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It’s no secret that The Tortured Poets Department is going to be one of Taylor Swift‘s most vulnerable albums yet — the singer herself said as much at one of her Australia Eras Tour shows. But Swiftie detectives have taken things one step further, concocting a theory that each limited-edition version of the LP will represent a stage of grief.
First thing’s first: So far, the pop star has confirmed three versions of Tortured Poets. There’s “The Manuscript,” aka the original package announced by Swift at the 2024 Grammys; “The Bolter,” which she unveiled during her Feb. 16 concert in Melbourne; and “The Albatross,” which she uncovered at her Feb. 23 show in Melbourne.
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Dissecting everything from the alternate covers of each version to their respective taglines, fans on social media have started to theorize that Swift will release a total of five editions of Tortured Poets — each one linking back to a different part of the well-known five stages of grief. The stages, as first described by Dr. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross in her book On Death and Dying, are as follows: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance.
With that in mind, Swifties believe that “The Manuscript” connects to the first stage, denial. The theory is supported by the version’s tagline, as seen on its back cover: “I love you, it’s ruining my life.”
Next up, “The Bolter” and its tagline — “You don’t get to tell me about sad” — may represent anger. Thirdly, “The Albatross” — which asks “Am I allowed to cry?” on the back cover — could symbolize bargaining.
“mark my words, i say it first…,” wrote one Swiftie Friday (Feb. 23). “It will be the stages of grief, and they will get darker and darker. she’s telling the whole story in the tortured poets department.”
If fans are correct, Swift has two more versions of Tortured Poets to unpack. And assuming she continues her trend of announcing them during her Eras Tour stops, the next could come during one of her shows in Singapore March 2-4 and 7-9.
Some Swifties also believe that the 14-time Grammy winner’s recent choice of surprise songs on the Eras Tour further supports the theory. “In melbourne after the bolter edition announcement, all of the songs revealed varying degrees of frustration—especially her performance of you’re losing me,” explained one fan on X.
The fan continued, “Furthermore, the frustrated getaway car/august/tosotd mashup … shows what could have resulted in the brunt of her emotional turmoil during her phase of anger.”
Keep reading to see tweets about the “stages of grief” for The Tortured Poets Department theory below.
five stages of grief theory updated! denial – the manuscript. side A of the tracklist. she’s denying and justifying.anger – the bolter. side B of the tracklist. she still justifying but realizing. bargaining – the albatross. darker and grey. side C. she is blaming herself. pic.twitter.com/jdgczwkNZQ— ami is a tortured poet (@amitoowell131) February 23, 2024
if our theories about ttpd having 5 deluxe editions with bonus tracks corresponding to the 5 stages of grief are correct…..i think that taylor is specifically choosing surprise song performances that, at least vaguely, correspond to the most recently announced edition’s stage… https://t.co/u1bckWOpRF pic.twitter.com/2oqkjUJ4Fn— k.⸆⸉ 💭(tortured poet era) (@kiralovestaylor) February 18, 2024
The more I think about it, the more I get on board with the “five variants for the five stages of grief” theory. Taylor said she needed to write this album so odds are with several of the songs she’s going to be grieving the end of the relationship she thought would never end https://t.co/JGJH31eon6— Jesse (Taylor’s Version) (@jswiftie1324) February 23, 2024
if any of this is even true, these are my best guesses for the stages of the final editions and their announcement dates (highlighted in pink). left: my guess for if all 5 stages of grief are represented in the regular deluxe editions and she’s announcing the remaining 3 on… pic.twitter.com/2qGna54Btt— k.⸆⸉ 💭(tortured poet era) (@kiralovestaylor) February 18, 2024
The British Royal Mint unveiled a new collectible coin on Monday (Feb. 26) honoring late pop icon George Michael. The tribute includes an image that recreates the look from Michael’s 1987 debut solo album, Faith, a headshot in which the star born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou rocks his signature aviator shades, crucifix pendant earring and perfect […]
Taylor Swift just finished one of the most massive legs of her touring career in Australia, playing for about 600,000 fans total across seven shows in the land down under. And at her final concert in Sydney’s Accor Stadium, the 34-year-old pop star shared Monday (Feb. 26) that she was blown away by the turnout. […]
Zendaya had to unexpectedly press pause on her global Dune: Part Two promotional tour on Monday (Feb. 26). The actress posted a video in which she was clearly suffering from vocal issues while explaining why she could not appear on Good Morning America as scheduled. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest […]
It takes guts to stand up for important causes, but Olivia Rodrigo is as gutsy as they come. Shortly before taking the stage at Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs, Calif., for the opening night of her Guts World Tour Friday (Feb. 23), the 21-year-old pop star marked the launch of her Fund 4 Good supporting reproductive rights with a video on social media.
