Taylor Swift Actually Appears to Have a Lot to Say About Matty Healy on The Tortured Poets Division

Within the lead-up to Taylor Swift’s newest album, The Tortured Poets Division, launched on Friday, the moody imagery and morose snippets of lyrics sprinkled throughout the web (“I really like you, it’s ruining my life,” for one) made it fairly clear that Joe Alwyn, Swift’s longest public relationship, wouldn’t escape the departmental summit unscathed. It was a shock to many, then, simply how a lot ink Swift spilled seemingly in reference to her temporary relationship with The 1975 entrance man, Matty Healy, on the double album.

On the album’s title monitor, Swift sings a few lover who leaves a typewriter at her house: “I feel some issues I by no means say, / Like, ‘Who makes use of typewriters anyway?’” Anybody can get a typewriter, however that’s simply the primary trace that the track is about Healy. In a 2018 interview with GQ, Healy spoke about his penchant for typewriters, saying, “The factor with typewriters and writing, placing pen to paper, there’s type of a component of dedication that goes with the ceremony of it.” He stated he most popular the analog implements for his writing, which he described as “desires of being in love with different pop stars.”

Within the refrain of the identical track, Swift sings, “You’re not Dylan Thomas, / I’m not Patti Smith, / This ain’t the Chelsea Lodge, / We’re fashionable idiots.” Dylan Thomas, notably, was a Welsh poet—Healy is British. Smith, like Swift, is American. Then there’s her recalling: “You smoked then ate seven bars of chocolate,” after which there’s the “tattooed golden retriever” falling asleep. Healy is, after all, considerably tatted up, and his band’s track “Chocolate” is about smoking. Get the purpose?

Whereas “The Tortured Poets Division” scans as eye-rolling directed at a pretentious ex, different references on the album that appear to level to Healy are much less mild, which is why it’s a bit stunning to see an unnamed supply allegedly telling Us Weekly that Healy and his household are relieved at his portrayal on the album.

“Matty nonetheless thinks very extremely of Taylor, however we have been all nervous about what she might need stated on the album,” the supply stated, including that folks near Healy “couldn’t be happier” with the report.

“Matty’s household knew in regards to the relationship,” the supply reportedly shared. “And so they have been frightened that Taylor was going to tear him aside. Matty has struggled with life within the public eye, and he’s been doing very well, however the very last thing that he wants is for each Swiftie on this planet to suppose he’s a villain.”

However then there’s “I Can Repair Him (No Actually I Can),” which appears to level to Healy with references to jokes which can be “revolting and much too loud,” and the general public’s opinion about Swift’s love life. “They shook their heads, saying, ‘God assist her’ / Once I instructed ’em he’s my man.” She returns to that theme on “However Daddy I Love Him,” singing, “I do know he’s loopy, however he’s the one I need. / I’ll inform you one thing proper now, you ain’t gotta pray for me. / Me and my wild boy and all of this wild pleasure. / He was chaos, he was revelry.”

On “The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived,” Swift laments a man in a “Jehovah’s Witness go well with” who tried to purchase capsules “from a buddy of mates of mine” and “sank in stoned oblivion” as soon as they have been alone collectively. Healy typically wears a go well with whereas he performs, and he has been open about his historical past with drug use. Swift then wonders “if rusting my glowing summer season was the purpose.” She asks, “Had been you despatched by somebody who needed me lifeless?” and whether or not he was “a sleeper cell spy.” She continues: “It wasn’t horny as soon as it wasn’t forbidden,” maybe explaining the abrupt finish to the connection.

There are many musical nods to The 1975 and Healy as effectively, just like the “Responsible as Sin?” line referencing “The Downtown Lights” by The Blue Nile, a track that Healy stated impressed The 1975’s “Love It If We Made It,” and his self-proclaimed “favourite band of all time.” The frenetic opening riff of Swift’s “imgonnagetyouback” is a near-twin of The 1975’s “Searching for Any individual (To Love),” and that parenthetical naming conference, a go-to for the band, is mirrored on the aforementioned “I Can Repair Him (No Actually I Can).”

Is the track “Peter,” during which Swift pokes on the fading bruise of a previous love who’s “misplaced to the Misplaced Boys chapter of your life” nearly actually a reference to Healy, who has beforehand referred to himself as “a form of emo Peter Pan self-lacerating Pied Piper type of character” and performs a track known as “Misplaced Boys” together with his band? It’s actually not any type of stretch to imagine.

Whether or not Swifties are seeing Healy in a distinct mild within the post-Poets world is for them to say, however a rising tide lifts all boats: The identical day as Swift’s album was launched, The 1975’s single “Robbers” obtained platinum certification by the BRITs. Whether or not the heightened Swift-related curiosity had something to do with gross sales, the singer’s tryst with Healy undeniably put his band on many new listeners’ radars. Being the alleged “smallest man who ever lived” appears to come back with a commensurately giant payoff.

Representatives for Swift and Healy didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark.