--- title: Taylor Swift Calls Critics of Her Songs About Exes 'Sexist' description: Bruno Mars can write about ex-lovers. Why can't T-Swift? canonical: https://time.com/3524641/taylor-swift-feminism-critics-sexist/ author: Eliana Dockterman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-10-20T15:37:32.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-01T09:01:52.017Z og:title: Watch Taylor Swift Shut Down 'Sexist' Music Critics og:description: Bruno Mars can write about ex-lovers. Why can't T-Swift? og:url: https://time.com/3524641/taylor-swift-feminism-critics-sexist/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt19306712921416e3/698761aacd1bba1c856f2b83/455949616.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2524 og:image:height: 1420 og:image:alt: 2014 iHeartRadio Music Festival - Night 1 - Press Room og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Watch Taylor Swift Shut Down 'Sexist' Music Critics twitter:description: Bruno Mars can write about ex-lovers. Why can't T-Swift? twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt19306712921416e3/698761aacd1bba1c856f2b83/455949616.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Watch Taylor Swift Shut Down 'Sexist' Music Critics > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=b42bddfd-5fb8-4c88-9534-5314d1c222c8&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Taylor Swift On Her Sexist Critics [Watch (HLS stream): Taylor Swift On Her Sexist Critics](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/eTz7UHmt.m3u8) (0:30)  _Published 2014-10-20. Taylor Swift On Her Sexist Critics_  by [Eliana Dockterman](https://time.com/author/eliana-dockterman/)  ## Eliana Dockterman Correspondent Oct 20, 2014 3:37 PM UTC  by [Eliana Dockterman](https://time.com/author/eliana-dockterman/)  ## Eliana Dockterman Correspondent Oct 20, 2014 3:37 PM UTC Taylor Swift, [a newly outspoken feminist](http://time.com/3165825/taylor-swift-feminist-lena-dunham/), is defending her decision to write about past relationships. During a Sunday appearance on the Australian radio show _Jules, Merrick & Sophie_, Swift pointed out that she is unfairly criticized for her lyrics, while men who write about exes are not: --- > “” --- And unlike some other pop stars ([we’re looking at you, Robin Thicke](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bz%5FEqawkmTg)), T-Swift says she tries to keep the identities of the people she’s writing about a secret. “I have a really strict personal policy that I never name names. And so anybody saying that a song is about a specific person is purely speculating.” So who knows who she’s really singing about in[ “Out of the Woods.”](http://time.com/3502753/taylor-swift-out-of-the-woods/) (Though everyone’s still [pretty sure](http://www.billboard.com/articles/6281701/taylor-swift-out-of-the-woods-harry-styles-evidence) it’s about Harry Styles.) ## Transcript Here at [ UNKNOWN ]. You are gonna have people who are going to see the depth from which you approached a song. Yeah. The fact that you put you know, your real emotions into it and that's valuable and good and that's real. Yeah. And then you're gonna have people who are gonna oh, you know, like she's just writing songs about her ex boyfriends and I think frankly that's a very sexist angle to take. No one says that about Ed Sheeran. [ UNKNOWN ] No one says that about Bruno Mars. They're all writing songs about their ex's. 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