Taylore
Dive deep into fan theories and hidden stories about Taylor's life.
Relationships
The theme of many Taylor Swift songs surrounds love, especially romantic love
History
High School Heartbreaks
Jordan Alford: Picture to Burn
Allegedly, the pair dated when Taylor was just 14 (2003-2004), but ended after Jordan began to go out with Taylor's former friend, Chelsea.
Drew Hardwick: Teardrops On My Guitar
Believed to be just a high school crush.
Jeff Lang: Forever Winter & Ruin the Friendship
A high school friend who passed away in 2010 at the age of 21 due to acute bronchopneumonia, an inflammation of the lungs. Methadone, used for treating opioid dependence, was reported as a probable contributing factor in his death. He had struggled with addiction and depression before his passing. Lang was a close childhood friend of Taylor Swift, who sang at his funeral.
Stephen Barker Liles: Hey, Stephen
Part of country music duo Love And Theft, who were an opening act on her Fearless Tour in 2008. The song's hidden message in the album booklet was "Love And Theft," confirming his identity.
Learning Love
Joe Jonas: July - October 2008
On Ellen, Taylor said, "Someday, I’m gonna find somebody really, really, really great, who’s right for me. When I find that person that is right for me, he’ll be wonderful, and when I look at that person, I’m not even gonna be able to remember the boy who broke up with me over the phone in 25 seconds when I was 18," referring to Joe Jonas.
Interestingly, Taylor later developed a relationship with Joe's now ex-wife, Sophie Turner. In Taylor's 2020 "invisible string" on her folklore album, she sings, "cold was the steel of my axe to grind for the boys who broke my heart, now I buy their babies presents." Taylor revealed, "I remember, I wrote it right after I sent an ex a baby gift. I was just like, 'Man, life is great. This is a full signifier that life is great,'" referring to Joe Jonas, whose baby came two days before folklore was released!
In 2023, Taylor opened her NYC apartment to Sophie Turner and her children amid the couple's split. Turner told British Vogue, "Taylor was an absolute hero to me this year. I've never been more grateful to anyone than I am to her because she took my children and me and provided us with a home and safe space. She really has a heart of gold."
Lucas Till: March - April 2009
Lucas and Taylor began their short fling after working together in Hannah Montana: The Movie and the "You Belong With Me" music video. Lucas shared, "We dated for a little bit. But there was no friction because we were too nice."
Taylor Lautner: October - December 2009
After working together in the rom-com Valentine's Day, the pair tried romance for real, and Swift even called out Lautner in her monologue song at SNL. Although their romance fizzled out, they remained close friends. Swift brought Lautner out on the Era Tour for the release of the music video "I Can See You," starring her former lover.
John Mayer: December 2009 - February 2010
John Mayer tweeted that he wanted to collaborate with Taylor in March 2009, which led to the "Half of My Heart" release in November. Taylor brought out John on her Fearless tour in LA, and then performed together at the Z100's Jingle Ball in December. While their romance fizzled out in February, John honored Taylor at the Songwriters Hall of Fame Ceremony in June 2010; Taylor thanked him with a hug and kiss on the cheek.
Cory Monteith: Spring 2010 (rumored)
Taylor and Cory were photographed together at a Grammys party and were later seen together at a Hollywood bowling alley. While both have denied dating, fans speculate that "Mine" is written about Cory. Taylor on the song, "It's been sort of a recent tendency, and I think it's because, for me, every really direct example of love that I've had in front of me has ended in goodbye and ended in break-up and things like that. So I've developed this pattern of running away when it comes time to fall in love and stay in a relationship. The song is sort of about finding the exception to that and finding someone who would make you believe in love and realize that it could work out, because I'm never ever going to go past hoping that love works out." In a Rolling Stone interview, she admitted, "I was reflecting back on a boy I liked at a certain time. The song is about what it would be like if I actually let my guard down."
Jake Gyllenhaal: October - December 2010
Gwyneth Paltrow set Jake and Taylor up, inviting them to a dinner party at her home in London; she has never revealed the date of this matchmaking evening. They were first spotted together backstage at an SNL taping in October, but was rumored to have ended in December.
Chord Overstreet: February 2011 (rumored)
Taylor and Chord were spotted together at a hockey game, but they never revealed the relationship to be anything beyond friendship.
Connor Kennedy: July - October 2012
The pair allegedly began dating shortly after meeting at a 4th of July party. During this period, Taylor even bought a house near the Kennedy family compound. The fling ended on good terms, and Taylor sold the Hyannis Port home in March 2013. Taylor's fascination with the Kennedys began before meeting Connor. According to her 2011 profile in the New Yorker, she immersed herself in their history, watching documentaries or reading biographies like The Kennedy Women. She attended events hosted by the Kennedys, met matriarch Ethel Kennedy, and is rumored to have drawn inspiration for her song "Starlight" from the family.
Harry Styles: November 2012 - January 2013
The two first crossed paths at the 2012 Kids' Choice Awards in March, but things didn't take off until November of that year, when Taylor was spotted wearing his silver paper plane necklace. Later, they were seen strolling through Central Park and shared a midnight kiss in Times Square following Taylor's performance on Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin Eve With Ryan Seacrest. The relationship soured when the couple took a trip to the British Virgin Islands. They reportedly got into a fight, which resulted in Taylor leaving early, alone on a boat. However, the two seem to have remained friendly over the years as Taylor celebrated his win at the 2023 Grammys.
Calvin Harris: March 2015 - May 2016
Friend Ellie Goulding introduced Taylor to Calvin at the Elle Style Awards in February. At the Billboard Music Awards a month later, they made their relationship debut with a public kiss. They celebrated their one-year anniversary with a tropical getaway in March 2016. At the end, they called it quits, and things got a bit messy. Calvin posted a string of aggressive tweets directed at Taylor after the media reported she wrote his smash single, "This Is What You Came For." A year later, he told British GQ he regretted his behavior.
Tom Hiddleston: May - September 2016
Tom first entered Taylor's orbit when they met at the 2016 Met Gala. In June, they were spotted kissing on a rock in Rhode Island. A month later, at her famous 4th of July party, Tom was seen wearing a "I <3 T.S." tank top. While many speculated it was a PR stunt, the actor revealed in an interview, "Taylor is an amazing woman. She's generous and kind and lovely, and we had the best time. Of course it was real." It's rumored that Taylor wrote "Getaway Car" about Tom helping her escape her relationship with Calvin Harris.
