Who Did Taylor Swift Write "Better Man" About? We Investigate the Lyrics for Little Big Town's New Single

Could Calvin Harris or Tom Hiddleston be the inspiration behind the singer’s new lyrics?

By Mike Vulpo Nov 01, 2016 11:38 PMTags

Taylor Swift's songwriting skills are getting music fans talking once again. 

On Tuesday morning, Little Big Town revealed in a Facebook Live press conference that their new song "Better Man" was written by the one and only "Shake It Off" singer.

"She sent us this song, and it was one that was really special to her," Karen Fairchild explained to fans. "And she thought of us because of the harmonies, and she's never pitched a song to anyone before and the moment that we heard it we were like, 'Man, that is a song that we're gonna cut.'"

Taylor would also confirm the news in an Instagram post later in the day.

"Feeling really honored that a band I've loved for so many years decided to record this song I wrote," she shared. "Good luck at #cmaawards @littlebigtown !! Love you guys."

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Musicians Performing Live on Stage
Getty Images

Once the song lyrics were made public, fans immediately began to speculate as to the inspiration behind the catchy lyrics. And yes, some were more than quick to ask: Who is this about?

One source shared with E! News that Taylor wrote the song a while back and even heard it was years ago. In other words, the chance of having it be inspired by a recent ex like Calvin Harris or Tom Hiddleston is out of the question.

A Nashville reporter also got fans excited when she tweeted (and then deleted) a post. "NEWSFLASH: People who think @TaylorSwift13 wrote @LittleBigTown's new song 'Better Man' about @CalvinHarris, NOPE," the original tweet read. "She wrote it around 2010."

Soon after, a new post was published that provided a bit more questions than answers.  "Turns out my source about the timing of Little Big Town's ‘Better Man' was incorrect & confused this song with another Taylor song! Sorry!"

And then there is an investigation by Elle that matches certain lyrics with key moments in Taylor's past relationships with both Tom and Calvin.

Perhaps Little Big Town's Karen summed it up best when reminding fans that lyrics can have many interpretations.

"Everybody has a better man. It might have been a lover, or a parent that disappointed you. I think the beauty of that storytelling is that we can all relate to being disappointed in someone and still loving them, but saying ‘Enough is enough,'" she shared. "This would have been amazing if you would have gotten your act together. That's kind of a fun song to sing."