Pop feud? Taylor Swift’s ‘Actually Romantic’ sparks theories about Charli xcx

Taylor Swift might’ve set the internet ablaze shortly after releasing her 12th studio album, The Life a Showgirl.

With the album now officially out, fans have been spiralling and creating theories online about each of the songs.

According to Swifities, the new song Actually Romantic from the album is reportedly a subtle diss track aimed at the 33-year-old British singer-songwriter Charli xcx, who also has a song called Everything Is Romantic.

“I heard you call me boring Barbie when the coke’s got your brain / High-fived my ex and then said you’re glad he ghosted me,” Swift sang in the first verse. “

She added, “Wrote me a song saying it makes you sick to see my face / Some people might be offended.”

In the chorus, the multi-Grammy winner hinted that she was unbothered by another woman’s comments, saying, “But it’s actually sweet / All the time you’ve spent on me / It’s honestly wild / All the effort you’ve put in / It’s actually romantic / I really got to hand it to you / No man has ever loved me like you do.”

Towards the end, Swift sings that she “hadn’t thought of you in a long time,” referring to Charli.

“How many times has your boyfriend said / Why are we always talkin’ about her? … You just give me so much … attention / It’s so romantic,” the song continues.

Fans widely believe that Actually Romantic is about the Apple hitmaker, who is now married to George Daniel, drummer for The 1975.

Swift previously dated The 1975 frontman Matty Healy, while Charli is close friends with Healy and his fiancée, Gabbriette Bechtel.

On her 2024 hit Sympathy Is a Knife from the album Brat, Charli sang, “This one girl taps my insecurities/ Don’t wanna see her backstage at my boyfriend’s show / Fingers crossed behind my back, I hope they break up quick,” which many speculated was about Swift.

“actually romantic is definitely about charli xcx omggg,” one X (formerly Twitter) user posted.

Despite all the online buzz, the Lover singer has praised the Boom Clap songstress’s songwriting skills.

“Her writing is surreal and inventive, always. She just takes a song to places you wouldn’t expect it to go, and she’s been doing it consistently for over a decade. I love to see hard work like that pay off,” Swift told New York Magazine last year.