From getting interrupted onstage by Kanye West to winning video of the year in 2015 for “Bad Blood,” Taylor Swift has a long history of making career-defining moments at the annual VMAs. But during Sunday night’s (Aug. 28) show, she eclipsed them all by taking video of the year — one of the biggest awards of the night — for her self-directed “All Too Well” music video and announcing her 10th studio album in one fell swoop.
This, of course, sent shockwaves into the Swiftie community, whose residents just a few hours prior weren’t even certain that the “I Bet You Think About Me” singer would even be attending this year’s VMAs. They’d also spent the past several months theorizing which of Swift’s rerecorded albums (Speak Now? 1989? Reputation?) she planned on releasing following Fearless (Taylor’s Version) and Red (Taylor’s Version). For many, an all-new album hadn’t even crossed their minds.
“Does anyone else still feel like the last 13 hours of taylor swift surprise attending the VMAs, winning 3 awards and surprise announcing her 10th studio album was just a long, unbelievable fever dream or is it just me?” wrote one bewildered fan on Twitter.
“Taylor swift announcing an album called midnights and then robbing me of mine is such a taylor swift thing to do,” wrote another, who hadn’t expected beforehand they’d be staying up until 12 o’clock Sunday night to see Swift’s news.
Other Swifties are already dreaming up predictions for Midnights based on the artwork and description Swift released following the announcement. “Track five on midnights is about to be the most track five track five taylor swift has ever track five’d,” wrote one, referencing the Folklore musician’s affinity for placing her most emotional songs in the fifth spot of each of her album’s tracklists.
“I literally spend all my nights overthinking and creating fake scenarios, crying and thinking about what i could do better in the past,” wrote another. “Midnights by taylor swift is for me.”
See some more of the best fan reactions to Taylor Swift’s Midnights album announcement below:
does anyone else still feel like the last 13 hours of taylor swift surprise attending the VMAs, winning 3 awards and surprise announcing her 10th studio album was just a long, unbelievable fever dream or is it just me?
— Midnights commentary (@tsmidnightsts10) August 29, 2022
taylor swift announcing an album called midnights and then robbing me of mine is such a taylor swift thing to do
— Rani 🧩🧣 (@ranimisra02) August 29, 2022
track five on midnights is about to be the most track five track five taylor swift has ever track five’d
— e💌 (@starsicks) August 29, 2022
i literally spend all my nights overthinking and creating fake scenarios, crying and thinking about what i could do better in the past, midnights by taylor swift is for me
— melina (@hotsumernight) August 29, 2022
taylor swift’s midnights pic.twitter.com/6es7sDssOU
— aries (@ariesmacasaet13) August 29, 2022
MIDNIGHTS IS FOR THE ARCHER GIRLIES (I WAKE IN THE NIGHT I PACE LIKE A GHOST THE ROOM IS ON FIRE INVISIBLE SMOKE!!!)
— irene anna (@enerianna) August 29, 2022
midnights is for the this is me trying girls
— ୨ sandra ୧ (@tessaswilI) August 29, 2022
taylor is so clever, the more her career progresses the more the theme of her albums is becoming less biographical in a plausible deniability way, that's why midnights is perfect because nothing is ever real at 12 am, the dancers on the wall could be real or you just made them up
— mir (@mxrzxa) August 29, 2022
this email to my professor was so worth it☺️ #TSmidnighTS pic.twitter.com/dGvvIjKYI2
— meg 🕕 • MIDNIGHTS 10.21 (@megansrep) August 29, 2022
Taylor Swift releasing an album called Midnights (!!) in October (!!!) is a gift to witchy autumn girls everywhere 😭🖤✨
— De Elizabeth (@deelizabeth_) August 29, 2022
Not me already postponing all the thing I should be doing on oct 21st to another day because it will be #TSmidnighTS
— WAITING FOR MIDNIGHTS (@anazoned) August 29, 2022
HELP WE REALLY WENT FROM "is taylor even going to the vmas?" TO "NEW ALBUM OCT 21" LMAOAO
— dani OCTOBER 21 (@danismidnights) August 29, 2022
midnights (2022) pic.twitter.com/hUVGTNMu6f
— j (@thelessiknow13) August 29, 2022
"me 🤝 midnights by taylor swift" #TS10 #MeetMeAtMidnight pic.twitter.com/aITiNjrKrL
— 🧣 WILDEST DREAMS AH AHAHA 🧣 (@swiftoursonggg) August 29, 2022
instead of saying hello to my family this morning i just screamed MIDNIGHTS in there faces and went back to bed #TSmidnighTS
— chloe | M I D N I G H T (@folklorechloe13) August 29, 2022
NO BUT THE HOTTEST THING IS WHEN YOU ENTER A NEW CHAPTER OF YOUR LIFE THAT ALIGNS WITH A NEW TAYLOR SWIFT ALBUM . BITCH!!!!!!!!!!
— maya (@allmychampagne) August 29, 2022
taylor announcing a new album means that i’m about to become unbearable to everyone around me
— julia 🪩 midnighTS!! (@mirroorball) August 29, 2022
TAYLOR SWIFT NEW ALBUM IN OCTOBER CAN I GET AN AMEN pic.twitter.com/NAzUWNmnOf
— jules • renew Sandman (@ariistosachaion) August 29, 2022
taylor after saying “my brand new album” pic.twitter.com/rFHXonSFDN
— katelyn (@noitskatelyn) August 29, 2022
it was so nice of taylor swift to let mtv host an award show at her ts10 album announcement
— sam (@swieder13) August 29, 2022
taylor swift haters gonna have a real tough time the rest of the year cause ain’t nobody gonna stop talking about this new taylor swift album after it drops pic.twitter.com/lSSS578k19
— , (@dilfcom) August 29, 2022
taylor swift didn’t write “it’s 2 am feeling like i just lost a friend” and “lit through the darkness at 1:58” and “the lingering question kept me up, 2AM who do you love?” and “i want your midnights” for this to not become one of her greatest albums
— Hannah Azerang (@clockwork_reads) August 29, 2022
POV: You’re mentally getting ready to go to work for the week, and Taylor Swift announces her 10th album is on the way. #TS10 pic.twitter.com/gG7QgIxhnT
— Dennis Nguyen (@pastorpapi23) August 29, 2022
