The New York punk legend was playing in the city’s Vicar Street venue on June 28 when she alluded to her connection to the title track of one of the year’s most successful records.
On the song in question, released in April, Swift makes a specific reference to Smith, as well as Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, and the iconic bohemian hotspot, Manhattan’s Chelsea Hotel.
“I laughed in your face and said, ‘You’re not Dylan Thomas, I’m not Patti Smith / This ain’t the Chelsea Hotel / We’re modern idiots’,” she sings, in what is widely thought to be an allusion to her short-lived relationship with The 1975‘s Matty Healy.
Now, Smith has brought the reference full circle. As seen in fan-captured footage from the Dublin show, Smith says: “Well, I’ve a small confession to make. I am no Dylan Thomas, but I AM Patti Smith!”, drawing huge cheers from the crowd.
See the video here:
And this ain't the Chelsea hotel pic.twitter.com/JFTppOsziT
— aya🤍🪶 | fan acc. (@imalltoowell) July 5, 2024
Shortly after the song’s release, Smith responded with a social media post in which she is seen reading a book of Thomas’ poetry. “This is saying I was moved to be mentioned in the company of the great Welsh poet Dylan Thomas. Thank you Taylor,” she wrote.
Smith is just one of the high-profile figures name-checked on ‘The Tortured Poets Department’: ‘Lucy’ is thought to reference Lucy Dacus, one third of the Grammy-winning group boygenius, ‘Guilty As Sin?’ shouts out the cult Scottish indie band The Blue Nile, while fans have also speculated that ‘thanK you aIMee’ is aimed at Kim Kardashian.
At the same Dublin show, Smith also played a cover of Lana Del Rey’s ‘Summertime Sadness’, appearing visibly emotional as she dedicated the track to her late husband and MC5 member Fred Smith. She told audiences that the track reminded her of their “wild youth”.
Other covers in the set included Bob Dylan’s ‘Man In The Long Black Coat’ and Nirvana’s ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’.
Swift is not the only artist to have expressed her admiration for Smith in recent months. In May, Garbage’s Shirley Manson described her as “one of the touchstones in my life” who had inspired her “as a human being and as an artist”.
