Taylor Swift Adds “Patient Zero,” “Cleveland!” and Two More Songs to Showgirl With The Encore

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Taylor Swift is getting her own encore. On Friday (Sept. 25), she released The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore, a new edition of last year's The Life of a Showgirl that adds four songs: “Patient Zero,” “Cleveland!,” “Pink Clouding” and “Babylon.” She announced the project only two days earlier, a day after revealing “Patient Zero” on its own.

The origin story is gratitude. Swift said she took a trip to Sweden to celebrate with her collaborators Max Martin and Shellback after the album's record debut, and the celebration turned into sessions. Pitchfork reproduced her note, as did Billboard.

What the new songs are

Rolling Stone's staff broke down the quartet. “Patient Zero” is the hook: a synth-pop beat with a mandolin line that recalls “Anti-Hero,” written, Swift told Capital FM, “from the perspective and the side of the phone call of the ex who’s been through it before.” “Cleveland!” is a celebration of the hometown of her husband, Travis Kelce, “Pink Clouding” is *Midnights*-coded, and “Babylon” leans toward Folklore and Evermore. Rolling Stone notes that fans are divided on the bonus tracks. The “Patient Zero” video, which stars Swift, Colin Farrell and Dakota Johnson, was held back for Sunday's VMAs.

Why it matters

Swift is extending a record-setting launch. The Life of a Showgirl debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 4.002 million album-equivalent units, spent 12 weeks at No. 1 and produced two Hot 100 No. 1s, “The Fate of Ophelia” and “Opalite,” per Billboard. “Encore” is the latest of several redux versions, after the So Glamorous Cabaret Version and the So Punk on the Internet Version, which Pitchfork lists. The set now runs to 16 tracks, with Sabrina Carpenter on the title song and the four new tracks closing it out.

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It also sets up a big Sunday. Swift is set to receive the first-ever VMA Artist Director Honors, is nominated for 11 awards and gets the video premiere for “Patient Zero.” (Here is how that night went.) Pitchfork adds that she has been inducted into both the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the National Recording Registry this year and released “I Knew It, I Knew You” for Toy Story 5.

What's next: the chart. “Patient Zero” went on to debut at No. 1 the following week, ending Ella Langley's record run.

Added to the High Grailed archive on October 12, 2026.