Taylor Swift shares her musical inspirations

Taylor Swift was inspired to write about her exes after hearing You're So Vain.

The singer may be only 25 years old but that doesn't stop her from looking at music before her time as motivation. One thing Taylor has become famous for is penning tracks about previous boyfriends, an aspect that was part triggered by the 1972 hit track by Carly Simon.

"It was the shot heard 'round the world that left everyone debating and wondering, 'Which famous ex-lover did she write it about?' I've felt the ripples of that blaring publicity curiosity affect my own lyrics," she explained to Rolling Stone. "I was a poetry-obsessed preteen the first time I heard that incredibly genius kiss-off, 'You're so vain, you probably think this song is about you.' After hearing that, it was like a key had just unlocked this forbidden area of storytelling for me."

Another famous track which has had an influence on Taylor is This Kiss by Faith Hill, which the blonde star says changed her entire outlook on country music. She began her career in the genre with tracks such as Love Story and Teardrops on My Guitar, but moved into pop with her latest album 1989.

She has plenty of A-list pals, with British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran being one of them. His track Lego House is one that stands out for Taylor.

"I was so intrigued by this song that I reached out to Ed to write for my album Red," she recalled. "I loved the cadence of the pre-chorus, 'And it's dark in a cold December, but I got you to keep me waa-arm.' We wrote in a Phoenix hotel room, ate In-N-Out burgers and essentially became a permanent fixture in each other's lives."