Taylor Swift is best known for one thing: her sad break-up songs written about famous ex-boyfriends. Okay, and if she were known for one other thing, it would be her cool girl squad. Over the past few years, Taylor has gone out of her way to surround herself with the most beautiful, famous and enviable girl-clique you could imagine and let the whole world know just how close they are. The only problem with having all your besties being internationally famous and successful singers, models and actresses? They tend to get busy. Like, a lot. And now poor Taylor, the leader of the squad, has a lot of solo time. With just about every member of her crew missing in action, there's no one for Taylor to turn to. Her supermodel pals are walking runways across the globe, her singer friends are cutting their own albums and taking off on world tours, and her actor pals on film sets across the country, leaving Taylor all on her lonesome in New York City. It’s a lonely life, being this rich and famous. Take a look at a squad-less and boyfriend-less Taylor having a party for one.
15 Walking Alone in the Rain
Taking a walk through the park while listening to your favourite sad song in the rain is the ultimate lonely girl activity that even Taylor Swift indulges in from time to time. Think Taylor’s blaring Adele’s “Someone Like You,” or maybe even Celine Dion’s classic “All By Myself”? Is she even going anywhere, or just wanted to get out of her New York City apartment for a minute and no one answered their phone? Her BFF Gigi Hadid is another New York girl that would normally be up for a hangout, but she was swamped between rehearsals for the Victoria's Secret Fashion show and spending time with her boyfriend, singer Zayn Malik. Tensions might also be at a high between the two, considering Gigi’s close friendship with Kendall Jenner, sister-in-law to Taylor’s notorious enemy Kanye West. With Gigi seemingly too busy to answer her texts, Taylor’s stuck having some alone time.
14 No One to Party With
But what about Taylor’s all-time best friend, Karlie Kloss? The supermodel is one of the few who wasn't walking in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, so surely she should have been free for some BFF hangs. But Karlie’s been jet-setting all over the world and seems to pop up wherever Taylor isn’t. Karlie hung out at the American Music Awards partying with other pop stars like Lady Gaga, spent some time working in Italy, walked Paris Fashion Week, picked up a DJ gig in Madrid - basically did everything you’d expect a super cool, super gorgeous supermodel to do. Her busy schedule over these past few months didn’t leave a lot of room open for visits with Taylor. Taylor’s not one used to partying sans her BFF: she and Karlie used to hit up awards shows and fashion shows together and always be cheering each other on. Maybe Karlie can pencil her in again in a few weeks.
13 Crying On Her Own?
One way to guarantee you’ll be alone in the fall of an election year? Have an outspoken and political friend like Lena Dunham. Lena’s been in the news almost every day for her comments and activism surrounding the recent US Presidential Election. Lena was a hardcore Hillary supporter and attended multiple events alongside Taylor’s long-time nemesis, Katy Perry. Even without the political landscape taking up much of Lena’s time and attention, she’d be too busy to see Taylor on the regular. She’s got her newsletter Lenny Letter to curate, a podcast called Women of the Hour to run and let’s not forget the final season of Girls is coming up fast. Considering Taylor’s never been into politics, and certainly doesn’t want to run into Katy Perry anywhere, it’s no surprise she hasn’t been tagging along with Lena lately. I’m sure Lena’s schedule will free up soon - Girls is ending in 2017 so that must certainly give her some extra time to talk boys with Taylor.
12 Feeling Extra Lonely
And what’s been up with Taylor and Lorde? It was an unusual friendship from the start, considering they met after Lorde dissed her, publicly. Lorde said she didn’t connect to Taylor’s music and image because it was “too flawless and unattainable” for real girls. Taylor loves to kill ‘em with kindness, so she initiated her into the squad right after. Earlier this year, Lorde took another subtle dig at Taylor on Instagram. A fan asked the New Zealand singer why her album was taking so long and Lorde fired back, saying “I'm an artist, I write a record when I have enough special stories to tell, and it's all me, every melody every lyric, not some team who just start the machine up every eighteen months like clockwork.” What’s that have to do with Taylor? Well, the singer famously has an album out every 18 months or so and is often criticized for having a large team who take her personal lyrics and turn them into chart-topping hits. Once again, Taylor tried to win the singer back onto her side with a big birthday bash. But are they still the close friends they once were or does Taylor have one less member in her squad?