Joe Alwyn: May 2017 - April 2023
Taylor and Joe's relationship was her longest and most discreet. It's believed they first met at the 2016 Met Gala when she was still with Calvin Harris. They were both spotted at the Kings of Leon concert and after party at the NYC Bowery Hotel in October 2016, but weren't a confirmed couple until May 2017. Joe contributed to songs in folklore and evermore under the alias William Bowery.
Matty Healy: May - June 2023
Allegedly, the pair first met when Taylor attended a 1975 concert in November 2014. Later, both Taylor and Healy wore each other's tour merch. Matty reveals they exchanged numbers at his concert, but denies any romance. In February 2015, they were seen hanging together at a Universal Music Brits party. Matty fades from the limelight, but resurfaces with rumors of collaboration on her Midnights album in 2022. Matty confirmed the rumors, after initially denying them, but revealed the collaboration did not make the cut.
After Taylor's split with Joe, she and Matty reignited their past romance. During the Nashville show of the Eras tour in May 2023, Taylor mouthed, "This one is about you. You know who you are. I love you," while performing cardigan with Matty in the audience. These are the same words Matty mouthed just two days prior while performing with his band, the 1975. Mere weeks after beginning their relationship, it died out. Most songs on her TTPD album are rumored to be about him.
Travis Kelce: July 2023 - Forever
One month after Taylor's relationship with Matty ended, Travis attended the Eras Tour show in Kansas City's Arrowhead Stadium on July 8th. In his New Heights podcast on July 26th, Travis reveals he wanted to give Taylor a friendship bracelet with his number on it. He said, "I was disappointed that she doesn't talk before or after shows because she has to save her voice for the 44 songs that she sings. So I was a little butt-hurt I didn't get to hand her one of the bracelets I made for her." As revealed in "Taylor Swift: The End of an Era" docu-series, mom Andrea Swift played cupid and persuaded Taylor to give Travis a chance. Andrea had a hunch when she found out Travis loves his momma. They were confirmed a couple in September 2023 as the world got to see Taylor cheering on her man in the NFL arena all the way to his big Super Bowl win in 2024. Taylor was known to change the lyrics to her song "Karma" when Travis was in attendance: "Karma is the guy on the Chiefs, coming straight home to me." On August 12, 2025, Taylor makes her debut on the New Heights podcast in a full-circle moment where she announces her upcoming album release, "The Life of a Showgirl." Little did she know, Travis was pulling strings to transform his backyard into the perfect proposal spot. At the conclusion of the episode's recording, he led Taylor outside for the surprise of her life! Taylor Swift said yes to the love of her life, Travis Kelce, on August 10, 2025, and announced it to the world on August 26, 2025, via an Instagram post captioned, "Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married (TNT emoji)".
Soulmate Searching
Many have tried to stomp out her light, but she always comes back shining brighter
Kanye West
September 13, 2009, at the MTV VMAs, Kanye rushed the stage as Taylor was receiving best female video for "You Belong With Me." He infamously told her he would let her finish, "but Beyonce had the best video of all time." The next day, Kanye indirectly apologizes on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, saying, "It's someone's emotions that I stepped on. It was rude. Period."
November 7, 2009, Taylor has the last laugh as she references the mishap in her "Monologue Song" when she hosted SNL.
September 12, 2010, Taylor performs "Innocent" from her Speak Now album at the VMAs, which is largely believed to be able Kanye.
In March 2012, Taylor appeared on the cover of Bazaar wearing a shift from Kanye's clothing label, suggesting their mended relationship.
At the February 2015 Grammys, Taylor and Kanye were seen very smiley and having a conversation. No bad blood at the moment!
Taylor reveals in an August 2015 Vanity Fair issue how the friendship came to be: "I feel like I wasn’t ready to be friends with him until I felt like he had some sort of respect for me, and he wasn’t ready to be friends with me until he had some sort of respect for me — so it was the same issue, and we both reached the same place at the same time,” she explained. “I became friends with Jay-Z, and I think it was important for Jay-Z, for Kanye, and me to get along. … And then Kanye and I both reached a place where he would say really nice things about my music and what I’ve accomplished, and I could ask him how his kid’s doing. As for the rumored collaboration: “We haven’t planned [any collaboration] … But hey, I like him as a person. And that’s a really good, nice first step, a nice place for us to be.”
A full circle moment happened at the 2015 VMAs in August when Taylor presented Kanye with the Video Vanguard Award. She makes light of the situation as she said, "I first met Kanye West six years ago — at this show, actually! It seemed like everyone in the world knew about our infamous encounter at the VMAs. But something that you may not know is that Kanye West’s album College Dropout was the very first album my brother and I bought on iTunes when I was 12 years old. … I have been a fan of his for as long as I can remember because Kanye defines what it means to be a creative force in music, fashion, and, well, life. So I guess I have to say to all the other winners tonight: I’m really happy for you, and I’mma let you finish, but Kanye West has had one of the greatest careers of all time!”
Unfortunately, their relationship sours on February 12, 2016, with the release of Kanye's In-'Famous' song, which says, "I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex / Why? I made that bitch famous." Swift’s rep then shared this statement with Billboard at the time, “Kanye did not call for approval, but to ask Taylor to release his single ‘Famous’ on her Twitter account. She declined and cautioned him about releasing a song with such a strong misogynistic message. Taylor was never made aware of the actual lyric “I made that b—h famous.’”
In June 2016, Kim Kardashian, Kanye's then-wife, butts in to make matters worse. In a QC interview, she insists that Taylor did, in fact, approve the lyric. As a counter, Taylor's rep released the following statement: "Taylor does not hold anything against Kim Kardashian as she recognizes the pressure Kim must be under and that she is only repeating what she has been told by Kanye West. However, that does not change the fact that much of what Kim is saying is incorrect. Kanye West and Taylor only spoke once on the phone while she was on vacation with her family in January of 2016, and they have never spoken since. Taylor has never denied that the conversation took place. It was on that phone call that Kanye West also asked her to release the song on her Twitter account, which she declined to do. Kanye West never told Taylor he was going to use the term ‘that b—h’ in referencing her. A song cannot be approved if it has never been heard. Kanye West never played the song for Taylor Swift. Taylor heard it for the first time when everyone else did and was humiliated. Kim Kardashian’s claim that Taylor and her team were aware of being recorded is not true, and Taylor cannot understand why Kanye West, and now Kim Kardashian, will not just leave her alone.”
