Untangling Taylor Swift’s Goodbye to Joe Alwyn in “So Long, London”

Untangling Taylor Swift’s Goodbye to Joe Alwyn in “So Long, London”

Taylor Swift’s TTPD: Which Songs Are About Joe Alwyn, Matty Healy & & Travis Kelce!

London bridge was dropping, and Taylor Swiftfelt every minute.

The Tortured Poets Departmentis here and, similar to fans prepared for, part of the brand-new album is devoted to Taylor’s split from Joe Alwynin spring 2023The 34-year-old has actually penned a heartbreaking homage to completion of their 6 years together in “So Long, London,” a poignant sequel to Taylor’s 2019Fantrack “London Boy.”

In addition to the tunes’ titles, Taylor has actually drawn a clear parallel in between the 2 tracks by putting each as the 5th tune on their particular albums. Whereas “London Boy” informs the uplifting story of a growing love– and whereMidnights“You’re Losing Me” covers the start of completion–” So Long, London” brings the journey home by narrating the relationship’s agonizing death.

In the moving track, not just does Taylor bid farewell to England’s capital– Joe’s home town and where the 2 invested much time throughout their 6 years together– however she likewise explains attempting to keep the relationship together even as she might see it splitting up.

“I saw in my mind fairy lights through the mist/ I kept one’s cool and brought the weight of the rift,” she sings in the very first chorus, mentioning still seeing hope in their relationship regardless of the growing range. “Pulled him in tighter each time he was wandering away/ My spinal column split from bring us up the hill.”

As her “tired bones captured the chill,” she started to offer up her efforts: “I stopped attempting to make him laugh, stopped attempting to drill the safe.”

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And whereas “London Boy” explains a jubilant jaunt through London, a sort of getting-to-know the city, “So Long, London” rather reveals Taylor’s sensations of growing seclusion– particularly in a city that is not her own.

“I didn’t decide in to be your odd male out,” she sings. “I established the club she’s heard excellent aspects of/ I left all I understood, you left me at your home by the Heath.”

The Grammy winner goes on to chronicle the relationship’s “death,” of a sort, in an echo of “You’re Losing Me.”

Where Taylor sings “I can’t discover a pulse/ My heart will not begin any longer” onMidnightsnow she sings, “I stoppеd CPR, after all, it’s no usage/ The spirit was gonе, we would never ever pertain to.”

Taylor likewise appears to mention the time she invested with Joe– 6 years from when she was 27 to 33– throughout the tune.

“And I’m pissed off you let me provide you all that youth free of charge,” she sings in verse 2, later on including the bridge, “You swore that you liked me however where were the hints?/ I passed away on the altar awaiting the evidence.”

And while Taylor sang in “You’re Losing Me” that her face had actually gone gray, she once again mentions color onTTPDwith, “You compromised us to the gods of your bluest days/ And I’m simply getting color back into my face.”

Christopher Polk/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank

In spite of her efforts to ” go down with the ship”– or as she puts it, “My white-knuckle passing away grip holding tight to your peaceful animosity”–” So Long, London” comes to a close with the recognition that the set weren’t ideal for each other.

“So long, London/ Had an excellent run,” she sings, “A minute of warm sun/ But I’m not the one.”

And though she explains completion of the relationship with a remarkable, “Two tombs, one weapon,” Taylor– who has actually because carried on with partnerTravis Kelce— likewise assures, “You’ll discover somebody.”

For more on the lots of easter eggs and allusions inThe Tortured Poets Departmentkeep checking out for a complete breakdown of the brand-new album.

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“Fortnight” (including Post Malone): In the very first track of TTPD Taylor Swift and Post Malone collaborate to sing about a “momentary” love that lasted for a fortnight (2 weeks).

“And I enjoy you, it’s destroying my life,” the lyrics tease. “I touched you, for just a fortnight.”

