Taylor Swift new album 2017: When is the release date? What will it sound like?

The popstar has gone quiet in recent months, which is allegedly as she returns to the recording studio.

Her last record, 2014’s 1989, was a phenomenal success and sold around 9.5 million copies worldwide – her best-seller to date.

It also spawned three US Number One singles – Shake It Off, Blank Space and Bad Blood – as well as the likes of Style, Wildest Dreams and Out of the Woods.

In December, she also released I Don’t Wanna Live Forever with Zayn, lifted from Fifty Shades Darker.

Last week, a piece in Us Magazine claimed the next effort will definitely be out this year.

“Taylor’s been quietly recording new music for a couple of months,” a source told the publication.

“She hasn’t been in any of the bigger studios in Nashville, New York, L.A. or London.”

So what will it sound like?

“She’s continuing down the pop route,” another insider said, referencing her recent steer away from her country roots.

Taylor suffered backlash over recent years, hand-in-hand with her soaring sales figures.

Her relationships and break-ups with Calvin Harris and Tom Hiddleston turned heads, and she was also embroiled in a high-profile feud with both Kanye West and Kim Kardashian-West.

As for its release date, it seems the autumn is most likely.

That would also fit in with her previous albums, which were all released around that time of year – to great success.

The bar for its quality and sales figures will be exceptionally high – so can Taylor meet it?

In the meantime, her ex-boyfriend Harry Styles recently squirmed live on-air when DJ Nick Grimshaw said a new song of his was about her.