Taylor Swift announced today on Instagram Live that she will release her seventh studio album Lover on August 23, and tonight brings the album’s second single “You Need to Calm Down.” The song follows April’s drumline-infused pro-spelling song “ME!” featuring Panic! at the Disco frontman Brendon Urie. That oddity debuted at No. 2 on the Hot 100 and has since failed to knock Lil Nas X’s reigning chart smash “Old Town Road” from the top spot; whether the pop star’s latest effort stands a chance remains to be seen. A video for the song is scheduled to drop June 17.
Swift didn’t reveal much about Lover during her livestream, although she did say the album will be “romantic,” if you can believe it. “This album, in tone, it’s very romantic and not just simply thematically, like it’s all love songs or something,” she said, per CNN. “I think the idea of something being romantic, it doesn’t have to be a happy song. I think you can find romance in loneliness or sadness or going through a conflict or dealing with things in your life. I think it just kind of looks at those things with a very romantic gaze.”
Also of note: earlier this week, Taylor appears to have settled her longstanding feud with Katy Perry. The latter star posted a plate of cookies on Instagram with the words “peace at last” written in frosting. She tagged Swift in the caption, writing, “feels good.” Might a “Good Blood” sequel to “Bad Blood” appear on the new LP?
Read Spin’s essay on Swift’s commitment to traditional major label mechanics here. Listen to “You Need to Calm Down” and view Lover‘s cover art below.
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Lover, album out August 23. Cover shot by the artistic genius that is @valheria123 ? Pre-add, pre-save, pre-order (all the pre stuff you feel like doing) Can’t wait for you to hear this. https://t.co/SGjcCUYZdM pic.twitter.com/IPy54raQUF
— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) June 13, 2019
