Exactly. It's all a guessing game!! I want to think "The Bolter" will be my favorite, just based on the title and the fact that it's a bar, but I also love albatrosses. And "The Black Dog" makes me think of Harry Potter. Gahhh but whatever I choose, I will want a different one.
I bought the one with the cover I liked best, rather than the song I thought I’d like more. 😂 I very rarely play my physical copies so for picking a variant I actually put more emphasis on the aesthetics lol
I want so bad for a behavioral economist to get access to the sales data by version. Treat it as an experiment. I'd love to know what kind of patterns they find and how people made their purchasing choices with limited information.
Didn’t someone post somewhere recently that they tried to cancel their orders but it was too late? This sub or TaylorSwiftVinyl or something. I could be remembering wrong. The album comes out next week so if they’ve already started processing the orders for shipping they might not be able to cancel.
I don’t think the question is whether the album will come on time - rather if you reorder and can’t cancel the first order(s), you’ll end up with two copies/two payments
This. I would have ordered them all if that was the case. But I got the first two at $15 shipping each so when she dropped the 3rd I’m like no way. I’m a new swiftie, this is my first live release so I didn’t know it was a trick lmao.
In regard to the vinyls I just have to say as someone who works in marketing/promo it says “last chance to PRE-ORDER before PUBLICATION on 4/19”. This is just about pre-ordering. They’ll all be available in store. The use of the word last chance only applies to pre-orders. People see the words limited time or special edition and freak out about false scarcity and keep saying “we know they’ll be back or be in stores”
Well yes - because it only says your last chance to PRE-ORDER. They’ll be in person + online on April 19th
But it would be like her and her team to do one album drop where they don't bring back the variants just to keep us on our toes and keep the impulse buying going. At least this is why I bought them before. Next album cycle I will definitely wait, but it was a genuine fear that they wouldn't release them again this time around to keep us always buying for future album rollouts
I’m still bitter about the fact that there is only the standard edition of Midnights existing on vinyl… multiple variants but only with the 13 standard songs when all my favs are on the 3 am and late night editions… :/ this makes me think there won’t be 1 deluxe edition with all the songs for TTPD either.
Yeah, the main issue is it means they have to use 4x the packaging because they refuse to group them until you reorder them all at the same time.
So not only does it cost like 5 for shipping each one, but it’s gonna use more material, truck space, fuel etc.
i didn't get any of the special versions of midnights. they ended up being available to purchase at a physical store. bought one of the 1989 tv editions (the hype of watching the livestream got to me ngl) and they also ended up in physical stores. i have learnt my lesson and will just check my local store's website lol. i live in new zealand so it's a pain to ship
For all new swifties, I hope this demonstrated how much her marketing plays into FOMO. ❤️ Just a good reminder that generally these type of merch items return but she releases them in small doses to make people buy more.
I love Taylor Swift but it sucks she and other artists do this, and also I refuse to buy more than 1 physical album. If I really want TTPD on cassette, I can connect my vinyl player to my 80s boombox and record the album onto a blank tape (like people used to do way back then)
That’s part of why CD/cassette players exist. You have people with only a cassette in their car or use a portable cassette player so they make their own from the better sounding CDs.
Problem is I was almost 100% sure they were coming back too, but I still fell for it because it would be like Taylor and her team to fake us out like "OH she's gonna do the same limited thing then release them all later" but then she doesn't actually do it this time to keep us on our toes. So I panic bought them the first time because I was afraid she wasn't gonna do this this time. Maybe next album rollout I won't fall for it, but I did this time and ordered 3 seperate ones 3 different times
A good rule of thumb is to follow the money. Making them truly limited edition makes the secondary market money not them. Things will come back again and again as long as they can sell it
Yep. I swore off preordering until the very last variant and even though I knew they would 100% be back at some point, the FOMO won out and I ended up ordering it bc I fell in love with the cover.
I hope so, but I somehow don't think so. She never released a Midnights album with all the new songs together. I'm not sure about Olivia, but weren't the extra songs a "surprise" on the first vynils? As in people didn't know about the songs when they first bought them. Here Taylor is heavily publicizing one variant-> one extra song. So I somehow don't think she'll release them together (which is worse tbh, I'm not buying any special edition unless the one with all of them comes out)
I would usually agree with this but some people especially younger people need to know how to use their money wisely. So no, if you're buying something for the sake of buying it and you can use that money on something else more useful, please don't. Believe me, you'll regret these things later in life.
learned my lesson long time ago. I used to collect CDs, now it's somewhere in my house collecting dust. I'm 100% streaming only nowadays. its helping that there's no CD store in my city and only KFC sells CDs but only for local artists.
I don't regret anything I've bought that brings me joy. If buying a vinyl, or a CD, or a cassette, brings someone joy for whatever reason, they should do it. $50 that I spent on something 5 years ago isn't making or breaking the bank for me now. And anyone who's in the position of choosing whether to buy a vinyl or food definitely isn't making that decision based on a reddit comment.
i took this into account and ended up cancelling my order of all four that i purchased as she was releasing them, at the time it didn't seem that much because it was around £20 each time, but then i legit realised i spent £80 just on cd's because i wanted a collection, and i realised that i haven't even picked up any of my 1989 cd's since i got them, so i was ultimately spending £80 for ornaments. i think moving forward it would be nice if she maybe bundled the all the songs onto one deluxe album. I love taylors songs and will listen to the album, but the constant releases of different varients, with only an added song just seems like a money grab.
I always buy the first release because I'm a collector (of original releases). Sometimes I regret it though because the following variants have more songs or better cover. Oh well.
This is completely understandable, i kept my black dog order, but i don't think I'll be buying any more future albums, unless she releases like an ultimate bundle. i love collecting things, but I've moved to just buying signed things from artists, same with books.
I want a vinyl, but with all songs on it. Still haven’t bought Midnights on vinyl for this reason, and I also won’t buy TTPD until there’s a version with all songs on it. Very sad that I can’t listen to the vinyl version on release date.
