Overview

• Fans and outlets link the new song to Charli XCX based on lyrics that mention being called “Boring Barbie,” celebrating an ex who “ghosted,” and writing a song about being sick of seeing Swift’s face.
• Listeners point to visual art showing Swift holding a red apple as an Easter egg nod to Charli’s Brat-era track “Apple,” reinforcing the interpretive thread.
• In an Amazon Music track-by-track, Swift frames “Actually Romantic” as recognizing someone’s one-sided adversarial focus on her, stopping short of identifying a subject.
• Charli XCX previously said her 2024 “Sympathy Is a Knife,” widely rumored to reference Swift, was about her own anxiety rather than targeting another artist.
• Reaction on social platforms is sharply split, with some accusing Swift of “punching down” and others treating the readings as typical pop discourse tied to the artists’ 2018 tour history and The 1975 connections.