Taylor Swift Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
Taylor Swift has seemingly dropped another Easter egg for her fans, this time about the potential inspiration behind her song “Sweet Nothing.”
Eagle-eyed social media users noticed on Thursday, November 30, that Swift, 33, “liked” a post shared by a Paul McCartney fan account in October 2022. The upload included a photo of the Beatles musician, 81, and his now-ex-wife Linda McCartney.
“I would come back from a run with a poem to share and having listened Linda would say, ‘What a mind,’” read an accompanying quote from Paul. “Though the lines may not have been supreme, she wasn’t merely being kind. She meant what she said. It’s going to make a man feel good, that kind of a thing.”
Some fans took Swift’s social media activity as an indication that she penned “Sweet Nothing” in honor of the McCartneys, who were married from 1969 to 1998. The Midnights ballad, which was released in October 2022, includes lyrics similar to Paul’s quote.
“On the way home, I wrote a poem / You say, ‘What a mind’ / This happens all the time,” Swift sings in the second verse.
When the album debuted, many listeners believed Swift wrote “Sweet Nothing” about then-boyfriend Joe Alwyn. “They said the end is coming / Everyone’s up to something / I find myself running home to your sweet nothings,” she sings in the chorus. “Outside, they’re push and shoving / You’re in the kitchen humming / All that you ever wanted from me was sweet nothing.”
Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney attend the 13th Grammy Awards on March 16, 1971 at the Hollywood Palladium, Los Angeles, California. Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Us Weekly confirmed in April that Swift and Alwyn, 32, split after six years of dating. At the time, an insider exclusively told Us that Swift’s stardom was a factor in the pair’s decision to call it quits.
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“Joe is very shy and never liked all of the attention that came with dating one of the most popular singers in the world,” the source added, noting that Alwyn never “blamed” his now-ex for her popularity. “He just didn’t like having to be on all of the time.”
The twosome were notoriously private about their relationship, and their breakup came as a major shock to diehard Swifties. Since April, some fans have attempted to piece together the timeline of Swift and Alwyn’s split with apparent clues from her Eras Tour performances, vault songs and more.
In May, Swift dropped a special edition of Midnights for fans attending her Eras Tour at MetLife Stadium. The extended version of the album featured “You’re Losing Me (From the Vault),” a powerful breakup anthem many listeners believed to be about the end of Swift and Alwyn’s relationship.
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“Do something, babe, say something (say something) / Lose something, babe, risk something (you’re losin’ me),” she sings in the outro. “Choose something, babe, I got nothing (got nothing) / To believe / Unless you’re choosin’ me.”
When Swift officially released the song on streaming platforms on Wednesday, November 29, to celebrate being Spotify’s Top Global Artist of 2023, her longtime collaborator Jack Antonoff stirred the pot by revealing the exact time and place “You’re Losing Me” was written — a year before Swift and Alwyn split.
“‘You’re Losing Me’ is out today, a very special track from the Midnights sessions that’s finally streaming!” he wrote via his Instagram Story, sharing a photo of Swift in a kitchen. “Written and recorded at home on 12/5/21 after Taylor ate these raisins.”