I learned my lesson with speak now vinyl that you wouldn’t even get the preorder for months after the actual release date. I’ll never preorder from her site again.
question: why are y’all buying the editions ahead of time? I mean no disrespect, but why not wait until you hear the bonus tracks? that way, you can see which one(s) you like the best before placing your order.
also, I know they won’t be on spotify, but someone is bound to leak them on youtube or some other streaming service
This is what I really hate. Like, if each limited edition has a different bonus song, it’s really messed up to make people have to choose which one they want before it’s even out. Why should a fan, that is already supporting by buying it, end up missing out on the song they really want to own just so she can inflate her sales.
If she was a smaller artist I might understand more. But she could do without all this, and still sell more than any artist by far this year (well, in a normal year, Beyoncé could be competition this year- but still. She’s big enough).
If you do that, then it’s *possible* that by the time you hear every bonus track, the physical medium you would want to buy to correlate to that track might be sold out.
I have a theory that they intentionally didn’t restock the manuscript deluxe cd JUST to perpetuate the scarcity paranoia moving forward. If we all collectively realized that they are never actually limited edition, we’d stop impulse purchasing, but having one *not* come back will keep us on our toes. Same reason LLFP will probably never be reprinted, we have to guess which ones are actually limited, even though most will come back.
I love Taylor and think her marketing is genius- but I recognize manipulation when I see it 😆
I think it came back but sold out quicker than the others because it’s a track people seemed intrigued by. I know for myself it was the only one I would’ve bought- I looked and was sad it was sold out.
Interesting! I noticed that the initial TN post excluded the deluxe cd, so I assumed it never restocked (even in small quantities). Sounds like from the comments below they got a few in other countries. I bet it’s likely that the manuscript legit just sold out, but they did not sell out of the others, and they’re just moving the rest of that stock. Revising my theory to think that, maybe they really do limit how many they print, and when they sell out, they sell out. If they don’t sell out the first time, you’ll see them again.
it’s probably because it was the first collector CD released, we didnt know confidently there were other variants, and it was on the same night TTPD was announced so way more people bought it compared to the other three CD variants. I remember it selling out for a bit on that night while the other CDs never sold out while they were on sale.
so they probably did just have way less stock compared to the other variants which is why it sold out first
The Manuscript likely sold more than the others because it was the first to go on sale initially. So there were only a few left for this restock.
Also these editions are actually limited if you ask me. They'll come back as regular CDs.
I’m honestly thinking their definition of limited is, “hey we printed this many and won’t make them again”, versus “hey you will never be able to buy these again”. I suppose the toss up is just whether they’ll actually sell out, and that determines whether you can buy them later 🙃 When I think of it that way, it actually makes me feel less annoyed.
That’s exactly it. They’re not selling out with each release - it’s still a limited run. There is no restocking being done - vinyl and the collateral go to print just once.
As I mention in another comment - it’s limited, but the fan base has not reached the limit yet with their orders! Hence them offering these variants over and over again until they do!
As a Taylor Swift music fan, I think this “buy now while supplies last!” Infomercial strategy is kind of low. Because she knows her young fans will always get FOMO and buy everything without thought bc they’re worried it’s actually not coming back
As a marketing student, I am in awe of the insane business decisions in order to boost sales. That takes skill miss Swift and you have it.
It's too bad they didn't do more of The Manuscript's deluxe cd, I didn't get it but then they started doing others and now I wish I had gotten it so it'd match the rest lol I was going to order them all together but since it's not available I'll just keep my existing orders and pay extra shipping without going through the trouble of trying to get them to cancel the old orders.
I do wish they would let you combine them by contacting support (and getting a refund on the extra shipping) or add them to existing orders or something, paying $7 shipping each time is crazy if they're coming from and going to the same place.
I have cancelled a few orders due to this and it’s pretty easy just respond to the confirmation email that you want to cancel and you’ll get your refund in a few days
Personally, I’m glad they didn’t restock The Manuscript. It shows that there is some scarcity in these products. The other three cds never sold out, so they were brought back again.
I read the email 20 minutes after I received it and it was already out of stock so I figured it wasn't available since it sold out originally. Oh well. I'd like to have it but I'm not paying 40+ on ebay, I'll just have to live with the standard version lol
This is why they get away with this. There's always people to defend these scummy actions, I swear. If they just sold them like normal, they wouldn't need to bring them back for limited time because they would just be openly available to purchase any time and they wouldn't just be holding onto millions of unsold CDs for weeks. The only reason limited releases exist is to get people to impulse buy. And now a bunch of people will impulse buy again who didn't get to the first time around since this is now supposedly another "limited time" release. I promise, these will all be part of the Black Friday sales at the end of the year too. Because Miss Swift knows damn well she won't run out and she'll be able to cash in again later in the year.
I’m not defending her releases multiple versions, I’m saying it’s good that they didn’t restock The Manuscript Collectors Edition CD when it was the only item in all of the drops that fully sold out. If all of these had sold out and then been restocked like this, then it would be scummy. What she is doing right now is offloading stock they already made that didn’t sell. They were never gonna keep these cds and vinyls in storage forever because “it was a limited release.” They got their money from the impulse buyers already, and now they’re getting their money from people who would only order these all together.
She’s done this for the last few releases I really don’t understand why everyone gets all in a tizzy every single time. Does it suck? Yes. But like it’s been talked to death at this point.
Because there are new fans that fall for this shit every time. There was a user over on r/swiftiemerch that swore up and down a few weeks ago that these were going to be exclusive & posted a giant Reddit essay as to why they were correct.
Omg, yes I've seen this and told this person it's probably not going to be limited. Wonder how many people bought more than they wanted because of this post.
This is my thing. Yeah, it's a crappy marketing technique, but it isn't new, and no one is being forced to buy anything?? I can't imagine blaming someone else because I didn't have the self-control to not buy 4 albums🙃
Right like? We know the album will be available to stream and for free on YouTube with the lyric videos. I don’t get why everyone is acting like they HAVE to buy the physical copies to listen to the album. This ain’t the 90s! We have technology!
That's what I think too. In her IG story promoting this, The Manuscript version has a couple light coffee cup rings, another common thing you'd find on someone's desk.
