Their relationships have inspired countless chart hits and kept their swifties on the high-profile hookups for a decade.
And with her latest love story, Taylor Swift, 33, has reclaimed her crown as the queen of romance, proudly flaunting her shocking liaison with 1975 frontman Matty Healy, 34.
For the past month, the US pop princess and the British rocker have been publicly flaunting their love affair, supporting each other in performances, showing off their PDA in front of their parents and sharing snaps with their in-laws.
All of this is in stark contrast to Taylor’s most recent relationship, in which she withdrew from the limelight and embarked on a six-year, secretive romance with 32-year-old actor Joe Alwyn.
As rumors of their relationship began to circulate last month, sources close to Matty and Taylor revealed they welcomed the public’s appetite for the connection.
“They’re both incredibly proud and excited about this relationship and unlike Taylor’s last relationship – which was deliberately kept out of the spotlight – she wants to ‘own’ this romance and not hide it,” a source said.
Web takes a look at how these two very different love stories unfolded.
To the public: With her latest love story, Taylor Swift has reclaimed her crown as the queen of romance, proudly flaunting her shocking liaison with 1975 frontman Matty Healy
How you met the girl
Taylor and Matty have been friends since 2014. They first met when Taylor attended The 1975 concert with her best friend Selena Gomez.
From the early days of their friendship, Matty was fond of speaking publicly about their connection, and in an interview with GQ he gushed that he “thought she was one of the most lovely, hard-working, creative and beautiful women I’ve had.” I’ve had the pleasure of meeting myself to get to know.’
While keeping their romance out of the public eye, Taylor and Joe actually met in a very public setting — the MET Gala in May 2016.
Fans speculated about that first meeting, pointing out that the lyrics to Taylor’s 2017 song Dress included the lines “Flashback to when you met me, your buzzed cut and my hair bleached,” referring to her Met Gala look related
Example: The new romance is in stark contrast to Taylor’s last relationship, in which she withdrew from the spotlight for a six-year secret romance with actor Joe Alwyn
Shake off the showmanship
Taylor’s decision to keep her relationship with Joe private appears to be partly due to the backlash she received over the public nature of her romance with actor Tom Hiddleston.
Taylor and Tom dated over the summer before she met Joe in 2016, and shocked fans with their infamous Fourth of July weekend, during which Tom was photographed frolicking in the surf with his lover while singing an “I.” heart TS” vest.
While Tom insisted their relationship was not “showmanship,” it was soon reported that Taylor put the brakes on the relationship after regretting how public the first few weeks were and getting the impression that Tom liked the limelight.
She joined Joe in late 2016 and from the start the romance has been kept top secret, with the singer declaring that her relationship with Britain’s hunk is “not up for discussion” in the press.
She discussed the decision to keep their romance “private” on her 2020 Netflix documentary Miss Americana, which included rare footage of her and Joe.
The superstar described “falling in love with someone who had a really wonderfully normal, balanced and grounded life,” and they “decided together that we wanted to keep our relationship private.”
Old friends: Taylor and Matty have been friends since 2014, first meeting when Taylor attended The 1975 concert with her best friend Selena Gomez (pictured together in 2015)
Welcome to the Pap Parade in New York
During their six-year relationship, Taylor and Joe never walked the red carpet together.
They both attended some high-profile events, including the 2020 Golden Globes, but chose never to be photographed together.
A source previously told Us Weekly of Taylor and Joe, “Fame played a part in their split.” “Joe is very shy and never liked all the attention that came with dating one of the world’s most popular singers.”
In stark contrast, Taylor and Matty have been photographed multiple times in the past month.
And while it’s still early days for a real red carpet moment, the pair turned the New York sidewalk into a photoshoot for their own couple.
Matty’s showman persona and his own experiences with fame seem to have had an impact on Taylor, who was spotted smiling proudly this week as she left a recording studio in New York with her boyfriend.
Smiling: Taylor was spotted smiling proudly this week as she left a recording studio in New York with her boyfriend
support act
Taylor collaborated with Joe on several tracks and welcomed her boyfriend into the songwriting world by allowing him to write lyrics for her 2020 album Folklore.
Under the pseudonym “William Bowery,” Joe co-wrote two songs for the Grammy-winning album and three more songs for Folklore’s sister album Evermore.
But while Joe hid behind an alias for his collaboration with Taylor, Matty was much louder and prouder of his support.
The frontman has been supporting the anti-hero singer for the final stops of her Eras tour which kicked off in March and has been spotted clapping and twirling in the crowd.
And he’s even jumped on stage and supported Taylor on some of her tour dates.
Supportive: Taylor’s stalwart girls squad is already saluting Matty. Gigi Hadid is pictured giving Matty a warm hug as they watch Taylor perform
It’s nice to have a friend
Taylor’s loyal friends Gigi Hadid and Lily Aldridge are already okay with Matty, no doubt in part because he’s actually been a part of their circle of friends for years.
In the picture, Gigi could be seen hugging Matty in a warm hug while watching the Love Story hitmaker’s performance recently.
Winning Taylor’s inner circle to his side is a huge achievement for Matty, as members of her loyal squad are reportedly unfollowing Joe after their split.
show their style
Taylor has been showing her love to Matty for years. Shortly after they first met, she was spotted in a 1975 t-shirt while Matt retaliated by appearing in a 1989 album top.
Recently, Matty wore the same 1989 t-shirt to watch his now-girlfriend perform and wore a hat with the name of her 2019 album Lover as he left her New York apartment.
Lover: Matty has worn his heart on his sleeve in his new romance and was spotted wearing a hat bearing the name of Taylor’s 2019 album Lover, while shortly after the two first met, Taylor was in a T-shirt from 1975
Getting to know you: Matty’s mother, Denise Welch, shared a snap of the pair cuddling up backstage at a performance in January 1975
Spotted: Fans even noticed that Matty appeared to have hung out with Taylor’s dad on several tour stops
Meeting with her London boy’s family
During their romance, Taylor and Joe grew close ties with each other’s families, with Taylor spending an extended period of time with Joe and his family in the UK during the global pandemic.
But while they kept their family reunions under wraps, Taylor has a very different “mother-in-law” in Matty’s mom, Denise Welch, who recently shared a photo of the pair cuddling.
The 64-year-old “Loose Women” star beamed as she posed for Taylor backstage at a performance of “The 1975” at London’s O2 in January.
Denise couldn’t wipe the smile off her face as she wrote, “Oh what a night in a sold out 02. So proud I can’t even begin!!”
And Matty has been meeting Taylor’s loved ones, with the Brit spotted alongside the Blank Space singer’s dad on recent tour dates.