Who are Dylan Thomas and Patti Smith? Meet the poets Taylor Swift mentioned on ‘TTPD’

Poets Dylan Thomas and Patti Smith were mentioned in Taylor Swift’s highly anticipated 11th studio album, “The Tortured Poets Department.”

After the album’s April 19, 2024, release, the lyrics to some of the “Cruel Summer” singer’s songs caught the eyes of her beloved Swifties.

On the title track, “The Tortured Poets Department,” Swift names the famed poets when she sings, “And who’s going to hold you Like me? / And who’s going to love you, if not me?

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“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.”

The Grammy winner adds, “Who’s going to hold you like me? / Nobody. No f–king body. Nobody.”

Keep scrolling to find out more about Smith and Thomas.

Who is Dylan Thomas?

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During his short life, Thomas was a Welsh poet and writer who completed a novel and hundreds of poems and short stories.

Some of Thomas’ most well-known poems include “And Death Shall Have No Dominion,” “Fern Hill” and “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night.”

He also wrote stories and radio broadcasts such as “A Child’s Christmas in Wales” and “Portrait of the Artist as a Young Dog.”

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Dylan shared three children — Llewelyn, Aeronwy and Colm Garan — with his wife, Caitlin Thomas.

The dad of three had a reputation as a “roistering, drunken and doomed poet,” according to The Welsh Academy Encyclopedia of Wales, and was widely popular up until he died in November 1953 at the age of 39 from pneumonia, brain swelling and fatty liver disease.

In May 2023, Arthur Nash, a longtime tenant of the Chelsea Hotel, filed a lawsuit over physical possession of Dylan’s final home and writing studio amid the gentrification of the hotel, which Swift also named in the title track.

Who is Patti Smith?

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Smith is an American singer, songwriter, poet, painter and author.

Her 1975 debut album, “Horses,” made her an iNFLuential member of the New York City-based punk rock movement.

In 1978, Smith’s most widely known song, “Because the Night,” co-written with Bruce Springsteen, reached No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

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Smith has received several accolades throughout her career, including being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007 and being ranked No. 47 on Rolling Stone’s 100 Greatest Artists of All Time in 2010.

Outside of her musical career, Smith is a feminist and activist who fights the climate crisis and has been outspoken about her disdain for Former President George W. Bush and the Iraq War.

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In December 2023, Smith — who has suffered a lifelong bronchial condition — was released from a hospital in Italy after suffering from a sudden illness.

Patti gave birth to her first child in April 1967, however, she placed her for adoption.

She also shares son Jackson and daughter Jesse with her late husband, Fred Smith, who died after suffering a heart attack in November 1994.