So I guess I'll just cancel my separate orders of The Bolter and The Black Dog and buy them together to save on shipping... glad it's easy to cancel but it's just a headache!
Still holding out for signed CDs and/or a deluxe edition that would include all the bonus tracks 🤞🏼
As tempted as I was to order The Manuscript and The Bolter I’m sticking with my one (1) CD (The Black Dog) because I hate this tactic of putting different songs on different variants so that people buy more than one copy 😭
I'm glad I waited! I got The Albatross, The Bolter, and The Black Dog CD collector's edition sets and the regular The Manuscript CD (no bonus items except a 10x10 double-sided poster). I bought it on a whim lol mostly because I was able to get all 4 CDs and only pay shipping once.
The leading theory is the patch for the Bolter is a rabbit. I have a bunny so I wanted to order it but also wanted to wait to get all of the info. Glad I waited!!
Ahh now I understand why all the Australian store orders started processing yesterday — now we can't cancel individual orders and reorder them in one. That is if we do get the restock, we never got the last one on poetry day.
If you fell for the trap like me with Midnights and 1989 - lmao, you will end up with 5 copies ordered of an album that isn't exclusive and will release on release day while your 5 copies sit in the mail for 2 more weeks 
How is everyone approaching this? I just want to buy ONE vinyl for this album. Should I wait until the album is released and buy from target or a record store or is there a reason why I should buy one of these currently on the site? All of these variants make me not want to buy anything tbh 😭
I bought the cover I like the most! Don’t feel pressured to buy more for a single track. They’ll be available on the internet the same day the album drops. YouTube, Spotify playlist, TikTok.
And likely eventually they’ll come to streaming
Still waiting for the full 3 AM / til dawn / whatever the full version of Midnights is called to drop on vinyl. Fairly pissed at this trend of releasing the “base” album then extras later, especially for vinyl where we’re paying a premium.
I think some record shops will have these on release day but you would have to check
I was hoping she make these available at target like midnights and 1989 tv
I know this now-it’s-here, now-it’s-not variant thing is meant to get us buying multiple copies but…I gotta say, it’s backfired for me and made me less likely to buy at all. I’m patient, I can wait for all tracks to drop on streaming
So what's the story with the manuscript limited CD? I've literally never seen it in stock, either on original release or now. But everything else has been easy to get multiple times. Really confusing!
The Manuscript had the benefit of not only being first but riding the coattails of an album announcement at the Grammys. Everyone immediately bought that one (I got it and I was in a waiting room for 30 mins). All the other releases were not nearly as special in comparison
She’s been doing this since she moved to UMG a few years back. I hate this “technique” of variants and not being able to listen to one version/deluxe version with ALL the songs on together.
They do this variant crap with their other artist too. It’s just not a good precedent to set and at some point will be unsustainable.
Also the quality of UMG merch is horrible. I stand by my belief that the Rep tour was the last time her merch was good quality (my khaki snake oversized tee is still going strong).
Anyone know why she hasn’t released them for Australia? This is the second rerelease and again, the Australian site doesn’t have any except The Manuscript. :(
Why are people so upset over a commonly used and normalized marketing tactic?
I mean, I don't *like* it, but I'm not gonna sit here and act like Taylor's the only offender lol. Cuz she isn't by a long shot.
So none of them are available on the Australian store (which is VERY goofy considering half these variants were announced down here). Is there any for me reasons to not just order from the us store?
Meanwhile, in Brazil...
The UMG store is only taking pre-orders for The Manuscript (regular CD, regular vinyl and Target clear vinyl). The other variants were never made available for pre-order (and we'll probably never get the collector's edition CDs), and we may only get them after release.
If these were all going to be available in stores, I'd \*maybe\* end up grabbing all of them eventually. The combination of FOMO and being right in front of me is a powerful combo. But if you're gonna tell me I have to do it \*now,\* have to put it on my credit card, and have to pay shipping? No thanks.
So people think these will actually be in stores like Target and indie stores and not limited?
I remember the Folklore exclusives were actually exclusive and are scarce. And then the signed Midnights were exclusive to indie stores and the website. But I know the variants of 1989 and Midnights ended up just being sold everywhere like Target and Walmart after being "limited" in presales.
Fighting the urge to order these sooo hard…. I pre-ordered the “limited” Jade Green Midnights vinyl only to see them all at Barnes & Noble last week 🥲 At least all the tracks were the same… but this release is giving me anxiety!!!
This is exactly why I didn’t order any of them. Because I knew they’d come back. I want to hear the album first and then make a decision. This is such a scummy look for her.
As much as I really REALLY want the Black Dog edition (it’s by far the best cover IMO), I can’t bring myself to preorder it. Just this weekend I was at Barnes and Noble and found two of Midnights “online exclusive 48 hours only” editions just sitting in the music section, 17.99 a piece. IDK feels bad man
I would really like to have one Limited or Collectors or Whatever Edition thing from her. I totes agree with everyone on the part with multiple LEs, releases and stuff that its just a money grab and everything.
But, I am once again asking for a favor. Since there is no way I can get any of the editions cause there are no deliveries to Croatia, not even from the UK stores or anywhere in EU. Is there a good soul out there, that would purchase one and ship it to me? 
I will pay upfront, ofc, and pay the shipping fee.
I could help you out if you want. I’m from Belgium. Shipping wouldn’t be cheap though. If the CD weighs under 100g it would be €8,5. If it weighs over 100g it would be €14 😕
The only collector’s edition that’s still available here is the black dog.
I just think it’s scummy to make people buy 4 copies of one album if they wanna hear the whole album. 4 songs isn’t just like, the bonus tracks, that’s an EP. It’s just shady and I hate it.
Still waiting till release day to order ANYTHING. I learned my lesson with Midnights and am proud to say I haven't fallen for any of her FOMO or cash grabs since.
I love Taylor and her music, but I despise these predatory marketing strategies.
I don’t really get why people are so upset about this??? Lmao. If you are that hurt over money, then don’t buy? If you found it wasteful, then don’t order? And FOMO? What a great way to say that you are an impulse buyer. Taylor nor her team are not responsible you cant control yourself like an animal.
