Taylor Swift’s “Cardigan” Becomes an Unexpected Soundtrack Inside a Brooklyn Jail Cell

29 October 2025

Luigi Mangione, Taylor Swift. Credit : Curtis Means/Pool/Getty; Jeff Kravitz/TAS23/Getty

Behind bars at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, 27-year-old Luigi Mangione revealed in a recently circulated letter that he downloaded Taylor Swift’s music to explore the hype after a viral, fabricated playlist falsely claimed she was among his favourite artists.

Mangione wrote that he obtained music by Swift and Charli XCX on his tablet because he admitted he had “never really listened to either of them” but felt compelled to investigate after the social-media chatter. He specifically mentioned listening to Swift’s song Cardigan from her 2020 album Folklore while walking laps on the top tier of his unit.

However, the moment was brief. Another inmate known as “King” confronted him about the song choice, mocked the playlist, and replaced it with music by Lil Durk, leaving Mangione to record that he now listens to “Dis Ain’t What You Want”.

The full story offers a glimpse into the daily life of an inmate awaiting trial on federal and state charges tied to the killing of Brian Thompson, CEO of UnitedHealthcare, in December 2024.