Is Taylor Swift releasing new music? Her mysterious snake videos hint yes 
 
 CLOSE Taylor Swift shared a cryptic video snippet Monday across her social media accounts of a snake. USA TODAY 
 
 Yep, it's a snake. 
 
 Taylor Swift continues to tease fans with mysterious videos on social media, her first posts since wiping her accounts on Friday. 
 
 Just after 11 a.m. ET on Monday, Swift posted a ten-second video of what appears to be a snake's tail on Instagram and Twitter. 
 
 On Tuesday, around the same time, she posted a second clip of the snake. 
 
 On Wednesday, the snake finally reared its head in an additional, heavily-CGI'd video. With the tail, middle and head of the snake all represented, fans were left guessing whether Thursday will actually bring new music. 
 
 The posts are the first updates on Swift's social media sites since her official pages were blacked out (including Twitter, Instagram and her own website) prompting speculation of a new album announcement. 
 
 Coincidentally, last Friday marked the three-year anniversary of Swift's Shake It Off release and 1989 album announcement, hinting that her much-anticipated sixth album may be around the corner. 
 
 More: Taylor Swift erased from social media and fans can't shake it off 
 
 Joseph Kahn, Swift's go-to music video director, quoted her tweet with a smiley-face and cracked a joke about Monday's solar eclipse, with many Internet commenters speculating that the two events were related. 
 
 In 30 minutes, as a show of power, @taylorswift13 will blot out the sun. — Joseph Kahn (@JosephKahn) August 21, 2017 
 
 Tswift trying to eclipse the eclipse https://t.co/0fThmqPB6n — Sydney Esiason (@sydneyesiason) August 21, 2017 
 
 Only Taylor Swift could out hype a solar eclipse💁🏻 https://t.co/ZvGP8mlRxR — Brooklyn and Bailey (@BrookAndBailey) August 21, 2017 
 
 As fans have pointed out, Taylor has been associated with snake imagery since her drama with Kim Kardashian last year. Right around the time Kardashian "exposed" Swift on social media, she tweeted a string of snake emoji, which fans interpreted as her taking shots at Swift. 
 
 And earlier this year, Swift fans commemorate the anniversary of the drama by celebrating "National Snake Day" on July 17 as a holiday in Swift's honor. 
 
 Twitter had plenty of jokes about Taylor embracing the snake. 
 
 Instead of being very much excluded from this narrative, I guess she's owning it https://t.co/WhxLTA4FUv — Phillip Picardi (@pfpicardi) August 23, 2017 
 
 No way...is Taylor Swift leaning totally into her supposed "snake" role people love giving her?! HERE FOR THAT!! Give it to em good, Taylor! https://t.co/azmocrQC7Y — Jeff Benjamin (@Jeff__Benjamin) August 21, 2017 
 
 Queen of taking the hate and turning it into art. 🐍 https://t.co/e6ZfI5Rcj4 — Alex Goldschmidt (@alexandergold) August 21, 2017 
 
 i see a snake? im guessing her album is self-titled https://t.co/tRzFVOs8M1 — san (@duarxgui) August 21, 2017 
 
 Oh yes, a smart business woman using self deprecation to her advantage https://t.co/CBlF5l5jNF — nick (@touchnick) August 21, 2017 
 
 "Snakes shed their skin to allow for further growth and to remove parasites that may have attached to their old skin." #TS6ISCOMIMGhttps://t.co/ymiMvoniFK — Katie Krause (@Katie_Krause) August 21, 2017 
 
 Viewers also thought the video's mysterious tail resembled a dragon, prompting a flurry of Game of Thrones references. 
 
 Taylor Swift, the real Mother of Dragons. https://t.co/SYpIVkj4hq — Brandon Davis (@BrandonDavisBD) August 21, 2017 
 
 Is this like a Game of Thrones reference? TSwift's the new mother of dragons, y'all. https://t.co/OxVid1KPLE — Brian Truitt (@briantruitt) August 21, 2017 
 
 is this a dragon? did she just start watching game of thrones? so many questions I'm dying https://t.co/wc8bIGsOlE — sania (@jacobpercIta) August 21, 2017 
 
 the mother of dragons we deserve 😩😩😩 https://t.co/QJBYqH0D2T — Randolph (@rabdolph) August 21, 2017 
 
 One date that Swift fans should keep in mind: Sept. 30, the end of the eligibility period for next year's Grammy awards, which would give the singer a hard deadline if she wants any new music to qualify. 
 
