Swift Track Sparks Charli XCX Feud Speculation

Taylor Swift’s 12th album The Life of a Showgirl, released Oct. 3, 2025, includes the seventh track "Actually Romantic," whose opening lines — including "I heard you call me 'Boring Barbie'" and "high‑fived my ex" — prompted widespread speculation the song targets Charli XCX. Fans and outlets have tied the lyrics to connections between Charli, her husband George Daniel (drummer for The 1975), and Swift’s past association with Matty Healy, and to parallels with Charli’s 2024 album Brat. Swift, in an Amazon Music track‑by‑track and at a cinema screening, described the song as "a love letter to someone who hates you," saying it’s about realizing a one‑sided adversarial relationship and that attention can feel like affection. Charli XCX, who previously denied that "Sympathy Is a Knife" was about Swift, has posted studio clips and Instagram photos since the release, fueling fan expectations she may reply with new music. Neither artist has explicitly confirmed the songs target one another, and reaction remains divided, with many fans dissecting lyrics and some critics calling the track mean or accusing Swift of bullying.