In July 2016, Kim shared a video recording of Taylor and Kanye's conversation discussing the “Famous” lyric. While the two speak about the “I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex” line, there was no footage of the “I made that b—h famous” bit. Swift appears to perceive the former as a “compliment” in the tape, but took to Twitter to explain her piece after the video leak. “Where is the video of Kanye telling me he was going to call me ‘that b—h’ in his song?” she wrote, per a screenshot of a note. “It doesn’t exist because it never happened.” She added, “While I wanted to be supportive of Kanye on the phone call, you cannot ‘approve’ a song you haven’t heard. Being falsely painted as a liar when I was never given the full story or played any part of the song is character assassination.”
After years of silence, in January 2019, Kim was on What What Happens Live when she was asked if there's still beef between her and Taylor. She replies, "Over it. I feel like we've all moved on." Oh BABE, you have no idea who you are dealing with...
In June 2019, following the news that Scooter Braun’s Ithaca Holdings agreed to acquire Scott Borchetta’s Big Machine Label Group, meaning that Braun would also own Swift’s entire catalog she released through the label, the singer-songwriter released a statement on Tumblr. In the note, she mentioned the Kimye beef specifically, noting that the news brought her back to “the incessant, manipulative bullying I’ve received at [Braun’s] hands for years.”
“Like when Kim Kardashian orchestrated an illegally recorded snippet of a phone call to be leaked, and then Scooter got his two clients together to bully me online about it,” she wrote. “Or when his client, Kanye West, organized a revenge porn music video, which strips my body naked. Now, Scooter has stripped me of my life’s work, which I wasn’t given the opportunity to buy. Essentially, my musical legacy is about to lie in the hands of someone who tried to dismantle it.”
In August 2019, Taylor released personal diary entries with her deluxe version of Lover, one from 2009 said: "Ahhh... the things that can change in a week…Let’s just say, if you had told me Kanye West would have been the number one focus of my week, the media, and my part in the VMAs I would’ve looked at you cross-eyed. If you had told me that I would win the award I was nominated for, I wouldn’t have believed you. And if you had told me that one of the biggest stars in music was going to jump up onstage and announce that he thought I shouldn’t have won on live television, I would’ve said, ‘That stuff doesn’t really happen in real life.’ Well… apparently…. It does."
In September 2019, Taylor gave Rolling Stone the full context of the feud. “The world didn’t understand the context and the events that led up to it,” she explained. “Because nothing ever just happens like that without some lead-up. Some events took place to cause me to be pissed off when he called me a b—h. That was not just a singular event. Basically, I got really sick of the dynamic between him and me. And that wasn’t just based on what happened on that phone call and with that song — it was kind of a chain reaction of things.”
She also mentioned that she thought the two “reconnected” since the 2009 incident. “When someone doesn’t respect you so loudly and says you literally don’t deserve to be here — I just so badly wanted that respect from him, and I hate that about myself, that I was like, ‘This guy who’s antagonizing me, I just want his approval.’ But that’s where I was. And so we’d go to dinner and stuff.”
Swift then said that ‘Ye called her up ahead of the 2015 VMAs to ask her to present his Video Vanguard Award. “He can be the sweetest. And I was so stoked that he asked me that. And so I wrote this speech up, and then we get to the VMAs, and I make this speech, and he screams, ‘MTV got Taylor Swift up here to present me this award for ratings!’ [His exact words: ‘You know how many times they announced Taylor was going to give me the award ’cause it got them more ratings?’] And I’m standing in the audience with my arm around his wife, and this chill ran through my body. I realized he is so two-faced. That he wants to be nice to me behind the scenes, but then he wants to look cool, get up in front of everyone and talk s–t. And I was so upset.”
Kanye then allegedly sent Swift a “big, big thing of flowers” as an apology, and the singer-songwriter decided to put their differences behind them. “So when he gets on the phone with me, and I was so touched that he would be respectful and, like, tell me about this one line in the song,” she continued. “And I was like, ‘OK, good. We’re back on good terms.’ And then when I heard the song, I was like, ‘I’m done with this. If you want to be on bad terms, let’s be on bad terms, but just be real about it.’”
In March 2020, new videos of the recorded phone call were leaked, proving Taylor's innocence. The Twitter trend #KanyeWestIsOverParty reignited the seemingly dormant feud after newly leaked videos of the phone call between West and Swift revealed she didn’t lie about giving the rapper permission to use the lyric “I made that b—h famous” in his 2016 track “Famous.”
After the Swifties took over Twitter in a rage, the pop star finally tapped the mic to speak up. On her Instagram Story, Swift addressed the new videos but quickly turned the attention to the World Health Organization and Feeding America donation pages to aid coronavirus relief efforts.
“Instead of answering those who are asking how I feel about the video footage that leaked, proving that I was telling the truth the whole time about that call (you know, the one that was illegally recorded, that somebody edited and manipulated to frame me and put me, my family, and fans through hell for 4 years)… SWIPE UP to see what really matters,” she posted, linking out to Feeding America and the World Health Organization.
Later that same night, Kim Kardashian West stepped in yet again, brewing the #KimKardashianIsOverParty storm. She crafted a long Twitter thread argument that tagged Swift’s account to directly call her out for choosing to “reignite an old exchange – that at this point in time feels very self-serving given the suffering millions of real victims are facing right now” regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. After Kardashian provoked Swift’s publicist Tree Paine by saying the “Reputation” artist used her to lie by saying West never called to ask for permission, Paine published an “unedited original statement” that read, “Kanye did not call for approval, but to ask Taylor to release his single ‘Famous’ on her Twitter account. She declined and cautioned him about releasing a song with such a strong misogynistic message. Taylor was never made aware of the actual lyric, ‘I made that b—h famous.’”
