Taylor Swift has opened up the vault to The Tortured Poets Department, sharing her initial lyrical inspirations.
“The Chairman is unsealing her #TTPDFirstDraft Phone Memos of ‘Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?,’ ‘Cassandra,’ and ‘The Black Dog’ on new digital albums,” Taylor Nation, Swift’s official merch page, wrote via X on Thursday, May 16.
For a limited period, fans can order a special digital edition of The Tortured Poets Department that comes with a bonus track voice message. In the recordings, the 34-year-old pop star detailed her writing process.
For instance, Swift noted that “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?” is a track “about being crazy,” while “Cassandra” is based on ancient mythology.
“In Greek mythology, Cassandra was brought on by Apollo to always warn people of impending doom but she was cursed to never be listened to,” she said. “So read into this what you will based on our current social and cultural climate.”
Swifties had previously speculated that “Cassandra” was written about either Kim Kardashian, for her involvement in Swift’s past drama with Kanye West, or Scooter Braun, who had purchased the masters to Swift’s back catalog in 2019. (Swift claimed that she was denied the chance to buy her discography by former label Big Machine Records. Braun has since sold the rights.)
“So, they killed Cassandra first ’cause she feared the worst / And tried to tell the town,” Swift sings. “So, they filled my cell with snakes, I regret to say / Do you believe me now?”
Fans immediately speculated that the snakes in question are references to Swift’s album Reputation, one of two that has yet to be rerecorded. The 2017 LP was originally inspired partly by her feud with West, 46, and Kardashian, 43. The rapper had claimed Swift gave him permission to use her name in his song “Famous” based on a video call that Kardashian, his then-wife, had edited together.
Keep scrolling to see what was added to Swift’s songs in the TTPD First Draft:
‘Cassandra’
Swift had written extra lyrics for “Cassandra” that didn’t make the final cut: “When the first shots fired, they’re screaming.”
‘The Black Dog’
Apologies to the British pub of the same name, but Swift did not intend to name the song after the establishment. According to her voice memo, it was nearly called “Old Habits Die Screaming” after a lyric in the track.
‘Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?’
The tune, which Swift added to her Eras Tour set earlier this month, initially featured the line, “You don’t get to tell me that I’m bad.”
The limited edition TTPD bundles will be available for purchase until Friday, May 17, at 6 p.m. ET.
