Royal Romance? Taylor's "King of My Heart" Meaning, Explained

We all know who King of My Heart is about, right? Sure, or at least we think we do. But does the song have any deeper meanings?

At first glance, this song is a sweet ode to her boyfriend, who seems to “own” her heart. But it’s also a bit darker, with some deeply layered metaphors and imagery.

Here’s my complete English teacher analysis of Taylor’s King of My Heart meaning, line by line and metaphor by metaphor.

King of my Heart by Taylor Swift

Title: “King of My Heart”
Written by: Taylor Swift, Shellback, Max Martin.
Track: 10, Reputation (2017)
Pen: Fountain
Lyrics from Genius

King of My Heart Narrative Summary

King of My Heart is one of the most obvious love songs on reputation, and it definitely isn’t as dark and brooding as the rest of the album.

But there are still some pretty interesting references to where Taylor was at during this point in her life, physically and emotionally. Here’s the narrative synopsis.

Setting: At the beginning of a new relationship, falling hard and fast.
Characters: Narrator (Taylor), Subject (“you,” “King of My Heart,” new love interest)
Theme: New love butterflies.
Mood: Crushing hard, new love, excited, content.
Conflict: Worried if this is “the one,” after it all happened so suddenly.
Inciting Incident: “We met a few weeks ago.”
Quest: Figure out if this is it: her one true love.
Lesson: Things can happen fast – does that mean it will last?

What is King of My Heart About?

reputation’s track 10 narrates Taylor’s romantic life upon meeting an intriguing new person and starting a relationship.

Throughout the lyrics, the relationship moves progressively forward, getting more and more intimate and serious.

Who is King of My Heart About?

Taylor has never explicitly revealed who King of My Heart is about (she rarely does reveal who may have inspired her lyrics). But most Swifties assume this track is about Joe Alwyn, whom Taylor began dating as her reputation was crumbling post-Snakegate.

King of My Heart Meaning: Line by Line

Annotated portions of Taylor Swift's "King of My Heart" lyrics on a newsprint background. Red English teacher's pen translates each line, points out double meanings, explains metaphors, and helps the reader understand the tone and message of the layered lyrics.
The first verse lyrics read: "I'm perfectly fine, I live on my own
I made up my mind, I'm better off bein' alone
We met a few weeks ago
Now you try on callin' me "baby" like tryin' on clothes"

“I’m perfectly fine, I live on my own,” she says in the first line of the first verse. But is she really “fine”? Just like in Mr Perfectly Fine, “perfectly fine” means she isn’t fine at all. She’s lonely, in her house all by herself.

“I made up my mind,” she says, “I’m better off bein’ alone.” After the previous events of Getaway Car, where the narrator hopped from relationship to relationship, she’s decided to take a break from dating.

But then suddenly, everything changes. “We met a few weeks ago,” she says, “Now you try on callin’ me “baby” like tryin’ on clothes.”

It’s only been a few weeks since they met, and they’re already pretty intimate. They’re “trying on” this relationship for size, and seeing if it fits. She likes the way this new “baby” feels.

Pre-Chorus & Chorus: “Salute to Me, I’m Your American Queen”

The lyrics – and the relationship – accelerate in the first pre-chorus.

“Salute to me, I’m your American queen,” she says, setting up the central metaphor: this love as royalty. And what does royalty do? They “rule” their realms. Here, the realms are one another’s hearts.

“American Queen” hints that this person is not American, and likely hails from the ultimate land of royalty: the UK. She is his “queen,” meaning she rules his heart.

“And you move to me like I’m a Motown beat,” she says in a sexual innuendo. But they’re also in sync in other ways, and seem deeply compatible. She likes this “new soundtrack” to the dance of love.

“And we rule the kingdom inside my room,” she says of their dominion. This is apropos for the era in which she wrote the song, after hiding away for a year post-Snakegate.

Her “kingdom” is no longer her career (as she’s used up to this point in Long Live, Look What You Made Me Do, and New Romantics). Her realm has reduced, and now the two lovers not only “rule” one another in bed, they rule a small “kingdom” of her home. This is private, and this is not for public consumption.

“’Cause all the boys and their expensive cars,” she says of past lovers, “With their Range Rovers and their Jaguars / Never took me quite where you do.” Her past boyfriends, who were possibly all about image but with no substance, never “drove” her where this man does

And where does he “drive” her? Crazy, in bed. But also into a crazy emotional spiral, dreaming about forever. But he’s definitely not “like driving a Maserati down a dead-end street.”

