The queen of hidden messages. Taylor Swift surprised fans with another music video from Red (Taylor’s Version) — and it’s full of nods to her past.
The Grammy winner, 31, dropped the video for “I Bet You Think About Me” on Monday, November 15, just three days after releasing the rerecorded version of her 2012 album, Red. Directed by Blake Lively, the video features Miles Teller as a groom haunted by his past, i.e. a vengeful ex played by Swift herself.
“I finally got to work with the brilliant, brave, & wickedly funny @blakelively on her directorial debut,” the “Beautiful Ghosts” singer tweeted on Sunday, November 14, announcing the new video. “Join us as we raise a toast, and a little hell.”
Though the song is one of the previously unreleased tracks added to Red (Taylor’s Version), the video includes tons of references to other albums in Swift’s catalog, particularly 1989 and Speak Now. Fans have already started making predictions about which of her LPs will be the next to get the rerelease treatment.
The Cats star initially decided to rerecord her first six albums in 2019 after she lost control of her masters in a highly publicized dispute with her former record label, Big Machine. Her first rerelease, Fearless (Taylor’s Version), debuted in April.
“Artists should own their own work for so many reasons, but the most screamingly obvious one is that the artist is the only one who really *knows* that body of work,” the “Lover” singer wrote via Instagram in February. “For example, only I know which songs I wrote that almost made the Fearless album. Songs I absolutely adored, but were held back for different reasons. … Those reasons seem unnecessary now. I’ve decided I want you to have the whole story, see the entire vivid picture, and let you into the entire dreamscape that is my Fearless album.”
The “You Belong With Me” songstress took a similar approach for Red (Taylor’s Version), which includes nine previously unreleased songs plus a newly expanded, 10-minute version of fan favorite “All Too Well.”
When Red (Taylor’s Version) debuted on Friday, November 12, the Pennsylvania native credited her fans with helping her make the decision to rerecord her earlier albums. “It never would have been possible to go back & remake my previous work, uncovering lost art & forgotten gems along the way if you hadn’t emboldened me,” she tweeted at the time. “Red is about to be mine again, but it has always been ours.”
Keep scrolling for a look at all the Easter eggs in the “I Bet You Think About Me” music video:
The now-infamous scarf was originally mentioned in the "All Too Well" lyrics: "I left my scarf there at your sister's house / And you've still got it in your drawer even now." In the new video, Swift gives the scarf to the bride (Teller's real-life wife Keleigh Sperry) as a wedding gift. YouTube
The cake frosting includes a design mimicking the Red logo ring that Swift wears on the cover of the rereleased album. It also includes bird silhouettes that look similar to the seagulls on the sweater Swift wore on the cover of 1989, leading some fans to think that 1989 will be the next album slated for rerelease. A red velvet cake also featured prominently in the video for "Blank Space" from 1989. YouTube
Swift wears the aforementioned Red logo ring when she teaches the kids at the wedding how to make impolite hand gestures. YouTube
Swift never released a music video for "Speak Now," the title track from her 2010 album, but "I Bet You Think About Me" has a similar vibe to the lyrics of that song, which is about a wedding that the narrator wants to interrupt because the groom is still in love with her. In this case, however, she doesn't want him back — she just wants to make his wedding a nightmare. YouTube
When Swift does magic tricks for her young compatriots at the wedding, she pulls a rabbit out of a hat that should look familiar to anyone who attended the Red tour. She paired a very similar topper — black top hat with red sequined band — with the circus-like ringmaster outfit she wore for her 2013 concert dates. YouTube
At the end of the video, Swift's white gown turns bright red, making it look very similar to the voluminous gown she wore on the deluxe edition cover of Speak Now. In contrast to the 1989-themed cake, the red dress has caused some fans to think Swift is gearing up to rerelease Speak Now next instead of 1989. YouTube
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