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Did You Notice Taylor Swift Secretly Promoting Cardigan Back In April?

Natalie Morin
Last Updated July 28, 2020, 4:08 PM
Photo: Michael Hurcomb/Shutterstock.
Just because Taylor Swift can surprise us doesn't mean the old Taylor won't come to the phone from time to time.
When the singer announced that she was dropping her secret album folklore, day-of, even seasoned Swifties agreed it was out of character. Usually, when Swift releases new music, it comes with an entire meticulously orchestrated production of cryptic Instagram posts, secret codes and Easter eggs, as well as teasers and clips leading up to the drop. But according to The National's Aaron Dessner, who collaborated with Swift on folklore, her own label didn't even know about her eighth studio album until hours before its release.
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But despite being a departure from tradition — in addition to a musical departure — fans have realized that she still pulled a classic Swift move and dropped a hint for the album months ago.
During the first few months of quarantine, Swift posted a few Instagram photos that made it seem as though just like the rest of us, she wasn't up to much while in isolation. But when it comes to one particular innocuous-seeming selfie posted on April 27, captioned "Not a lot going on at the moment," fans are seeing it in a whole new light.
View this post on Instagram

Not a lot going on at the moment

A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on

At the time the photo was posted, fans — who tend to have a sense of when something's up — assumed that she might be hinting at some upcoming content, like a music video for her Lover track "Cruel Summer." But nothing came of it.
On July 28, however, Swift posted a note on her Instagram stories and on Twitter thanking people "for all the love you've shown folklore," calling it "the most magical adventure of my life thus far." She also announced that she's releasing a limited edition of her lead single "cardigan," which includes the original version of the song she sent Dessner on April 27 — the very day she posted that seemingly random selfie.
"I wanted to share with with you a recording of how it all started — The first recording I ever sent to Aaron for 'cardigan,' including the original lyric and bits of rambling :)," Swift wrote.
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Fans realized that Swift had successfully trolled them yet again, as that "not a lot going on at the moment" was the day that the lead single of her entire surprise album was created (and likely finished, as Dessner has said that she tended to turn around entire songs, including "cardigan," mere hours after sending the backing track to her). Swifties are used to getting played by the singer, but this particular betrayal blew a lot of their minds.
And if that weren't enough, April 27 — 4, 2, 7 — adds up to 13, Swift's famous lucky number.
Cruel summer, indeed.
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