Swift under the Mistletoe with Styles?

OPINION: Was 1989 really about Harry styles, or were they really even together? 

As I dove into the article, "Taylor Swift and Harry Styles' pop royalty romance – was 1989 really about him?” published by  South China Morning Post, it became very clear that the author thought that the couple, Taylor Swift and Harry Styles, were actually dating and not just a PR stunt. 

The two had a celebrity couple name, “Haylor”. This whole thing started back in 2012 when One Direction performed at the Nickelodeon’s 25th annual Kids Choice awards. This is when fans started to see sparks between the two cuties. After One Direction finished performing their hit song, “What Makes You Beautiful”, Taylor was seen dancing and cheering with her bestie, Selena Gomez. After this night, Justin Bieber, Selena’s boyfriend, was being interviewed and said “I already know one of the biggest artists in the world thinks Harry is so hot, but I’ve been sworn to secrecy”. This made the “Haylor” fans go crazy. 

More and more headlines about the couple began to generate right before the release of Taylor's fourth album Red. Taylor was in Paris wearing a paper airplane charm necklace and fans quickly began to notice that Harry has an identical one he used to wear all the time. Their relationship was pretty much confirmed when they were spotted holding hands backstage at a show in November of 2012 as well as while they were taking a stroll in the park of NYC in December.  Later that month they went on a little getaway in Utah. On New Years Eve 2013 the two love birds were caught having their first public kiss when the ball dropped!! This was all so exciting but you know what they say, everything good must come to an end. 

January 7th, 2013, Taylor was seen leaving the island they were staying at, on a boat by herself. After this incident, sources confirmed the break-up to People. Taylor performed at the 2013 Grammys her single “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together”. In the bridge There is a line, “So he calls me up and he's like, ‘I still love you’. And I'm like, ‘I'm sorry, I'm busy opening up for the Grammys, and we’re never getting back together, like ever”. The part that is supposed to mimic what the boy was saying, Taylor developed a british accent. This was her way of throwing a little shade towards Harry because she knew he was in the audience. On October 27, 2014, Taylor released her album 1989. Immediately fans began to speculate her song “Style” being about Harry Styles, but can you blame them? 

Swift has never specifically said who any of  these songs were about. Her hit song “Out of the Woods” is about a couple who were frantically trying to protect their love from prying eyes. AKA the paparazzi. In the second verse she makes a reference to the silver necklace with the paper airplane charm that Harry gave to her. Taylor told Rolling Stone magazine she sings about a snowmobile accident: “Remember when you hit the brakes too soon, 20 stitches in a hospital room”. This is in reference to back in December of 2012 , Harry was seen with a bandaged chin after he was reported that he “injured himself on his recent skiing holiday with Taylor Swift” to British Media. On October 16, 2015, One Direction released their single “Perfect”. The boys sing about “secret little rendezvous” and “midnight driving with the windows down”. Both of these are referenced in 1989. 

After many years, the two seem to be on good terms. This was seen at the 2021 Grammys in March. They were both in attendance and when Harry won his first ever Grammy, Taylor was the only one giving him a standing ovation. Harry released a song called “Daylight” in 2019 and everyone assumed it was about Taylor because she has a song titled “Daylight” aswell. Harry told Howard Stern that the song was born out of a stream of consciousness- a rumination about a relationship with a woman who brushed him off, leaving him frustrated. When he was asked directly if the song was about Taylor hee said “You're reading too much into it, You know I’d love to tell you that you’re spot on, but I can’t. No, sorry.” 

The last time the two were spotted together was at the 2023 Grammys in February when Harry won Album of the year. The two were spotted catching up and having a laugh together. There are many different rumors about how this could’ve gone down. They seem to be friends now and are both very sincere and kind people. I find it hard to believe either of them would write anything negatively about each other. There is something very genuine about the two, especially the way she stood up for him after he won his Grammy. I would conclude the two were very much together.