Taylor Swift announces 12th studio album

Taylor Swift has announced her 12th studio album The Life of a Showgirl, after an intense 24 hours of speculation from fans.

Rumours began on Monday morning, when the singer's marketing team posted a carousel of 12 photos with the caption: "Thinking about when she said 'see you next era'."

In the hours that followed, Swift's official website began a countdown to 00:12 ET (05:12 BST), when her boyfriend, NFL star Travis Kelce confirmed that she would be a guest this week on his podcast, New Heights.

The title of the album was revealed by Swift herself on a social media clip trailing Kelce's podcast, and the record was simultaneously made available for pre-order on her website.

Fans who pre-ordered the album received a message which said it would ship before 13 October, but that "this is not the release date".

The official release date for the new music is yet to be confirmed.

The pop star's 11th album The Tortured Poets Department, released last year, broke the Spotify record for being the most-streamed album in a day.

After years of headlines during her record-breaking Eras tour, Swift appeared to have a relatively quiet start to 2025.

In May this year, it was announced that she had bought back the rights to her first six albums, ending a long-running and highly publicised battle over the ownership of her music.

After her original masters sold, she vowed to re-record all six albums, which became known as "Taylor's Versions". To date, she has re-released four of the original six.

Swift announced her purchase of her original masters with a heartfelt letter to fans, where she wrote that the final two albums would "have their moments to re-emerge when the time is right."

The singer wrapped up the Eras tour in December 2024, after playing 149 shows in 53 cities.

In the UK alone, she played to almost 1.2 million people, including eight nights at Wembley Stadium. The tour generated an estimated £1bn for the country's economy, and was the catalyst for Swift officially claiming billionaire status.

The star also has a suite of awards to her name; she has been named artist of the decade by the American Music Awards, is the most awarded artist of all time at MTV's Video Music Awards and has won 14 Grammys, including an unprecedented four album of the year awards.