11 Left Without a Boyfriend
It doesn’t help that Taylor’s single right now, too, and just before the holidays. This time last year, Taylor and boyfriend Calvin Harris were still going strong and spent a sweet and romantic holiday together. A few months ago, Taylor might have thought her new boyfriend would fill that void: she and Tom Hiddleston were seemingly everywhere, globetrotting the US and Europe and filling the pages of just about every tabloid magazine out there. That relationship fizzled quickly, and Taylor’s once again left to pick up the pieces. Having two relationships end in the course of one year is a tough blow for anyone, let alone the super emotional Taylor. Rumours have it that Taylor and Calvin started texting again, but considering how messy their breakup got - Taylor demanded credit for the song “This Is What You Came For” and then Calvin wrote his own salty break-up song about Taylor - it’d be a surprise if they reconciled. And again, Taylor is left all to her lonesome.
10 Feeling Down on Herself
Taylor’s also going to be spending some time without close friend Blake Lively, at least for a while. Blake recently gave birth to her second child with husband Ryan Reynolds, a little sister for the pair’s daughter James. Motherhood is obviously taking up Blake’s focus for now, and that’s not really Taylor’s forte. If Blake wanted to talk boy troubles, bad breakups, celebrity feuds or how to look fashionable getting off your private plane, Taylor could help. But diaper changes and bottle feeding is a whole different world from the one Taylor lives. The two had a deep friendship, with Blake and her hubby invited out to Taylor’s vacation house this summer for Taylor’s annual 4th of July bash, but it looks like the duo won’t be spending as much time together. Or at least, not until the new baby is old enough to be left at home with a sitter.
9 No One To Talk To
Seriously, where are Taylor’s friends at? Why is the world famous pop star known for #friendshipgoals stuck sitting by herself with no company but her trusty iPod? Well, long-time friend Selena Gomez has a good excuse as to why she’s not at Taylor’s side these days: the pop star has been going through some hardships of her own this year. Selena was on top of the world with her album and tour for Revival but eventually had to cancel dates and check herself into treatment. Selena has been vocal about suffering from lupus, and how it causes her anxiety, panic attacks and depression. After spending weeks in rehab, Selena returned to the red carpet with a tearful speech at the American Music Awards and is still focusing on herself and her recovery. She doesn’t seem into the crazy party scene of Taylor’s these days, and it’ll probably be a while before we see the two drinking and dancing side by side at an award show again.
8 Working By Herself
One of Taylor’s newest squad members, Camila Cabello, typically comes running whenever the pop star wants to see her. Camila has even famously skipped out on her Fifth Harmony band members to party with Taylor instead, something that has caused friction amongst the girl group. But even Camila is too busy for Taylor these days! Fifth Harmony is having their most successful year to date with a best-selling album, one of the biggest songs of the year in “Work From Home” and a sprawling stadium tour across South America, North America and Europe. Camila herself is staying extra busy too, recording songs with Machine Gun Kelly, Benny Blacco and Shawn Mendes, and allegedly working on a solo career. 27-year-old Taylor would seem like the perfect mentor for the 19-year-old Camila, but so far Taylor hasn’t been invited to the studio for a jam session with Camila.
7 Her Friends Have Moved On
Supermodel pal and squad member Cara Delevigne seems to have moved on, too. Cara got a skawd of her own this year! The model and sometimes actress spent most of 2016 hanging out with her Suicide Squad cast mates and the new definition of #friendshipgoals; they even got matching ‘skawd’ tattoos from star Margot Robbie. Cara’s also been hard at work with her movie career, with three films slated for release next year: Tulip Fever, London Fields and Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets. In between promoting her movies, Cara’s still super busy with her modelling career, working with Rimmel and H&M, and also is an outspoken activist working for gender equality. Cara’s not too busy for friends, as lately she’s been seen hanging out with Rihanna, Amber Heard and Dakota Johnson, but it seems she is too busy for Taylor. Out with the squad, in with the skwad.
6 From a Friend-Packed Tour To Nothing
During the 1989 World Tour, Taylor would bring her famous besties out on stage to walk the catwalk during the song “Style,” a not-so-subtle song about ex-boyfriend Harry Styles. One of the more unusual appearances was from Orange is the New Black’s Uzo Aduba, who is not your typical squad member. Uzo stayed close to Taylor after the tour and had even made it to the star’s Instagram account once or twice, but now even she’s M.I.A. from Taylor’s life. Uzo, an Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning actress, has a busy life of her own outside Taylor’s parties, and she’s back at work filming the latest season of Orange is the New Black. Considering Uzo, who plays Lorraine “Crazy Eyes” Warren, has become the breakout star of the show, it wouldn’t be surprising if her screen time, and therefore filming time continues to increase. Looks like she won’t be sharing the stage with Taylor for a while now.
