“So Long, London” isn’t the only overt reference to an ex on Taylor Swift’s “The Tortured Poet’s Department.” Au contraire, the titular song makes a pretty overt mention to the man she had a short-lived romance with in the immediate aftermath of her split from Joe Alwyn: the sketchy Matty Healy.
The most obvious link to Healy comes from the fact that back in 2016, a Pitchfork music critic poked fun at him, joking that he came across as a “Trustafarian street poet.” Right at the start of the album’s titular track, “The Tortured Poet’s Department,” Swift seemingly alludes to Healy’s insistence at using retro technology, possibly to seem more authentic and align himself with the great poets of yesteryear. “You left your typewriter at my apartment / Straight from the tortured poets department / I think some things I never say / Like, “Who uses typewriters anyway?” she quips.
Later on, in the chorus, Swift makes another reference to Healy’s dedication to coming across like a great poet, and points to a time she joked with Healy that neither of them could be likened to the greats, with the line, “I laughed in your face and said, ‘You’re not Dylan Thomas, I’m not Patti Smith / This ain’t the Chelsea Hotel, we’re modern idiots.” Burn. But that’s nothing on the other song Swift penned to Healy. Brace yourselves.
