Taylor Swift attends the Songwriters Hall of Fame awards gala in June.

Swifties were right: Taylor Swift was teasing something. The "Fate of Ophelia" pop star announced on Tuesday that she's releasing a new single, called "Patient Zero," out this Friday.

"I've been impatiently waiting to tell you that my brand new single 'Patient Zero' will be out on September 25 (!!!!!!!!!!!!) and it's available to pre-order now on my website for 24 hours.," she wrote in an Instagram post.

The announcement came after Swifties noticed a peculiar change to the pop star's Instagram and X accounts early Tuesday morning. The "Opalite" hitmaker seemed to use zeros instead of O's for the lyric in her bio, "And, baby, that's sh0w business f0r y0u." The same exchange of O's for 0's was made in "The Life of a Showgirl" lyrics on Apple Music.

Three collector's edition CDs of the single are available for preorder on Swift's website, including a double-sided cover, "Patient Zero (Acoustic Version)" and "Patient Zero (Piano Version)," for one day only.

For Swifties, this announcement doesn't come as a total surprise. Fans suspected that Swift was gearing up to share some major news after her cameo in Mariska Hargitay's Law & Order: Special Victims Unit sketch, which played during the Emmys on Sept. 14. In the sketch, a crime board seemingly filled with Easter eggs can be seen. At one point, Swift looks directly into the camera before saying four seemingly random words and phrases: "Saccharide, Aries, From the Vineyard, North or South."

Of course, Swifties are no strangers to their favorite pop star's penchant for hidden messages and playful Easter eggs. It wasn't long until the speculation hit a fever pitch online. What could these words possibly mean? Well, the leading theory is they comprise an anagram revealing the release date of Swift's version of her self-titled debut album, affectionately referred to by fans as Debut TV.

Should the anagram theory hold any weight, Taylor Swift (Taylor's Version) will be released on Tuesday, Nov. 10. The original album, X users have noted, was also released on a Tuesday. It seems worth mentioning that "Patient Zero" was announced on a Tuesday too.

How "Patient Zero" factors into the rerelease of Swift's debut album remains to be seen. Swift's "Opalite" music video famously featured three 0's. The angel number 000 is also believed to represent a spiritual reset and infinite potential. Swifties also found a Los Angeles Times article, in which the pop star is described as "patient zero for emotional contagion."

Fans have pointed out, however, the possible intention behind her swapping O's for 0's. The three 0's could represent three separate announcements.

The upcoming release of "Patient Zero" and Taylor Swift (Taylor's Version) are, by that logic, merely the first two of three total updates from the singer. The third announcement, fans have speculated, could be the release of a deluxe version of The Life of a Showgirl or the highly anticipated release of Reputation (Taylor's Version). Other fans believe "Patient Zero" could just be a jumping off point for three bigger, more drawn out announcements to come — that the track itself isn't actually one of the three surprises.

Source