Sitting backstage with her glittery show makeup already on, Rodrigo took a moment to talk to fans about her initiative. “Before I pop onstage, I wanted to come on here and talk about something I’m really excited about,” she told the camera. “The Fund 4 Good works to support all women, girls and people seeking reproductive health freedom.”
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“The fund will directly support community-based nonprofits that champion things like girls’ education, support reproductive rights and prevent gender-based violence,” continued the “Vampire” singer, noting that Fund 4 Good tables with resources for fans will be set up at all of her Guts tour stops.
Rodrigo also reminded fans that a portion of the proceeds from her ticket sales will go toward the Fund 4 Good, as well as the National Network of Abortion Funds in North America. “Thank you so much for supporting this cause that I care so deeply about,” she added. “I can’t wait to see you all on tour.”
The former Disney star went on Friday night to deliver an energetic pop-punk performance featuring songs from both her 2021 debut album Sour and her 2023 sophomore effort Guts. The next day, she brought her show to Footprint Center in Phoenix.
Rodrigo has long been vocal about her support for women’s health issues. In June 2022, she blasted the Supreme Court for overturning Roe v. Wade during her Glastonbury set before performing “F–k You” with Lily Allen. “I’m devastated and terrified that so many women and so many girls are going to die because of this,” she said in front of thousands of festivalgoers.
She added at the time, “I wanted to dedicate this next song to the five members of the Supreme Court who have showed us that at the end of the day, they truly don’t give a s—t about freedom.”
Watch Rodrigo open up about her Fund 4 Good below.
@livieshq olivia has launched Fund4Good, a global initiative committed to building an equitable and just future for all women, girls and people seeking reproductive health freedom. get more info & donate at http://oliviarodrigo.lnk.to/fund4good ♬ original sound – livies hq ❤️
Casual asides, silly moments, regrettable comments — they all tumble around in a songwriter’s mind and if they’re lucky those incidents are transformed into lyrics that last forever. Paul McCartney has had more than a couple of those, including a very formative one he discussed on the latest episode of his songwriter podcast, “A Life in Lyrics.”
The episode focused on the Beatles‘ “Yesterday,” specifically on the line, “I said something wrong, now I long for yesterday” on the tune’s bridge. The frequently covered, wistful ballad first released on the band’s 1965 Help! album is essentially a McCartney solo track, on which he plays acoustic guitar and sings along with a string quartet.
Macca said he thought it was inspired by a regretful conversation he’d had with his mother years before. “Sometimes it’s only in retrospect you can appreciate it,” he said, clearly remembering one day “feeling very embarrassed because I’d embarrassed my mom.”
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The singer said one day he and his mom — who he described as having a very “posh” accent — were in the backyard. “She was of Irish origin and she was a nurse, so she was above street level. So she had something sort of going for her, and she would talk what we thought was a little bit posh,” he said.
“I know that she said something like ‘Paul, will you ask him if he’s going … ’,” he remembered. “I went ‘Arsk! Arsk! It’s ask mum.’ And she got a little bit embarrassed. I remember later thinking ‘God, I wish I’d never said that’. And it stuck with me. After she died I thought ‘Oh f–k, I really wish … ’” McCartney’s mother, Mary, died in Oct. 1956 at 47 due to an embolism following breast cancer surgery when the singer was just 14-years-old.
McCartney said he’s got a “couple” of those little moments which he knows the people involved would forgive him for, but he wishes he had an eraser that he could rub that “Yesterday” moment away with. “That would be better,” he said, before breaking into the bridge of the song that has been covered more than 2,000 times and wondering if sometimes he “unconsciously” flips scenarios into “girl” lyrics when he’s really thinking about his dead mother.
Click here to listen to McCartney talk about the origin of “Yesterday” (discussion of bridge begins around 25:15 mark)
Hozier and the OVO Arena Wembley have apologized and responded to a fan’s complaint about an incident in December in which she was reportedly told to remove a “Free Palestine” scarf before attending one of the singer’s shows. “Thank you to OVO Arena Wembley for clearing up this misunderstanding,” Hozier wrote early Monday morning (Feb. 26) after the venue posted an apology last week to attendee Hiba Ahmad, who said in an earlier X post that she was “pulled aside and escorted to wardrobe” in December while attending a show at the venue while wearing the scarf.
“The team and I have zero policy of prohibiting signs of any kind and I’m sorry to Hiba and her friends that they experienced this at the London show,” Hozier added.
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The venue also apologized to Ahmad on Feb. 22, writing, “This was an isolated incident where venue policy wasn’t followed as intended. The decision to stop the guest was not following artist wishes. We have apologised to those involved and are making a donation to the UNICEF Children in Gaza appeal.”
On Dec. 15, Ahmad posted on X about her experience seeing Hozier at the venue, writing, “So tell me why I got pulled aside and ESCORTED to wardrobe w/ a body cam for wearing a Palestine solidarity scarf at @Hozier’s concert? Not even a kiffiyeh, just a Free Palestine scarf that I *literally* wear everywhere as a show of solidarity AND BECAUSE IT IS F–KING COLD!”