It appears the tune is a referral to Taylor’s revived love with The 1975‘s Matty Healywhich initially started in 2014 and restored a years later on in the spring of 2023 following her break up with Joe Alwyn

And although the revival of Taylor and Matty’s relationship was quick, it was loaded with feeling, according to these lyrics.

She informed iHeartRadio the opening number is “fatalistic” much like the remainder of the “awful” album.

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“The Tortured Poets Department”: While fans formerly explained the connection in between the album’s name TTPD and Joe’s WhatsApp group chat called “The Tortured Man Club,” the titular tune really consists of recommendations to Matty.

Even the track’s opening lyrics, “You left your typewriter at my apartment or condo,” offers a nod to Matty, who noted he “truly” likes typewriters in a 2019 interview with GQ

Later in the tune, the lyrics provide more insight into Taylor and Matty’s strong bond. Taylor even remembers, “At supper you take my ring off my middle finger and put it on the one individuals put wedding event rings on. Which’s the closest I’ve pertained to my heart blowing up.”

Taylor’s lyrics likewise consist of shoutouts to poet Dylan Thomas–” you’re not Dylan Thomas”– and singer-songwriter Patti Smith–” I’m not Patti Smith.” As Charlie Puth“You smoked then consumed 7 bars of chocolate/ We stated Charlie Puth must be a larger artist.”

Image by Marcelo Endelli/TAS23/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management

“My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys”: “I’m queen of sandcastles he damages,” Taylor sings on the 3rd tune on the album, in which she remembers a partner who escaped from their relationship.

“Cause I understood excessive/ There was threat in the heat of my touch,” the lyrics keep in mind. “Saw permanently so he smashed it up.”

The Grammy winner informed iHeartRadio the track is a “metaphor from the viewpoint of a kid’s toy,” where the kid breaks the toy and does not wish to have fun with it any longer– similar to in relationships, where “we’re so valued in the start.” It’s about the rejection that the love can’t return to that.

She formerly compared enthusiasts to toys in 2019’s “Cruel Summer,” in which she sang, “Bad, bad young boy, glossy dabble a rate/ You understand that I purchased it.”

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“Down Bad”: In the lyrics to this tune, Taylor reviews being ghosted by a guy, who she calls her “twin,” after being captivated by him.

“How attempt you believe it’s romantic/ Leaving me safe and stranded,” she sings. “Cause f– k it, I remained in love/ So f– k you if I can’t have us.”

The “stranded” lyric might sound familiar to Swifties, considered that Taylor utilizes it in the 1989 tune “New Romantics”: “Please leave me stranded/ It’s so romantic.”

Taylor confessed to iHeartRadio that “Down Bad” compares the “concept of being love bombed– where somebody rocks your world and impresses you and after that type of deserts you– as an alien kidnapping.” The artist stated when the character was “hung back off” in her home town, she misses out on the other “unusual” world.

“I’ve simply been exposed to an entire various galaxy and universe I didn’t understand was possible,” Taylor described. “How can you simply put me back where I was in the past?”

Christopher Polk/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank

“So Long, London”: Taylor has actually been understood to reserve track 5 for her most heartbreaking tunes, and, yes,”Long, Londoncertainly fits the costs.

In this track, Taylor assesses completion of her relationship with Joe (who formerly motivated “London Boy”) and the memories they shared in the city together for many years. She likewise mentions what resulted in the death of their relationship

“I didn’t choose in to be your odd male out,” she sings. “I established the club she’s heard excellent aspects of/ I left all I understood, you left me at your house by the Heath.”

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“But Daddy I Love Him”: Taylor raised eyebrows when she hung around with Matty, who’s been called out for his controverisal remarks for many yearsIn “But Daddy I Love Him,” she attends to a comparable style of desiring a relationship to work in spite of criticism from the outdoors world.

“No I’m not pertaining to my senses,” she states. “I understand it’s insane however he’s the one I desire.”

“Fresh Out the Slammer”: After leaving a long relationship with Joe, Taylor apparently understood who she wished to call: Matty.