In Time's December 2023 Person of the Year cover story, Taylor reflects on the conflict between her and Kim and Kanye. “You have a fully manufactured frame job, in an illegally recorded phone call, which Kim Kardashian edited and then put out to say to everyone that I was a liar,” Swift said. “That took me down psychologically to a place I’ve never been before. I moved to a foreign country. I didn’t leave a rental house for a year. I was afraid to get on phone calls. I pushed away most people in my life because I didn’t trust anyone anymore. I went down really, really hard.” In response, Swifties flood Kim's comments with snake emojis.
On August 3, 2024, in his long-awaited and long-overdue Vultures 2 album with Ty Dolla $ign, Ye featured a lyrical reference to Swift’s romance with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, performed by Lil Wayne: “I twist my Taylor spliffs tight at the end like Travis Kelce.” Hours later, Swift wore a T-shirt during her Eras Tour performance in Warsaw that some fans interpreted as a subtle response to the quip. “I Bet You Think About Me,” the tee read.
In-depth feud history courtesy of Billboard
Scott & Scooter
In 1997, Scott Borchetta was fired from a record label executive position at MCA Nashville. Seven years later, his new employer, Dreamworks Nashville, merged with his ex-employer, MCA Nashville. While preparing for his departure with plans of starting his own record label, Borchetta received a package from an unknown 14-year-old singer. He was struck by her focus on country music as a teenager when the demographic for the genre was typically 24-54. However, with her mature looks and talented songwriting, he believed she could be something special. He invited this young lady, Taylor Swift, to perform for him in his office, accompanied by just her manager. When she played "Picture To Burn," Scott predicted it would be a hit song. Two nights later, Scott went to see Taylor perform at the famous Bluebird Cafe. With his interest thoroughly piqued, he met with her and her family a couple of days later. After a week of contemplation, Scott revealed to Taylor that he was leaving the company to start his own label. He gave her the option of introducing her to the executives at Universal Music Group (MCA is a subsidiary of UMG) to help her get signed or promised her a deal with his company if she waited. A couple of weeks later, Taylor personally called Scott to tell him she had made up her mind and she was waiting for him (watch clips here and here). In support of her decision to pursue a smaller label, her father, Scott Swift, bought a 3% stake in Big Machine Records for a reported $300,000.
Scott Borchetta - A Father Figure
Amicable Depature
Taylor and Scott parted ways in 2018 after she turned down a new contract from Big Machine Label Group and made the decision to sign with Universal Music and Republic Records.
Scooter Enters and Sours Relationship
It only took a couple of months for the diplomacy to end when Scott sold Big Machine - including Taylor's catalogue - to Scooter Braun for upwards of $300 million in 2019.
June 30, 2019: Braun's Ithaca Holdings bought Borchetta's Big Machine Label Group in a deal backed by global investment firm The Carlyle Group. Shortly after the announcement, Taylor posted a letter addressing the deal. While her father, Scott Swift, owned a small stake in Big Machine (3%) and had been invited to discuss the deal, a strict NDA caused Scott to refuse attendance. The same day, Borchetta posted a letter on The Big Machine website titled, "So, It's Time for Some Truth," outlining the events of the deal announcement and refuting Taylor's claims. Artists represented by Braun, including Demi Lovato and Justin Bieber, and Braun's then-wife, Yael Coehn (divorced in 2021), backed Braun. In Bieber's post, he apologized to Taylor for a previous post and then accused Taylor of bullying and fully supported Braun (interestingly, in the following years, these artists who defended Braun later left him and his label). Other artists, including Halsey, Todrick Hall, and Joseph Kahn, backed Taylor and communicated their sympathies.
July 2, 2019: Taylor's attorney, Don Passman, released a statement: "Scott Borchetta never gave Taylor Swift an opportunity to purchase her masters, or the label, outright with a check in the way he is now apparently doing for others." Passman almost never comments on artists' deals, so it was an unusual move for him to speak out on the case at all.
August 23, 2019: Braun tweeted his congratulations to Taylor on the release of her seventh studio album, Lover.
August 25, 2019: Like the absolute savage she is, Taylor announces on CBS This Morning that she plans to circumvent Braun's purchase of her masters by re-recording each of her six albums. She also threw shade at Borchetta, saying, "I knew he would sell my music, I knew he would do that. I couldn't believe who he sold it to. Because we've had endless conversations about Scooter Braun, and he has 300 million reasons to conveniently forget those conversations."
November 15, 2019: In a viral post across her social platforms, Taylor accused Braun and Borchetta of refusing to allow her to use any songs from her back catalog in her performance at the award show, where she was set to be honored as artist of the decade. Additionally, Swift claimed the men were denying use of her older hits in her upcoming Netflix documentary (Miss Americana), and any other recorded events she would play until November 2020 were in question. In a press release posted on The Big Machine website, they denied all accusations and said that Taylor "has admitted to contractually owing millions of dollars and multiple assets to our company." Stars such as Selena Gomez and Gigi Hadid post their sympathies and anger towards the men on their social media to show their support for Taylor. Tree Paine claps back at Big Machine, issuing a statement which doubled down on Swift's claim that Borchetta "flatly denied the request for both AMAs and Netflix" and added "Please notice in Big Machine's statement, they never actually deny either claim Taylor said last night in her post." Paine also accused Big Machine of "trying to deflect and make this about money and retaliated by maintaining that "a professional auditor has determined that Big Machine owes Taylor $7.9 million in unpaid royalties over several years."
December 11, 2019: During her Woman of the Decade interview with Billboard, Taylor said, "Every week, we get a dozen synch requests to use 'Shake It Off' in some advertisement or 'Blank Space' in some movie trailer, and we say no to every single one of them. And the reason I'm rerecording my music next year is because I do want my music to live on. I do want it to be in movies, I do want it to be in commercials. But I only want that if I own it."
