Selena Gomez Confirms Taylor Swift’s Song “Dorothea” Was About Her
Selena Gomez has finally addressed one of the most popular fan theories about Taylor Swift’s song “Dorothea” from her 2020 album Evermore. During an episode of Benny Blanco’s podcast Friends Keep Secrets, the singer confirmed that the track was written with her in mind.
When asked if she feels a deeper connection to Swift’s music due to their shared history, Gomez said, “A million percent.” She then bluntly stated, “Dorothea is about me,” putting years of speculation to rest.
The Only Murders in the Building actress reflected on how she and Swift grew up together while navigating fame at a young age. “I feel like a lot of huge moments that were self-defining, from relationships to family to love to hate, all of it in between, we were figuring it out,” she explained. “Because I was 15 and she was 18, and we didn’t really know what was going on. And so we’ve never seen each other any differently.”
Gomez also expressed how impressed she is with how beautifully Swift captured their bond in the song. “So when I listen to it, I’m so impressed how it’s eloquently put,” she added.
Fans quickly began dissecting the lyrics of “Dorothea” when it was released on Swift’s 2020 album. One line in particular — “You’re a queen sellin’ dreams / Sellin’ makeup and magazines” — sparked widespread belief that the song referenced Gomez’s Rare Beauty empire.
Online sleuths also pointed to additional connections. Some fans believed that the lyrics “You got shiny friends since you left town” referred to the celebrity pals Gomez has made since moving to Hollywood from Grand Prairie, Texas. Others noted that Gomez’s favorite childhood film is The Wizard of Oz, whose heroine Dorothy may have inspired the name Dorothea.
Additionally, some fans highlighted that Gomez once played a character named Dot, and that her mother entered her in beauty pageants as a child — echoing the lyric about “your mom and her pageant schemes.”
At the time of the album’s release, neither star directly confirmed the theory. Swift described Evermore as a blend of fact and fiction, explaining that she had created “17 tales, some of which are mirrored or intersecting with one another.” She previously characterized “Dorothea” as “the girl who left her small town to chase down Hollywood dreams — and what happens when she comes back for the holidays and rediscovers an old flame.”
Gomez also revealed that Swift wrote an unreleased song called Family a decade ago about their friendship. “It was over easily a decade ago, insinuating in the lyrics without quoting it, it is basically saying you have these amazing dreams, you want to be in movies, like in every crowd, I still see you,” she told listeners. “And then her part was you know, you still believe in my stupid dreams like playing stadiums and now when I listen to that song, both of those things, it makes me want to cry, have happened for us.”
“And that’s really sweet because back then she was just like, ‘I just wrote this song about us. It was just like, our story kind of,’ and it was just the sweetest thing so I love it,” Gomez gushed.
During the interview, Gomez called herself a “big Taylor fan” and said she would be “a stan for life for sure.” Blanco then interjected, sharing a story about a piece of art he discovered at Gomez’s home. “Selena’s just like bringing over stuff from storage and her other house… and she pulls out this piece of art… And I’m like, ‘Oh, this is perfect for the living room!’”
He continued: “You know I’m so into art. I love art. And I said, ‘Who made this painting?’ Like I thought she was going to say like Basquiat or something like crazy. And Selena says, ‘Taylor made this for me for my 30th birthday.’ And it’s one of the best paintings I’ve ever seen.”
Gomez then revealed that Swift “did it on an actual cloth” and “painted a beautiful lake.” “And it was at night, and the moon was there and in the stars… she painted our exact star signs. So for hers [Sagittarius] and mine [Cancer] and she said, ‘Here’s to the next 30 years,’ handsewn. And it says, ‘From Taylor to Selena,’ and it was all sewn by hand so she had it painted or she painted it.”
Gomez marveled over the lengths her friend went to make her birthday special, adding: “Instead of writing, ‘Here’s to the next 30 years,’ or printing it, she sewed every letter. It was the sweetest gift.”
When together, the performer said they often marvel over surviving the spotlight “as best” they could. “It’s literally all we talk about,” she said. “Not all we talk about, but when we talk about it, we’re not like, ‘Look at this prosperity.’ It’s more so like this is so cool that you get it. It’s absolutely unbelievable to come from 17 years of friendship from multiple heartbreaks and love stories and fun stories and life, we both ended up fortunately being engaged around the same time.”
Blanco also noted that Swift’s fresh, homemade sourdough bread tastes like it was “from a professional bakery.”
