After months of awaiting her second re-recorded album, fans of Taylor Swift at Pingree and beyond are thrilled after Friday, November 12th’s release of re-recorded Red. Beginning in April 2021 with the re-release of Fearless, as explained in my previous article here, Swift is on a journey to produce new recordings of her old albums, in attempt to gain full ownership of songs she lost the rights to. Red (Taylor’s Version) has a tracklist of 30 songs, including the 21 original Red songs, and 9 unreleased songs she refers to as “from the vault”. She even released a short film starring Sadie Sink and Dylan O’Brien for her new 10 minute version of fan-favorite “All Too Well”. Red was originally released in 2012 as a way for Taylor to cope and express herself after a recent breakup, so her strong emotions cultivated through the lyrics and music are invoking an array of feelings in fans.

In the Pingree community, Taylor Swift fans are thrilled with the new release of updated Red. Run by seniors Audrey Crate, Ellie Crate, and Maddy Singore, Pingree’s “Swiftly Painting” club meets weekly on Fridays to combine a love for painting with being a fan of Taylor Swift. This past Friday, members of “Swiftly Painting” met in the art room for a specialized meeting following the re-release of “Red”. Members, who were encouraged to wear red in support of Swift, came together to listen to the new album. Senior and club leader Audrey Crate encourages members of the Pingree Community to join her club, emphasising that “it is a very fun club, particularly today for the Red album that came out – Taylor’s version – which has been really fun. And there’s a 10 minute version [of “All Too Well”] and 30 new songs.” Audrey and the other club leaders found a way to bring together a community of fans and artists in the Pingree community in an enjoyable, stress-free environment. 

Junior Tori Farrell points out that “it really shows Taylor’s success since she can release basically the same songs and still have it be such a big deal, if not bigger than the initial “Red”. And It’s also really cool that these songs that she’s re-rerecording are the same ones that were a part of my childhood.” The original songs from “Red” 9 years ago were released during a completely different era in everybody’s lives. Re-hearing them is bringing listeners back to that time period and recognizing how much everyone, including Taylor Swift, has changed over the years. It’s a completely nostalgic moment for them.  

Junior Maggie Warner describes feeling “too many mixes of emotions” after listening to Red- Taylor’s Version, particularly after the 10 minute adapted version of “All Too Well”. She says, “There was a point in the song, I levitated out of my body and I was just watching myself listen to it. And it was a very impactful feeling. And everyone should go listen to it, because it’s so good.” “Swifties” of the Pingree community are inspired by Taylor’s independence and strength through her re-recording process, as well as the powerful feelings exhibited through her music. 

It’s absolutely incredible the way that an artist that began releasing music when she was only 16 years old, is now 31, and still has such a tight connection with the same fans that have been listening to her music since the beginning.