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Taylor Swift attends the Golden Globe Awards.

Taylor Actually Teased Her New Single Weeks Ago & You Totally Missed It

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Swifties received the ultimate surprise on Dec. 10 when Taylor Swift announced she would be releasing her ninth studio album, evermore, that night. Along with the record, Swift revealed her first single, "willow," would come complete with a music video. As it turns out, Tay may actually have teased her newest single quite some time ago. Taylor Swift's tweet teasing "Willow" was so subtle, even her super-sleuth fans missed the clue.

Swift completely caught fans off guard with the announcement of evermore, seeing as it arrived a mere five months after Folklore did in July 2020. After revealing her album title, she dropped the news about "willow." "Tonight the story continues, as the music video for 'willow' drops at midnight eastern," she tweeted.

It was a fan who noticed Swift's ultra-cryptic teasing of "Willow" all the way back on Nov. 22. They took to Twitter to point out a framed photo of a willow tree in the background of a Folklore promo photo.

"So that's what the willow tree in that post meant I see. You see why we don't trust you Taylor?" the fan tweeted.

Fans were shook by the revelation. "y’all see that WILLOW TREE in the picture frame in the background? i can’t stand ha," another fan tweeted.

"She had a damn willow tree in the picture all along and we never ever realized," another wrote.

Along with announcing evermore, Swift explained why her ninth studio album would be particularly special.

"Ever since I was 13, I’ve been excited about turning 31 because it’s my lucky number backwards, which is why I wanted to surprise you with this now," she wrote on Instagram. "You’ve all been so caring, supportive and thoughtful on my birthdays and so this time I thought I would give you something! I also know this holiday season will be a lonely one for most of us and if there are any of you out there who turn to music to cope with missing loved ones the way I do, this is for you."

Swift is the queen of cryptic clues, and as fans anxiously await the "Willow" music video, it looks like it wasn't so out of the blue after all.