Nowadays, it's rare for an album to be released without any songs leaked beforehand, but that doesn't make it any less disappointing for an artist. Taylor Swift is the latest to suffer this fate, as her highly anticipated eleventh studio album, The Tortured Poets Department, has been shared online without her permission. Individuals shared the tracks on social media, with many claiming they found them from a Google Drive link containing all 17 songs.
This has led to a divide among fans, as some are diving straight into their favorite musician's work, while others see this as a deciding moment. Some individuals insist that "true" fans will wait for the official release tomorrow, when the album finally drops on April 19.
"Raise your hand if you're an ACTUAL Taylor Swift fan and aren't listening," one fan wrote on X.
"People need to understand that this isn't just about being a fan. It's about respecting others of their hard work!" another user expressed. Another added "She and her team [have] planned and worked so meticulously for this album release, don't disrespect and ruin it for others as well."
Others have jumped headfirst into the new music eagerly, and have mixed feelings about the songs. While some feel this will be her best album yet, others are disappointed by the direction of the music, Jack Antonoff's production, and the lyrics.
"She doesn't give herself enough time to make an album she just mass produces as fast as she can," one fan said. Another X user added "Every single song sounds like a slightly different version of one song," and one unverified lyric from the leak is particularly unpopular with fans: "You smoked and ate seven bars of chocolate / We declared Charlie Puth should be a bigger artist."
However, it is unclear whether this music is actually from the new album or another fake generated by artificial intelligence. A few of the tracks have already been confirmed to be older, less well-known songs rather than interference by AI.
This wouldn't be the first run-in Swift has had with AI in 2024: in January, she was the victim of AI-generated explicit images. Swift is not the only one to be targeted in this manner, as Sydney Sweeney and Dove Cameron have similarly been targeted in the past.
The record-breaking artist hasn't commented on the leaked songs yet and, in the meantime, fans reluctant to listen to the leaked tracks have kept themselves busy with the clues released on her website, as well as the Spotify pop-up poetry library.
Tomorrow, tomorrow, you're only a day away!
