Welp. It looks like Taylor Swift and The 1975’s Matty Healy are officially dating, news that has some people pumped and some people in a state of:
And while Taylor and the controversial frontman’s…whole thing…has seemingly come out of left field amid news of Tay’s breakup with Joe Alwyn, they actually have a lot of history. And some of it is kinda huh-inducing (like when Matty said it would be “emasculating” for him to date Taylor back in 2016…). A full timeline lies ahead.
December 4, 2014
Taylor and Matty fuel dating rumors after she’s spotted at The 1975’s show in New York City. The appearance comes after Matty had said he and Tay exchanged numbers:
“I met Taylor Swift, that was really nice. We exchanged numbers. Let’s see what happens. I mean bloody hell, what am I going to do? Go out with Taylor Swift? She’s a sensation, I wouldn’t say no.”
February 25, 2016
Matty and Taylor reconnect at the Universal Music Brits party and chill with some other celebs:
March 17, 2016
Matty tells Q Magazine (via Us Weekly) that it would be “emasculating” to date Taylor:
“She wasn’t a big impact on my life. It’s just interesting to me how interested the world is about Taylor Swift. The reason I mention that is because if I had [properly] gone out with Taylor Swift, I would’ve been, ‘F–king hell, I am not being Taylor Swift’s boyfriend.’ You know, ‘F–k. That.’ That’s also a man thing, a demasculinating [sic], emasculating thing.”
March 18, 2016
Matty walks back his comments in a since deleted tweet, saying (via Elle), “Now I may admit to being an idiot on occasion, but I am not a misogynist. This suggestion makes me really sad.”
He also denies dating Taylor, saying, “I was for a very short time immersed in a celebrity world that I found confusing and scary. At that time, I had fears of being ‘somebody’s boyfriend’ (remember this is all speculation as we never dated!) before even being recognized for my music or presence as a person in my own right. Now I don’t pride myself on being more intelligent, or worldly, or wise, or progressive, or even regressive than the next man but I DO pride self on being honest. I was being HONEST about all the thoughts, feelings, and situations that come along when people ASSUME you are dating the most famous woman on the planet. I am telling you from experience it’s an all-consuming whirlwind and something that for me elicited a lot of self-exploration.”
He then gets into his feels about Taylor, saying, “Now if you want to talk about Taylor Swift, that is easy…. Since she came to my show in December of 2014, I would say that 90 perfect of journalists that have interviewed me have asked about either her as a person or what our ‘interaction’ was like. I have said on countless occasions that I found her to be one of the most gracious, hard working, creatively gifted, and beautiful women that I have had the pleasure to meet. I personally have a lot of respect and admiration for her. Why would I not? I didn’t even date Taylor, but the media’s incessant and brutal obsession with her has meant that even a guy who DIDN’T DATE HER has been so battered by their never-ending questions that he’s inevitably said something that can be lifted and molded into something that resembles ‘shade’. It’s really sad.”
*Reminder: It’s since been confirmed by more recent sources (we’ll get to them in a minute) that Taylor and Matty were seeing each other briefly amid all of this, so….
April 20, 2023
Amid Taylor’s breakup with Joe Alwyn, a source tells Us Weekly that she isn’t thinking about dating:
“[She is still] adjusting to the single life. She isn’t dating anybody and isn’t even thinking about getting into another relationship anytime soon.”
May 3, 2023
The Sun drops the bombshell news that Taylor and Matty are dating, which seems far fetched…at first.
“She and Matty are madly in love,” a source claims. “It’s super-early days, but it feels right. They first dated, very briefly, almost ten years ago but timings just didn’t work out. Taylor and Joe actually split up back in February, so there was absolutely no crossover. Both Matty and Taylor have been touring over the past few weeks, so it’s been a lot of FaceTiming and texting, but she cannot wait to see him again.”
The source adds that “as two international megastars, they understand the pressures of one another’s jobs better than anyone, and are incredibly supportive of their respective careers. They are both massively proud and excited about this relationship and, unlike Taylor’s last one—which was very much kept out of the spotlight, deliberately—she wants to ‘own’ this romance, and not hide it away. Taylor just wants to live her life, and be happy. She’s told pals Matty is flying to Nashville over the weekend to support her on the next leg of her tour.”
May 5, 2023
Matty is fully spotted vibing at Taylor’s show. I mean, could just be a friendship thing but….😳.
May 6, 2023
TikTok user @venusdaydreams points out that Taylor mouthed, “This is about you, you know who you are. I love you” during a show, which Matty also mouthed during a May 3 show in the Philippines.
The math is mathing, I repeat, THE MATH IS MATHING.
May 7, 2023
Matty is seemingly photographed in Taylor’s car after her Nashville show in photos published by the Daily Mail.
May 8, 2023
Matty and Taylor are finally confirmed to be dating by multiple sources.
Two insiders speak to Us Weekly about their relationship, the first confirming that they had a “brief” fling “years ago,” “they’re looking to give things a second chance,” and are “having a good time reconnecting again.”
Then another source says, “They both respect and admire each other’s talent.” This source also notes Taylor “isn’t sure” she’s “ready to commit” to something “so soon” after her split from Joe.
This same day, an insider tells Entertainment Tonight that “Taylor and Matty like each other. Taylor has a crush on Matty and they are having a good time hanging out. Matty also thinks Taylor is awesome and incredibly talented, too. They dated briefly in the past.”
Welp. This brings us up to date!
Mehera Bonner is a celebrity and entertainment news writer who enjoys Bravo and Antiques Roadshow with equal enthusiasm, She was previously entertainment editor at Marie Claire and has covered pop culture for over a decade.