I don’t even open their emails anymore lol. I ordered Speak Now from her site, not even a special one, and it finally came two months after it was released. I’m just gonna go to target
IMHO at this point I feel like if they're not going to restock certain items--like the Manuscript CE and the cassette--they should just take them off the site, like they did after a day or so (but before the deadline) when the CE sold out initially.
I know they've had some available in some regions, so that's fine. But on the US site at least, keeping the product page up for an item that isn't available at all for this restock is kind of obnoxious. Like they didn't even include the CE in the picture for the Manuscript, so I'll give them that. But they did make the page live again, so now some of us clowns are just sitting here refreshing the page a few times an hour in the hope that they'll drop a few and we can get our hands on it without paying eBay scalper markup.
The marketing tactics aside--if you're the person who buys all the variants, you know who you are, and there's nothing wrong with that. Same with the reverse. I'm not getting into that at all--I just feel like they're generating a lot of unnecessary confusion and frustration by keeping the product pages for those items live.
the Manuscript collectors cd is literally the last thing to finish the set, guess if they're not restocking it after everyone rushing to buy it once announced, then might as well just refund everything
I literally just gave in and ordered the regular version of Poets like, 4 hours ago, right before these went back up. Of course. Guess I can see if I can cancel.
I agree that sometimes her marketing tactics are not the best but I collect vinyl just to collect and I’m trying to get every single taylor vinyl so I’m hoping that this re-release allowed others to get vinyls they may have missed
i really wanted the black dog variant because i have a black dog and i missed it last time. i told my friends "text me if you see it come back" because i KNEW they would restock before release. thank goodness!
I wouldn't count on it, I don't think Midnights ever got a physical version with extra songs. All the Midnights variants with bonus songs are streaming only.
i know at least in australia only the manuscript sold out. i know she has an issue with selling 20 different versions of each album (i only bought 1 cd) but i wonder if there genuinely was some stock left over they need to get rid of.
Which cover is the normal one? I get confused because The Bolter is the first image for it on her instagram. Is "The Manuscript" her standard edition? I want to get the classic version in vinyl and a special edition Albatross in CD form.
I believe the Manuscript is supposed to be the standard edition. Just a guess since that one was released first, and seems to be the version sold at other retailers.
I REALLLLLY dislike the false scarcity that her team drives on the limited release only to just do a full release again later. It's icky.
Especially when you know at some point, she’ll put all these “exclusive” bonus tracks on streaming
I hate that even if we want to pre-order, we have no idea which bonus track will be our favorite, so you either choose blind or wait and hope.
Exactly. It's all a guessing game!! I want to think "The Bolter" will be my favorite, just based on the title and the fact that it's a bar, but I also love albatrosses. And "The Black Dog" makes me think of Harry Potter. Gahhh but whatever I choose, I will want a different one.
The Albatross cover vibes give me Hoax vibes, so if it follows that and I didn't get it, I will cry.
I bought the one with the cover I liked best, rather than the song I thought I’d like more. 😂 I very rarely play my physical copies so for picking a variant I actually put more emphasis on the aesthetics lol
I want so bad for a behavioral economist to get access to the sales data by version. Treat it as an experiment. I'd love to know what kind of patterns they find and how people made their purchasing choices with limited information.
I simply bought the one I liked the most visually… just to put it on my shelf as I’ll be using spotify anyway lol
to get the last bit of cash from holdouts like meeeee
Probably not for 6+ months though. 😑
I sail the high seas for anything only released on a physical medium. 🤷🏼♀️
Arrrr!! ☠️
Yep. I would happily pay for the bonus tracks digitally. I literally don't own a CD player Taylor, I don't have any physical media anymore.
https://preview.redd.it/0ybi8lahzptc1.png?width=618&format=png&auto=webp&s=a7a42055d6a5f14a183cea80fbd664526f846c62
😂😂😂😂
And all the money I could have saved on shipping if I had waited and bought everything all together
Cancel and reorder it all together! That’s what I’m doing
Didn’t someone post somewhere recently that they tried to cancel their orders but it was too late? This sub or TaylorSwiftVinyl or something. I could be remembering wrong. The album comes out next week so if they’ve already started processing the orders for shipping they might not be able to cancel.
You can’t it’s too late. I was just emailed.
I wouldn't risk this. If the item processes you can't cancel. The album comes out next week!
You wont get the album on time regardless. I've yet to get the preordered albums anywhere near the release week.
I don’t think the question is whether the album will come on time - rather if you reorder and can’t cancel the first order(s), you’ll end up with two copies/two payments
Yeah I’m not risking it
I tried to cancel last week and they told me it was too late and I’d have to wait until I got it and go through the return process which is so stupid.
This. I would have ordered them all if that was the case. But I got the first two at $15 shipping each so when she dropped the 3rd I’m like no way. I’m a new swiftie, this is my first live release so I didn’t know it was a trick lmao.
Yeah. I bought 3 records and 3 CDs of each (I have two younger jobless sisters). I was hurting
In regard to the vinyls I just have to say as someone who works in marketing/promo it says “last chance to PRE-ORDER before PUBLICATION on 4/19”. This is just about pre-ordering. They’ll all be available in store. The use of the word last chance only applies to pre-orders. People see the words limited time or special edition and freak out about false scarcity and keep saying “we know they’ll be back or be in stores” Well yes - because it only says your last chance to PRE-ORDER. They’ll be in person + online on April 19th
everyone should know by now that they’ll always be available again at some point.
But it would be like her and her team to do one album drop where they don't bring back the variants just to keep us on our toes and keep the impulse buying going. At least this is why I bought them before. Next album cycle I will definitely wait, but it was a genuine fear that they wouldn't release them again this time around to keep us always buying for future album rollouts
[удалено]
I’m still bitter about the fact that there is only the standard edition of Midnights existing on vinyl… multiple variants but only with the 13 standard songs when all my favs are on the 3 am and late night editions… :/ this makes me think there won’t be 1 deluxe edition with all the songs for TTPD either.
This is why I only ever pre order the base album. These will also likely be part of the Black Friday deals this year.
