How HAIM’s Este, Danielle & Alana Became Part of Taylor Swift’s Squad

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Este Haim and Taylor Swift are friends who get together every Wednesday for dinner and a fun, competitive basketball game.

I was absolutely electric at Madison Square Garden with over 20,000 other fans, and we weren’t going anywhere until Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, and the entire Knicks team finished off their incredible comeback win against the Spurs in Game 4 of the NBA Finals on June 10th. It was amazing to witness!

The three friends took their seats in a prominent spot at the game, right next to well-known fans Mariska Hargitay and Ben Stiller. They were so excited that they couldn’t stop dancing, taking pictures, and cheering, helping the team pull off an amazing comeback – and they did it all while wearing funny t-shirts with clever puns.

So, how did Taylor Swift end up joining forces with the talented Haim sisters – Danielle Haim, and her bandmates, who are nominated for Grammys as HAIM? It’s a story her fans already know well.

It all began at MTVU’s now-defunct Woodie Awards in March 2013. Swift’s romance with Harry Styles had officially gone out of style and the sisters—preparing to release their debut disc Days Are Gone—were asked about who she should romance next. 

“T.T. Swift, don’t date someone else,” Alana responded. “Come out with us, and we will party, and we will be together as girls and be merry, and we don’t need guys. Girl power.” 

The 14-time Grammy winner just said yes. 

I have to admit, I’m a bit of a social media stalker sometimes! I came across a tweet from this group from October 2014 where they were raving about my song “This Love” from 1989, and honestly, it totally made my day. It was 5 AM, but I couldn’t help but do a little goofy happy dance – still do that sometimes, actually!

Just like that, their love story began. 

Este, Alana and Danielle made the cut—along with BeyoncĂ©, Jay-Z, Selena Gomez and Justin Timberlake—to attend Swift’s star-studded 25th birthday bash in December 2014 and sailed off into the sunset during a girls’ trip to California’s Catalina island weeks later. 

And the foursome also mixed some business in with the pleasure. 

Beyond attending awards shows, vacationing in Hawaii, and celebrating birthdays together, HAIM also supported Taylor Swift as an opening act on some dates of her 1989 World Tour. They appeared as sisters in her 2022 “Bejeweled” music video and co-wrote the song “no body, no crime” which was featured on Swift’s surprise 2020 album, evermore.

Taylor Swift wrote a song about a dark murder mystery and named one of the characters Este, after a friend who she knew would love being featured in such a song. She then asked Este to help brainstorm where the characters would have their regular dinners—Este suggested Olive Garden. Swift sent Este the lyrics and asked her to collaborate, and Este immediately agreed.

In fact, she continued, ‘We can’t figure out why we hadn’t collaborated sooner. We’ve toured together, played live together, choreographed dances like we’re at summer camp, but it took a song about avenging your friend’s murder to give us the idea to take this step. Long story short, I’m the 4th Haim sister now, confirmed.” 

So naturally she was on hand in July 2022 when the trio played in London, joining them to sing a remix of “Gasoline,” plus her beloved “Love Story.” 

Coming off of 2018’s Reputation Tour, “I haven’t been on stage in a very long time,” Swift told the crowd. “When I heard my girls were playing in London at the O2, I thought, ‘I’m going to have to see that.’ And it looks like there’s about 20,000 other people who also thought that.”

To hear the bandmates tell it, Swift is always ready for it—the it being showing up for her besties.

Alana shared with People magazine in 2023 that this person consistently prioritizes her friends’ well-being, always putting them first. She’s a supportive friend who stays connected and offers comfort even during difficult times, like after a breakup.

Regarding Taylor Swift’s past relationships, her siblings were involved in her connection with DJ Calvin Harris. While Este Haim didn’t claim to have introduced them, she told Ryan Seacrest she liked both Taylor and Calvin.

But now they’re very much cheering on her romance with the guy on the Chiefs. 

Taylor Swift cheered on her future husband, Travis Kelce, from a private box at games in Massachusetts in December 2023, in Kansas City in September 2024, and at the 2025 Super Bowl in New Orleans.

