Who Was Taylor Swift Dating During ‘1989’? All The Tracks Thought To Be About Harry Styles

27 October 2023, 09:40

By Capital FM

@CapitalOfficial

Taylor Swift’s ‘1989 - Taylor’s Version’ is officially here, but who was she dating while originally writing '1989' and are the songs on the album really about Harry Styles?

Taylor Swift has officially released ‘1989 - Taylor’s Version’ as she continues her re-recording project and fans can hear a bunch of new songs too, with tracks From The Vault being added to the track list. The heartbreak tracks and emotional lyrics have fans questioning 'who was Taylor Swift dating during her '1989' era?'.

There's a long-running theory '1989' is about her short-lived romance with Harry Styles, thanks to songs like 'Style'.

Taylor and Harry are thought to have penned a string of songs about each other over the years, and ‘1989’ included an array of anthems that alluded to the former One Direction star.

• Read more: Which Albums Is Taylor Swift Re-Recording? A Guide To The Remake Of Her First Six Albums
• Read more: Taylor Swift Fans Have A Theory Harry Styles Features On A '1989' Album Song 'From The Vault'

Pop powerhouse Taylor is a force to be reckoned with after announcing ‘1989 - Taylor’s Version’ in the midst of her Eras Tour - not to mention, just after the release of ‘Speak Now - Taylor’s Version’.

So, who is ‘1989’ really about, who was Taylor dating while writing the album and which songs are rumoured to be about her relationship with Harry?

Harry Styles and Taylor Swift catch up at The Grammys

Who was Taylor Swift dating while writing '1989'?

It's thought Taylor was dating Harry Styles when she began working on '1989'. It was the album she put out after they broke up, so it's likely she wrote a lot of the tracks during their short relationship, which took place when she was 24 and he was 19.

It was reported in 2012 that she had a short relationship with Connor Kennedy, so some of '1989' could even be about him. Apart from a few PDA pictures of them together, little else is known about their romance.

Who is Taylor Swift’s ‘1989’ about?

‘1989’ is heavily rumoured to be about Harry Styles, with subtle references made to the British pop star and their whirlwind romance.

The album was originally released in 2014 and it was the first project she dropped following their brief romance, which began at the end of 2012 and ended a month later in January 2013.

A string of songs on ‘1989’ have caught fans’ attention with subtle hints alluding to Harry, including the most obvious song of all; ‘Style’.

Of course, just like her other albums, Taylor remains tight-lipped on who inspired the bops in her discography, but that hasn’t stopped fans from doing the maths and putting together the clues.

In regards to ‘1989’, some lyrics are more obvious than others, but we’ll let you draw your own conclusion.

When did Taylor Swift date Harry Styles?

The internet was sent into a tailspin when Harry and Taylor were first spotted walking around Central Park in New York in December 2012 and reportedly dated until the following month in January 2013.

They are said to have ended their relationship during a New Year’s holiday in the British Virgin Islands after an alleged argument led them to cut their holiday short, with Taylor apparently flying back to the US alone just three days later.

Which ‘1989’ songs are about Harry Styles?

According to Swifties, the following tracks are rumoured to be about Harry:

• ‘Blank Space’

During a 'Secret Sessions’, Taylor said: “I was on a boat once and I came up with the line ‘so it's gonna be forever, or it's gonna go down in flames’,” about ‘Blank Space’, which links to the time she was with Harry on a cruise in the British Virgin Islands, which is when she broke up with him.

• ‘Style’

‘Style’ is the most obvious track on this list as she references the singer’s last name in the title - not to mention the actor who plays her love interest in the music video, who strikes an uncanny resemblance to Mr. Styles, and *that* paper plane necklace reference.

She also sings: “You've got that long hair slick back, white t-shirt,” alluding to his appearance at the time.

• ‘Out of the Woods’

One of the songs that has been most heavily-rumoured to be about Harry is ‘Out of the Woods’ when she sings: “Remember when you hit the brakes too soon/Twenty stitches in a hospital room,” about a snowmobile ride she took with an ex who lost control and wrecked it so badly that they had to go to the ER.

Taylor and Harry went skiing in Utah on 23rd December 2014 and got involved in a snowmobile accident, leaving Harry with a bandage on his chin at the time.

• ‘All You Had To Do Was Stay’

Just days after their split, Taylor tweeted: “Back in the studio. Uh oh…” and later confirmed that ‘All You Had To Do Was Stay’ was written during that session… coincidence?

• ‘I Wish You Would’

Tay said in an interview with Rolling Stone in 2014 that ‘I Wish You Would’ is about an ex who bought a house close to hers, which fans have theorised was Harry after he bought a mansion in LA in March 2014, which just so happened to be around 7 minutes away from his ex-girlfriend’s.

Harry referenced the ‘I Wish You Would’ lyrics: “Windows down, you pass my street, the memories start”, in his 2015 1D track ‘Perfect’: “And if you like midnight driving with the windows down”.

• ‘Wildest Dreams’

In ‘Wildest Dreams’, Taylor sings: “Say you’ll see me again, even if it’s just in your wildest dreams,” and a year later, Harry sang in 1D song ‘Walking In The Wind’: “Goodbyes are bittersweet but it’s not the end, I’ll see your face again.”

• ‘How You Get The Girl’

‘How You Get The Girl’ talks about someone ruining a relationship because they’re too young and attempts to reconcile when they realise what they’ve lost - alluding to the rumours that Taylor and Harry were on talking terms six months after their romance came to an end.

• ‘This Love’

In 2015, Harry penned a track called ‘I Love You’ for US singers Alex & Sierra, which included the lyrics: “Maybe if I got my timing right, I wouldn’t end up alone”, which fans have tied to ‘This Love’s lyrics: “Timing is a funny thing”.

He also penned: “I won't trouble you no more,” in the song, which links to Taylor’s ‘I Knew You Were Trouble’, which was released whilst they were dating.

• ‘I Know Places’

‘I Know Places’ includes the lyrics: “Baby, I know places we won’t be found,” which Harry seemingly responds to in his track ‘Perfect’: “And if you like going places we can’t even pronounce.”

• ‘Clean’

Taylor previously revealed that ‘Clean’ was written about a time she was in London and realised that she had been in the same city as her ex, but didn’t feel any heavy emotions about it - and of course, her London boy romance era at the time was with Harry.

• 'Wonderland'

Last but not least, ‘Wonderland’ has hints of Harry immersed in the lyrics as Tay sings: “Didn't you flash your green eyes at me? Didn't you calm my fears with a Cheshire cat smile?” mentioning Harry’s green eyes and also subtle ties to the fact he’s from Cheshire.

Fans are also hopeful that Harry will appear on a ‘Style’ remix as one of the From The Vault tracks as the exes are now very amicable with each other and have been spotted chatting at numerous award shows - we can only hope!

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