5 Friendships End
While some of Taylor’s squad members are just busy at the moment and will find more time for their fearless leader in the future, there’s always the chance the friendship is coming to a close. Take Emma Stone for example. Emma was a member of Taylor’s squad before people even used the word squad! The two met all the way back in 2008 and became inseparable. Taylor was Emma’s date to red carpet premieres, gave Emma a private listening party for Speak Now, took her on the annual 4th of July party and even visited Emma backstage on Broadway in 2014. How could a friendship that long and close fizzle out? Well, nobody knows, but the pair hasn't been close since. Emma no longer has a place in Taylor’s circle of friends, and instead, opts to hang out with the likes of Jennifer Lawrence and Adele instead. Which squad is more #goals?
4 Are Her Friends Dissing Her In The Press?
Emma did have a lasting impact on Taylor’s squad, though: she introduced Taylor to 19-year-old singer and actress Hailee Steinfeld, who immediately joined the inner circle. Hailee was only 17 when she met Swift, but the age gap didn’t get in the way of their friendship and Hailee was invited into the infamous Bad Blood music video. Despite the Instagram selfies and music award hangouts, Hailee revealed she and Taylor aren’t actually that close, saying the squad doesn’t really hang out that often. It's a bit of an insult to the carefully curated #friendshipgoals Taylor had been working on for so long, no? Maybe that’s the reason Hailee and Taylor haven’t been hanging out at all lately, or maybe it’s because Hailee is busy trying to juggle hit songs like “Starving” with Zedd and Grey, and her latest film The Edge of Seventeen which is earning the young star rave reviews. Either way, Taylor is down another friend right now and has one less person to call on.
3 She's Always Alone
Another old school squad member who has been missing from Taylor’s life for months now is fellow Grammy Award-winning pop singer Ellie Goulding. The two girls were once super close, performing together and partying in London. Ellie was even the one who introduced Taylor to her now ex-boyfriend Calvin Harris. Is that the reason for the strain between the two, or is Ellie just too busy with her own career to take Taylor’s calls? Ellie spent almost all of 2016 on her Delirium World Tour, hitting up 88 cities in total over eight months. Since the tour ended, Ellie’s been working in her native UK, performing at charity balls and working with several different charitable organizations. She hasn’t once found the time to hop over to the USA and visit Taylor at home in New York. With an ocean between them, Taylor’s left to her own devices in NYC.
2 No One To Comfort Her
While Taylor’s squad is usually very girl-centric, like a 2016 reboot of the Spice Girls’ "Girl Power!" mantra, there is at least one male friend who’s never too far from Taylor’s side: Ed Sheeran. The two have been close since Ed opened for Taylor on tour in 2013, and they’ve worked together countless times since. But right now their friendship, like most of Taylor’s friendships, seems to be on ice. Ed’s been hard at work on his new album with musicians like Justin Bieber, Major Lazer, and Benny Blanco, all of whom are not former collaborator Taylor Swift. Ed’s also on a social media hiatus since the beginning of the year, so there haven’t even been any tweets of Instagram likes to reassure fans that they’re still getting on fine. The last time Ed and Taylor hung out seems to have been during the summer, which means Taylor has been without one of her closest friends for almost half a year. That’s got to hurt.
1 She'll Always Have One Friend
Has the squad abandoned Taylor completely, or will they manage to reunite for her upcoming birthday in December, or even a sweet holiday party? There’s no way to know for sure, but after spending all these lonely months without her besties, Taylor must be hoping that they will. After spending her days walking around NYC without Gigi, baking without Karlie, working on music without Ed and watching award shows without Selena, Taylor must be craving some major one on one time with her super busy, super cool famous pals. There’s only so much alone time a social party girl like Taylor can handle! With no boyfriend by her side for once and no friends nearby either, it’s been a lonely time for one of the most famous singers on the planet, proving having money and fame doesn’t mean you have everything. At least she’ll always have a friend in her cat.