December 12, 2019: While accepting the Woman of the Decade honors at Billboard's Women in Music event, Taylor touched on her feud with Braun: "Lately there’s been a new shift that has affected me personally and that I feel is a potentially harmful force in our industry, and as your resident loud person, I feel the need to bring it up. And that is the unregulated world of private equity coming in and buying up our music as if it is real estate. As if it’s an app or a shoe line. This just happened to me without my approval, consultation, or consent. After I was denied the chance to purchase my music outright, my entire catalog was sold to Scooter Braun’s Ithaca Holdings in a deal that I’m told was funded by the Soros Family, 23 Capital, and the Carlyle Group. Yet to this day none of these investors have ever bothered to contact me or my team directly. To perform their due diligence on their investment. On their investment in me. To ask how I might feel about the new owner of my art. The music I wrote. The videos I created. Photos of me, my handwriting, my album designs. And of course, Scooter never contacted me or my team to discuss it prior to the sale or even when it was announced. I’m fairly certain he knew exactly how I would feel about it though. And let me just say that the definition of the toxic male privilege in our industry is people saying, ‘But he’s always been nice to me,’ when I’m raising valid concerns about artists and their rights to own their music. And of course he’s nice to you. If you’re in this room, you have something he needs. The fact is that private equity is what enabled this man to think, according to his own social media post, that he could buy me. But I’m obviously not going willingly. Yet the most amazing thing was to discover that it would be the women in our industry who would have my back and show me the most vocal support at one of the most difficult times, and I will never, ever forget it. Like, ever.” (Watch full speech here)
April 23, 2020: Taylor informs her fans via Instagram that her former label is putting out an 'album' of live performances of hers, and this release was not approved by her.
September 18, 2020: Kanye West went on a tweeting spree and posted, "I'M GOING TO PERSONALLY SEE TO IT THAT TAYLOR SWIFT GETS HER MASTERS BACK. SCOTTER IS A CLOSE FAMILY FRIEND." ... ummm ok, Ye.
November 1, 2020: Taylor became officially free to rerecord her albums, and Swifties celebrating with hashtage #TaylorIsFree.
November 16, 2020: Shamrock Holdings purchased Big Machine Label Group's catalog from Scooter Braun's Ithaca Holdings, just a little over a year after the initial purchase. Taylor posted on Twitter that once Braun decided to sell her masters, his team had asked her to sign an NDA before she could even bid on her own work. Her legal team said that this was not normal and had never seen an NDA like that presented unless it was to silence an assault accuser by paying them off. Taylor said, "He would never even quote my team a price. These master recordings were not for sale to me."
April 9, 2021: Nearly two years after Braun purchased her masters, Taylor dropped her Fearless (Taylor's Version) album. Complete with never-before-heard Vault tracks and collaborations with other artists, the project was a massive success and ended up topping the Billboard 200 for two weeks.
November 12, 2021: Soon, Taylor followed up with the release of Red (Taylor's Version). Her "All Too Well (10 Minute Version)" set a record for the longest song to top the chart.
July 7, 2023: Taylor released her third rerelease of Speak Now (Taylor's Version), a couple of months after announcing it at the Eras Tour in Nashville.
October 27, 2023: Taylor dropped 1989 (Taylor's Version) and quickly became her most successful rerecord to date. Taylor's Version outperformed its original counterpart in first week sales.
December 6, 2023: While speaking to TIME for her 2023 Person of the Year interview, Swift said that her dispute with Braun was one of two springboards for where her career is now (the other being her feud with Kanye West and Kim Kardashian). “With the Scooter thing, my masters were being sold to someone who actively wanted them for nefarious reasons, in my opinion,” she told the publication at the time. “I was so knocked on my a– by the sale of my music, and to whom it was sold. I was like, ‘Oh, they got me beat now. This is it. I don’t know what to do.’” Swift also described the situation with Braun as “having my life’s work taken away from me by someone who hates me.” “My response to anything that happens, good or bad, is to keep making things,” she added. “Keep making art … But I’ve also learned there’s no point in actively trying to quote unquote defeat your enemies. Trash takes itself out every single time.”
May 30, 2025: At long last, Swift was able to buy back the masters to her first six albums, purchasing them from Shamrock Capital almost five years after the firm first bought them from Braun. Revealing the news in a letter on her website, the singer called it her “greatest dream come true” and noted that she felt “forever grateful” to Shamrock for how negotiations were handled. “I’m trying to gather my thoughts into something coherent, but right now my mind is just a slideshow,” she also wrote. “A flashback sequence of all the times I daydreamed about, wished for, and pined away for a chance to get to tell you this news. All the times I was thiiiiiiiis close, reaching out for it, only for it to fall through. I almost stopped thinking it could ever happen, after 20 years of having the carrot dangled and then yanked away. But that’s all in the past now."
In-depth feud history courtesy of Billboard
Katy Perry
Katy Perry and Taylor Swift had always been complementary of each other... until 2014. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Taylor said her song "Bad Blood" was about another woman in the music industry. Taylor claimed that this woman attempted to sabotage her arena tour by trying to hire a bunch of her dancers. The next day, Katy tweeted, "Watch out for the Regina George in sheep's clothing..." In 2017, Katy released her Witness album, which included her rumored diss track "Swish Swish." Later in 2017, Taylor dropped her reputation album with the track "Look What You Made Me Do" which appears to have multiple references to Katy. The line "Locked me out and threw a feast" is speculated to be connected to Perry's single "Bon Appetit." Also, the track shares a similar beat to Peaches' "Operate," which is featured in Mean Girls, the movie cited by Katy in her infamous 2014 tweet. Additionally, in the music video, Taylor is shown to be dressed very similarly to Katy. However, in May 2018, Katy sends Taylor a literal olive branch with a handwritten note. Taylor posts on her Instagram story, "I just got back to my dressing room and found this actual olive branch. This... means so much to me." In June 2019, Katy posted a picture of a place of cookies with "peace at last" written in frosting, captioning "it feels so good" while tagging Taylor. A week later, she was seen dancing and hugging it out with Taylor in the music video "You Need to Calm Down" - quashing their beef, once and for all, by literally dressing up as a burger and fries. In September 2019, Taylor spoke on the feud in her Rolling Stone cover story: "We were talking about how we've had miscommunications with people in the past, not even specifically with each other. She's like, 'I'm a Scorpio. Scorpios just strike when they feel threatened.' And I was like, 'Well, I'm an archer. We literally stand back, assess the situation, process how we feel about it, raise a bow, pull it back, and fire." A year later, in September 2020, Taylor gifted Katy and husband Orlando Bloom a baby gift for the new parents: a pastel pink silk blanket she hand-sewed with embroidery. Finally, in February 2024, Katy attended the Eras Tour, where she posted, "Got to see an old friend shine tonight" alongside a photo of her and Taylor smiling cheek to cheek. The post also featured Katy singing "You Belong With Me" and the infamous "Bad Blood." It's safe to say there is no longer any bad blood there!
