Fans were quick to notice the pointed lyrics of track 7, 'Actually Romantic'. If the title's reference to 'Everything is Romantic' isn't compelling enough, then boldy opening with 'the cokes got you brave' most certainly strikes at Charli XCX and her party-girl lifestyle. Listeners suppose the song comes in response to Charli's 'Sympathy is a knife', from her hugely successful 2024 album BRAT, which held the music industry in a chokehold last summer. As Charli describes how she doesn't 'wanna see her backstage at my boyfriends show', and describes her 'fingers crossed, I hope they break up', Charli definitely sprinkles bitterness in her song towards Taylor, as she recounts the period Swift dated The 1975's lead singer Matty Healy, her boyfriend's bandmate. Nevertheless, as she explicitly states 'this one girl taps my insecurities' and laments 'I couldn't even be her if I tried', at its core the song is a personal and honest expression of female insecurity, aligning with the rest of the BRAT album.
That didn't stop the pop princess from taking it as a direct attack though, and her response just shows how much Swift missed the bravery and honesty of Charli's song. She condescends her with lyrics like 'no man has ever loved me like you do', and belittles her to 'a toy chihuahua barking at me from a tiny purse'. Ironically, Swift pokes fun at 'all the time' and 'all the effort' Charli has spent over her, when 'Actually Romantic' is symbolic of her own concern over Charli. As she mocks Charli for 'flirting' with her, and describes the song as 'sweet', she holds no sympathy for the insecurity expressed in Charli's track, and unfortunately Swift just comes across as insensitive. The Mean Girl's reference definitely seems intentional.
"Her response just shows how much Swift missed the bravery and honesty of Charli's song"
You can't help but parallel the situation with the Charli XCX vs Lorde drama. Similarly, Charli's song 'Girl, so confusing' expressed another internal conflict she had over the female artist Lorde. Yet these two decided to 'work it out on the remix' and put their insecurities about each other 'to bed', creating a special moment of female solidarity. In comparison, 'Actually Romantic's' opposite trajectory clearly becomes problematic in feminist conversations.
The Music Industry is an incredibly male-dominated space, with only 1 of the 13 major record labels in the US being headed by a woman. The largest record label in the world, Universal Music Group, also only has 1 woman on their Corporate Management Team. The gender imbalance is all-too clear. Perhaps one of the most significant moments of music pop culture history presenting this includes Swift herself: the moment Kanye West interrupted her onstage at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards. As Swift accepted her award for 'You Belong With Me', West abruptly took the microphone to announce Beyonce should have won for having one of the best video's of all time. As a 32 year old man, he unfairly took the achievement of a vulnerable 19-year old girl. This blatant exploitation and humiliation perfectly exemplifies the power of men in the music industry.
"Only 1 of the 13 major record labels in the US being headed by a woman"
Amongst other attention she attracts in the press, Taylor has clearly faced her fair share of misogyny throughout her career, giving 'Actually Romantic' it's poignancy. It's a Woman VS Woman attack that presents how patriarchal systems position women against each other. As a role model this influences women and young girls to treat their peers in the same way, continuing this patriarchal cycle. As women are kept apart, they have no strength in numbers. They are given a false sense of power as they gain advantage over each other, despite their inferiority within the gender hierarchy.
But perhaps this need to protect and defend one's public position, especially as a successful woman, is the true source of this conflict. After years of being in the public eye, it'd be completely understandable if Taylor was conditioned to stand guard against any discourse surrounding her. She does it a lot, retaliating in the West feud with 'Look What You Made Me Do' in 2017.
However this pattern could also just be evidence that 'Actually Romantic' is an age-old marketing plot. Charli XCX has openly commented on the meticulous detail she put into the planning of BRAT, and Taylor Swift herself has consistently churned out music since the mid-2000's: these are two smart business women. As feuds naturally attract public attention, this head to head becomes the question of a publicity stunt. It would make sense, especially since Charli is still keeping BRAT's momentum going with her recent announcements, such as her songs will soundtrack Emerald Fennell's upcoming 'Wuthering heights', starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi; and she has conceptualised her new motion picture 'The Moment', with A24 and Aidan Zamiri.
But if this is not a mutual business plan, it seems Charli's hyper-pop moment has reversely tapped Taylor's insecurities too, and the love-song connoisseur has shot herself in the foot and perpetuated her own public demise. Faulting another woman for honestly expressing insecurity is a poor example for teaching women to bring each other down. In a space where record companies are dominated by men and women are minorities on executive boards, 'Actually Romantic' is leaving a bad taste is listeners' mouths.