 Read or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2wqK0Qs ||||| Christopher Polk/Getty Images 
 
 No longer a blank space. Taylor Swift returned to social media on Monday, August 21, just three days after wiping her Instagram and Tumblr posts, deleting her post-2011 Tweets and changing her official website to a black screen. 
 
 
 
 Shortly after the drastic disappearances from Swift’s social media platforms on Friday, fans were quick to notice that the blackout occurred exactly three years after the announcement of 1989, the Grammy-winner’s most recent album. 
 
 A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on Aug 21, 2017 at 8:00am PDT 
 
 Swift shared a video to her Instagram and Twitter accounts on Monday, however the return is just as mysterious as the disappearance of posts. In the 10-second clip, a snake-like figure slithers as the lights flicker. 
 
 Director Joseph Kahn, who worked with the singer on her “Bad Blood” video, quoted Swift’s tweet with the clip and added a smiley face. Shortly after, he wrote on Twitter: "In 30 minutes, as a show of power, @taylorswift13 will blot out the sun.” 
 
 Us Weekly exclusively revealed in May that the singer has been quietly recording a new album during her time off, despite keeping a very low profile in recent months. 
 
 "She's aiming to release an album this fall,” a source told Us at the time. "She's continuing down the pop route because 1989 was a huge success and fans really gravitated toward that album. She knows there's a demand for a new album and has really started focusing on making that happen for fans. She's just excited to get back out there.” 
 
 See the best reactions to Swift’s video teaser below: 
 
 
 
 
 
 #SolarEclipse2017: A complete eclipse only happens once every 30 years, everyone will tweet about this- 
 
 
 
 Taylor Swift: pic.twitter.com/R5Jv2w0dFY — summer (@slaylorstan) August 21, 2017 
 
 
 
 
 
 Haters: Taylor Swift is a snake 
 
 
 
 Taylor: *Embraces it* 
 
 
 
 Hater: pic.twitter.com/ToX7gdGgOp — Dayton / 7 (@hesotall_) August 21, 2017 
 
 
 
 
 
 eclipse: "finally, 38 years later it's my time to shi—" 
 
 taylor swift: pic.twitter.com/5Q9Y1DsanD — Maxwell Dunn (@maxwdunn) August 21, 2017 
 
 
 
 
 
 RT IF YOU’RE PROUD TO SAY THAT YOU STAN A LEGENDARY SNAKE NAMED TAYLOR SWIFT 🐍🐍🐍🐍 — ‏َ (@idwlfdeluxe) August 21, 2017 
 
 
 
 
 
 Taylor Swift deleted all of her social medias because after a snake sheds it's skin, it comes back better than before. 
 
 #TS6ISCOMIMG pic.twitter.com/IK83bPghqt — Demisus🌙 (@ArianaFenties) August 21, 2017 
 
 
 
 
 
 Y'all can have the eclipse I'm just gonna be watching @taylorswift13 social media all day. 🔮👀 Bye. — Justin Mikita (@JustinMikita) August 21, 2017 
 
 
 
 
 
 Taylor swift announces game of thrones cameo pic.twitter.com/drnWuJaaSA — Shitty Watercolour (@SWatercolour) August 21, 2017 
 
 
 
 
 
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 For the latest celebrity entertainment, news and lifestyle videos, subscribe to Us Weekly's YouTube Page. ||||| When Taylor Swift deleted all of her social media posts and became a faceless (wo)man on Friday, you knew something was up. Three days later, speculation is only growing after the singer posted a nearly inscrutable video to Instagram and Twitter. Is new music on the way? What kind of music will it be? Or, seriously, is this just a cry for help? The Ringer staff launched into full conspiracy mode and put forth their most viable theories. 
 
 A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on Aug 21, 2017 at 8:00am PDT 
 
 Justin Charity: Taylor Swift tweeting tentacle porn and we just acting like it’s normal. 
 
 Lindsay Zoladz: Look, it’s a snake. Do not tell me that someone as image-conscious as Taylor Swift didn’t Rorschach-test this on 50 of her closest besties to confirm that it does indeed look like a snake, which of course indicates that her new song will have something to do with the infamous Taylor-Kimye feud. 
 
 I truly hope Taylor proves me wrong, though. This is already a precarious time for someone like Taylor Swift to be releasing new music—what with the foundation of American democracy crumbling and all—and it would be an especially petty time for her to microwave some year-old beef and pick a fight with another celebrity. Nobody needs “Bad Blood II” right now—the only person I’m interested in hearing a T-Swift dis track about is Donald Trump. 
 
 Amanda Dobbins: My first thought, just like everybody else, was that it’s a snake. Fine; I don’t know how she’s gonna get through this press cycle without addressing the Kim/Kanye fiasco, and if she can have a sense of humor about it, all the better. Here’s my issue: Why are you releasing this in the literal middle of the internet’s Eclipse Insanity? I assume that this tease is related to the upcoming VMAs, and that Taylor is contractually obligated to promote her Single Release–Katy Perry Peace Summit (it’s happening, they both need the ratings) throughout the week. But there is no reason that can’t wait until Tuesday, when the press cycle is free and clear of eye-burning memes and Game of Thrones complaints. This is my problem with late-period Taylor—not the whining, which has always been part of her brand, but how incompetent the dissemination of said whining is. Get your messaging together. It’s 2017. 
 
 Michael Baumann: 
 
 Andrew Gruttadaro: In ancient Greece—likely around 585 B.C.—a solar eclipse occurred during a battle between the Medes and the Lydians, inspiring the factions to put down their weapons and declare peace. In the United States of America—in the year 2017 A.D.—musician Taylor Swift saw that a solar eclipse was coming and picked up her weapons and aimed them at the famed tribe of the Kardashians. People interpret omens differently. [Shrugs.] 
 
 Kate Knibbs: Remember when people kept leaving snake emoji on Taylor Swift's (now-deleted) Instagram posts? I barely do, because last summer feels like it happened 5,000 years ago and on a different planet, so to refresh: Taylor Swift bashed Kanye West's lyrics about her in "Famous." Kim Kardashian West then posted a video on Snapchat showing Kanye on the phone with Taylor, who seemed to approve of the song. And thus Taylor was branded a snake, a disingenuous conniver. 
 
 And now, after a low-profile 2017, Swift has deleted all her social media posts and uploaded a single, undulating reptile tail. It probably means that she's going to release new music, but I also hope it means that she's going to release new music and she's decided to set aside her gee-golly wallflower ingenue persona for good and embrace a public image that more accurately reflects her personality. Swift's a Slytherin. She muscled her way into songwriting fame by masterminding insanely catchy songs that simultaneously trashed the reputations of men who had wronged her. She got caught either flat-out lying or at least exaggerating for sympathy. Look what she did to Tom Hiddleston. 
 
 Secretly Bad Taylor was no fun. It's time for Openly Bad Taylor. More feuds, more drama, absolutely no more hangouts with Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds. Instead of denying her snake side, I hope this weird video of a snake’s butt means that Taylor Swift has decided to lean into her true trickster nature. 
 
 Jordan Coley: Those close to me have probably heard me saying this privately for months, but after Taylor Swift’s cryptic Instagram post Monday morning, I figured it was time I brought this theory forward. Prior to Monday morning’s post, Swift had not really posted anything on her Instagram in many months. She was noticeably absent during the election and was nowhere to be found at the Grammys this past February. This is, of course, because Taylor Swift is trapped in the Upside Down. Yes, the dark, lifeless parallel reality that Netflix’s Stranger Things famously brought to our attention. But didn’t she make that video for Russell Westbrook? Nope, we all know the NBA is rigged; that video was recorded before the season even started. But didn’t she promote Lorde and Haim’s new releases on Instagram? Pfft—automated PR content from her label. Listen, Taylor’s trapped down there, and whatever’s down there with her doesn’t look too friendly. Monday morning’s post was a cry for help. Now, we can either sit around and do nothing, or get off our butts and go buy some Christmas lights. ||||| About 
 
 "Taylor Swift Is a Snake" is a catchphrase used to smear the American pop singer-songwriter as a deceitful manipulator in the light of her post-breakup dispute with Calvin Harris, Scottish musician and her ex-boyfriend, as well as an unrelated controversy stemming from her reaction to the lyrics of Kanye West's 2016 rap single "Famous", both of which became high publicized in July 2016. The phrase is mainly used in the form of emoji and comment spamming on her Instagram account. 
 
 Origin 
 
 The rocky relationship between Taylor Swift and Kanye West began with the latter's infamous interruption of Swift’s acceptance speech at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards. A few years later, the two musicians seemed to have reconciled their differences at the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards, with Taylor Swift confirming that there were no hard feelings between them in an interview with MTV, while Kanye West publicly apologized for his previous stunt during his acceptance speech for the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award. Then in late June 2016, another feud arose between the two following the release of the music video for "Famous," the first single from Kanye West's seventh studio album The Life of Pablo. 
 
 
 
 
 
 The music video quickly became a popular subject of gossips and media attention due to its inclusion of provocative imageries of celebrities and public figures, as well as lyrical references alluding to his 
 
 I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex 
 
 Why? I made that bitch famous (God damn) 
 
 I made that bitch famous 
 
 
 
 
 
 Spread 
 
 Taylor Swift's Response 
 
 In response, Taylor Swift claimed she was offended and never approved the lyrics. But Kanye West claimed she did approve the lyrics, with Swift and her supporters denying the claim. 
 
 Kim Kardashian's Snapchat Video 
 
 However, on July 18th, Kim Kardashian, Kanye West's wife, uploaded videos on SnapChat of Kanye West and Taylor Swift having the conversation (which she then uploaded to her Instagram account). 
 
 Online Reaction 
 
 Since then, there were various reactions to videos, with hashtags on twitter like #KimExposedTaylorParty and #TaylorIsASnake started being used. Various websites and media outlets like BuzzFeed and 4chan's /mu/ (music) have been discussing and reporting on the drama and creating various image macros on the subject. 
 
 Justin Bieber's Instagram Post 
 
 On August 2nd, Justin Bieber posted a mobile screenshot of himself video chatting with Kanye West via FaceTime to his Instagram account, along with the caption that simply read "Taylor swift what up." Within the first 12 hours, the post garnered over 1.5 million likes and 135,000 comments. 
 
 
 
 
 
 Taylor swift what up. 
 
 Bieber's dry greeting was largely interpreted as a subtle diss towards Swift in the light of her recent feud with West and it subsequently triggered a massive flood of spam comments on Taylor Swift's Instagram posts, in a very similar way to the raid that ensued on Miley Cyrus' Instagram account after Nicki Minaj confronted her by saying "Miley, What's Good?" during her acceptance speech for the Best Hip Hop Video Award at the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards. 
 
 Snake Video 
 
 On August 21st, 2017, Swift tweeted a short glitched video of what appeared to be a snake's tail on her Instagram and Twitter accounts (shown below). Since the video marked the artist's first social media since her accounts had been purged of all content, many speculated that it may have signaled a new album in the works. Meanwhile, others on Twitter made jokes about the video post coinciding with the 2017 solar eclipse. 
 
 
 
 
 
 Examples 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Search Interest 
 
 External References ||||| Taylor Swift just posted a very cryptic post on her social media accounts, indicating that she may be returning with new music very soon, and one of her collaborators, Joseph Kahn, has seemingly confirmed the news. 
 
 After Taylor returned to social media with a video of some sort of serpent, Joseph replied with a smiley face. 
 
 Then, Joseph went a step further and wrote, “In 30 minutes, as a show of power, @taylorswift13 will blot out the sun,” obviously referring to Taylor‘s massive star power in comparison with the upcoming 2017 Solar Eclipse. 
 
 If you didn’t know, Joseph is a music video director and has directed some of Taylor‘s 1989 videos including “Bad Blood,” “Wildest Dreams” and more. ||||| The Reputation tour is coming and it'll be tough to get tickets—unless you spend $60 on a snake ring. 
 
 A partnership between Taylor Swift and Ticketmaster is drawing scrutiny for forcing fans to spend money on merch and albums to get a shot at buying tickets. 
 
 A post on Jezebel first pointed out the complex arrangement. The partnership builds on a longstanding practice of bundling albums with tickets to boost album sales. This time, it's not just agreeing to buy an album with the purchase of a floor ticket. Fans instead are prompted to pre-order Reputation, shop Reputation merch (including the already infamous gold snake ring), and buy Reputation about a dozen more times from the Taylor Swift store, Walmart, Target, and iTunes to unlock access to tickets. 
 
 And then return on a daily basis to complete other tasks in hopes of staying near the front of the line. 
 
 The more things you buy, the better your chance of scoring a ticket. You can also boost your chances with the free moves of watching the lyrics video for "Look What You Made Me Do," registering for the Taylor Swift mailing list, and referring friends to the program, but those accomplishments don't earn you as much "boost" as buying a sweatshirt. 
 
