It's a rite of passage to listen to Taylor Swift after experiencing terrible heartbreak. The country-pop singer is the queen of crafting...
It's a rite of passage to listen to Taylor Swift after experiencing terrible heartbreak. The country-pop singer is the queen of crafting the most relatable hits that can get us through the most horrific breakups imaginable. But while her breakup songs are incredibly healing for the general public, they can occasionally be to the detriment of some of her past romantic partners. Some of Swift's most popular songs are about her ex-boyfriends. And although Swifties love to speculate over who the pop star is crooning about in any given track, Swift is adamant about not giving this information away. "I never disclose who my songs are about," she told Glamour back in 2012.
Still, fans are quick to speculate. It sometimes changes the way Swifties perceive her former partners, whether that's for better or (more often than not) for worse. Some of her ex-boyfriends have even received a swarm of hate from her fans based purely on the assumption that certain unflattering song lyrics are written about them. But from Swift's point of view, her exes sort of have it coming to them for dating a songwriter in the first place. As she told New York Magazine (via Vulture), "I heard from the guy that most of 'Red' is about. He was like, 'I just listened to the album, and that was a really bittersweet experience for me. It was like going through a photo album.'"
With that being said, what exactly have all of the Grammy winner's exes said about the songstress following their breakups?
Lucas Till
Remember Lucas Till? He was the country heartthrob of 2009, best known for his role in "The Hannah Montana Movie" and Taylor Swift's award-winning "You Belong With Me" music video. In the iconic video, Till and Swift star as best friends who are secretly in love. But as is the case for any good romance story, a central conflict is keeping them from being together — that conflict being that Till is already in a relationship with someone else. But in real life, Till and Swift's lack of conflict with one another seems to be what drew them apart. From Till's perspective, their relationship was simply too, well, friendly. And often times when you're a teenager, that "Romeo & Juliet" passion is more valuable than a stable, healthy dynamic.
He explained his reasoning for cutting ties with the pop star in 2009. "We dated for a little bit," Till spilled to MTV News. "But there was no friction because we were too nice. We just really both liked each other, [but] most relationships work out 'cause you get along and then you don't, and then you make up and it's passionate, and with us, I really just liked her as a friend. That's the only reason that [it] didn't work out."
Joe Jonas
Back in 2008, you couldn't stumble upon a single teeny-bopper magazine without seeing either Joe Jonas or Taylor Swift plastered to the cover. So when word spread that the country-pop star and the member of the Jonas Brothers were in a romantic relationship, it felt as though two worlds were colliding. The high-profile duo only dated for a handful of months back in 2008. But despite the short-lived nature of the romance, their breakup ended up becoming headline-worthy news. Shortly after their split, Swift famously admitted on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" that Jonas dumped her over the phone. If it wasn't already bad enough that the "Sucker" singer couldn't even end the relationship in person, according to Swift, the phone call lasted less than 30 seconds.
Although it wasn't the kindest way to end things, Swift admits that her ex-beau didn't deserve the public shame that she thrust upon him following the split. Not only did she call him out on "Ellen," but she also wrote an entire song about the breakup, called "Forever & Always," that paints Jonas in a bad light. Now, Swift regrets how she reacted to the situation. "That was too much," she reflected when she returned to "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" a full decade later. To further prove they are on good terms, Jonas sat down with Entertainment Tonight in 2019 to emphasize that it's all water under the bridge. He said, "I've moved on. I'm sure Taylor's moved on. ... We're all friends. It's all good."
Taylor Lautner
Middle schoolers across the nation rightfully lost their minds in 2009 when Taylor Lautner and Taylor Swift became an official couple. Hearts melted at the thought of the "Twilight" heartthrob and the "You Belong With Me" singer becoming a romantic pair, and it wasn't just because they share the same first name. The pair got close while playing a couple in the 2010 rom-com "Valentine's Day," but their chemistry in the film clearly continued off-screen, as well. Not long after shooting wrapped up, the two famous Taylors started dating. But according to Swift's recollection of things, the "Twilight" star was more smitten with her than vice versa. She came out with the song "Back to December" in 2009, which had lyrics that the whole world speculated were about her former costar. The track has Swift apologizing to Lautner while admitting to taking him for granted throughout their relationship.
