After leaving her shift at The Cage restaurant near Millennium Park on Monday, Jess Tension saw a message on a Taylor Swift fan page that she couldn't ignore.
She ran to River North, where the painters mounted the green scissor lift, 33 W. He created a very obscure QR code using “ttpd” and the number “13” on the side of a building on Grand Ave.
The QR code connects to the 13-second YouTube Summary In Swift's account, the message “Error 321” and a faint “13” pop up in typewriter font. Swift's 11th studio album, “The Tortured Poets Department,” is set to be released Friday, and it's well known that she has a connection to the number 13 — with carefully placed Easter eggs and teasing plans.
On Tuesday, three painters continued to place small “ttpd” and “13” in black across the large white canvas. Some were in uppercase and others in lowercase. Some were close, others far away. As of Tuesday afternoon, Taylor Swift's name was placed at the top of the “tortured poets department.”
It's a fun guessing game for dozens of Swifties, including Tennyson, who filter through to photograph and analyze the mural.
The crew was gone by the time Dennison arrived Monday, but he promised to show up first thing Tuesday morning on his day off. The 29-year-old River North resident brought along friendship bracelets to give out to fellow fans and some for painters who said “QR King.” And he broadcasts live to over 60,000 followers TikTokThere he posts more about Swift.
“We haven't seen a lot of engagement fan-wise (in Chicago) since 'Goodwill' came out. Surprised the fansTennyson said. “We haven't seen any action from Taylor since the rep, so that's great.”
Like other fans, Tennyson developed theories about the meaning of the “Error 321” message. She definitely thinks Swift is on to something. Since it's on YouTube, his best guess is a music video for one of the unreleased songs.
He also thinks it could be connected to 2021 in some way A quick interview With Stephen Colbert. During the interview, Swift points to a pizza on a billboard that appears to represent pizza from Scoozi, the now-shuttered River North restaurant that used to house Colbert. The location of the restaurant and the mural can't be a coincidence, Tennyson said.
Others on social media speculated that the mural's location in Chicago could be a reference to the line “The Lakes” from the song “Take Me To The Lakes Where All The Poets Die” as a nod to the title of his new album. “Department of Tortured Poets.”
Swift performed one of her surprise songs, “The Lakes,” on the first night of a three-show stop in Chicago during her Eras tour last summer.
While a music video mural seemed to be one of the audience's leading theories, what they thought a possible video would look like. It could be short videos or a recorded message from Swift for each song from the upcoming album — similar to the setting of the movie “Taylor Swift: The Era's Tour.”
Or a new concert date? A new set during the Eras tour? A documentary? New inventory? Maybe it's nothing? The list of assumptions is long.
“I've been thinking about it all day now,” said Rita Pillai, a dog walker who passed the mural with two puppies.
Cumulative Murals, a New York-based outdoor advertising agency, oversaw the mural, though a representative said they could not comment on the project.
Swift's 2006 debut album was the first CD that Dennison claimed she owned, and deciphering the superstar artist's Easter eggs and puzzles has become an addictive pastime. He attended the first Eras Tour concert in Chicago last June, calling it “incredible” and “absolutely mind-blowing.”
“I grew up with her. She's only a few years older than me, so her life and mine lined up perfectly,” Dennison said. “If my inspiration or my heartbeat, or if I'm sad, I turn to her music. I turn to her music when I want to cry or feel happy.
Before Swift announced the album's release — which features 16 major tracks, including two collaborations with Florence + The Machine and Post Malone — at the Grammys in February, a similar “error 321” message appeared on her website. He hides clues about the album on Apple Music within the lyrics of his old songs and hosts a library installation with Spotify in Los Angeles.
On the other hand, 31-year-old Streeterville resident Kim DiGracia believes the 321 countdown will be for the much-anticipated “Fame (Taylor's Version)” album. The singer will release two albums simultaneously, DeGracia speculates, and “1, 2, 3, let's go bitch” is a common chant when Swift sings “Delicate” on “Reputation.”
DeGracia, who moved to Chicago in January, has been a huge fan of Swift since her debut album. When she saw the mural on TikTok, she knew she wanted to check it out and show her sister.
“His lyrics are really relatable,” DeGracia said. “She's the same age as me, so I feel like I've gone through different stages, her teenage years, her 20s, going through similar things.”
“Friend of animals everywhere. Devoted analyst. Total alcohol scholar. Infuriatingly humble food trailblazer.”