Big Machine Records/Republic RecordsTaylor Swift unveiled her brand-new single, “Shake It Off,” during her global Yahoo! live stream Monday. The song was co-written with her frequent collaborators Max Martin and Shellback with the challenge of breaking completely new musical ground for her. It’s about controlling her reaction to what people may say about her, and Taylor danced around with her invited guests in New York City.
“Shake It Off” is the lead single from her new album, 1989, in stores October 27. The project is titled for the year Taylor was born, and she says it was inspired by late ’80s pop music.
“I really loved the chances they were taking. I loved how bold it was. I loved how ahead of its time it was.” she says of that era of music. “So, being inspired by that, I started delving into the late ’80s and what that period of time actually meant.” She went on to say that she feels the late ’80s were “limitless,” with “endless possibilities.”
The album cover features a Polaroid picture of Taylor with her face partially obscured with “T.S.” and “1989” written on the bottom. Taylor also declared 1989 is her “first official pop album.”
“1989 is the most sonically cohesive album I have ever made and my favorite album I have ever made,” said Taylor.”
A deluxe version of 1989 will include three new songs that are voice memos from her cell phone. The album packaging will also feature 13 Polaroid photographs.
Speaking about the inspiration for “Shake It Off,” Taylor said during the live stream that one lesson she’s learned over the past few years is that “people can say whatever they want about us at any time, and we cannot control that. The only thing we can control is our reaction to it.”
She added, “I figure that we have two options. You can either let it get to you, let it change you, let it make you bitter or not trust people. Or you can descend into insanity if you want. Option two is you just shake it off!”
Taylor also debuted the video for “Shake It Off” during the live stream. It features her and a series of different dance crews showing off various dance styles — including twerking! At the end, she and a group of fans who’d been sworn to secrecy join her in a huge dance party.
“I love the idea that you can tell who someone is by how they dance,” she said of the inspiration for the clip. “And so, we started talking about ideas, and we basically decided that we would get this huge group of incredible, professional dancers of all different types of dance, and throw me into the middle of them and see what happens.”
Taylor also announced the “1989 Swiftstakes,” which will give fans an opportunity to win prizes: there are 1,000 tickets to a future tour up for grabs, as well as 500 meet and greets. You’ll get a code to enter with every version of the album you buy: standard, deluxe or digital.
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