And no doubt they’ve scored an invite for Swift’s forthcoming wedding to the NFL star tight end. 

Este Haim, who married tech entrepreneur Jonathan Levin on New Year’s Eve, appeared in a now-famous Instagram post from July 7, 2023, shared by Taylor Swift. The photo also included Selena Gomez and other women Swift described as friends from the neighborhood.

Admittedly, “How deranged is that post?” Swift acknowledged on SiriusXM Hits 1 in October, noting how she, Gomez—now wed to Benny Blanco—and Este fell in love soon after. “I think back on that, I’m like… there’s no way. I’m in this picture with a bunch of girls. A lot—not just me and Selena—a few of the other girls found their person right after that.”

As for who else might be on hand as the musician takes her magnetic force of a man to be her lover, we’re filling in some blank spaces about Swift’s famed squad. 

They’re cheer captains and they’re on the bleachers.

Oh my gosh, you guys, Taylor’s engaged to Travis Kelce! It’s seriously the best news ever! And it means we get another amazing woman joining the Swiftie circle – a total WAG now! I can’t wait to see all the fun they’ll have together, and honestly, I’m already obsessed with learning everything about her. This is just
everything!

Since beginning her romance with Kelce, Swift has become friends with Brittany Mahomes, the wife of the team’s quarterback, Patrick Mahomes.

As a lifestyle observer, I’ve been following all the buzz, and it’s clear Taylor Swift has some amazing support! I recently noticed she and Brittany Mahomes, co-owner of the Kansas City Current, have been showing up to games together, which is so fun to see. And just last September 30th, they had a fabulous dinner in New York City with a fantastic group of friends – Blake Lively and Sophie Turner were there too! It’s lovely to see these women supporting each other.

Taylor Swift was spotted at Game 4 of the 2026 NBA Finals between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs on June 10th, hanging out with her close friends Alana Haim and Este Haim. Their sister, Danielle Haim, couldn’t make it, but the group did manage to get actress Mariska Hargitay to wear one of their band’s playful t-shirts.

Collaborating with Swift onstage and on the 2020 evermore track “no body, no crime,” the sisters have long claimed a spot at the top of the depth chart. “She has always put her friends before herself in every situation,” Alana raved to People in 2023. “She’s the kind of friend that checks up on us for weeks after a tough breakup and is a shoulder to lean on.”

Well, it’s clear Swift is House Turner.

Since Sophie Turner‘s split with Joe Jonas in September 2023, the Game of Thrones star has frequently been spotted with Swift, who dated The Jonas Brothers singer for several months in 2008. 

The friends were first seen together on September 19th, enjoying dinner in New York City. A few days after, Turner and Swift had another night out with just the two of them, continuing their tradition. It’s well-known that Swift wrote the song “Mr. Perfectly Fine” about her high school breakup with Jonas.

Turner was in attendance at the second NFL game Swift attended in support of Kelce, which came after she joined the “The 1” singer, Mahomes and Lively for a meal. 

And, amid her divorce, Turner posted a photo of what appeared to be her wrist wearing a friendship bracelet spelling “Fearless,” the name of Swift’s 2008 album.

James, Inez, Betty, and Olin’s parents are still part of Taylor Swift’s inner circle. The three children became close after Swift became friends with Blake Lively in 2015.

In fact, their children call her Aunt Taylor and have played integral roles in some of her hit songs.

Often by Swift’s side on her NYC adventures, Lively became a collaborator when she directed the music video for Swift’s song “I Bet You Think About Me” in 2021.

Taylor Swift shared her excitement about collaborating with Blake Lively on Lively’s first time directing a project. She described Lively as talented, courageous, and hilarious, and invited fans to celebrate with them, promising a fun and lively experience.

Okay, so after everything with Joe ended in April 2023, I was obsessively scrolling through pics and I saw it – Taylor, with Matty Healy! It was a total shock because they were seen leaving dinner at Casa Cipriani together in a car! Like, a getaway car! I couldn’t believe my eyes, it was so random and exciting!