“And all at once, you are the one I have been waitin’ for,” she says in the chorus, “King of my heart, body and soul, woah.” This romance happened quickly, and he rapidly dominated her heart and soul. He now “rules” her, and she only has eyes for him.

“And all at once, you’re all I want, I’ll never let you go,” she says, suddenly heavily committed to this person for forever, “King of my heart, body and soul, woah.”

In the span of a verse, pre-chorus, and chorus, she’s gone from being alone to being head over heels.

Verse 2: “Your Love is a Secret”

“Late in the night, the city’s asleep,” she says in the first verse. But she’s not sleeping – she’s up to some late-night antics with her lover. The city itself could refer to London, but it could also be NYC, and the house on Cornelia Street (where she also mentions the rooftop scenery, which will emerge in the bridge).

“Your love is a secret I’m hoping, dreaming, dying to keep,” she says, pulling in a major theme that peppers the reputation album: secret love. Like in Ready For It, Delicate, and So it Goes, this love is kept private and hush-hush.

“Change my priorities,” she says of his influence, “The taste of your lips is my idea of luxury.” She’s got a new outlook on life and love, and she doesn’t need pricey items to feel luxurious. His lips – and this romance – feel like the most valuable thing in the world.

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Bridge: “My Broken Bones Are Mending”

The pre-chorus, chorus and post-chorus repeat, then the bridge exposes the narrator’s innermost hopes and dreams.

“Is this the end of all the endings?” she wonders, hoping that she’s already been through the last breakup of her life, “My broken bones are mending.”

What are the “broken bones”? Likely the heartbreak of the previous track Getaway Car, but also the earth-shattering events of Snakegate. As she told us in Why She Disappeared:

“When she fell, she fell apart.

Cracked her bones on the pavement she once decorated

as a child with sidewalk chalk.”

This new love is helping her heal, “With all these nights we’re spending / Up on the roof with a school girl crush.” Each night she spends with her Gorgeous counterpart meds her soul a little bit more.

And what are they up to? “Drinkin’ beer out of plastic cups.” They’re not sipping champagne from crystal stemware; they’re having normal, everyday, real-people fun. As she told us before, she doesn’t need the “Range Rovers and the Jaguars,” she just wants this down-to-earth romance.

He will “Say you fancy me, not fancy stuff,” which is a play on the two meanings of “fancy.” “I fancy you” (as also used in the future London Boy), is a British phrase that means you like someone. “Fancy stuff” is the “expensive cars,” which she doesn’t need to feel impressed.

“Baby, all at once, this is enough,” she says of her new view, not of expensive hotel rooms and luxury cars, but of this down-to-earth man and his pedestrian life.

Post-Chorus: “You Are The One”

“And all at once,” she repeats in the final post-chorus, “I’ve been waitin’, waitin’.” She’s been waiting for this person, and he came into her life suddenly and without warning. But she’s also waiting for him in the everyday sense; waiting for him to come back to the roof, or meet her in the bedroom.

“And all at once,” she repeats again, “You are the one I have been waitin’, waitin’.” This seemingly simple line is incredibly layered.

First, it means the obvious: he’s the one she’s been waiting for. Second, it means “I’ve been waiting,” as in waiting for her life to change, or for something to help her heal. And third, it means “you are the one,” as in, you are the person I want to spend my life with.

He connects with her on every level, “Body and soul.” They have it all: sexual chemistry, plus a soul connection. It’s the complete package.

“And all at once,” she says, closing out the song. But this time, we can read it two ways. First, it’s ‘this happened suddenly, and I didn’t expect it.” But secondly, we can read it as ‘you’re everything in one.’

He’s the total package, “body and soul.” But did this romance happen so quickly, that it only seems complete? He might have the crown, but will he keep it?

We’ll have to stay tuned to find out.

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King of My Heart Meaning: Final Thoughts

And as we follow Taylor’s career and personal life through the different eras, we know that it was – in fact – not sustainable to stay hidden away with the “king of” her heart forever (if that’s who we surmise this song is centered around). And we’re grateful she’s back in the spotlight and still producing incredible music.

What’s most important about this song isn’t the male figure at the center, it’s how Taylor centers herself in healing and recovery. Her “broken bones are mending,” and that’s what’s significant about this song.

It’s almost the origin story for reputation: she’s healing so she can rise up like a phoenix once again.

If reputation is a hero’s journey, “King of My Heart” is step 9: the reward after the battle.

But upon reflection – and years and years later – is it really only step 3, where the hero meets a “mentor” that helps them with their journey?

Maybe TTPD will tell us the final answer, in songs like So Long, London, Fresh Out The Slammer, and My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys.