Shropshire Star

Who is Betty and the other songs on Taylor Swift’s album Folklore about?

Fans have also speculated about the identity of a mysterious collaborator.

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Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift has dropped her eighth studio album just hours after announcing she had recorded a whole new record while in isolation.

Folklore, which features a collaboration with Bon Iver and sees her reunite with producer Jack Antonoff, also contains a string of songs that have sparked fevered speculation among her passionate fans.

The three that have generated the most interest are tracks about doomed teen romances after Swift told fans in an Q&A: “There’s a collection of 3 songs I refer to as The Teenage Love Triangle.

“These 3 songs explore a love triangle from all 3 people’s perspectives at different times in their lives.”

These appear to be the tracks Cardigan, August and Betty.

Fans have also speculated that track The Last Great American Dynasty is about Rebekah Harkness, the former owner of The Holiday House, Swift’s home on Rhode Island.

Fans have also speculated about the identity of William Bowery, who Swift has said co-wrote two songs on the album but who does not appear to be a registered songwriter or producer.

It has been mooted that Bowery could be a pseudonym for either her brother Austin or her boyfriend Joe Alwyn.

According to fans, Bowery could be a reference to the Bowery Hotel, where the couple reportedly had one of their first dates in 2016,  while William could be a nod to Alywn’s great grandfather William Alwyn, who was a musical composer, conductor, and teacher.

Swift famously loves a pseudonym and used the name Nils Sjoberg as an alias on ex-boyfriend Calvin Harris’ hit, This Is What You Came For.

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