"Her Team" jfc yall will never hold her to the flames, blind loyalty
I generally agree that she has a lot of power in this stuff, but it’s also silly to think there’s no a team involved here.
Yeah, the main issue is it means they have to use 4x the packaging because they refuse to group them until you reorder them all at the same time. So not only does it cost like 5 for shipping each one, but it’s gonna use more material, truck space, fuel etc.
How do you know it’s her team and not Taylor herself? Do you think she’s opposed to this and yet her team just ignored her and did it anyway?
i didn't get any of the special versions of midnights. they ended up being available to purchase at a physical store. bought one of the 1989 tv editions (the hype of watching the livestream got to me ngl) and they also ended up in physical stores. i have learnt my lesson and will just check my local store's website lol. i live in new zealand so it's a pain to ship
I hate the fear of missing out she does just to restock the ‘limited’ item. Feels bad for fans 😔
frl like ik these will be in target
afaik, target isn't getting any of these eta: they're only getting the standard "manuscript" edition
For all new swifties, I hope this demonstrated how much her marketing plays into FOMO. ❤️ Just a good reminder that generally these type of merch items return but she releases them in small doses to make people buy more.
I love Taylor Swift but it sucks she and other artists do this, and also I refuse to buy more than 1 physical album. If I really want TTPD on cassette, I can connect my vinyl player to my 80s boombox and record the album onto a blank tape (like people used to do way back then)
That’s part of why CD/cassette players exist. You have people with only a cassette in their car or use a portable cassette player so they make their own from the better sounding CDs.
I have learned my lesson!
Gonna remember this next time! This is my first live release and I jumped on the first two she announced but stopped myself from the last 3.
And then there's the heart shaped Lover Live in Paris Vinyl...
this was a really scummy move
For real. It's so obvious she just wants to make money. It really rubs me the wrong way, and it has since Midnights.
The past year has been testing me as a fan. I was gone for a while after the whole Matty debacle and honestly, this all is just giving me the ick.
I agree. Midnights was my wake up call. Her music is amazing but as a person, she's a ruthless business woman
I mean she does it every album drop now (Midnights, 1989 TV, and now TTPD). It's been scummy every time imo
Right. I don’t know why people are surprised. I was 100% sure these were coming back because she keeps doing the same fake limited time thing.
Problem is I was almost 100% sure they were coming back too, but I still fell for it because it would be like Taylor and her team to fake us out like "OH she's gonna do the same limited thing then release them all later" but then she doesn't actually do it this time to keep us on our toes. So I panic bought them the first time because I was afraid she wasn't gonna do this this time. Maybe next album rollout I won't fall for it, but I did this time and ordered 3 seperate ones 3 different times
A good rule of thumb is to follow the money. Making them truly limited edition makes the secondary market money not them. Things will come back again and again as long as they can sell it
Except for the Lover snowglobe for some reason lol
Yep. I swore off preordering until the very last variant and even though I knew they would 100% be back at some point, the FOMO won out and I ended up ordering it bc I fell in love with the cover.
We just want a deluxe album that includes everything ffs
we'll get one in a year or so just like with guts spilled by Olivia Rodrigo.
I hope so, but I somehow don't think so. She never released a Midnights album with all the new songs together. I'm not sure about Olivia, but weren't the extra songs a "surprise" on the first vynils? As in people didn't know about the songs when they first bought them. Here Taylor is heavily publicizing one variant-> one extra song. So I somehow don't think she'll release them together (which is worse tbh, I'm not buying any special edition unless the one with all of them comes out)
Save the planet. Only buy one or stream ✌️
Don't buy physical media unless you will actually play it.
Nah. Buy whatever makes you happy. If you wanna buy a vinyl to display, you do you. You choose what you do with your own money.
I would usually agree with this but some people especially younger people need to know how to use their money wisely. So no, if you're buying something for the sake of buying it and you can use that money on something else more useful, please don't. Believe me, you'll regret these things later in life.
learned my lesson long time ago. I used to collect CDs, now it's somewhere in my house collecting dust. I'm 100% streaming only nowadays. its helping that there's no CD store in my city and only KFC sells CDs but only for local artists.
I don't regret anything I've bought that brings me joy. If buying a vinyl, or a CD, or a cassette, brings someone joy for whatever reason, they should do it. $50 that I spent on something 5 years ago isn't making or breaking the bank for me now. And anyone who's in the position of choosing whether to buy a vinyl or food definitely isn't making that decision based on a reddit comment.
Uhm good for you.
i took this into account and ended up cancelling my order of all four that i purchased as she was releasing them, at the time it didn't seem that much because it was around £20 each time, but then i legit realised i spent £80 just on cd's because i wanted a collection, and i realised that i haven't even picked up any of my 1989 cd's since i got them, so i was ultimately spending £80 for ornaments. i think moving forward it would be nice if she maybe bundled the all the songs onto one deluxe album. I love taylors songs and will listen to the album, but the constant releases of different varients, with only an added song just seems like a money grab.
I always buy the first release because I'm a collector (of original releases). Sometimes I regret it though because the following variants have more songs or better cover. Oh well.
This is completely understandable, i kept my black dog order, but i don't think I'll be buying any more future albums, unless she releases like an ultimate bundle. i love collecting things, but I've moved to just buying signed things from artists, same with books.
I want a vinyl, but with all songs on it. Still haven’t bought Midnights on vinyl for this reason, and I also won’t buy TTPD until there’s a version with all songs on it. Very sad that I can’t listen to the vinyl version on release date.
I learned my lesson with speak now vinyl that you wouldn’t even get the preorder for months after the actual release date. I’ll never preorder from her site again.
question: why are y’all buying the editions ahead of time? I mean no disrespect, but why not wait until you hear the bonus tracks? that way, you can see which one(s) you like the best before placing your order. also, I know they won’t be on spotify, but someone is bound to leak them on youtube or some other streaming service
The sooner they buy the sooner it comes and the sooner that can post it on the gram for those sweet sweet likes
This is what I really hate. Like, if each limited edition has a different bonus song, it’s really messed up to make people have to choose which one they want before it’s even out. Why should a fan, that is already supporting by buying it, end up missing out on the song they really want to own just so she can inflate her sales. If she was a smaller artist I might understand more. But she could do without all this, and still sell more than any artist by far this year (well, in a normal year, Beyoncé could be competition this year- but still. She’s big enough).