 A progress bar keeps track of how close you are to unlocking tickets, but there are no exact points to measure how far you have left to go. Your progress can slow down, too, depending on how many people try out the months-long program, Ticketmaster says in the fine print. 
 
 "Your standing may change as more fans join the line and participate in boost activities. Keep checking back for new boost activities you can do everyday," the website states. 
 
 How to get tickets: buy things. Image: screenshot/ticketmaster 
 
 Buy albums! Image: screenshot/ticketmaster 
 
 From Taylor's perspective, it's smart. Taylor Swift superfans probably want a lot of this stuff anyway, and they'll be encouraged to order if buying it now boosts their chances at a meet-and-greet or nosebleed seats. 
 
 The move is a shrewd one—unsurprising coming from one of America's top-selling artists, who sold almost 1.3 million albums in the week after 1989 dropped. 
 
 For fans who aren't trying to spend money just for the chance to spend more money, though, the arrangement is a little off-putting. Ticketmaster hasn't had a partnership exactly like this before. 
 
 “We worked closely with Taylor Swift to craft a unique approach to our Verified Fan program that rewards her fans with access to the best tickets first,” David Marcus, executive vice president and head of music for Ticketmaster North America, said in a statement. “By removing bots and scalpers from the equation, and adding a series of fun activities to help registrants boost their spot in line through our official Verified Fan Activity Meter, we’re able to ensure that tickets make it into the hands of Taylor's most avid fans, at fan-friendly prices.” 
 
 Ticketmaster declined to answer further questions about the program. 
 
 Swift and Ticketmaster frame the program as a way to ward off scalpers and bots. 
 
 "Taylor Swift is committed to getting tickets into the hands of fans...NOT scalpers or bots," the welcome page says. "So she’s collaborating with Ticketmaster #VerifiedFan to create an exclusive program to help YOU get the best access to tickets in North America, in a really fun way." 
 
 Bots probably can't buy endless quantities of merch, but neither can most fans. 
 
 The program is open until Nov. 28, so you have a few months to save up. Maybe between now and then Swift and Ticketmaster will add more "fun ways" to move up in the ticket line without spending money. 
 
 Reputation drops Nov. 10. ||||| The new era of Taylor Swift is HERE, so please cancel all your plans and pray for Kim Kardashian and Kanye West. According to Genius, Swift's new song is called "Timeless"—and not only has it been registered under her name, but a website is "coming soon." 
 
 FINALLY!!!!! 
 
 
 
 According to Genius, Taylor Swift's new single is called "Timeless". 
 
 A website with the name was created. #TS6 pic.twitter.com/rLdGFqnedG — Taylor Swift Updates (@TheReputation13) August 21, 2017 
 
 Swift first indicated that she was making her triumphant return by shutting down all forms of social media. She then dropped some cryptic code on the backend of her website, and has since emerged with what appears to be a snake (or perhaps dragon?) tail video—a clear reference to the fact that everyone spent the better part of 2016 spamming her with the snake emoji. 
 
 In the words of this random Swift fan on Twitter: 
 
 my names alyssia and i stan a shady ass qUEEN thats coming to slay everyone who dissed her in the past two years, watch out bitches. #TS6 — a loves taylor 🌊 (@newyearsdaytay) August 21, 2017 
 
 Stay tuned for more updates. 
 
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– First, Taylor Swift blacked out her entire online presence. Then, on Monday, she returned to social media—but all she shared was a mysterious video of a snake. The internet is going nuts trying to figure out what she's up to: CNN speculates the snake video could be some sort of reference to the "Taylor Swift is a snake" meme beloved by her haters. Of course, the most obvious possibility is that Swift is building up hype for a new music release, and one of her collaborators, Joseph Kahn, seemed to confirm that possibility by retweeting her snake video along with a smiley face, Just Jared reports. Kahn has directed music videos for Swift including "Bad Blood" and "Wildest Dreams." Us points out that Swift's social media blackout took place exactly three years after she announced her most recent album, 1989. The gossip magazine previously reported she's been working on an album to be released in the fall. Music lyrics site Genius posted lyrics for a new song supposedly from Swift called "Timeless," but the page has since been taken down. Still, that hasn't stopped multiple outlets including Marie Claire from reporting that must be the name of her upcoming single and/or album. (And this might be the website for it.) The Ringer overanalyzes the snake snippet and offers up ideas for what it could be teasing, including an upcoming "peace summit" with (former?) rival Katy Perry. A number of outlets including USA Today are rounding up fan reactions to the snake video.