“I did my time,” she sings. “Now quite infant I’m running back home to you.”

James Devaney/GC Images, Steve Granitz/FilmMagic

“Florida!!!” (including Florence and the Machine): What to do when you require an escape? Head to Florida. A minimum of, that’s what Taylor and Florence Welch encourage in this track.

“You can beat the heat if you beat the charges too/ They stated I was a cheat, I think it should hold true,” Taylor sings, referencing speculation about her individual life. “And my good friends, all odor like weed or little children/ And the city reeks of driving myself insane.”

“I require to forget, so take me to Florida,” the lyrics later on continue. “I’ve got some remorses, I’ll bury them in Florida.”

Taylor discussed that the tune was in fact motivated by real criminal offense legends about leaving town.

“I’m constantly viewing likeDateline— individuals, you understand, have these criminal offenses that they dedicate,” she informed iHeartRadio“Where do they right away avoid town and go to? They go to Florida, you understand? They like attempt to transform themselves, have a brand-new identity, mix in. And I believe when you go through a heartbreak, there’s a part of you that believes, ‘I desire a brand-new name, I desire a brand-new life, I do not desire anybody to understand where I’ve been or understand me at all.'”

One last secret about “Florida!!!”? Taylor’s friend Emma Stone assisted compose the tune

“Guilty as Sin?”: In another evident nod to Matty, Taylor begins “Guilty as Sin?” with the lyrics, “Drowning in heaven Nile/ He sent me downtown lights.” Well, it so takes place that, back in 2022, Matty called Heaven Nile‘s Hats as one of his preferred albums of the 1980s.

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“Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?”: Taylor tackles her critics in this enthusiastic track.” Is it a marvel I broke? Let’s hear one morе joke,” she sings. “Then we might all simply laugh up until I sob.”

“I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)”: As Taylor notes in this tune, she thought she might assist alter somebody, regardless of any cynics.

“The smoke cloud billows out his mouth like a freight train through a village,” she sings. “The jokes that he informed throughout the bar were revolting and far too loud.”

“Thеy shake their heads stating, ‘God, assist her’ when I inform ’em he’s my male,” the lyrics continue. “But your excellent lord does not require to raise a finger/ I can repair him, no, actually, I can/ And just I can.”

Sonja Flemming/CBS

“Loml”: In this moving track, Taylor initially sings about being called the love of somebody’s life “about a million times.” The vibrant quickly altered.

“If you understand it in one peek, it’s famous,” she keeps in mind. “What we believed was for perpetuity was brief.”

She ends the tune by letting the individual understand, “You’re the loss of my life.”

While it might be about her long relationship with Joe, lyrics about “rekindled flames” and “we were simply kids, babe” hint it’s about her stimulate with Matty after all these years: “I’ve felt a radiance like this never ever before and never ever because.”

“I Can Do It With a Broken Heart”: The tune seems about Taylor slaying her Eras Tour in spite of the heartbreak, keeping in mind that she’s “hittin’ my marks” on phase in front of a shouting crowd. She conceals her feelings by placing on a strong face: “Lights, cam, bitch smile.”

This tune is positive, it’s filled with lyrics of unrequited love.

“I’m so consumed with him, however he prevents me like the afflict/ I weep a lot, however I am so efficient, it’s an art,” she sings. “You understand you’re excellent when you can even do it with a damaged heart.”

“The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived”: Taylor has a couple of concerns for “the tiniest guy who ever lived,” who apparently left their relationship out of no place.

“You tossed out the phase lights, however you’re still carrying out,” she sings. “And in plain sight you concealed/ But you are what you did.”

John Angelillo/UPI/Shutterstock

“The Alchemy”: After dumping “the clowns,” Taylor discovered the guy on the Chiefs. In “The Alchemy,” an obvious nod to her NFL gamer partner Travis KelceTaylor makes numerous sports referrals.

