Taylor Swift to premiere new song ‘Welcome to New York’

Taylor Swift has pulled the curtain back a bit further on her forthcoming “1989” album with Tuesday’s release of a third song, “Welcome to New York.”

The album’s opening track, it’s a good indicator of the shift in perspective Swift brings to several new songs, many of which grew out of her decision to put her dating life on hiatus for a while after her split last year with One Direction heartthrob Harry Styles.

“I don’t think I’ve ever written a song like ‘Welcome to New York’,” she told the Los Angeles Times recently. “It’s about new opportunity, about running into a new challenge and adventure bright-eyed, and feeling like there are endless possibilities.”

And there’s not a boyfriend -- of the good or bad variety -- in it.

Collaborating with OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder, she wrote “Welcome to New York,” which unlocks on iTunes at midnight Tuesday, after the phrase came at her repeatedly -- sometimes sincerely, sometimes ironically -- in her many visits to the Big Apple, she said.

Her fascination with the city recently led her to plunk down a reported $20 million for a Manhattan penthouse, where she now resides part time in addition to her homes in Nashville, Rhode Island and Beverly Hills.

She’ll be back in her Southland neighborhood Thursday for an outdoor concert in Hollywood as part of her pre-release media blitz this week for “1989.” Hollywood Boulevard will be shut down for her performance.

Calendar will have a full profile on Swift and the new album in Sunday’s edition of the Arts & Books section. Watch the video of Swift discussing “Welcome to New York” above.

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