Music
Taylor Swift’s “I Can See You (Taylor’s Version)” Music Video Is Full Of Easter Eggs
Swift may have revealed her next TV album.
Release day for Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) was always going to be an exciting affair, but Taylor Swift upped the ante by surprise-dropping a new music video. The 12-time Grammy winner premiered the “I Can See You (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” music video during her Eras tour stop in Kansas City on July 7, and she even had its stars — Taylor Lautner, Joey King, and Presley Cash — on stage with her. It didn’t take long for fans to start buzzing about the Easter eggs hidden in her latest music video, including possible clues about her next re-recording.
As Swifties know, the singer’s Taylor’s Version (aka TV) albums have been her way of reclaiming her early work after she spoke out in 2019 about not being able to purchase her masters. The “I Can See You (Taylor’s Version)” music video dramatizes that fight, showing her trapped in a vault as Lautner, King, and Cash embark on a mission to break her out. The music video is packed with Speak Now-era nostalgia, but Easter eggs from other eras appear as well. Fans have been dissecting the video, and Swift — the video’s writer and director — gave them a lot to uncover.
The Music Video’s Stars
Lautner, King, and Cash all have ties to the original Speak Now era. Both King and Cash starred in Swift’s “Mean” music video in 2011, when they were still middle-school-aged kids. As for Lautner, he was famously Swift’s ex and considered the likely inspiration for her 2010 apology track “Back to December.” Fans at the Kansas City show got to see the trio join Swift for the video’s premiere, not to mention hear Lautner’s heartfelt speech about his famous ex.
Swift’s “Long Live” Lyrics
Another throwback to the Speak Now era is the writing on Swift’s arm in the “I Can See You (Taylor’s Version)” music video. While she waits in the vault, she has the words “I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you” written on her, which are lyrics from her 2010 song “Long Live.”
13 On Her Hand
It used to be common for Swift to perform shows with the number 13 written on her hand, and she brought that tradition back in her latest music video. “The significance of the number 13 on my hand ... I paint this on my hand before every show because 13 is my lucky number,” she said in 2009, per MTV. She listed a number of ways it had popped up in her life, adding, “Basically whenever a 13 comes up in my life, it’s a good thing.”
The Clothes
Throughout the “I Can See You (Taylor’s Version)” music video, there are outfits that allude to Speak Now. Swift herself is wearing a metallic fringed dress and cowboy boots that look like an ensemble she wore in her “Sparks Fly” music video, and more outfits appear in display cases as King and Lautner go to rescue her from the vault. Even King’s white dress from the “Mean” music video is on display, alongside a photo of her and Swift.
Memorabilia
In addition to Swift’s old outfits, there are instruments that she played on Speak Now. King uses a banjo from the “Mean” music video to bash a bad guy, and Lautner battles against another villain in front of the white “Back to December” piano. Sadly, she can’t save these pieces of her past as she makes her escape.
The Fight Scene
It wasn’t just the Speak Now era that Swift dropped Easter eggs for, according to some fans. The fight scene in the music video reminded them of the one from the Bad Blood video. The similarity, along with another big clue below, helped fuel a theory that 1989 (Taylor’s Version) could be her next re-recorded album.
The Vault
Some thought the vault referenced her “Look What You Made Me Do” music video from 2017’s Reputation. They also connected the past looks in the new video to the older video’s past versions of Swift and speculated that Reputation will in fact be Swift’s next updated album.
The 1989 Sign
Though many fans thought the Reputation vibes were significant, the last shot seemed like a heavy hint that 1989 (Taylor’s Version) might be coming soon. Her getaway van takes her onto a bridge, and there’s a sign on it that says “1”-9” 8.9 tv.”
Whatever’s coming next, fans can relish Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) right now.
