Fans are convinced that one poignant song on Taylor Swift’s highly-anticipated album, which came out on Friday, tells the tale of a hidden heartbreak.

Listeners have suggested that the singer’s emotional sixth track, titled Ruin the Friendship, is about a high school crush that tragically passed away, aged only 21.

Before today’s release, many speculated the song would be named after Blake Livelybut now believe it’s a tribute to Jeff Lang, who died in 2010 – just two weeks after the release of her second studio album Speak Now.

A day after his funeral – which she sang at – the musician won BMI Country Songwriter of the Year, and made an emotional speech about ‘one of her best friends’ on stage.

The lyrics talk of nostalgic memories, and regrets that she didn’t kiss someone when she ‘should’ve’.

‘Don’t make it awkward in second period,’ she continued. ‘Might piss your ex off, lately we’ve been good. Staying friends is safe, doesn’t mean you should.’

In further devastating words, she described ‘losing track’ of the crush after graduating, but receiving a call ‘with the bad news’.

‘Goodbye, and we’ll never know why,’ she added. ‘It was not an invitation; But I flew home anyway; With so much left to say; It was not convenient, no; But I whispered at the grave; “Should’ve kissed you anyway”.’

Those tuning into the record believe that it’s a reference to the late Jeff, who devoted Swifties also believe a song from an earlier album – Red (Taylor’s Version) – is also about.

In 2021, the star released ‘vault track’ Forever Winter, in which she shared her concerns for a loved one who is ‘breaking down’ feels like he is ‘getting pulled down by gravity’.

‘He says he doesn’t believe anything much he hears these days,’ she crooned. ‘He says, “Why fall in love, just so you can watch it go away?”. He spends most of his nights wishing it was how it used to be.

‘All this time, I didn’t know; You were breakin’ down; I’d fall to pieces on the floor; If you weren’t around

‘Too young to know it gets better; I’ll be summer sun for you forever; Forever winter if you go.’

In it Taylor also sang of him ‘seeming fine most of the time’ and ‘forcing smiles and never minds’ – but fearing that he will ‘decide to leave’ because of the ‘darkness’ he feels.

Harking back to the noughties references in ‘Ruin the Friendship’ – from 50 Cent songs to ‘prom’ and ‘second period’ in school – listeners think both songs could be about Jeff.

Taking to social media, fans admitted they were in tears at the potentially heartbreaking connection, saying they are ‘not okay’ and ‘cannot do this right now’.

In 2010, the songstress paid homage to Jeff after receiving an award for her track, You Belong With Me.

‘It’s been a really emotional week for me,’ she told the audience during her speech.

‘Yesterday I sang at the funeral of one my best friends and he was 21 and I used to play my songs for him first. So I would like to thank Jeff Lang.’

According to an obituary, Jeff, who was born in the same year as Taylor, graduated from Hendersonville High School in Tennessee, which she had also attended for two years.

He was majoring in Biology at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga when he passed away. Forever Winter is one of four songs of Taylor’s which have never been played live.

According to the Chattanooga Times Free PressJeff died ‘from an inflammation of the lungs called acute bronchopneumonia, according to a separate medical examiner’s report’ – which also added that ‘Methadone was a probable contributing factor in Lang’s death’.

Methadone is often given to patients to reduce opioid cravings and withdrawals.

The singer had shocked the world when she announced earlier this year she had secretly recorded her 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl.

Despite being on her record breaking The Eras Tour – which lasted for nearly two years – the star broke the internet when she revealed she had jetted to Europe for clandestine recording sessions.

Hours before The Life of a Showgirl officially dropped, all 12 tracks leaked online in low-quality audio across Discord and other platforms.

Within minutes, Swifties were dissecting every verse, from the scathing to the swoon-worthy, sparking feverish speculation about whether she was singing about her fiancé Travis Kelceor rumored industry rivals like Charli XCX and Olivia Rodrigo.

The record marks a major milestone for Taylor: her first as an engaged woman, following Kelce’s romantic, garden proposal in August 2025.

It also ushers in a bold new era for the 14-time Grammy winner, who ditched her longtime collaborator Jack Antonoff for the first time in over a decade.

Instead, she co-produced the album with pop powerhouses Max Martin and Shellback, pairing her sharpest storytelling with their high-gloss, hit-making touch.

Alongside the music, she unveiled a daring new visual aesthetic, embodying a sultry Vegas showgirl for the album’s imagery.

The title itself, she revealed, was inspired by her days juggling her record-breaking Eras Tour, which spanned 21 months, and late-night studio sessions in Sweden.

‘I would do like three shows in a row, have three days off, fly to Sweden, go back to tour — I was physically exhausted but so mentally stimulated,’ Taylor recalled on her husband-to-be’s New Heights Podcast over the summer. ‘I was just so excited to be creating.’

In August, Travis teased to his listeners that he couldn’t stop ‘listening to this album’ and had ‘been dancing throughout the house’ to it.

‘I know she mentioned that it’s gonna be a lot more pop beats, but it’s just still so poetic in her melodies and her references and stuff,’ he assured Swifties. ‘It’s just so much fun to listen to.’

He also gushed his favorite track was Opalite.

He was reportedly only one of five people who have been granted access to the new album which has been kept under wraps in an encrypted folder.

Others include Taylor’s formidable publicist Tree Paine, an unidentified studio engineer, and Max Martin and Shellback who both helped to produce the music.

The Life of a Showgirl follows Swift’s 2024 record, The Tortured Poets Department, which shattered records before it was even released.

Last month, Swift announced she was having a theatrical release party to celebrate her record, which will play across 540 AMC theaters this weekend.

Fans will see the exclusive world premiere of the Fate of Ophelia music video, plus behind-the-scenes footage, lyric videos and personal insights from Swift herself.

The special theatrical release is slated to be 89 minutes long.

It is expected to rake in around $30-$50million, per Deadline – and presale tickets reached $15 million over the span of 24 hours since the event’s announcement.

Ticket prices sit at $12 – which was decided by the award-winning performer herself.

‘I loved what they did with those photos, so I called them up for (this album),’ she shared on Travis’s New Heights podcast. ‘I am so happy with the way the photos came out with this one.’

Taylor said she wanted to go ‘all out’ on the imagery for The Life Of A Showgirl because she is ‘so proud’ of the music.

‘This is a full send. I care about this record more than I can even overstate.’

‘My day ends with me in a bathtub – not usually in a bedazzled dress – but we try to keep it decent,’ Swift she. ‘I wanted to glamorise all the different aspects of how (the Eras Tour) felt and (the The Life Of A Showgirl cover) is how that felt at the end of the night.’

She said she chose that image because it best represents the album, which centers around the feelings and experiences in her ‘offstage’ life.

The Life Of A Showgirl also marked a major musical departure for Taylor as it is her first album in over a decade that will not feature production by her go-to collaborator and co-songwriter, Jack Antonoff.