Taylor's Fans Think She Called Joe Alwyn Her Muse In Her New Song

Taylor Swift's eighth studio album Folklore was the best surprise fans could have received from the star in 2020. The emotional record brought so many instant fan-favorite tracks, including "Cardigan," "Betty," and "Invisible String." Whenever Swift releases a new album, it's tradition for fans to dissect its lyrics to find any clues about who they could reference. Right now, they're wondering whether Taylor Swift's "The Lakes" is about Joe Alwyn. According to Swifties, the bonus track off Folklore has him written all over it.

Since Swift usually goes big with her album promotions, fans had no idea the record was even coming on Friday, July 24, until the day before she released it. Once the album hit streaming sites, fans wasted no time listening to every second of it. To their surprise, she went a more alternative route with Folklore than its ultra-pop predecessor Lover, but what remained the same was her penchant for writing heart-wrenching lyrics. Fans couldn't stop thinking about who could have inspired Swift to write such passionate lyrics. The singer's boyfriend was an obvious choice for romantic tracks like "Invisible String," "Cardigan," "Peace," "This Is Me Trying," and "Hoax."

Now that her bonus track "The Lakes" hit streaming sites on Aug. 18 and more fans had a chance to listen to it, they're more convinced than ever Alwyn was her muse. If you haven't heard "The Lakes" yet, you can listen to it below.

The reason fans believe Alwyn inspired the song is due to the number of nods toward England in the track's lyrics. (FYI: Alwyn is an English actor.) For example, in the chorus, Swift sings,

Take me to the lakes, where all the poets went to die / I don't belong and, my beloved, neither do you / Those Windermere peaks look like a perfect place to cry / I'm setting off, but not without my muse

Fans think Swift is talking about the Lake District in England, which, according to E!, is connected to English poets like William Wordsworth. On top of that, Windermere is the largest natural lake in the area.

Due to Swift's history of using flowers to describe her blooming relationship, the bridge may also be about Alwyn:

I want auroras and sad prose. I want to watch wisteria grow right over my bare feet 'cause I haven't moved in years. And I want you right here. A red rose grew up out of ice frozen ground with no one around to tweet it.

Swift is no stranger to hiding easter eggs in her lyrics, so "The Lakes" may be about her boyfriend after all. And if it is, Alwyn is officially her muse.