Did Taylor Swift influence the new iPhone color? Fans seem to think so.
UPDATE: Sep. 12, 2025, 10:57 a.m. At the time of publication, we noted that there was no history of collaboration between Swift and Apple. As of Sept. 10, a collaboration between Swift and Apple seems to be on the horizon, according to the iTunes X account. We've updated this story with the latest details.
What does it say about my brain that my first thought upon seeing the new iPhone 17 Pro was — is that Life of a Showgirl orange? Whatever brain cell triggered that thought is one I share with the rest of the internet. Is it a coincidence that of the three new iPhone 17 Pro colors, one of them is the same shade of orange that Taylor Swift is claiming for her latest album?
On Sept. 9, Apple released its latest iPhone lineup, including the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro. The internet's first reaction to the new iPhones? They're ugly. But the second was to make the connection between The Life of a Showgirl and its orange era with the new iPhone 17 Pro in Cosmic Orange.
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Some online are saying the new iPhone 17 Pro is "so Taylor-coded." On TikTok, user @shreyakolluri noted that Apple must have a Swiftie iPhone designer because the color lines up too perfectly with the orange hue of Swift's new album. However, others don't see it. In reply to ThePopTingz's tweet, one user asked, "What's the connection of Taylor Swift's album to the Apple event?"
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Some sleuthing Swifties went so far as to point out that Swift's albums often coincide with Apple's iPhone drops, and iPhones have a history of falling into Swift's color palettes.
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But is there actually a connection between Apple and Swift? Possibly. On Sept. 10, the iTunes account tweeted for the first time since 2019...about The Life of a Showgirl. The music platform's first post on X in six years served as an announcement to preorder Swift's latest album on iTunes, which includes exclusive content that offers a peek behind the curtain of the project.
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The iTunes X account has been overhauled to feature Swift's The Life of a Showgirl imagery front and center, with editing applied to both their profile and header image. Not to mention, included in iTunes' limited follower account — Taylor Swift made the cut.
This apparent collaboration between Swift and Apple comes 10 years after a clash between the two. In 2015, Swift took to Tumblr to pen an open letter to Apple about why she wouldn't be releasing her album 1989 on their platform. Her decision was made after Apple offered a free three-month trial of Apple Music to new subscribers and said that during this period, they would not be paying royalties to artists and producers. That letter resulted in Apple reversing its decision and paying artists.
While Swift and Apple seem to have mended their past disagreements, there still does not appear to be a direct correlation between Swift and the new Cosmic Orange iPhone 17 Pro. For The Life of a Showgirl, Apple is not the only brand Swift is collaborating with, as Target is offering three exclusive CD albums for the release.
But it's no surprise that Swifties raised a brow at the color-coordinated coincidence. Swift is known for her pre-album rollouts, which usually involve a whirlwind of easter eggs and brand collabs. Since the announcement of her forthcoming album, The Life of a Showgirl, on her fiancé Travis Kelce's podcast New Heights, which he hosts with his brother Jason Kelce, fans have been speculating what's to come in this era. What is confirmed? Orange is the signature color for The Life of a Showgirl.
On the New Heights podcast, Jason asked Swift why she picked orange for this album, to which she replied that it "feels like, kind of energetically, how my life has felt. And this album is about what was going on behind the scenes in my inner life during this tour, which was so exuberant and electric and vibrant.”
And while Apple didn't provide any background on why they chose Cosmic Orange for their latest iPhone, it's good timing on their part. Orange is on the rise.
If you preorder the iPhone 17 Pro now, it will arrive in time for The Life of a Showgirl, which releases on Oct. 3.
Topics Apple Music Taylor Swift
Boston-based Shopping Reporter, Samantha Mangino, covers all things tech at Mashable, rounding up the best products and deals. She’s covered commerce for three years, spending extensive time testing and reviewing all things home, including couches, steam irons, and washing machines. She thoroughly vets products and internet trends, finding out if those cozy gamer chairs are really as comfortable as TikTok claims.
