While everyone thought the re-release of Reputation would be Taylor Swift’s next project, she surprised the world by announcing a totally new album called The Tortured Poets Department. The title alone evokes a lot of questions about what the project will be about and why she decided to write these songs. However, after the track list came out, it became clear that this is likely a break-up album, and the questions started overflowing.
So, now we’re here to break some of them down. How are Harry Styles and The Little Mermaid connected to a song on Swift’s 17-song track list? Is this album about Swift’s breakup with Joe Alwyn? How are the Olsen Twins involved with this project’s style? All those inquiries and more will be discussed and theorized below, so let’s get into it.
How Could The Little Mermaid And Harry Styles Be Connected To “But Daddy I Love Him?”
So, there’s a lot to unpack with Swift’s track “But Daddy I Love Him,” which you can see in the tracklist below. Right after the tracklist was announced, Swifties were quick to connect this song to both The Little Mermaid and the singer’s ex Harry Styles, which is an unexpected combo.
Let’s start with The Little Mermaid. Over on Twitter, @pizzalynda pointed out that Ariel (whom Swift dressed up as for Halloween in 2019) says “But Daddy I love him” while talking to her dad about the prince she trades her voice for. That movie came out in 1989, which was the year Swift was born, and the name of her album that supposedly features songs about her ex Harry Styles.
This brings us to the “Adore You” singer, who fans suspect is the subject of many Vault tracks on the re-release of 1989. There’s a famous photo of him wearing a T-shirt that reads “But Daddy I love him," which you can see in @kingofmyhearts tweet about the subject. That is an odd coincidence.
Is this song about Styles? Or is it about Joe Alwyn? In The Little Mermaid, Ursula takes Ariel’s voice so she can meet and fall in love with the prince. While Swift was with her ex, she lived mostly in private. This has led some fans to believe that this track will be about the actor rather than the former One Direction member. That theory tracks too when you consider other songs on the album, like the one we’ll talk about next, “Clara Bow.”
Who Is Clara Bow?
While Taylor Swift is no stranger to literary and Old Hollywood references, “Clara Bow” will be the first time she’s named a song after an old film star. Now, the question becomes: Why would she do that?
Well, Clara Bow was a film star in the silent era, according to EW. She’s “considered an icon of sexual freedom for women,” and the article noted that she was known for playing emancipated women. She faced lots of public scrutiny for her love life as it was clouded by rumors and gossip. According to The Guardian, Bow was “brazen,” and even when she was ruling Hollywood as a movie star, she was alone and secluded.
She eventually left acting behind, and she went to live in Nevada with Rex Bell. Reportedly, he didn’t like her “showing herself off,” EW explained. Looking back, the rumors and gossip surrounding her personal life are overwhelming, and it’s caused her career to be in the shadows.
Now, the parallels to Taylor Swift seem obvious. From a career standpoint, both women have faced scrutiny over the rumors surrounding their personal lives, and specifically their love lives. Many Swifties have also made the connection that Bow’s legacy as a silent film star is comparable to the pop star living a very private (and silent) life while she was dating Joe Alwyn.
In the song “Bejeweled,” Swift sings about being trapped and not being able to shine, that could have a myriad of meanings, but it’s been theorized that her private relationship could have something to do with it. So, could that also be what “Clara Bow” is related to? We’ll find out in April. And while we wait for that, I’ll be looking at Swift’s Grammys outfit and her jewelry, and thinking about how it looks a whole lot like Bow’s sparkly look shown above.
How Are The Olsen Twins Involved In The Tortured Poets Department?
There’s no denying that the album cover for The Tortured Poets Department is unlike anything we’ve seen from Swift before. It’s sexy and sultry and shows her lying on a white bed in black lingerie. This is where Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen come in.
If you look at the briefs Swift is wearing in the image (which you can see below), according to her stylist (via People) and @taylorswiftstyled on Instagram, they’re made by The Row, which is Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen’s fashion brand.
Per @taylorswiftstyled, the shorts are called the “Ausra Brief” and they retail for $790. So, while there are famous folks who supposedly inspire Swift’s music, and there are A-list singers and performers she collaborates with, when it comes to The Olsen twins, they’re involved with the pop star indirectly through fashion.
Why Are Swifites Talking About A Group Chat Joe Alwyn Had With Paul Mescal?
The alleged answer to this one is pretty simple. In an episode of Variety’s Actors on Actors in 2022, Paul Mescal and Joe Alwyn revealed the group chat they have with Andrew Scott called “Tortured Man Club.” Here’s how the conversation went down:
Paul Mescal: What’s the name of the What’s App group that we’re in? Tortured…
Joe Alwyn: It’s either the Tortured or the Lonley, Tortured Man Club, I think. You, me and Andrew [Scott]. It hasn’t had much use recently.
Paul Mescal: No, I feel like we’re less tortured now.
Both men starred in Sally Rooney adaptations — Alwyn in Conversations With Friends and Mescal in Normal People (which can be viewed with a Hulu subscription) — and played sad boys. Both series are very emotional and melodramatic, and the actors both have a tendency to pick sad projects. While they didn’t confirm that that’s what inspired the name, they did immediately chat about their shows right after opening up about the group chat.
So, immediately after Swift announced The Tortured Poets Society this connection was made. Now, Swifties can’t stop thinking about how her eleventh album’s title is coincidentally similar to her ex’s group chat.
paul mescal and joe alwyn in the tortured man club group chat after the tortured poets department album name reveal pic.twitter.com/dgfZzAiQsmFebruary 5, 2024
Obviously, the pop star has not confirmed if the group chat inspired her album’s title. However, there’s no denying that it’s at the very least a wild coincidence.
What Does “loml” Mean?
Overall, it feels like The Tortured Poets Department is a breakup album. However, “loml,” which typically means “love of my life,” is a happy thing. Therefore, I have many questions about this.
Swift said she’s been working on this project for two years. That means it could track the process of her breakup. Will it be a song using hindsight looking back on the good days of a relationship? Will it be a deceiving title for an incredibly sad song? Will it be something totally different, and will this album address her relationship with Travis Kelce? The questions surrounding “loml” are endless. However, we are almost certain that it stands for “love of my life.”
According to Travis Kelce, The Tortured Poets Society is “unbelievable,” and with all these questions floating around about the meanings buried in the songs and the branding, I totally believe him. It feels like we’re really in for a wild ride with this project that appears to be all about a breakup. And while we wait for TTPS’s release on April 19, I’ll be pondering all these questions and how they’ll eventually be answered.
