The Meaning Of Taylor Swift's "High Infidelity" Lyrics & April 29, Explained

October 19, 2024

On “High Infidelity,” one of Taylor Swift’s bonus tracks on the surprise “3 a.m. edition” of Midnights, Swift broaches the topic of cheating and leaving a loveless relationship, specifically singing that April 29 was a major turning point. However, the 11-time Grammy winner didn’t specify what year, leading curious fans to track down what may have happened that day to her, and they’ve connected the dots back to one person: Calvin Harris, whom Swift reportedly dated for 15 months before splitting in mid-2016.

On April 29, 2016, the Scottish DJ released This Is What You Came For” featuring Rihanna. At the time, Swift was credited as a songwriter under the pseudonym Nils Sjöberg, which fans would only find out later. However, during an interview that day, Harris stated that he would likely never collaborate with his then-girlfriend — hiding the fact that he already had. “You know, we haven’t even spoken about it,” he told Ryan Seacrest. “I can’t see it happening, though. No. She’s about to take a long break.” That same day, Swift was seen shopping in New York City to prepare for the Met Gala that she was co-hosting. At the May 2 soiree, she was spotted dancing with Tom Hiddleston, who she would go on to date later that summer.

Fast forward to July, when TMZ revealed that Swift wrote “This Is What You Came For” and reported that Harris’ interview was the couple’s breaking point because she felt disrespected. However, if the “High Infidelity” lyrics are any indication, Swift may have already been on the way out.

On “High Infidelity,” Swift candidly sings about the final days of a relationship, expressing how she no longer felt loved and asking if her lover really wanted to know the truth of how she had already moved on. “You know there’s many different ways that you can kill the one you love,” she sings. “The slowest way is never loving them enough / Do you really want to know where I was April 29th? / Do I really have to tell you how he brought me back to life?” Swift previously sang about this rumored scenario on “Getaway Car” from her 2017 album Reputation, which fans have long speculated to be about Swift leaving Harris for Hiddleston. The “Anti-Hero” singer has also written about infidelity on “Illicit Affairs” and “Ivy” from her 2020 albums Folklore and Evermore.

Coincidentally, fans also pointed out that Swift attended friend Gigi Hadid’s 21st birthday party on April 28, 2016. The party, which may have been attended by Swift’s current boyfriend of six years (Joe Alwyn), likely spilled into the early hours of April 29.

According to the lyrics of Swift’s 2017 song “Dress,” Swift and Alwyn likely met three days after Hadid’s party at the 2016 Met Gala: “Flashback to when you met me, your buzzed cut and my hair bleached,” she sings. At that event, Swift’s hair was bleached, and Alwyn's hair was buzzed.

Joe Alwyn in September 2022 in London.Mike Marsland/WireImage/Getty Images

After the Harris and Hiddleston drama fizzled out, Swift and Alwyn started dating in October 2016. Since then, Alwyn has co-written some songs with Swift, including 2022’s “Sweet Nothing.”

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