Keeping her eyes on the clock, senior Jossy Self waited for midnight to strike and for Nov. 12 to arrive. 

When the re-recording of the music album Red officially dropped, a global community of Taylor Swift fans like Self—Swifties as they are often called—experienced a cathartic release of emotions. 

“I was crying when I was listening to the album,” Self said. “Taylor (Swift) writes heartbreak like I’ve never heard before.

The chaos of Red makes it even better because you go from listening to ‘All Too Well’ to listening to ’22’ — completely different feelings that…really represent how heartbreak feels.”

Although Swift’s re-recorded album includes a plethora of popular titles such as “I Knew You Were Trouble” and “We Are Never Getting Back Together,” there are many who enjoy lesser-known tracks. 

“My favorite song on Red is ‘State of Grace’ because I think it has some of (Swift’s) best lyrics,” senior Kyli Bailey said. “I love how she includes the original version as the opener and, near the end, has the acoustic version. It puts the song in a whole different perspective.” 

She adds: “I am all for Taylor re-recording her earlier songs…Hearing the comparison of the earlier albums with (Taylor’s Version) albums, her voice is so much more mature now and it’s special being able to hear her growth and development as an artist.”