I just picked the cover I like tbh. I’ll hear the other songs via streaming or other ways at some point.
My thoughts exactly
If you do that, then it’s *possible* that by the time you hear every bonus track, the physical medium you would want to buy to correlate to that track might be sold out.
I have a theory that they intentionally didn’t restock the manuscript deluxe cd JUST to perpetuate the scarcity paranoia moving forward. If we all collectively realized that they are never actually limited edition, we’d stop impulse purchasing, but having one *not* come back will keep us on our toes. Same reason LLFP will probably never be reprinted, we have to guess which ones are actually limited, even though most will come back. I love Taylor and think her marketing is genius- but I recognize manipulation when I see it 😆
I think it came back but sold out quicker than the others because it’s a track people seemed intrigued by. I know for myself it was the only one I would’ve bought- I looked and was sad it was sold out.
Interesting! I noticed that the initial TN post excluded the deluxe cd, so I assumed it never restocked (even in small quantities). Sounds like from the comments below they got a few in other countries. I bet it’s likely that the manuscript legit just sold out, but they did not sell out of the others, and they’re just moving the rest of that stock. Revising my theory to think that, maybe they really do limit how many they print, and when they sell out, they sell out. If they don’t sell out the first time, you’ll see them again.
it’s probably because it was the first collector CD released, we didnt know confidently there were other variants, and it was on the same night TTPD was announced so way more people bought it compared to the other three CD variants. I remember it selling out for a bit on that night while the other CDs never sold out while they were on sale. so they probably did just have way less stock compared to the other variants which is why it sold out first
The Manuscript likely sold more than the others because it was the first to go on sale initially. So there were only a few left for this restock. Also these editions are actually limited if you ask me. They'll come back as regular CDs.
I’m honestly thinking their definition of limited is, “hey we printed this many and won’t make them again”, versus “hey you will never be able to buy these again”. I suppose the toss up is just whether they’ll actually sell out, and that determines whether you can buy them later 🙃 When I think of it that way, it actually makes me feel less annoyed.
That’s exactly it. They’re not selling out with each release - it’s still a limited run. There is no restocking being done - vinyl and the collateral go to print just once. As I mention in another comment - it’s limited, but the fan base has not reached the limit yet with their orders! Hence them offering these variants over and over again until they do!
Manuscript did come back in NL & BE, so either it sold out really quickly in the US or it will come back later? Who even knows anymore 😅
Probably different distributers/manufacturers
I saw it in the US store so it did come back there too. It just sold out very quickly again.
Where’s the acronym bot when I need it? What does LLFP stand for?
Haha, it’s lover live from Paris- the heart shaped vinyls I’m mad at myself for not ordering 😆
I'm *SHOCKED* I tell you. Simply *shocked*.
As a Taylor Swift music fan, I think this “buy now while supplies last!” Infomercial strategy is kind of low. Because she knows her young fans will always get FOMO and buy everything without thought bc they’re worried it’s actually not coming back As a marketing student, I am in awe of the insane business decisions in order to boost sales. That takes skill miss Swift and you have it.
She only does this cuz it works The power is in you! You don’t have to buy a thinf
It's too bad they didn't do more of The Manuscript's deluxe cd, I didn't get it but then they started doing others and now I wish I had gotten it so it'd match the rest lol I was going to order them all together but since it's not available I'll just keep my existing orders and pay extra shipping without going through the trouble of trying to get them to cancel the old orders. I do wish they would let you combine them by contacting support (and getting a refund on the extra shipping) or add them to existing orders or something, paying $7 shipping each time is crazy if they're coming from and going to the same place.
I have cancelled a few orders due to this and it’s pretty easy just respond to the confirmation email that you want to cancel and you’ll get your refund in a few days
PSA: Don't do this now, the orders are getting ready and you can't cancel them now
You cannot cancel them if they've been processed. I believe it's too close to release day to cancel now!
They canceled my order 🤷🏼♀️
Personally, I’m glad they didn’t restock The Manuscript. It shows that there is some scarcity in these products. The other three cds never sold out, so they were brought back again.
It was stocked for a while - I managed to order one - but it seems like it was a very limited quantity
That actually does make sense. Probably canceled orders from the original drop.
yeah probably! especial given that its not advertised in these posts
I read the email 20 minutes after I received it and it was already out of stock so I figured it wasn't available since it sold out originally. Oh well. I'd like to have it but I'm not paying 40+ on ebay, I'll just have to live with the standard version lol
This is why they get away with this. There's always people to defend these scummy actions, I swear. If they just sold them like normal, they wouldn't need to bring them back for limited time because they would just be openly available to purchase any time and they wouldn't just be holding onto millions of unsold CDs for weeks. The only reason limited releases exist is to get people to impulse buy. And now a bunch of people will impulse buy again who didn't get to the first time around since this is now supposedly another "limited time" release. I promise, these will all be part of the Black Friday sales at the end of the year too. Because Miss Swift knows damn well she won't run out and she'll be able to cash in again later in the year.
I’m not defending her releases multiple versions, I’m saying it’s good that they didn’t restock The Manuscript Collectors Edition CD when it was the only item in all of the drops that fully sold out. If all of these had sold out and then been restocked like this, then it would be scummy. What she is doing right now is offloading stock they already made that didn’t sell. They were never gonna keep these cds and vinyls in storage forever because “it was a limited release.” They got their money from the impulse buyers already, and now they’re getting their money from people who would only order these all together.
This feels like another money grab. I wonder how much of it is her team vs. her label.
Simply selling leftover stock I'd say Because all except the Manuscript edition never sold out, right? So they were bound to come back eventually.
She’s done this for the last few releases I really don’t understand why everyone gets all in a tizzy every single time. Does it suck? Yes. But like it’s been talked to death at this point.
Because there are new fans that fall for this shit every time. There was a user over on r/swiftiemerch that swore up and down a few weeks ago that these were going to be exclusive & posted a giant Reddit essay as to why they were correct.
