Well, that was a twist — and one a lot of Swifties weren’t ready for!
In addition to bashing exes and enemies in her highly anticipated The Tortured Poets Department, Taylor Swift also unexpectedly unleashed some pent-up fury on… her fans?
Yes, many are interpreting the song But Daddy I Love Him to be about Tay’s toxic fans, particularly the ones who immediately called out her choice to date Matty Healy. The lyrics really go hard at folks judging her.
God save the most judgmental creeps / Who say they want what’s best for me / Sanctimoniously performing soliloquies I’ll never see / Thinkin’ it can change the beat / Of my heart when he touches me
She also sings pretty explicitly about her life choices being up to her:
If all you want is gray for me / That’s just white noise, that’s just my choice
and
I’ll tell you something right now / I’d rather burn my whole life down / Than listen to one more second of all this bitching and moaning
When you take into account the context of Swifties going off online after digging into Matty’s past, it makes perfect sense. Those fans tore her man apart on social media long before she decided it was right for them to break up. She had to see everyone who supposedly trusted her opinion telling her exactly why she was making the wrong choice.
Related: Inside Taylor Swift’s LONG History With Matty Healy!
Ultimately it doesn’t matter if he turned out to be terrible or not, which she sings about amply on several other songs. The point is these decisions are hers to make!
Luckily fans got the message! Plenty of Swifties posted on X (Twitter) pointing out the song was about their most problematic numbers… And a lot of those fans acknowledged, yes, they themselves had gone too far! See some of the rudest awakenings (below)!
“but daddy i love him is about us btw if u didn’t know that… she’s shading US for criticizing her relationships…”
“She’s setting CLEAR boundaries in But daddy, I love him. ‘I don’t cater to all these vipers dressed in empaths clothing’ I think it’s time we all stfu and let her live her life. Her music is for us. Her personal life is NOT. I’m so so guilty of giving my opinion. NO MORE!”
“She’s literally calling us out.”
“I don’t think she minds people being kind and supportive (as long as they have some boundaries!) I feel it’s the constant criticism and sniping and judgements that she’s taking aim at. This isn’t a MH song this is about her whole life”
“I feel we all could be better!”
“but daddy, i love him is SUCH a bop!! and honestly??? i’m really proud of taylor for standing up for herself. we’ve gotten wayyyyy too comfortable making comments and judgements publicly about how she lives her life. she deserves to make her own choices and i’m glad she said it”
What do YOU think of But Daddy I Love Him? Do you have a different read? Let us know (below)!
[Image via Late Night With Seth Meyers/YouTube/MEGA/WENN.]