“I have not happen in so long/ But I’m returning strong,” Taylor sings. “So when I touch down, call the beginners and cut ’em from the group.”

She later on recommendations her past “chaps,” who “warm the benches,” keeping in mind “we been on a winning streak.”

Michael Ochs Archive/Getty Images

“Clara Bow”: The lyrics to the last tune on the album address the connection in between Taylor and the late starlet Clara Bowwhose life, comparable to Taylor’s, went through much speculation and examination.

“It’s hell on earth to be incredible,” Taylor sings. “Them’s the brakes, they do not come carefully.”

The lyrics likewise put a spotlight on the contrasts of females in the public eye, with the reference of Clara, Stevie Nicks and Taylor herself.

And, as if being informed to the next star in line, “You appear like Taylor Swift/ In this light, we’re enjoying it,” the lyrics state. “You’ve got edge, she never ever did/ The future’s intense, amazing.”

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“thanK you aIMee”: After unexpected fans at 2 a.m. with a double albumincluding 15 extra Tortured Poet tunes, Swifties were fast to identify Kim Kardashian‘s name in the title of “thanK you aIMee.”

“And it wasn’t a reasonable battle, or a tidy kill/ Each time that Aimee stomped throughout my gravе,” Taylor sings, relatively referencing the notorious telephone call in between her and Kanye West that Kim published online in 2016. “And then she composed hеadlinesIn the regional paper, making fun of each child action I ‘d take.”

As the lyrics keep in mind, Taylor is more powerful now: “All that time you were throwin’ punches, I was buildin’ somethin’/ And I could not wait to reveal you it was genuine/ Screamed “F– k you, Aimee” to the night sky, as the blood was gushin’/ But I can’t forget the method you made me recover.”

Gotham/GC Images

“So High School”: Taylor appears to compare her romance with Travis to a sweet high school love.

“Are you gon na wed, kiss or eliminate me?” she sings. “It’s simply a video game, however truly I’m bettin’ on all 3 for us 2.”

Travis was when asked in a viral throwback videoto play “kiss, wed, eliminate” with Taylor, Katy Perry and Ariana Grande(He stated he ‘d kiss Taylor and wed Katy.)

In “So High School,” Taylor likewise mentions Travis opening doors for her and maybe the night she rode in a convertible with him after among his football video games, keeping in mind, “Get my cars and truck door, isn’t that sweet? Pull me to thе rear seat.”

Not to discuss this mic-drop: “You understand how to ball, I understand Aristotle.”

Mauricio Santana/Getty Images

“Peter”: She sings about a guy who informed her was gon na “mature” and after that “come discover” her to begin their lives. One idea about Peter’s age tipped fans off that Peter is most likely a pseudonym for Matty.

“And you stated you ‘d come and get me, however you were 25,” Taylor sings. “And the life span of those dreams has actually ended.”

Matty was about 25 years old in 2014, when the set grew close and he notoriously supported Taylor by using a 1989 Tee shirts.

The Peter in this tune is likewise most likely the very same Peter in 2020’s “Cardigan” (“Peter losing Wendy”) as a referral to Peter Pan

“Lost to the ‘Lost Boys’ chapter of your life,” checked out the lyrics of her brand-new 2024 track. “Forgive me, Peter, please understand that I attempted.”

Still not persuaded Matty is THE Peter? When he and Taylor were dating in May 2023, she mouthed the words “This one has to do with you. You understand who you are. I enjoy you” on phase at the Eras Tour while carrying out “Cardigan.”

Kevin Mazur/WireImage

“The Manuscript”: The lyrics might reference her love with John Mayer— who she dated in 2009 when she was 19 and he was 32– given that she sings about an age space.

“In the age of him, she wanted she was 30/ And made coffee every early morning in a Frеnch press,” Taylor sings, later on including, “She thought of how he stated given that she was so smart beyond her years/ Everything had actually been above board/ She wasn’t sure.”

He is likewise thought to have actually influenced her previous tunes “Dear John” and “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve.”

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