The singer’s latest release, The Life of a Showgirl, arrived today, October 3, 2025, once again blending her private world with the soundtracks of her career.
With more than 15 years in the industry and over 200 songs to her name, Taylor Swift has long drawn on her life as inspiration – particularly her relationships, from Joe Jonas to her current fiancé, Travis Kelce.
Taylor Swift’s songs inspired by her ex-boyfriends
Joe Jonas
Swift and Jonas dated briefly in the summer of 2008. The romance remains infamous because she later revealed on The Ellen DeGeneres Show that he ended things with a 25-second phone call.
Fans link songs such as Forever & Always, Better Than Revenge, Last Kiss, Holy Ground, You All Over Me and Mr. Perfectly Fine to their short-lived relationship.
Taylor Lautner
The Twilight star and Swift dated from October to December 2009. The song Back to December, from Speak Now (2010), is widely thought to be about him.
John Mayer
Swift dated Mayer from late 2009 to early 2010, when she was 19 and he was 32. The age gap and the fallout made headlines. Dear John from Speak Now and The Story of Us are considered references to their time together.
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Jake Gyllenhaal
One of Swift’s most scrutinized relationships came with Gyllenhaal, nearly a decade her senior. They dated on and off from October 2010 to early 2011. Fans believe several songs from Red (2012) – including We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together, State of Grace, The Moment I Knew and All Too Well – chronicle the breakup.
Conor Kennedy
In the summer of 2012, Swift briefly dated Kennedy family member Conor. Many listeners connect Begin Again from Red to the start of that relationship.
Harry Styles
Swift and Styles were together from October 2012 to January 2013. After their split, fans have tied a long list of tracks to him, including Out of the Woods, Style, Two Ghosts, Say Don’t Go, Is It Over Now?, Now That We Don’t Talk, I Know Places, Wildest Dreams, Perfect, Clean and Wonderland.
Calvin Harris
Her relationship with DJ Calvin Harris (real name Adam Wiles) lasted 15 months between 2015 and March 2016. Some Swifties believe Bejeweled and High Infidelity reference him.
Tom Hiddleston
Their brief 2016 romance was as memorable as Hiddleston’s “I ♥ TS” T-shirt. The track Getaway Car from Reputation (2017) is seen as a nod to their fling, while others speculate Cruel Summer, False God and Afterglow may also reference him.
Joe Alwyn
Swift’s longest relationship to date began in 2016 with the British actor and ended in April 2023. Reports pointed to differences in personality and his discomfort with her global fame.
Possible songs about him include End Game, Delicate, Lover, I Think He Knows, Paper Rings, Cornelia Street, London Boy, Daylight, Invisible String, Long Story Short, Mastermind, My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys, So Long, London, I Can Do It With a Broken Heart and The Prophecy.
Matty Healy
After Alwyn, Swift briefly dated The 1975 frontman. Fans believe The Tortured Poets Department holds nods to him in songs like But Daddy I Love Him, Fresh Out the Slammer, Guilty as Sin?, I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can), The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived and The Black Dog.
Travis Kelce
Swift went public with the Kansas City Chiefs star in September 2023, though she later told TIME they had started dating weeks earlier after his playful mention of her on his podcast.
“We started hanging out right after that. So we actually had a significant amount of time that no one knew, which I’m grateful for,” she said in her Person of the Year interview.
Songs thought to be about Kelce include The Alchemy, Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus and So High School. And then dropped The Life of a Showgirl… with this particular gem of a track for her gridiron lover.
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