In-depth feud history courtesy of eNTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
In 2013, at a meet-and-greet before a concert in Colorado, pop star Taylor Swift was posing for photos with a local disc jockey, David Mueller, when she said the man put his hand under her skirt and groped her.
Mueller was immediately escorted out of the concert venue and was banned from attending any of Swift’s performances – for life. The singer also reported the incident to the radio station Mueller worked, and the station immediately fired him.
Mueller responded two years later by filing a defamation lawsuit against the singer. He also named Swift’s mother and her manager as co-defendants in the suit, claiming that the allegations against him were false.
Swift counter-sued Mueller for assault and battery. The amount of damages she was seeking was $1; her purpose was to prove a point. And prove a point she did.
On August 14th, a jury ruled in Swift’s favor, agreeing that Mueller had assaulted her, and they awarded her $1. The jury also ruled against Mueller in his lawsuit, stating that Swift et al. were not responsible for Mueller’s firing.
In the aftermath of Swift’s lawsuit and the jury’s ruling, many sexual assault victims are feeling empowered to stand up for themselves. – which is exactly what Swift said was the reason behind her filing in the first place.
One victim’s organization, Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN), said they received a 35 percent increase in calls to their hotline in the days immediately following the verdict.
By coming forward with what happened to her, Swift let victims know that being groped is sexual assault under the law. Many victims think that if they weren’t raped, then they have no legal recourse.
This is one reason why only 44 out of every 1,000 sexual assaults are actually reported to law enforcement. College students, in particular, are especially vulnerable to this type of sexual assault.
October 2011: Donates $70,000 in books to her hometown library
In the midst of her Speak Now tour, the star donated 6,000 books to the Reading Public Library in Pennsylvania. The books were all new and geared towards children and teens, according to the local Reading Eagle.
September 2012: Ronan
Swift wrote and released the song “Ronan” in honor of a little boy of that name, whose life and struggles with fatal neuroblastoma were documented in a blog by his mother, Maya. In September of 2012, the then country star performed the song on that year’s nationally televised Stand Up 2 Cancer event and pledged all of her proceeds from the track to cancer charities.
January 2015: Offers a lucky fan some help paying for student loans
Swift spread the holiday cheer by sending personalized “Swiftmas” presents to fans all over the world. Rebekah, a college graduate who wrote via Tumblr about her student loans concerns, got a donation of $1,989 (like her 2014 album name) to help her start payments.
February 2015: Gives $50,000 in song proceeds to NYC schools
At the time, the singer just moved to New York and released the ode to her new home, the 1989 opener “Welcome to New York.” In celebration, she announced that she would donate proceeds from the single to the city’s schools.
September 2015: Gives “Wildest Dreams” video proceeds to animal foundation
In another 1989 song-related donation, Swift gave money made from her wildlife themed “Wildest Dreams” video to the African Parks Foundation of America (APFA), which focuses on eradication of poaching, nature conservation, community engagement and the development of sustainable tourism.
February 2016: Supports Kesha with $250,000
Two days after a judge ruled against the “Tik Tok” singer in a case in which she asked to record music independently of producer Dr. Luke, Swift gave money to her fellow star singer-songwriter during the “trying time.”
August 2016: Gives donation in thanks to doctors who saved Jaime King’s son’s life
“At 20 weeks our son was diagnosed with Transposition of the Great Arteries AKA TGA,” Jaime King wrote on Instagram at the time. “He had a major heart surgery, that was terrifying, and traumatic for us as parents, for our family.” She then continued to thank Swift. “As the Godmother of Leo Thames for his birthday she gave an incredible donation to the people that saved his life Dr. Allistar Phillips and his brilliant team.”
August 2016: Pledges $1 million to Louisiana flood relief
Swift pledged $1 million to Louisiana flood relief after torrential rains caused massive flooding in the state, killing at least 11 people and damaging at least 40,000 homes. “We began The 1989 World Tour in Louisiana, and the wonderful fans there made us feel completely at home. The fact that so many people in Louisiana have been forced out of their own homes this week is heartbreaking,” she said in a statement at the time.
“I encourage those who can to help out and send your love and prayers their way during this devastating time.”
August 2017: Donates to Joyful Heart Foundation for survivors of sexual assault
After winning a countersuit against a former Denver DJ who allegedly groped her in 2013, she gave back by making a “generous” pledge to actress Mariska Hargitay’s Joyful Heart Foundation, which helps those victimized by sexual assault.
September 2017: Gives Hurricane Harvey survivors a helping hand
Following the devastation of Hurricane Harvey, which led to multiple deaths and extreme damages, Swift donated to the Houston Food Bank in honor of her mother, Andrea Finlay Swift, who graduated from the University of Houston. The organization soon thanked her for her “very sizable” donation.
April 2018: Thanked by RAINN for donation during Sexual Assault Awareness Month
“Thank you @TaylorSwift13 for always standing with survivors,” the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network wrote on Twitter. “Your generous donation this week during #SAAPM ensures that survivors and their loved ones get the help they need and deserve.”
July 2018: Donates Reputation tour tickets to mourning Massachusetts police departments
Taylor Swift performs onstage during the 2018 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on October 9, 2018 in Los Angeles.
After Weymouth Sgt. Michael Chesna was shot and killed while investigating a car crash, Swift tried to ease the pain by donating “a significant number of tickets” to the police department for her shows in Foxborough, according to The Patriot Ledger.
October 2018: Meets boy with autism she donated $10,000 to for a service dog
Two years after she donated $10,000 to a boy with autism for a service dog, Swift invited eight-year-old Jacob Hill, his dog Reid and his family to her show at NRG Stadium in Houston.