During the October 2023 game at Metlife Stadium, Lively and Reynolds sat beside Taylor Swift. After the event gained a lot of attention, Reynolds quietly shared his thoughts.

He told Extra at the Bring Change to Mind Gala on October 9th that the NFL is incredibly exciting right now. He explained that the league is generating a level of enthusiasm normally seen only during the Super Bowl, and it’s happening so early in the season – after only four or five games.

While there was some rumored bad blood amid Lively’s legal fight with Justin Baldoni, it wasn’t enough to ruin the friendship.

One of the most surprising additions to Swift’s squad was Hugh Jackman, with the Greatest Showman star attending the October 2023 game between the Chiefs and the New York Jets, piling into a VIP suite that included his good friend Ryan Reynolds and his wife, two longtime members of Swift’s inner circle.

Jackman’s outing with Swift & Co. came just after the recent news that the Wolverine star and his wife Deborra-Lee Furness had separated after 27 years of marriage.

Look at them now! Close friends since 2008, Swift and Selena Gomez are still as tight as ever.

Following a sighting of them dancing together at the 2023 MTV VMAs, Selena Gomez posted a series of selfies with her best friend on Instagram on September 16th.

Gomez shared photos and captioned them with a line from Saweetie’s 2021 song ‘Best Friend,’ saying, ‘That’s my best friend – she’s amazing!’

In the pics, taken by Swift, the two pop stars appear to be having dinner outdoors at an oceanfront restaurant. In one photo, the “Blank Space” singer is kissing Gomez on the cheek.

This summer, the two spent the Fourth of July together with friends at a party hosted by the singer of “Style.” Then, in August, the star of Only Murders in the Building went to one of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour concerts with her sister, Gracie Teefey.

Later that month, Gomez released her new song “Single Soon,” and Swift showed her support by posting the music video to her Instagram Stories, adding the message, “When your bestie is the best!”

Okay, so Taylor and Antoni Porowski have been friends forever, it seems! She’s seriously amazing because she got Antoni and the whole Queer Eye crew – Karamo, Jonathan, Tan, and Bobby – to be in her “You Need to Calm Down” video back in 2019! It was epic. And get this – later that year, she and Antoni went to a Madonna concert together! I was so jealous! Then, just recently, he was right there with her in that incredible VIP suite at the Chiefs-Jets game, surrounded by all those celebrities. Seriously, they’re clearly super close, and I’m living for it!

The ultimate GNO FOMO!

Swift enjoyed a star-studded outing on Sept. 19, 2023, in NYC, stepping out for dinner with Big Little Lies stars Laura Dern and Zoë Kravitz, along with Barbie director Greta Gerwig.

The night out was a chance for the four friends to reconnect. Laura has worked with Kravitz on an HBO show, and they’ve also collaborated on other projects: Laura was in Gerwig’s 2019 film Little Women and appeared in Swift’s “Bejeweled” music video last year.

And Kravitz is one of the Grammy winner’s longtime pals and served as a collaborator when she helped co-write “Lavender Haze” and “Karma” on Swift’s 2022 Midnights album. The week prior to their outing with Dern and Gerwig, Swift and Kravitz stepped out for another dinner in the Big Apple, this time with Kravitz’s then-boyfriend Channing Tatum, as well as Lively, Reynolds and Gigi Hadid, a longtime member of Swift’s squad.

Fourteen years after posting her first YouTube video featuring a cover of Taylor Swift’s “Picture to Burn,” Sabrina Carpenter got the chance to open for Swift on the Mexico leg of the Eras Tour – a moment she called a dream come true.

Watching Taylor Swift perform is like attending a masterclass, according to Carpenter. She explained to Rolling Stone that Swift is incredibly talented with lyrics, and Carpenter feels confident working with her because she greatly admires Swift and plans to learn from her.

I was so excited to see Mary J. Blige at the Jets game last year – she’s amazing! And did you know she also opened for Taylor Swift on multiple nights of the Eras Tour? What a legend!

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2026-06-11 20:22