Taylor Swift fans are eagerly awaiting the Friday release of her highly anticipated new album “The Tortured Poet’s Department.”
In Chicago, Swifties have the chance to get a little something extra before the release – but they’re not sure exactly what it is.
“I think it’s going to be Easter eggs for a music video that’s going to come out,” said Whitney Hansen, who came to see a giant mural with a huge QR code painted on the side of a building Tuesday afternoon. “I think she’s going to release a music video around 3 a.m. Friday.”
Hansen and other Swift fans say the mural, located at 25 W. Grand Ave. in Chicago’s River North neighborhood, contains clues to the album’s release. It’s filled with the letters “TTPD” and the number 13 — clues that TODAY.com describes as “telltale signs” that the mural and QR code are aimed at Swifties.
“We have the three ‘TTPDs,’ followed by four ’13s,'” said Dani Filip Bermudez, another Swift fan who came to see and hopefully decode the message. “If you do Taylor’s math, you add the threes and the ones, and you get 16, which is today’s date. But I’m still waiting for more.”
Later Tuesday evening, the singer posted a cryptic video on her Instagram page, titled “TTPD Timetable.” The video showed clocks reading two o’clock, typewriters in an office labeled “Department of Tortured Poets” and a cork board marking Friday as the album’s release day. The cork board also showed the number 14 through tally marks.
As crews worked to finish the mural Tuesday, about a dozen people lined up to try to scan the QR code — but a large construction elevator had blocked the view. As of Wednesday afternoon, the mural appeared to be finished — or at least not blocked.
And throughout the week, the destination of the QR code continued to change.
When scanned on Tuesday, the QR code led to a YouTube short on Taylor Swift’s page with the message “Error 321.” Thursday morning led to another short film on YouTube.
“A letter from the ministry,” reads the caption of the latest video, accompanied by a red heart. A typewriter is shown with the sound of a clock in the background. The typewriter then types the letter “T”.
A similar mysterious note appeared on Swift’s website in February, hours before she announced “The Tortured Poet Department” at the 2024 Grammy Awards. It read:
“Error 321 Backend recovery failed
Backend recovery failed
hneriergrd
TPD: 321
Varnish cache server”
The confusing “hneriergrd” turned out to be an anagram for “red herring”. And “DPT: 321,” read backwards, alluded to the title of the new album, “The Tortured Poets Department.”
Wearing a white and gray Taylor Swift sweatshirt, Kristen Blevins stood on the sidewalk in front of the mural Tuesday, working to decode what the new message might mean and how it relates to the previous puzzle.
“It’s a really good secret that she kept,” Blevins said. “The red herring is something that confuses or distracts you. I think that might be the conclusion of that.”
So, what exactly will happen when the clock strikes two? Or at another time? For now, Swifties will have to wait.
NBC Chicago