"You gave me roses and I left them there to die," she sings, followed by, "So this is me swallowing my pride standing in front of you saying I'm sorry for that night / And I go back to December all the time."
In 2016, Lautner confirmed during a "Scream Queens" press tour that the song is, in fact, about him. But it looks as though the chain is no longer on his door, because he looks back at his time with Swift fondly. "That's what she does. She writes songs," he said, before simply calling the tune "beautiful" in the video.
John Mayer
Middle schoolers across the nation rightfully lost their minds in 2009 when Taylor Lautner and Taylor Swift became an official couple. Hearts melted at the thought of the "Twilight" heartthrob and the "You Belong With Me" singer becoming a romantic pair, and it wasn't just because they share the same first name. The pair got close while playing a couple in the 2010 rom-com "Valentine's Day," but their chemistry in the film clearly continued off-screen, as well. Not long after shooting wrapped up, the two famous Taylors started dating. But according to Swift's recollection of things, the "Twilight" star was more smitten with her than vice versa. She came out with the song "Back to December" in 2009, which had lyrics that the whole world speculated were about her former costar. The track has Swift apologizing to Lautner while admitting to taking him for granted throughout their relationship.
"You gave me roses and I left them there to die," she sings, followed by, "So this is me swallowing my pride standing in front of you saying I'm sorry for that night / And I go back to December all the time."
In 2016, Lautner confirmed during a "Scream Queens" press tour that the song is, in fact, about him. But it looks as though the chain is no longer on his door, because he looks back at his time with Swift fondly. "That's what she does. She writes songs," he said, before simply calling the tune "beautiful" in the video.
John Mayer
John Mayer and Taylor Swift were romantically linked when the "Lover" singer was only 19 years old. In Swift's song "Dear John," which is allegedly written about Mayer, she doesn't paint him in the best light. In fact, she depicts the musician as a tumultuous boyfriend who took advantage of the fact that she was significantly younger than him. (Mayer was 32 at the time, making him 13 years her senior). While most of Swift's songs are a lot more ambiguous regarding who she's singing about, "Dear John" literally uses her ex's name in the title. With lyrics like, "Dear John, I see it all now that you're gone / Don't you think I was too young to be messed with?" fans were quick to assume it was about Mayer.
But unlike Taylor Lautner, who found Swift's breakup song about him to be beautiful, Mayer had a completely different reaction to his ex writing lyrics about him. "It made me feel terrible, because I didn't deserve it ... and I never did anything to deserve that," the "Neon" singer told Rolling Stone back in 2012. "It was a really lousy thing for her to do." He added, "I was really caught off-guard, and it really humiliated me."
But apparently, the drama between the ex-lovers refuses to die down. According to a 2021 Paper magazine article, Mayer has allegedly received constant death threats from Swift's diehard fans, to which Mayer has responded. He reportedly asked one Swiftie, "Do you really hope that I die?"
Jake Gyllenhaal
Taylor Swift has built a name for herself in part by writing emotional tracks about her ex-partners. Yet it's arguable that her most passionate and heartfelt songs are dedicated to Jake Gyllenhaal, whom she dated in the fall of 2010. Her songs "All Too Well" and "We Are Never Getting Back Together" from her "Red" album are allegedly written about Gyllenhaal, and they don't exactly paint him in the best light. But despite everything, Gyllenhaal still spoke highly of Swift long after their breakup, saying on "The Howard Stern Show" back in 2015, "She is a beautiful girl."
But things didn't end there. In 2022, when Swift released her own version of the "Red" album called "Taylor's Version," a lot of the artist's fans were quick to attack Gyllenhaal for breaking Swift's heart all those years ago. In an interview with Esquire, Gyllenhaal commented on the whole situation. He said that although Swift has the right to artistic expression and that she can sing about whatever she wants, he also believes she has a responsibility to ensure her fans do not attack him online (which they allegedly have in swarms). As he told the magazine in 2022, "There's anger and divisiveness, and it's literally life-threatening in the extreme."
Tom Hiddleston
Tom Hiddleston and Taylor Swift had a brief romance in 2015. Although they only dated for approximately three months, Hiddleston, who appeared in "The Avengers," seemed entirely smitten with Swift. He was even caught wearing a bejeweled "I Heart T.S" shirt while with his former partner, proclaiming his love for the whole world to see.
