Little Big Town announced on Tuesday, Nov. 1, that Taylor Swift was the one who wrote their new song “Better Man.”
Taylor Swift has announced in various interviews that she’s on an extended hiatus from making music. That hasn’t stopped the 26-year-old singer and songwriter for writing music for other artists. Earlier this year, it was reported that Swift co-wrote the song “This Is What You Came For” for then-boyfriend Calvin Harris, as reported via Forbes. Swift’s original contribution to the song was originally credited under the pseudonym Nils Sjöberg, but Swift later took credit after it was revealed and Harris confirmed the news before dragging her on Twitter.
It’s obvious that “Better Man” is a breakup song, leading fans to wonder if Swift wrote it about her relationship with Calvin Harris. As previously reported via Hollywood Life, the new single is about a woman who called it quits with a guy who wasn’t enough for her. It sounds like something that would fit in on Swift’s Speak Now or Red album. Even the lyrics itself sound extremely personal.
The lyrics go, “You’re talking down to me like I’ll always be around / You push my love like it’s some kind of loaded gun / Boy, you never thought I’d run,” and “But I just miss you and just wish you were a better man / And I know why we had to say goodbye / Like the back of my hand / And I just miss you, and I just wish you were a better man.”
An inside source told E! News that Swift did not write the song about Harris. In fact, she wrote the song years ago, long before she dated the Scottish DJ. That quashes the rumors that “Better Man” is about either Calvin Harris or Tom Hiddleston.
A Nashville reporter also revealed the news on Twitter when they posted (and then deleted) the following: “NEWSFLASH: People who think @TaylorSwift13 wrote @LittleBigTown’s new song ‘Better Man’ about @CalvinHarris, NOPE. She wrote it around 2010.”
Shortly after the tweet was posted, a new tweet provided Swift’s fans with more questions than answers as to when the song was really written.
“Turns out my source about the timing of Little Big Town’s ‘Better Man’ was incorrect & confused this song with another Taylor song. Sorry!” the person tweeted.
So, was the song really written back in 2010, or was it written in present times. Elle published an investigative report as to how “Better Man” relates to the time Swift ended her relationship with Harris and moved on quickly with Hiddleston. On the other hand, it has some lines that suggest it could be about Hiddleston since their long-distance love didn’t work out, after all.
Little Big Town’s Fairchild was asked about the meaning behind the song and summed it up best for everyone.
“Everybody has a better man. It might have been a lover, or a parent that disappointed you. I think the beauty of that storytelling is that we can all relate to being disappointed in someone and still loving them, but saying ‘Enough is enough,’” she shared. “This would have been amazing if you would have gotten your act together. That’s kind of a fun song to sing.”.
