Pop star Charli XCX has fueled speculation of a brewing feud with Taylor Swift after posting a mysterious video online shortly after the release of Taylor’s latest album, The Life of a Showgirl.
Following the album’s debut last week, fans began to suspect that one of its tracks, “Actually Romantic,” takes aim at Charli. Neither artist has publicly addressed the rumours.
On Sunday, Charli XCX (real name Charlotte Aitchison) shared a five-second clip on X (formerly Twitter), showing an engineer at a mixing console in a recording studio. The brief video featured swelling sounds and two quick notes, accompanied only by a heart emoji in the caption.
In Actually Romantic, Taylor appears to call out an unnamed celebrity, singing:
“I heard you call me ‘Boring Barbie’ when the coke’s got you brave / High-fived my ex and then you said you’re glad he ghosted me…”
Fans quickly connected the lyrics to Charli, pointing out that she has referenced drug use in her music and released a 2024 song titled “Everything Is Romantic.” Others also noted her track “Sympathy Is a Knife,” where she reflects on feeling insecure around another female artist — a song some believe was about Swift, given the shared connection to The 1975.
During The Official Release Party of a Showgirl event, Taylor described Actually Romantic as “a love letter to someone who hates you.”
“As I’ve gotten older, I’ve started to see it as flattering,” Swift explained. “In my industry, attention is affection — and you’ve given me a whole lot of it.”
Neither camp has confirmed whether the song is indeed about Charli XCX, but her cryptic post has certainly intensified fan theories online.
