Aside from being the frontman of Bleachers and a super talented musician, Jack Antonoff is maybe best known for being one of Taylor Swift’s most prolific producing partners. I mean, “Out of the Woods?” “August?” “KARMA?” It doesn’t get more iconic!
Anyway, these two have become friends for life thanks to their frequent collaborations—to the point where they straight-up have a secret handshake:
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So yes, CLEARLY the time has come for a timeline/lesson in How To Befriend Taylor Swift.™
November 11, 2012
Tay and Jack meet at the MTV EMAs!
According to a 2019 profile of Jack in newjersey.com (love that for him), they bonded over their love for “Only You” by Yazoo. Jack also spoke a bit about the meeting on Larry King:
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December 5, 2012
A month after meeting at the EMAs, Tay and Jack run into each other again at a Grammys party. Awkward photos are taken!
October 21, 2013
Clearly Taylor and Jack bonded behind the scenes, because Taylor releases “Sweeter Than Fiction,” her first collaboration with Jack.
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October 14, 2014
Jack opens up about working with Taylor on 1989, saying, “Will one day write an essay on the different production I used on the song + how much working with taylor on it has meant to me. she’s a wonderful artist.” TRUER WORDS.
December 13, 2014
Jack attends Tay’s birthday party:
May 7, 2015
In an interview Elle, Taylor reveals the song “You Are in Love” was inspired by Jack and his then-girlfriend Lena Dunham.
“I’ve never had that, so I wrote that song about things that Lena [Dunham] has told me about her and Jack [Antonoff]. That’s just basically stuff she’s told me. And I think that that kind of relationship—God, it sounds like it would just be so beautiful—would also be hard. It would also be mundane at times.”
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Jack and Lena end up breaking up, but still. Cute.
February 15, 2016
Taylor and Jack are spotted celebrating Grammys night together:
February 16, 2016
And then they celebrate winning Album of the Year!
~ 2017
Taylor releases “Call It What You Want” and drops a BTS video showing the creation of the song with Jack at his home studio:
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May 24, 2017
Jack is profiled by the New York Times, and Taylor gives a gushing quote, saying, “Sometimes he sits at the piano and we both just start ad-libbing and the song seems to create itself. His excitement and exuberance about writing songs is contagious. He’s an absolute joy. That’s why everyone loves him. I personally wouldn’t trust someone who didn’t.”
March 9, 2018
Jack tells the story of writing “New Year’s Day” with Taylor during an appearance on The Tonight Show:
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December 14, 2019
Tay drops pics from her birthday—which, as ever, include Jack!
November 25, 2020
Taylor drops Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions on Disney+, featuring some fun Jack moments. Including this (courtesy of a fan edit):
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WATCH ‘FOLKLORE: THE LONG POND STUDIO SESSIONS’ HERE
March 16, 2021
Jack writes THE most loved-up post about Taylor after once again winning a buncha Grammys (winning Grammys is kinda their thing).
July 30, 2021
Jack speaks to NME about Taylor, saying, “I’ve seen her change the music industry first-hand. She’s amazing for being a champion, and making things better for the generations to come. She has a long history of rightly exposing some real darkness in the music industry. And I’m personally thankful for it, outside of our friendship and working relationship, just as an artist. She’s asked me some questions a lot of people are afraid to ask.”
September 3, 2021
Jack and Tay chill on a boat and drink wine on TikTok:
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November 12, 2021
Another Taylor’s Version drop, another super sweet Jack post!
May 16, 2022
Jack does an interview with the New Yorker and credits Taylor for taking a chance on him: “I’d been trying to produce for a while, but there was always some industry herb going, ‘That’s cute, but that’s not your lane.’ Taylor was the first person with the stature to go, ‘I like the way this sounds, I’m putting it on my album’—and then, suddenly, I was allowed to be a producer.”
October 21, 2022
Taylor drops Midnights and dedicates a whole post to Jack, calling him her “friend for life.”
October 25, 2022
Hi, enjoy:
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November 7, 2022
She then drops Jack’s version of “Anti-Hero,” but more importantly we get this very cute pic of their friendship.
February 5, 2023
Taylor and Jack hit up the Grammy Awards together, as they do:
April 10, 2023
Taylor is spotted with Jack at dinner in NYC shortly after news of her breakup with Joe Alwyn drops:
May 26, 2023
Jack joins Taylor on stage for the Eras Tour! Fans go wild! Etc!
June 27, 2023
Taylor is seen leaving Electric Lady Studios after a recording session with Jack:
August 17, 2023
Jack chats to TIME about Taylor, saying, “She’s the first person who recognized me as a producer. A lot of people are afraid to sign off on something that isn’t done by a proven person. I had written lots of songs and produced them, but they would always sort of go somewhere else. So the label or whoever could say, oh, we had this person produce it. And, you know, I put my heart and soul into that song and she said, ‘I love it.’”
August 19, 2023
Jack marries Margaret Qualley in New Jersey, and Taylor reportedly roasts them during a 15-minute toast. Her presence at the wedding also quite literally stops traffic as fans gather en masse to snap pics of her.
Annnnd that brings us up to date! Stay tuned for friendship updates. LYLAS.
Mehera Bonner is a celebrity and entertainment news writer who enjoys Bravo and Antiques Roadshow with equal enthusiasm, She was previously entertainment editor at Marie Claire and has covered pop culture for over a decade.
