Taylor Swift's Ex Joe Alwyn Is Still Making Money Off Her - Here's Why

At one point in time, it seemed like Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn were meant to be. The happy couple lived together, played together, and even worked together. And it's because of the latter that Alwyn is still making money off Miss Americana today, despite their split.

Swift and Alwyn broke up in 2023 after six years of dating, and both have been pretty private about their breakup ever since in interviews. Sources dished at the time that the two just realized they weren't right for each other. "They had plenty in common and fell in love in a safe bubble while she was retreating from the world during 'Reputation,'" a source told People in April 2023. "Then the pandemic hit, and they were locked down together and able to continue growing their relationship in this insulated way. But he didn't really 'know' her yet outside of that bubble."

It was inside that lockdown bubble that these two collaborated on a number of music projects. Using the pseudonym William Bowery, Alwyn actually co-wrote several of Swift's album tracks. The actor's words are featured in "Exile" and "Betty" (both of which he also produced) from the "Folklore" album, as well as "Coney Island," "Champagne Problems," and the title track from the follow-up, "Evermore." Alwyn was even still writing with Swift the year before they split, as William Bowery also has a writing credit on the "Midnights" track "Sweet Nothing." And it's safe to say he's still making serious bank from his efforts.

While it's not been officially disclosed exactly how much Joe Alwyn is making from his Taylor Swift song co-writes, there's no doubting it's a lot. Of course, it goes without saying that Swift is one of the most popular artists in the world with more than 103.8 million monthly listeners on Spotify. And that may well be worth millions of dollars to Alwyn.

According to Life & Style, the actor had reportedly made $2.3 million in royalties from Spotify streams alone as of March 2024. That's not including other avenues where Swift's songs have been enjoyed, such as during her wildly successful "Eras Tour," on other streaming platforms, or song downloads. The Sun shared how much Alwyn is likely to be making year-on-year going forward, suggesting he's probably bringing in a five-figure sum annually from his past Swift songwriting.

But whether Swifties like it or not, Alwyn only seems likely to continue profiting from his ex as she only seems to grow more and more popular. In fact, he's probably already set for life just from his songwriting skills, never mind his acting pursuits. "Joe will be raking in a fortune from these songs for years. Taylor's albums sold millions and continue to be huge on streaming services," The Sun's source explained. "Writing six songs for albums as big as Taylor's guarantees a healthy income stream for life."

Imagine making millions of dollars by accident. Well, that's pretty much what happened for Joe Alwyn. The actor admitted during a 2022 interview with Vulture that co-writing "Exile" with Taylor Swift actually happened by accident. He explained he was playing around on the piano and casually wrote the tune that would eventually be used on "Folklore." 

"It was completely off the cuff, an accident. [Swift] said, 'Can we try and sit down and get to the end together?' And so we did. It was as basic as some people made sourdough," he recalled. Alwyn also shared how he and his now ex wrote "Betty," even admitting he'd had a few drinks first. The only reason the two sat down and wrote together that time? Because they couldn't decide on a movie to watch.

Swift has also spoken about how easy it was to write with Alwyn, opening up about the process in "Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions." She recalled how Alwyn came up with "Exile" off the cuff. "He was just singing it, the way that the whole first verse is, I was entranced and asked if we could keep writing that one," she remembered. 

With all those profits Alwyn is still bringing in, it's safe to assume he's probably pretty glad he sat at the piano that day. But with Swift now all loved up with Travis Kelce, we can't imagine these two will be writing together again anytime soon.