“I Bet You Think About Me” by Taylor Swift (ft. Chris Stapleton)

To note, Taylor’s explanation of “I Bet You Think About Me” doesn’t allude to her relationship with Jake Gyllenhaal at all. Or, let’s put it like this. At this point, it’s safe to say that even if Swift never dated anyone a single day in her life, she would still be a musician. 

Or put from a different angle, a de facto rule of her profession/genre is that artists must regularly drop songs related to romance. So all because she does so doesn’t mean that she is speaking to something she personally experienced, as is always the speculation. Instead, as she explained, her and Lori McKenna intentionally set out to put together a breakup song with a humorous, don’t-give-AF slant. 

Lyrics of “I Bet You Think About Me”

That said, some of these lyrics do read quite personal and would especially be interpreted so by the likes of Swifties. For example, the premise of what’s being put forth revolves around the addressee being the vocalist’s ex, coupled with the strong implication that he dumped her. His rationale for doing so has something to do with the fact that he’s from a higher class. 

By contrast, the vocalist “was raised on a farm” and appears to be quite content with her background. 

And yes, Taylor Swift did live on a farm, while Gyllenhaal has been a Hollywood actor for almost his entire life.

But either way, by the time all is said and done the vocalist also comes to the conclusion that she and the addressee are incompatible. But that realization is not what the thesis sentiment speaks to. Instead, Taylor has also come to believe that he now regrets letting her go.

At the time they parted ways, the addressee was apparently under the impression that he would be okay post-breakup. But now, under the vocalist’s estimation he is in his feelings, with his regret being exacerbated by the fact that he had no solid reason to dump her in the first place. 

Or put otherwise, it is only now in the aftermath that he has grasped the fact that Taylor is akin to an ideal mate – a notion that others apparently caught on to before he did. As such, the song concludes with Swift taunting him accordingly.

In Conclusion

So all lyrics considered, yes, this song can be taken as a personal shot against one of Swift’s exes. And since Swifties have concluded that said ex would be Jake Gyllenhaal, we’re not in a position to postulate otherwise.

But Taylor’s own explanation of this piece sorta implies that when she and Lori set out to write it, it wasn’t intended to actually be about her love life. Instead, as far as the general message being put forth, it highlights how some guys dumb out and let go of a good thing under justifications, only to find themselves in their feelings afterwards.

Credits for “I Bet You Think About Me”

Taylor Swift, who in the here and now isn’t particularly known for working with different songwriters, did pen this piece with another recognizable country/folk singer in Lori McKenna.

That is to say that “I Bet You Think About Me” dates back to Swift’s earlier days, with this song’s composition taking place during her Red (2012) era. 

But the production was done closer to the song’s official release in 2021, so in that regard Taylor teamed up with one of her two regular collaborators of the present, that being Aaron Dessner. (And for the record, the other would be Jack Antonoff).

So even though this track was written while Swift was signed to Big Machine, it ended up being issued under Republic Records, whom the songstress released the re-recording of “Red”, aka “Red (Taylor’s Version)”, through. So this song is not only a “Taylor’s Version” but also “From the Vault”, i.e. having been archived for a decade before eventual release.

Official Date of Release

“I Bet You Think About Me” was officially released on 12 November 202.

This track served as the lead single from “Red (Taylor’s Version)”. To note, said project wasn’t a commercial one per se but rather part of Swift’s overall effort to regain mastery of her catalog. As such, “I Bet You Think About Me” wasn’t a hit by her standards, though it did peak at number 3 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart.

Music Video

The music video to this track was directed by Blake Lively – a name some readers would recognize as the prominent actress who happens to be married to Ryan Reynolds – with said clip serving as her directorial debut. 

The visual co-stars Bradley Bradshaw, an actor who recently played a major role in the record-breaking Top Gun: Maverick (2022). Moreover Swift’s only sibling, her younger bro Austin, lent to the visual’s production. 

And all of this star power did contribute to the clip receiving a Video of the Year nomination at the 2022 ACM Awards (which was won by Miranda Lambert and Elle King’s “Drunk”) and concurrently at the CMA Awards (which went to Cody Johnson’s “‘Til You Can’t”).

Chris Stapleton

This song officially features country singer Chris Stapleton. However, he played no role in composing it. This collaboration marks the first time Stapleton and Swift have collaborated together on a song. Chris later went on to state that he was “lucky” to have been able to collaborate with Swift on this song.