September 2019: Donates $10,000 to help fan battling cancer cover medical bills
Trinity Foster was diagnosed with stage four osteosarcoma, which spread to her lung. The 16-year-old’s GoFundMe page asked for help paying her medical bills, with a $10,000 goal. Swift donated $10,000 and left a sweet note for her fan.
“I saw photos of your album release party that you did in your hospital room and wanted to say thank you for being so kind and supportive!” she wrote. “I hope I can give you a hug in person soon, but in the meantime I wanted to send you this and all my love. Your friend, Taylor.”
March 2020: Donates $1M to Nashville tornado relief efforts
The superstar made a donation to help those impacted by the tornadoes that destroyed homes and killed at least 24 people in Tennessee. “Nashville is my home and the fact that so many people have lost their homes and so much more in Middle Tennessee is devastating to me,” she wrote in an Instagram Story. “I’ve made a donation to the Middle Tennessee Emergency Response Fund.”
March 2020: Quietly donates to fans amid coronavirus crisis
Several Swifties took to social media to share that the superstar had personally sent them stimulus checks to help them get through the crisis.
“Erin, I saw your tweets about the financial and emotional stress you’re under right now and it made me want so badly to help. I’m so sorry about your job and the uncertainty of what’s going on right now. I hope this gift of $3000 will help. I loved meeting you in New York and I hope you’re safe and healthy! Your pal, Taylor” Swift wrote in a private note to one fan, who tweeted, “Literally how is this an actual thing that has happened??? I will shut up never I’m so grateful for this woman.”
June 2020: Sends $1,300 to Minneapolis fundraiser
After seeing two fans post a video set to her song “Only the Young” asking for donations to help families in need in Minneapolis, Swift gave $1,300 toward purchasing haircare and skincare products for people of color. “Yasmine and Grace, thank you SO MUCH for everything you’re doing to help people. Here’s a gift for this run, please let me know about anything in the future! Love, Taylor,” she wrote in a note attached to the donation.
August 2020: Helps out an aspiring math student
Swift donated about $30,000 to a GoFundMe college fund campaign started by European Swiftie Vitoria Mario, an aspiring mathematician. “Vitoria, I came across your story online and am so inspired by your drive and dedication to turning your dreams into reality,” Swift noted in her contribution. “I want to gift you the rest of your goal amount. Good luck with everything you do! Love, Taylor.”
December 2020: Donates rent help
The star donated $13,000 to two mothers’ GoFundMe pages after reading a Washington Post article spotlighting Americans who are behind on rent due to the government’s lack of stimulus agreement amid the COVID-19 crisis.
One Nashville-based woman, Nikki Cornwell, is a single mother and shared that she is $5,000 behind on rent, and that she isn’t sure her kids will have a Christmas this year. “this has been a horrible year for us,” she wrote on her fundraising page, noting that she was supposed to start a job in May, but that was sidetracked when she tested positive for coronavirus.
Swift, alongside her donation, wrote: “Nikki, I read about you in the Washington Post and thought it was really brave of you to share your story. I’m so sorry for everything you’ve had to go through this year and wanted to send you this gift, from one Nashville girl to another. Love, Taylor.”
December 2020: Donates to Ohio food bank
An Ohio Swiftie named Sarah J. Bailey brought the star’s “Christmas Tree Farm” to her front yard, setting up an elaborate holiday light display to the song alongside a box for food bank donations.
Swift herself ended up seeing the video, and messaged Bailey personally this week to thank her. “Sarah, I loved your family’s Christmas lights show!!! Thank you (and your dad) so much for using Christmas Tree Farm to create such a fun spectacle,” the message Bailey shared to Twitter reads. “I really love how you’ve chosen to give back by mentioning your local food bank. I’ve made a donation to Our Community Hunger Center in your hometown. Happy Holidays! Love, Taylor.”
March 2021: Donates $50,000 to mother of five whose husband died of COVID-19
A GoFundMe dedicated to Vickie Quarles — a mother of five daughters, whose husband, Theodis Ray Quarles, died of COVID-19 — asked for $50,000 to offer the family financial relief and alleviate their “worry from things associated with basic immediate needs as well as for their continued growth, goals and asperations.”
Swift and her mother Andrea proceeded to quietly donate the entire $50,000 goal amount, raising the total north of $60,000.
December 2022: Supports pet rescue foundation
Beth Stern revealed that Swift had made a “sizable donation” to her pet rescue foundation Beth’s Furry Friends, after which the animal advocate named a foster cat for the superstar singer-songwriter. “Welcome new foster from Oman!!” Stern wrote on Instagram at the time, sharing a photo of the new kitty. “Her name is Angel Taylor in honor of recent birthday girl, Taylor Swift who sent me a sizable donation to Beth’s Furry Friends to help me save more lives.”
March 2023: Gives back to food banks on Eras Tour route
Swift quietly donated to local food banks in Glendale, Ariz. and Las Vegas ahead of her Eras Tour stops in both cities, with a rep from one of the recipients, Arizona Food Bank Network, telling media that the pop star had vowed to leave a “positive impact” on all of the cities she planned to visit.
“We don’t know about you, but we’re feeling grateful on this day, March 22!” wrote Nevada’s Three Square organization on Instagram. “@TaylorSwift has made a generous gift to Three Square, allowing us to provide thousands of meals to families and individuals struggling with hunger. Thank you to Ms. Swift for supporting our mission and the local community.”
August 2023: Awards employees super-sized bonuses
Swift proved she’s an-extra generous boss when she reportedly gave $100,000 bonuses to her Eras Tour truck drivers after the 2023 trek proved unprecedentedly lucrative. With about 50 drivers with her on tour, the total amount in bonuses likely equaled around $5 million.
November 2023: Supports the Mahomies Foundation
Swift helped out Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and his wife, retired soccer player Brittany Mahomes — two friends she made shortly after she started dating tight end Travis Kelce — by donating signed merchandise to the couple’s auction benefiting their Mahomies Foundation. The charity serves to improve the lives of children via initiatives focusing on health, wellness and communities in need of resources, according to its website.
