NEED TO KNOW
Austin Swift is Taylor Swift’s younger brother
He is one of Taylor’s “best pals”
Austin helped Taylor purchase her master recordings in 2025
Taylor Swift’s brother, Austin Swift, would do anything for his big sister.
During an appearance on the New Heights podcast in August 2025, Taylor shared that Austin was instrumental in helping her buy her master recordings.
“I wanted to buy my music outright. It was a long shot,” she explained. “Rather than send lawyers or management, I sent my mom and my brother, who I work with, to L.A. They sat down with [the owners], Shamrock Capital, and told them what this meant to me. They told them the whole story.”
Born to parents Andrea and Scott Swift on March 11, 1992, Austin grew up alongside the Grammy winner on their family’s Christmas tree farm in rural Pennsylvania. When he was around 9 years old, they relocated to Nashville to support Taylor’s budding music career.
“She found singing, and I knew from very early on that that was her direction,” he told Vanity Fair in June 2017. “She was never going to quit; that was her thing, that was her life.”
In search of his own passion, Austin found himself engrossed in movies. He went on to study film at the University of Notre Dame and now has a handful of acting and producing credits under his belt.
So, who is Taylor Swift’s brother? From his acting debut to the sweet ways he and his sister have supported each other over the years, here’s everything to know about Austin Swift.
He’s a major film buff
Much like his older sister, Austin felt like a bit of an outcast growing up. Early on in high school, he weighed 250 lbs. and had very few friends, he told Vanity Fair. Ultimately, he found companionship at the movie theater.
“I would go to the movies, and Daniel Craig was my friend, and Christian Bale was my friend, and Clive Owen was my friend, and Viggo Mortensen was my friend,” he told the outlet.
His love of film led him to the University of Notre Dame, where he first began to explore acting. In 2015, he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in film studies.
“I’m pretty reserved in most circumstances, so [acting] never seemed like it would be a good fit,” Austin told PEOPLE in April 2018. “But I kind of got thrust into it and realized that it could be an opportunity to be creative.”
Austin’s film preference skews towards sci-fi. Some of his all-time favorite films include Top Gun, GoldenEye and Star Wars: Episode V — The Empire Strikes Back.
He’s an actor and producer
Tommaso Boddi/FilmMagic
Austin Swift in 2018.
Austin made his big screen debut in 2016’s crime thriller I.T., acting alongside Pierce Brosnan. Later that year, he shared the screen with Ben Affleck and Zoe Saldaña in the star-studded Live by Night. While he went on to do more work in film, he expanded his résumé to include some television roles in 2017, appearing in the political comedy show Embeds and Billy Ray Cyrus’ series Still the King.
Over the next two years, Austin landed a handful of other notable roles in films, including Cover Versions and We Summon the Darkness, the latter of which he also co-produced. In 2019, he starred opposite Tom Felton in the comedy Braking for Whales.
Austin bonded with costars during his time on the Cover Versions set, including Debby Ryan. “The best times were just hanging out between scenes and working with people who cared about each other and about what we were trying to do,” he told PEOPLE in April 2018.
In addition to his acting roles, Austin has racked up a handful of production credits for his sister over the past few years. He’s listed as an executive producer on her Disney+ documentary Folklore: The Long Pond Sessions, as well as on her “I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor’s Version)” music video.
He shares his sister’s famous work ethic
Taylor Swift Instagram
Taylor Swift and Austin Swift
After landing his first leading role in a college production of Six Characters in Search of an Author, Austin found himself channeling his sister’s famously rigorous work ethic.
“I got really worried I wasn’t good enough,” he told PEOPLE of anxieties that began to crop up during rehearsal. “It became clear I needed to either buckle down or walk away. I started staying after rehearsals every night and running the whole play by myself, over and over, acting every part until the sun came up.”
Ultimately, his dedication paid off: “By opening day, it was a different play and I felt like I was a different person.”
He was nominated for an ACM Award
Following in his sister’s footsteps, Austin earned his very first ACM nod in 2022, when he was nominated alongside Taylor and Blake Lively in the video of the year category for their collaboration on the “I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor’s Version)” music video.
This was the first nomination for both Austin and Lively; Austin worked on the video as a producer, while Lively produced and directed, per Deadline.
On Instagram, the I.T. actor celebrated the big news. “I was so lucky to get to work with Blake, Taylor, and the entire amazing team behind the video for ‘I Bet You Think About Me’ and now I am so proud and thankful that we’ve been nominated for the ACM award for video of the year!” he wrote alongside photos of the nomination press release.
He is dating model Sydney Ness
Austin and model Sydney Ness have been romantically linked since September 2022, when they were spotted holding hands in New York City.
He and Taylor are incredibly supportive of one another
Kevin Winter/BMA2015/Getty
Taylor Swift and Austin Swift in 2015.
As siblings, Taylor and Austin have proved they’ve got each other’s backs. He’s supported her through various tours, and she’s shouted out his work on social media on a number of occasions. In 2014, she even skipped the MTV Europe Music Awards to see Austin perform in a play at the University of Notre Dame.
In April 2020, the “Anti-Hero” singer shared a sweet film photo (taken by close friend Gigi Hadid) of her and Austin on Instagram, celebrating National Siblings Day and the premiere of his movie We Summon The Darkness. Alongside the photo, she described her brother as “one of my best pals,” adding that she was “really proud of him” for his work on the movie.
On Austin’s end, he’s shared several touching tributes to his big sister on social media over the years. When she first broke her silence on politics in 2018, Austin immediately reposted her statement (in which she threw her support behind Democratic candidates for the midterm election).
“When you thought you couldn’t respect your best friend any more than you already do. And then you do,” he wrote in the caption.
A few months later, he shared an adorable throwback photo of the pair as children, along with a heartfelt caption about their lifelong bond in honor of Taylor’s 29th birthday.
“I have always had a best friend, a role model, and a caring, tireless, dedicated champion in my corner. You have pulled me out of fires and carried me up mountains. The gift of getting to witness you become the wonderful person you are today has been the greatest privilege and honor of my life,” he penned.
He and Ness often join Taylor to cheer on the Kansas City Chiefs
Jamie Squire/Getty
Austin Swift and Taylor Swift in 2023.
When the Kansas City Chiefs played the Las Vegas Raiders on Dec. 25, 2023, Austin joined Taylor in cheering on Travis Kelce from a suite at Arrowhead Stadium, dressed in a Santa Claus costume for the occasion. Taylor’s parents, Andrea and Scott, were also in attendance, along with Austin’s girlfriend, who appeared to be wearing one of the sweatshirts that Taylor had been gifted from Kansas City boutique Westside Storey.
Austin rode in on a golf cart beside his sister, ringing a bell as they walked into the stadium together.
This was only one of the games that Austin and Ness attended that season. They also joined Taylor (and Andrea and Scott) in a suite at the 2024 Super Bowl, where they got to witness Kelce and his team win the game for the second year in a row.
He helped her purchase her master recordings
Christopher Polk/ACMA2014/Getty
Austin Swift and Taylor Swift in 2014.
In May 2025, Taylor announced that she’d acquired her music catalog from Shamrock Capital, securing full ownership of her first six albums. Three months later in August 2025, Taylor shared the whole story on New Heights, where she appeared alongside Travis and his brother, Jason Kelce.
According to the singer, Austin and Andrea helped facilitate a deal between Taylor and Shamrock Capital, which led to her regaining the rights to her master recordings.
“This changed my life. I can’t believe it still,” the “Shake it Off” singer said on the New Heights podcast. “I’m so grateful.”
Read the original article on People