She added, “They then proceeded to tell me they are taking my scarf for my own protection as I might get ‘hate crimed’ for wearing it. One of the security staff doing this told me they are Arab, and told me he didn’t like doing it, while doing it calling for more security on me. LOVELY.” At the time, Ahmad noted that on her way in she saw other people entering with “all sorts of political slogans — especially one memorable tote bag about animal cruelty and testing. But hey, animals > Palestinians right?”
Ahmad claimed that an unnamed person from the venue “insisted” it was Hozier’s team that “demanded” the scarf be removed, reportedly concerned that she would “launch” the scarf at the stage; another tweet from Ahmad appeared to show that her seats were quite far from the stage.
After Ahmad again claimed in a separate tweet on Dec. 15 that Hozier was responsible for the incident, the singer responded the next day, writing, “thanks for bringing this to our attention. We’re looking into this with the venue but I can state categorically that no request came from me about this, and my tour gave no directive about refusing entry of certain items of clothing or indeed flags.”
Ahmad (born Andrew John Hozier-Byrne) thanked the singer after his Dec. 16 post, writing, “Thank you so much Andrew, I really appreciate you reaching out directly, shows the person and artist you are. Solidarity!”
The original incident at the arena came two months after Hamas militants stormed Israel and killed more than 1,200 mostly civilian Israelis and took more than 240 hostages, igniting a now five-month old response from Israel’s military that has reportedly killed nearly 30,000 Palestinians according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
Check out the Hozier post below.
Thank you to OVO Arena Wembley for clearing up this misunderstanding. The team and I have zero policy of prohibiting signs of any kind and I’m sorry to Hiba and her friends that they experienced this at the London show. https://t.co/Ggrr6orBFI— Hozier (@Hozier) February 26, 2024
Having a platinum pedigree is one thing. But showing that you can use it is a whole different ballgame. Emmy Russell, 24 proved more than up to the task on Sunday night (Feb. 25) when the shy Nashville native, and granddaughter of country icon Loretta Lynn, stepped up to her mark on American Idol to perform an original piano ballad called “Skinny.”
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Smiling from ear-to-ear, Russell told the judge’s panel it was a “dream” to be on the reality singing competition as Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan struggled to hear the singer’s quiet speaking voice. “Tell us about yourself, other than being quiet,” Bryan said. “Growing up, I sang music my entire life,” she said modestly.
“I just love writing. I’m 24 years old. Songwriter. I love music,” Russell added. “I don’t really sing out as much anymore, but growing up I sang on the road with — my grandma’s a country singer so I grew up singing.” Which, of course, elicited the obvious question from Bryan, leading to the revelation that Russell’s grandma was the Grammy-winning country “Coal Miner’s Daughter” superstar, who died in Oct. 2022 at age 90. “Your grandma is… what?!” Richie said in disbelief.
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The show then unspooled a montage of Russell taking viewers on a tour of her “meemaw” Lynn’s historic Hurricane Mills, TN ranch and home, where the singer’s mom, singer Patsy Lynn, grew up. “She’s one of the biggest country music singers of all time, but to me she’s just my grandma, and growing up on the bus and all that was very normal to me,” Russell said.
Embracing her timidity, Russell explained that one of the reasons she is kind of shy is because she wants to be her own person and “own my own voice.” Counseled by Perry that, like her gran, Russell needs to find her own unique path, the singer then went to the piano to perform a moving original she wrote about eating disorders called “Skinny.”
“Haven’t eaten in days/ God I hate how you made me/ So scared to confess, been so hard to undress lately/ These oversized T-shirts don’t work like they used to/ Sleeping on scales is just what I’m used to,” Russell sang urgently on the ballad that had a touch of Olivia Rodrigo’s keyboard-driven confessional songwriting.
Perry was super impressed with the audition, calling Russell an “A+ songwriter… so was your grandma, you’ve got the gift. I don’t think you need to compare yourself to what grandma was… you’re totally different, you shouldn’t give yourself all that pressure. I think you came in like a mouse.”
“A baby mouse,” Bryan added, as Perry asked Russell to say her name again, but louder this time.
Richie agreed, saying, “My dear, you have promise. And I like your promise. Each one of us is trying to battle something that we’re trying to overcome. In your case you have big shoes. Now if I can just get you to put those shoes back in the closet, that’s not your size.” Bryan said the task will be to boost Russell’s confidence and help her “own it.”
It was a tearful yes for Russell, who will advance to the Hollywood round on the current 22nd season of the long-running series, which Perry recently announced will be her final one with the show.
See Russell’s audition below.
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After Selena Gomez played a trivia game about herself against a fan (and lost) in a segment on Jimmy Kimmel Live, the “Love On” singer revealed that she’s got a history of being a superfan as well. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news A fan named Ashley appeared […]
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