December 2023: Donates $1 million to Tennessee tornado relief
The pop star contributed a $1 million donation to the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee after tornadoes left at least six people dead and dozens hurt with hundreds of buildings damaged on Dec. 9, 2023. In response, CFMT CEO Hal Cato said via statement: “The Swifts found their original Tennessee home in Hendersonville and Sumner County and remain deeply committed to its continued well-being. Taylor’s incredibly generous gift sends a message to her hometown — and the communities around it — that she has their backs during the long road to recovery following this devastating event.”
February 2024: Gives $100K to GoFundMe for Chiefs Parade Shooting Victim’s Family
Days after the Kansas City Chiefs won the 2024 Super Bowl, which Swift attended to cheer on boyfriend Travis Kelce, a shooting broke out at the team’s hometown victory parade on Feb. 14. Radio DJ Lisa Lopez-Galvan was killed, and 22 others injured.
In response, Swift donated $100,000 to a GoFundMe set up for Lopez-Galvan’s family. “Sending my deepest sympathies and condolences in the wake of your devastating loss,” she wrote in her donation note. “With love, Taylor Swift.”
October 2024: Donates $5 million to hurricane relief
As back-to-back hurricanes Helene and Milton tore through Florida and nearby states in October 2024, Swift sent a donation of $5 million to Feed America to help sponsor relief efforts in the affected areas. “This contribution will help communities rebuild and recover, providing essential food, clean water and supplies to people affected by these devastating storms,” read a statement from the organization’s CEO, Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, at the time.
December 2024: Season of giving
Swift spent at least an hour meeting children and fans on the hematology and oncology floors of Children’s Mercy Hospital on Dec. 12, with some witnesses saying she sang for and with patients in the facility, according to local news network KCTV5. Pictures of her visit have also started circulating on X; in one photo, the pop star poses with a service dog in a children’s hospital room.
In other pictures, she smiles next to hospital employees and wraps her arms around young patients, at one point laughing while looking at a “Go Taylor’s boyfriend!” Kansas City Chiefs towel. Later in the month, she gifted one fan named Naya, whom she had visited with, the exact same outfit that the young patient had admired during the pop star’s time at the hospital.
And as Christmas neared, Swift continued in the spirit of giving, donating $250,000 to a Kansas City children’s non-profit organization called Operation Breakthrough. “Thank you, @taylorswift, for making our holiday season shine even brighter!” Operation Breakthrough captioned the Instagram post which featured kids sharing their gratitude for the pop star’s gift. “Your kindness and thoughtful 250K donation means the world to our children and families.”
January 2025: Donates to L.A. wildfire relief
On Jan. 16, the “Anti-Hero” singer shared in her Instagram Stories that she had donated to multiple organizations that were helping with wildfire relief efforts. “The fires in California have devastated so many families, and it’s been heartbreaking to see these stories unfold,” she wrote. “So much suffering, loss and destruction.”
April 2025: Ellen Pompeo recalls children’s charity donation
Ten years after costarring in Swift’s “Bad Blood” music video, Ellen Pompeo shared on The Jennifer Hudson Show how quick the singer was back then to help out with a cause championed by the Grey’s Anatomy actress: Children’s Hospital Los Angeles’ musical program for NICU babies.
“I just got up the hutzpah and asked Taylor, ‘Could you write me a big old check for Children’s?’” Pompeo recalled of being on the “Bad Blood” set with Swift. “And she knew me all of 20 minutes, and that girl wrote me the biggest check without blinking an eye.”
October 2025: $100k for a young Swiftie with cancer
A toddler named Lilah — who just so happens to be a huge Swiftie — got an extra special gift from the singer on a GoFundMe set up by the little girl’s family. Putting down $100,000 toward Lilah’s treatment for a rare form of brain cancer, Swift wrote, “Sending the biggest hug to my friend, Lilah! Love, Taylor.”
December 2025: Donates $1M to Feeding America
Two days before Christmas, Feeding America announced that the pop superstar had donated $1 million. “This holiday season, her continued support is a powerful reminder of what’s possible when we unite to end hunger,” Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, the non-profit organization’s CEO, said in a statement. “When we join together alongside people facing hunger, we can make sure families have a full table this holiday season and beyond.”
December 2025: Donates $1M to American Heart Association
Shortly after Feeding America announced Swift’s generous donation, the American Heart Association revealed that it, too, was a benefactor of the pop superstar’s giving spirit. “The Fate of Ophelia” also gave the non-profit a $1 million gift in honor of her dad, Scott, who earlier in the year underwent a quintuple bypass to treat blockages in his heart.
The "Secret Sessions", which first began in 2014, are fan-only listening parties, where Taylor previews her new album for Swifties, weeks before it hits stores. Taylor personally selects the fans who get invited into her various homes for a sneak peek at all her soon-to-be-released songs.
According to fans who attended the "reputation Secret Sessions", Taylor confirmed that "secret sessions are a tradition" -- as long as the many secrets around the album don't get leaked by fans who heard it in advance. "What happens in the Secret Sessions, STAYS in the Secret Sessions."
1989 SECRET SESSIONS (2014)
As part of the "1989" promotional campaign, Taylor invited fans to secret album-listening sessions, called the "1989 Secret Sessions", at her houses in New York, Nashville, Los Angeles and Rhode Island, as well as in her hotel room in London. 89 Swifties attended each session.
reputation SECRET SESSIONS (2017)
A month before the release of "reputation", Taylor hosted several exclusive secret sessions; in her home in London, at her Rhode Island beach mansion, her mother's mansion in Nashville, and her new estate in Los Angeles. According to Taylor, "everything about this album is a secret." Each party had around 100 attendees, with a total of 500 fans chosen from around the world. None of them leaked any music.
LOVER SECRET SESSIONS (2019)
Three weeks before the release of "Lover", Taylor held the third edition of the secret sessions; starting in her home in London.
iHeartRadio SECRET SESSION
For both "1989" and "reputation", iHeartRadio and Taylor collaborated for exclusive listening sessions on the release date of each album.
For "1989", fans were invited to a rooftop in New York City, where Taylor sang new songs from "1989" and explained the stories behind each one. Additionally, the Empire State Building lit up in different colors to the beat of Taylor's songs. The session was streamed on iHeartRadio's website, so fans could join the concert from around the world.
Share Lore
Submit your Taylor theories or secret finds here.