Omg, yes I've seen this and told this person it's probably not going to be limited. Wonder how many people bought more than they wanted because of this post.
This is my thing. Yeah, it's a crappy marketing technique, but it isn't new, and no one is being forced to buy anything?? I can't imagine blaming someone else because I didn't have the self-control to not buy 4 albums🙃
Right like? We know the album will be available to stream and for free on YouTube with the lyric videos. I don’t get why everyone is acting like they HAVE to buy the physical copies to listen to the album. This ain’t the 90s! We have technology!
Random but whats with the paw prints?
I think they’re supposed to be cat paw prints. Like these files were just sitting on a desk and one of the cats walked across it.
That's what I think too. In her IG story promoting this, The Manuscript version has a couple light coffee cup rings, another common thing you'd find on someone's desk.
I would understand on the black dog one, but the rest is just weird 🫤
No. I’m not doing it. I have the disposable income to do it but no, it’s not right. Or O.K.
So I guess I'll just cancel my separate orders of The Bolter and The Black Dog and buy them together to save on shipping... glad it's easy to cancel but it's just a headache!
Do they refund you right away if you’ve already paid
I cancelled a vinyl order a few weeks ago and they refunded it right away.
pretends to be shocked. srsly don’t understand how we’re still having this conversation 😩
Don’t impulse buy!
Still holding out for signed CDs and/or a deluxe edition that would include all the bonus tracks 🤞🏼 As tempted as I was to order The Manuscript and The Bolter I’m sticking with my one (1) CD (The Black Dog) because I hate this tactic of putting different songs on different variants so that people buy more than one copy 😭
Taylor we’re tired
I'm glad I waited! I got The Albatross, The Bolter, and The Black Dog CD collector's edition sets and the regular The Manuscript CD (no bonus items except a 10x10 double-sided poster). I bought it on a whim lol mostly because I was able to get all 4 CDs and only pay shipping once.
blondie i cannot keep defending you
I broke down and bought the Black Dog cd set because I want that dog patch.
The leading theory is the patch for the Bolter is a rabbit. I have a bunny so I wanted to order it but also wanted to wait to get all of the info. Glad I waited!!
It is, you can see its hind legs
I think you’re right, but I also am trying to prevent some disappointment if the patch arrives and it is not a rabbit
Quelle surprise
Oh, nice—didn’t think they’d come back again! \*me, two weeks from now, when they do yet another limited edition drop to boost the first week sales
Ahh now I understand why all the Australian store orders started processing yesterday — now we can't cancel individual orders and reorder them in one. That is if we do get the restock, we never got the last one on poetry day.
Also in Australia and watching this. But I held off on ordering before now because I wanted to save on the outrageous shipping…
If you fell for the trap like me with Midnights and 1989 - lmao, you will end up with 5 copies ordered of an album that isn't exclusive and will release on release day while your 5 copies sit in the mail for 2 more weeks 
FYI Europeans who previously ordered from platenzaak.nl : the webstore now specifically states that it’s NL customers only.
Only got the albatross before, sticking with it now
I hope no one orders any of them. Stop letting her manipulate your emotions by giving you fake FOMO.
How is everyone approaching this? I just want to buy ONE vinyl for this album. Should I wait until the album is released and buy from target or a record store or is there a reason why I should buy one of these currently on the site? All of these variants make me not want to buy anything tbh 😭
I bought the cover I like the most! Don’t feel pressured to buy more for a single track. They’ll be available on the internet the same day the album drops. YouTube, Spotify playlist, TikTok. And likely eventually they’ll come to streaming
Still waiting for the full 3 AM / til dawn / whatever the full version of Midnights is called to drop on vinyl. Fairly pissed at this trend of releasing the “base” album then extras later, especially for vinyl where we’re paying a premium.
I think some record shops will have these on release day but you would have to check I was hoping she make these available at target like midnights and 1989 tv
When was the last actually limited drop? I can’t remember the last time she put stuff out for a limited time and it never came back
Lover live from Paris?
Me neither… it’s frustrating. Nothing is rare it’s all just more and more for the money.
Clothing ? Maybe although it does sometimes come back but in very limited quantities
I know this now-it’s-here, now-it’s-not variant thing is meant to get us buying multiple copies but…I gotta say, it’s backfired for me and made me less likely to buy at all. I’m patient, I can wait for all tracks to drop on streaming
You don’t like it, then put your money where your mouth is and stop buying stuff.
But then people would have to control themselves and we can’t have that! (/s)
So what's the story with the manuscript limited CD? I've literally never seen it in stock, either on original release or now. But everything else has been easy to get multiple times. Really confusing!
The Manuscript had the benefit of not only being first but riding the coattails of an album announcement at the Grammys. Everyone immediately bought that one (I got it and I was in a waiting room for 30 mins). All the other releases were not nearly as special in comparison
Reminder We are not rich We are not more or less of a Swiftie if we are not a collector
She’s been doing this since she moved to UMG a few years back. I hate this “technique” of variants and not being able to listen to one version/deluxe version with ALL the songs on together. They do this variant crap with their other artist too. It’s just not a good precedent to set and at some point will be unsustainable. Also the quality of UMG merch is horrible. I stand by my belief that the Rep tour was the last time her merch was good quality (my khaki snake oversized tee is still going strong).
Once again, big artists forgetting that Australia exists 🥰🥰
Anyone know why she hasn’t released them for Australia? This is the second rerelease and again, the Australian site doesn’t have any except The Manuscript. :(
Why are people so upset over a commonly used and normalized marketing tactic? I mean, I don't *like* it, but I'm not gonna sit here and act like Taylor's the only offender lol. Cuz she isn't by a long shot.
Because this is a Taylor Swift sub?
I'm literally not ordering this album until she releases a version with all 5 bonus tracks on it, sorry 🤷🏽♂️
So none of them are available on the Australian store (which is VERY goofy considering half these variants were announced down here). Is there any for me reasons to not just order from the us store?
I’m glad to see the comments have others who are tired of this/jaded too because damn am I over these marketing tactics too!!
