Taylor Swift Is Leaning Into Braids with 'TTPD': Let's Dissect Her Latest Style (And All the Clues Before!)

Taylor Swift is embracing a new style aesthetic for her latest album The Tortured Poets Department.

The queen of dropping Easter eggs for her fans, the 34-year-old megastar has been incorporating braids into her hairstyles for months now, subtly hinting at her latest project. In a new clip shared to YouTube Shorts, Swift is seen wearing the style in the recording studio.

“A fortnight making TTPD,” she wrote in the caption, a reference to her track “Fortnight” featuring Post Malone. At one point in the black-and-white montage, Swift sports braided pigtails and a white zip-up sweater as she lays down vocals in the studio.

Leading up to the April 19 release of The Tortured Poets Department, the star has been wearing braids more frequently. At the 66th Annual Grammy Awards in February 2024, Swift wore a white strapless Schiaparelli gown with a thigh-high slit and structured bodice, accessorizing with black opera gloves and layered necklaces. Her hair was swept to the side in textured waves with a braid running through it.

Many fans thought the look was hinting at a Reputation Taylor’s Version re-release. Most obviously, the black-and-white color scheme corresponds with the original album’s black-and-white cover. One of her necklaces, a custom made Lorraine Schwartz vintage watch that was turned into a choker, appeared to be set to midnight, which some thought would be the release time of the album drop. 

The six chains on her necklace also lined up with Reputation being her sixth album.

At the award ceremony, during which Swift won album of the year for Midnights, fans’ theories were debunked when she announced the upcoming release of her new album, The Tortured Poets Department.

Swift’s Grammys look did, however, end up tying into the music video for “Fortnight,” which was released the evening of April 19. In the black-and-white video, the singer wears a strapless white dress that looks like a wedding gown. Fans were quick to point out that it also bears a strong resemblance to the Schiaparelli gown she wore to the awards ceremony.

Shortly after the 2024 Grammys, Swift cheered on boyfriend Travis Kelce as he led the Kansas City Chiefs to victory against the San Francisco 49ers at the Super Bowl in Las Vegas. When the couple embraced on the field after the game, fans got a better look at Swift’s ponytail hairstyle, which had a small braid running through it on one side.

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She also wore a black Dion Lee crochet corset, $695 crystal-slit jeans from AREA, boots with a red-and-gold 87 emblazoned on them and a Wear by Erin Andrews bomber jacket with the Chiefs logo and 60 on the back for the year the team was created.

The singer accessorized with a custom #87 large Varsity Pendant necklace for Kelce and a diamond rose gold tennis choker by Stephanie Gottlieb, a custom #87 Judith Leiber bag, a Retrouvai yellow gold and ruby ring, a carnelian heart earring by The Last Line, ruby rings by Shahla Karimi and a set of ruby jewelry (ring, bracelet and necklace).