Wednesday was quite a day for Taylor Swift. First, the singer landed on the cover of TIME's 2017 Person of the Year issue with other "Silence Breakers." And then that night, Swift dropped a "Ready For It?" remix with BloodPop. But wait a minute, you may be wondering — who is BloodPop? His name has the registered symbol after it, so you might even mistakenly think it's a brand, not a person. But first things first, his real name is Michael Tucker, according to Billboard, and he's even worked with some of your other favorite artists — ranging from Justin Bieber to Lana Del Rey to Madonna.
BloodPop and Swift's collaboration is available in most of your go-to listening spots. You can find it on iTunes, Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music, TIDAL, iHeartRadio, Deezer, and Google Play. Plus, you can listen to a snippet in the clip the singer tweeted out. Granted it's only 13 seconds long (aka Swift's favorite number), but it gives you a fan of what to expect. And based on the instant reaction on social media, fans are already here for it.
Since Swift already dropped a music video for this Reputation track, it was only a matter of time before she remixed it, right?
Now, let's get back to explaining who her latest collaborator is. For any newbies, here's your intro course to BloodPop, a 27-year-old musician and songwriter.
He's Worked With J. Biebs
Tucker has worked with Bieber on the song "Friends." And guess what? He's also partially responsible for writing J. Biebs' "Sorry," aka the song that can never get out of your head, no matter how hard you try. So yes, you can thank him for that.
And he spoke highly of the singer in an interview with Billboard. BloodPop said of Bieber, "He always kind of puts his touches on everything, whether he started the writing or not." He also added,
"He just has one of those voices where you can recognize it immediately, and no matter how you feel about him, you’re like, 'Wow, that’s pleasant.' You can’t argue with it."
He Also Casually Poses With Lady Gaga
And by "casually," that really means it's impressive AF. He worked as a producer on Gaga's "Perfect Illusion," according to Rolling Stone. His résumé includes some of the biggest names in the game.
Speaking of Gaga specifically, he told Rolling Stone that he's always a big fan. As for working with her, he explained, "Gaga's sitting there with a typewriter and a guitar and writing this sh*t herself. She's never not in the room. She's never not writing. She's not at the back of the train; she's at the front, controlling the speed."
He's Undergone A Few Name Changes
In an interview with Complex, BloodPop explained his name choice and how it's evolved over the years. First, he went by Blood Diamonds when he was trying to be a game designer, but later he "became uncomfortable with insensitivity" of that name. He swapped it to Michael Diamond temporarily, but tells Complex this explanation for landing on BloodPop:
"I chose BloodPop® after 'Sorry' came out, because it was kind of a hard commitment to pop music. And I just want to be totally front-facing about pop music, and not being afraid of pop and just presenting this as 'pop is the craft.'"
Yes, There's A Reason For The Symbol After His Name
Because you know this is your number-one question, in that same Complex interview, he explained the symbol after his name. BloodPop said,
"That's a little tongue and cheek, just about commercialism of pop. It's just so upfront you know what you're getting, like it's a brand. I feel like most big artists, they might as well have a registered trademark."
Also, FYI, the trademark is still pending, he told Complex in September. While he waits, there's no doubt he's working on music with other big names. His latest remix with Swift is just the latest example.