And despite Swift being the one to break Hiddleston's heart by calling it quits, the "Loki" actor has nothing but kind things to say about his ex. When he was interviewed by GQ in 2017, he gushed about Swift, saying, "Taylor is an amazing woman. She's generous and kind and lovely, and we had the best time." Yet not everyone was 100% convinced that the couple was authentic, with some assuming their entire relationship was a publicity stunt, per the Los Angeles Times. Hiddleston was quick to deny this conspiracy, telling GQ, "Of course, it was real."
The song that Swift had allegedly written about the Marvel actor is her hit, "Getaway Car," from the album "Reputation."
Calvin Harris
Fans seemed a bit shocked when Taylor Swift and Calvin Harris began dating, as their respective music genres are so different. Harris is an EDM DJ, while Swift is a pop icon. But apparently, opposites attract, because Harris and Swift made it work for over a year together. The couple lasted for a total of 15 months. But as sources report, Harris was the one to call it off with Swift due to one allegedly shocking reason. "[Harris] said on multiple occasions that he was intimidated by Taylor," an insider close to the "Wildest Dreams" singer revealed to People.
Despite the fact that Harris and Swift's relationship lasted for over a year, it was their breakup that ended up making more headlines than their actual time spent together as a couple. At first, the ex-partners seemed supportive of each other following their split. But when Swift got credit for Harris' song, "This is What You Came For," things began to get ugly. In 2016, Harris blasted Swift and her team for allegedly lying about the fact that she wrote and produced the song rather than him. He said in a now-deleted tweet that it was "hurtful to me at this point that her and her team would go so far out of their way to try and make ME look bad at this stage though." Meanwhile, TMZ reported that Swift had, in fact, co-written the song with her former beau.
Harry Styles
Although Taylor Swift and Harry Styles only dated for roughly three months, many Swifties are quick to regard the "Watermelon Sugar" singer as the one that got away. They may not have dated for very long, but their romance clearly had a big impact on Swift, who allegedly ended up dedicating several songs to Styles. Most of the songs off of her 2014 album, "1989," were said to have been written about the former One Direction frontman, including "Out of the Woods," "This Love," and, unsurprisingly, "Style." Meanwhile, Styles is rumored to have written the 1D song "Perfect" about Swift.
But how does Styles feel about Swift writing several songs about him? According to the "As It Was" hitmaker, he is honored. He said on "The Howard Stern Show," "I think about what it means to me to write a song about somebody else, and for someone else to do that, I think it's flattering. Even if the song isn't that flattering, you still spend time on it, and ultimately, using Taylor as an example, she's a great songwriter."
Fortunately, it seems that Swift is on good terms with some of her past lovers, regardless of how much the breakups may have stung at the time. And she would go on to happily share a six-year relationship with the "Conversations with Friends" actor Joe Alwyn.
Joe Alwyn
Taylor Swift met her longtime romantic partner, Joe Alwyn, at the 2016 Met Gala. But Swift and Calvin Harris had not yet announced her breakup, and she had a whirlwind romance with Tom Hiddleston before dating Alwyn. In 2017, rumors of Swift and Alwyn's relationship started circulating, and sources said they'd been dating for a while.
Swift made a point of keeping her relationship with "The Favourite" actor out of the public eye. During an interview with British Vogue, Alwyn explained, "I'm aware people want to know about that side of things. I think we have been successfully very private, and that has now sunk in for people. But I really prefer to talk about work." However, fans got a glimpse of their love story based on some of Swift's songs that are believed to be written about him. Toward the beginning of their relationship, her album "Reputation" was released with songs like "Gorgeous," "Delicate," and "King of My Heart" presumably about the Hollywood newcomer. She'd later put out songs such as "Lover" and "Invisible String." Alwyn even tested out his own songwriting skills, collaborating with Swift on tunes like "Exile," "Betty," "Champagne Problems," and "Sweet Nothing" under the pen name William Bowery.
Despite keeping to themselves, these two seemed to enjoy a happy relationship. So, fans were shocked when ET shared the news of Swift and Alwyn splitting in 2023. Just as in their time together, the stars have kept quiet about their breakup, as of this writing. However, a source told CNN, "They simply grew apart and plan to remain friends."
