Famous Songs Taylor Swift Has Written About Her Exes

Country pop sweetheart Taylor Swift has earned quite the tag for writing numerous tracks about her past boyfriends. Having been in and out of at least 12 relationships, the singer seems to know her stuff around short-lived romance and freely captures them all in her awesome break-up songs. Wondering which of Taylor’s songs is about her exes? Check out the list below for her most notable ex-inspired tracks.

Back to December

This track is widely speculated to be about Taylor Lautner whom Swift dated from August 2009 to December 2009. In Back to December, she seemed to have offered an apology to an ex possibly after dumping him on the said night. References to his sweet smile and tan skin as well as the fact that the song was released shortly after they co-starred in Valentine’s Day make it all the more likely that it was about Lautner.

I Knew You Were Trouble

If there’s a track that is clearly about one of her high-profile exes, then this is it. I Knew You Were Trouble was undeniably written about her brief, rocky affair with One Direction star, Harry Styles. Especially since Taylor, after performing the track at the Grammys while mocking his British accent said that it was easy for her to perform it with the right emotion because the person the song was aimed at was standing close by the stage, watching. The song was written a few months after they ended their fling in April 2012. Following their rumored breakup, Swift actually tweeted a line from the track: “..til you put me down”, as a subtle way of letting her fans know they were through. She would after two years write “Out of the Woods” about this same ex, referencing their snowmobile accident and December romance.

Look what You Made Me Do

It’s hard to deny that Look What You Made Me Do was penned about one of Taylor’s longest running relationships with Calvin Harris. The two dated from February 2015 to June 2016 but when it ended, Swift captured its demise in this track. In the music video, she crawls out of a cemetery near a gravestone which reads “Nils Sjoberg”, the pseudonym Harris used to reference Swift on his collaboration with Rihanna titled This Is What You Came For. Apart from Harris, this track also references her breakup with actor Tom Hiddleston whom she dated briefly from June 2016 to September 2016. There’s a scene in the music video where a group of male dancers are clad in shirts with the caption “I <3 TS”; a very clear reference to the white shirt Tom wore while spending a fourth of July weekend with Taylor’s squad while they were dating.

The Last Time

Taylor and Jake Gyllenhaal dated from October 2010 to January 2011 hence it’s no wonder that the singer penned different songs referencing him. For this track, she explained to NPR that it was about her experience with an unreliable guy who you’re not really certain about when he’ll leave or come back, yet he always comes back. Considering Jake’s acting career which takes him all around the globe and his plethora of other beautiful female choices, particularly Anna Kendrick and Rachel Bilson, it’s not far-fetched to imagine that Taylor sang about this very trait.

All Too Well

All Too Well is another track which references her affair with actor Jake Gyllenhaal. In some parts of the lyrics, you will find the singer talking about a scarf she left at Jake’s sister Maggie’s house.

Begin Again

Taylor herself revealed that this single was about finally dusting yourself off after going through a very bad relationship. Coincidentally, Taylor had just broken up with Conor Kennedy who she had dated between July and October 2012 when she was 22 and Conor was 18.

Dear John

Just by looking at the title of this song, one can tell which ex Taylor sang about in this track. John Mayer started a sweet relationship with Taylor in December 2009; however, their affair ended sourly in February 2010. The song captures her emotions at the time as she talks about their age difference and how she was too young for him to ‘mess’ with her.

Better than Revenge

In Better than Revenge, Swift later confessed that by mentioning lyrics about vintage dresses and actresses, she was referring to how actress Camilla Belle had interfered in her relationship with ex-boyfriend Joe Jonas.

Picture to Burn

Picture to Burn from her debut self-titled album is most likely about her ex Jordan Alford. Although the artist’s fans do not know much about Jordan, the singer’s former classmates after viewing the track’s music video have confirmed several references to the pair’s past relationship.

Forever & Always

Joe Jonas and Taylor Swift were together from July 2008 till October 2008 when he is said to have broken up with the country star over a 27-second call. This track was penned shortly after the breakup featuring lines about gazing at her phone.

Holy Ground

Holy Ground features lyrics which talk about New York. Since Joe Jonas was the only New Yorker Taylor had dated at the time, it is safe to conclude that the track was about him. Unlike two other songs that were written about Joe, this track had a more positive outlook where she had gotten over him and was reflecting on the things she enjoyed about their time together.

Should’ve Said No

This song was mainly about Swift’s high school boyfriend named Sam Armstrong, who she dumped because she discovered he had cheated on her.

Teardrops on my Guitar

In this song, Taylor boldly mentions the name of her high school crush Drew Hardwick, whom this song clearly references.

We are never ever getting Back Together

Just a glance at this titular phrase should tell you that Swift was referring to an ex, and fans have settled on Jake Gyllenhaal for inspiring it. As seen in the lyrics, the singer talks about Jake’s love of indie bands, and also features a scarf identical to one she wore on a date with him in the track’s music video.