Friends to the end. Blake Lively had nothing but praise for Taylor Swift‘s Folklore as fans wondered whether or not the album revealed the name of her and Ryan Reynolds‘ third child.
“Thank you @taylorswift and @aarondessner @jackantonoff @boniver & #williambowery. Can we all please crawl inside that piano with you and live in this album,” the Gossip Girl alum, 32, wrote in an Instagram Story after Swift, 30, dropped her eighth record on Friday, July 24. “Like you, Folklore is full of heart, soul, humor, passion, intelligence, wit, whimsy, reality, imagination, strength, vulnerability, and above all things: LOVE. We <3 you!”
The Nashville native confirmed her newest album was on the way on Thursday, July 23, and fans were quick to share their interpretations of each of the 16 tracks after decoding Swift’s lyrics. One song, “Betty,” mentions the names of two of Lively and Reynolds’ daughters, James, 5, and Inez, 3. Noticing the pattern, many listeners began to wonder if the name in the song’s title referred to the couple’s third daughter, who was born in October 2019.
“The way that Taylor used the names Inez and James in Betty because those are the names of Blake and Ryan’s children,” one fan wrote via Twitter. “She really does love those kids.”
While neither Lively nor the Deadpool actor have confirmed the Swifties’ speculation, they each congratulated their friend on her vulnerable new record. On Friday, the Proposal actor shared a screenshot from the “Cardigan” music video on his Instagram Story.
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants star has been a vocal supporter of the Grammy winner for years, and the Hollywood couple scored an invite to Swift’s infamous 4th of July party in 2016. When Reputation was released in 2017, the “Love Story” songstress confirmed that James Reynolds made a small cameo as the “baby intro voice” on the song “Gorgeous.”
Before Folklore hit stores, Swift opened up about how spending time in lockdown during the coronavirus pandemic helped inspire her new work.
“Most of the things I had planned this summer didn’t end up happening, but there is something I hadn’t planned on that DID happen,” she wrote in a lengthy note to fans on Thursday. “I wrote and recorded this music in isolation but got to collaborate with some musical heroes of mine. … Before this year, I probably would’ve overthought when to release this music at the ‘perfect’ time, but the times we’re living in keep reminding me that nothing is guaranteed. My gut is telling me that is you make something you love, you should just put it out into the world. That’s the side of uncertainty I can get on board with.”