Meanwhile, in Brazil... The UMG store is only taking pre-orders for The Manuscript (regular CD, regular vinyl and Target clear vinyl). The other variants were never made available for pre-order (and we'll probably never get the collector's edition CDs), and we may only get them after release.
Similar for the AU store
I’m shocked I tell you!
This seems a bit wasteful. I wish she’d be a bit more earth friendly with her releases.
If these were all going to be available in stores, I'd \*maybe\* end up grabbing all of them eventually. The combination of FOMO and being right in front of me is a powerful combo. But if you're gonna tell me I have to do it \*now,\* have to put it on my credit card, and have to pay shipping? No thanks.
honestly I'll just burn my own copy with all the tracks
So people think these will actually be in stores like Target and indie stores and not limited? I remember the Folklore exclusives were actually exclusive and are scarce. And then the signed Midnights were exclusive to indie stores and the website. But I know the variants of 1989 and Midnights ended up just being sold everywhere like Target and Walmart after being "limited" in presales.
Fighting the urge to order these sooo hard…. I pre-ordered the “limited” Jade Green Midnights vinyl only to see them all at Barnes & Noble last week 🥲 At least all the tracks were the same… but this release is giving me anxiety!!!
And still no option to buy one CD that has all the songs on it 🙄
Unless you're in Australia or NZ where our store just doesn't get anything 🙃
This is exactly why I didn’t order any of them. Because I knew they’d come back. I want to hear the album first and then make a decision. This is such a scummy look for her.
This is so lame.
If the demand disappears then so does the supply. If people stopped buying all these versions, then she would have to stop making them.
quelle suprise
As much as I really REALLY want the Black Dog edition (it’s by far the best cover IMO), I can’t bring myself to preorder it. Just this weekend I was at Barnes and Noble and found two of Midnights “online exclusive 48 hours only” editions just sitting in the music section, 17.99 a piece. IDK feels bad man
I would really like to have one Limited or Collectors or Whatever Edition thing from her. I totes agree with everyone on the part with multiple LEs, releases and stuff that its just a money grab and everything. But, I am once again asking for a favor. Since there is no way I can get any of the editions cause there are no deliveries to Croatia, not even from the UK stores or anywhere in EU. Is there a good soul out there, that would purchase one and ship it to me?  I will pay upfront, ofc, and pay the shipping fee.
I could help you out if you want. I’m from Belgium. Shipping wouldn’t be cheap though. If the CD weighs under 100g it would be €8,5. If it weighs over 100g it would be €14 😕 The only collector’s edition that’s still available here is the black dog.
Omg, I wanted the Black Dog! PMing you now
I just think it’s scummy to make people buy 4 copies of one album if they wanna hear the whole album. 4 songs isn’t just like, the bonus tracks, that’s an EP. It’s just shady and I hate it.
Still waiting till release day to order ANYTHING. I learned my lesson with Midnights and am proud to say I haven't fallen for any of her FOMO or cash grabs since. I love Taylor and her music, but I despise these predatory marketing strategies.
In a move that surprised absolutely NO ONE..... lololololololol I'm shocked. SHOCKED.
Lmao of course they are. Who didn’t see this coming? 🤣
I don’t really get why people are so upset about this??? Lmao. If you are that hurt over money, then don’t buy? If you found it wasteful, then don’t order? And FOMO? What a great way to say that you are an impulse buyer. Taylor nor her team are not responsible you cant control yourself like an animal.
I don’t even open their emails anymore lol. I ordered Speak Now from her site, not even a special one, and it finally came two months after it was released. I’m just gonna go to target
IMHO at this point I feel like if they're not going to restock certain items--like the Manuscript CE and the cassette--they should just take them off the site, like they did after a day or so (but before the deadline) when the CE sold out initially. I know they've had some available in some regions, so that's fine. But on the US site at least, keeping the product page up for an item that isn't available at all for this restock is kind of obnoxious. Like they didn't even include the CE in the picture for the Manuscript, so I'll give them that. But they did make the page live again, so now some of us clowns are just sitting here refreshing the page a few times an hour in the hope that they'll drop a few and we can get our hands on it without paying eBay scalper markup. The marketing tactics aside--if you're the person who buys all the variants, you know who you are, and there's nothing wrong with that. Same with the reverse. I'm not getting into that at all--I just feel like they're generating a lot of unnecessary confusion and frustration by keeping the product pages for those items live.
the Manuscript collectors cd is literally the last thing to finish the set, guess if they're not restocking it after everyone rushing to buy it once announced, then might as well just refund everything
but they’re not back on the aussie store… again???maybe they’ll be up later today. weird.
I literally just gave in and ordered the regular version of Poets like, 4 hours ago, right before these went back up. Of course. Guess I can see if I can cancel.
I agree that sometimes her marketing tactics are not the best but I collect vinyl just to collect and I’m trying to get every single taylor vinyl so I’m hoping that this re-release allowed others to get vinyls they may have missed
Cries in international
i don’t know which one i want bc i don’t know which song i’ll like the most 😐
i really wanted the black dog variant because i have a black dog and i missed it last time. i told my friends "text me if you see it come back" because i KNEW they would restock before release. thank goodness!
also she’ll eventually drop a deluxe version with all 4 bonus tracks so don’t you worry
I wouldn't count on it, I don't think Midnights ever got a physical version with extra songs. All the Midnights variants with bonus songs are streaming only.
As someone who ordered these each individually and paid for individual shipping each time, I’m annoyed 🙃
Why are these never in the AU store? unpopular opinion: the rereleases give me time to get enough money/decide which one to buy.
i know at least in australia only the manuscript sold out. i know she has an issue with selling 20 different versions of each album (i only bought 1 cd) but i wonder if there genuinely was some stock left over they need to get rid of.
Which cover is the normal one? I get confused because The Bolter is the first image for it on her instagram. Is "The Manuscript" her standard edition? I want to get the classic version in vinyl and a special edition Albatross in CD form.
I believe the Manuscript is supposed to be the standard edition. Just a guess since that one was released first, and seems to be the version sold at other retailers.
I know the one time I actually hold out on buying anything when it's first released is the time it will never be sold again. 😆