Taylor Swift‘s longtime publicist, Tree Paine, would very much like her client to be excluded from one particular narrative about ex Joe Alwyn.
Paine cleared the air via social media on Thursday, November 30, after an Instagram Story shared by DeuxMoi espoused a theory that Swift, 33, and Alwyn, 32, were secretly married before ending their six-year relationship. The account alleged a ceremony took place “in either 2020 or 2021” but claimed that the marriage was not made legal.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday night, Paine shared a screenshot of the blind item. “Enough is enough with these fabricated lies about Taylor from Deuxmoi,” she wrote. “There was NEVER a marriage or ceremony of ANY kind. This is an insane thing to post. It’s time for you to be held accountable for the pain and trauma you cause with posts like these.”
Swift’s fans praised “Mother Tree” in the comments section for shutting down the speculation, but DeuxMoi doubled down on the marriage narrative. (The person who runs the account has remained anonymous through the years.)
“Well I make zero dollars from lying… can publicists say the same,” read a subsequent Instagram Story from the account. “Also, to relate something that is in reference to something that happened years ago to ‘pain & trauma’ after what just happened seems like a poor choice of words. Either way, I apologize to Taylor.”
Us Weekly confirmed in April that Swift and Alwyn had called it quits. At the time, a source exclusively told Us that “fame factored into” the former couple’s decision.
“Joe is very shy and never liked all of the attention that came with dating one of the most popular singers in the world,” the insider added, noting that Swift wasn’t at “fault” for the breakup. “[Joe] just didn’t like having to be on all of the time.”
The twosome were first linked in 2017 and attempted to keep their romance out of the spotlight despite Swift’s global superstar status. Swift penned several songs inspired by their relationship, and Alwyn even teamed up with his then-girlfriend to write a handful of songs on the 2020 albums Folklore and Evermore.
Fans were shocked when Swift and Alwyn’s breakup made headlines, but some have retroactively wondered whether there were more signs leading up to the pair’s split than initially believed. When Swift officially dropped “You’re Losing Me (From the Vault)” on streaming on Wednesday, November 29, listeners attempted to piece together the timeline of its production.
The breakup song debuted in May as part of a special edition of Midnights available exclusively to concertgoers at the MetLife Stadium dates of Swift’s Eras Tour. At the time, fans were divided on whether the song was written before or after Swift and Alwyn’s split.
On Wednesday, her longtime collaborator Jack Antonoff clarified the timeline, revealing “You’re Losing Me” was written more than one year before the breakup made headlines. “‘You’re Losing Me’ is out today, a very special track from the Midnights sessions that’s finally streaming!” he wrote via his Instagram Story, sharing a photo of Swift in a kitchen. “Written and recorded at home on 12/5/21 after Taylor ate these raisins.”
Neither Swift nor Alwyn have addressed their breakup at length. Swift briefly dated The 1975’s Matty Healy in the wake of her split before moving on with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce this fall.
