Swifties are a pretty savvy bunch, deciphering clues and Easter eggs that Taylor Swift drops like breadcrumbs across her social media profiles and public appearances. Even so, fans — who were convinced that the next re-recorded release following this year’s No. 1 album Fearless (Taylor’s Version) would be a reworked 1989 — were thrown off on Friday (June 18) with the announcement that the next re-recorded album in Swift’s catalog would be her fourth, Red (Taylor’s Version).
When it originally dropped in 2012, Red became her third No. 1 album on the Billboard 200, moving 1.21 million copies in its first week. When the year wrapped, Red was the second best-selling LP of 2012 with 3.11 million, following Adele’s 21. Red also boasts her first-ever No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together”; four top 20 hits (“Begin Again,” “I Knew You Were Trouble,” “22” and “Red”) would follow.
Fans quickly turned to Twitter to express their excitement and surprise, celebrating the upcoming Nov. 19 release of a 30-track version of the first album that found Swift comfortably experimenting past the confines of country and folk. See some of the best responses from fans below.
