tally dated Feb. 27.

Keith Urban contributed to two of the new songs, “duetting on That’s When and singing harmonies on We Were Happy,” Swift wrote while announcing the entire track list on Twitter. “I was his opening act during the Fearless album era and his music has inspired me endlessly.”

Full Track List

Swift’s forthcoming album includes re-recordings of the original 19 songs from the platinum edition of Fearless and “Today Was a Fairytale,” which she wrote and recorded for the 2010 star-studded rom-com Valentine’s Day. Six never-before-released “From the Vault” songs are added to the mix: “You All Over Me,” featuring Morris; “Mr. Perfectly Fine;” “We Were Happy;” “That’s When,” featuring Urban; “Don’t You” and “Bye Bye Baby.” The dancefloor-ready “Elvira Remix” of “Love Story (Taylor’s Version)” is included as a bonus track, bringing the total number of songs to 27.

A day prior to unveiling the entire track list, Swift challenged fans to decode the new song titles with a crytic teaser clip full of Easter eggs just in time for the Easter holiday. “The vault door is about to be as unhinged as you’ll think I am after you watch this video,” she tweeted. “Level: Expert. Happy decoding!”

Reason Why She’s Re-Recording Fearless 

Swift announced her intention to re-record her first six albums — released between 2006 and 2017 by Big Machine Label Group — in 2019, following the acquisition of her master recordings by Scooter Braun. Swift had tried to buy back her masters for years prior to the sale, and began re-recording her back catalog last November. Read here for a full timeline of the sale of Swift’s catalog and how in 17 months, ownership over her first six albums has changed hands twice.

“It’s going to be fun, because it’ll feel like regaining a freedom and taking back what’s mine,” Swift told Billboard in 2019 of rerecording her catalog. “When I created [these songs], I didn’t know what they would grow up to be. Going back in and knowing that it meant something to people is actually a really beautiful way to celebrate what the fans have done for my music.”

Following the announcement that HYBE would purchase Scooter Braun’s Ithaca Holdings, BTS, Justin Bieber, J Balvin and more artists from the companies’ rosters are welcoming each other with open arms.

The South Korean entertainment company, formerly known as Big Hit Entertainment, said Friday that it was buying Ithaca Holdings, bringing together both companies’ broad range of services, including management, label services and publishing, to create an impressive roster of marquee K-pop groups and U.S. pop superstars. The move ultimately is meant to help the Korean company establish a strong U.S. presence in music and entertainment while also heightening its profile for American financial investors. The deal is expected to close in May.

In a new promotional video from HYBE and Ithaca Holdings released on Monday (April 5), BTS, Bieber, J Balvin, Demi Lovato and Seventeen congratulate Braun and HYBE founder and CEO Bang Si-Hyuk on their new deal. BTS’ RM expressed excitement over “so many artists that we cherish and love” joining their family. BTS’ Suga and J-Hope discussed their appreciation for the “endless opportunities” and said they hope to “grow and share positive influence with all the artists” and to give their fans around the world “a fresh experience and be a source of new joy.”

“It feels like the world is getting more connected and even smaller,” RM noted. SEVENTEEN’s Seungkwan echoed that later on in the nine-and-a-half-minute clip, when he said, “I believe joining forces of these two companies shows that we can become one with music beyond language, country and culture.”

J Balvin sent his love back to BTS, saying, “This is going to be on another level. Such amazing vibes.”

As part of HYBE’s $1.05 billion deal to buy Ithaca Holdings, Braun is paying more than $40 million in equity to artists and staff members out of his stake. A total of 39 people will receive shares about $161 million , based on the current exchange rate, while Braun gets 462,380 shares ($86.2 million). Of his artists, the company filing states Grande and Bieber will each receive 53,557 shares, or almost $11 million apiece; Balvin will get 21,423 shares ($4.1 million); and Lovato will receive 5,355 shares ($1.06 million). 

“The prospects of working together with these amazing teams and stepping further into the global music scene is very exciting,” Bieber said in the video. “I’m thrilled at the potential this alliance holds. Kudos to the teams. … Let’s make history together.”

Artists absent from the video include TOMORROW X TOGETHER from the HYBE side; Ariana Grande, Quavo, Tori Kelly, Dan + Shay and Carly Rae Jepsen from Braun’s roster; and any of the artists under Big Machine Label Group, which was acquired by Braun’s Ithaca Holdings along with Taylor Swift’s master recordings, including Florida Georgia Line, Carly Pearce, Lady A, Rascal Flatts, Sugarland, Sheryl Crow, Thomas Rhett and Tim McGraw.

Watch HYBE and Ithaca Holdings’ latest welcome announcement below.

Kelly Clarkson started her career with cover songs on American Idol and continues to produce viral Kellyoke covers each day on her Kelly Clarkson Show. But we learned on Monday’s (April 5) episode of The Voice that there’s one song she’s afraid to tackle: Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee’s “Despacito.”

As a coach on The Voice, Clarkson enlisted Fonsi to be an advisor and help out her singers in the current battle rounds, and she used their time hanging out backstage to make a confession to the Puerto Rican singer.

“I just realized something,” she told Fonsi. “You have the one song in history I’m afraid to cover: ‘Despacito.’”

Fonsi echoed what we were all thinking, responding, “Oh, come on, you have to cover it now!”

“I have practiced so hard, because I love singing in Spanish as well, or just in different languages,” Clarkson said. “And it’s, like, the biggest song of all time. You’re kind of like, ‘You know what? I’m gonna leave that alone,’” she laughed.

She’s right about “Despacito” being a massive song: The song’s bilingual remix, featuring Justin Bieber, spent 16 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, tying the then-record (Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men’s “One Sweet Day”) for longest stay at the top. Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road,” featuring Billy Ray Cyrus, has since spent 19 weeks at the Hot 100 pinnacle.

Below, watch Clarkson admit her fear of “Despacito” to Fonsi, and then see her trying to recall the Spanish word for fire. (OK, maybe we can see why she’s intimidated by “Despacito” then.)