In his latest single release, “Favorite Ex,” out artist Stewart Taylor sings about an old flame he regretfully had to extinguish.  “We ended things when I left New York to pursue my career in Los Angeles,” he explains. “We both knew life would eventually take me out West and that our time together was limited, but I often wonder what would’ve been had I stayed.”   

Stewart Taylor’s new single, “Favorite Ex,” merges eighties music vibes with today’s pop and R&B.  Produced by Romanian hitmaker MADS (David Guetta), Taylor says the song about his former lover was a relatively easy one to write. “I had a lot on my mind on the morning I walked into the studio with my co-writers Jillian Strauss and Erik Frank,” he remembers.  “I had just learned that I was going to meet my ex’s new boyfriend and coming to terms with the fact that he had found someone new was especially difficult for me.” 

In the song, Stewart even fantasizes about stealing the boyfriend back from the new man.  He says he would never actually do that in real life.  “I definitely took some poetic license for that one,” he laughs.

The video draws inspiration from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and its theme that every party eventually has to end.  As they do in the novel, beautiful things fall apart.  The chandelier on the desert floor represents the end of opulence in the relationship, while the white roses represent the end of the romance.

Stewart Taylor grew up in a small town outside of New York City.  He graduated from Berklee College of Music in Boston and has collaborated with Charlie Puth and RuPaul’s Drag Race’s Manila Luzon and more.  We spoke with him from his Hollywood home.

There’s something sad and ethereal about your new song, “Favorite Ex.”

Stewart Taylor:  “Favorite Ex” is one of the more personal songs I’ve ever released. It’s a true story about leaving my ex to move to California and having to come face to face with him and his new boyfriend a few years later.

But when the chorus drops, the song really makes you want to move.

Stewart Taylor:  It might make you dance and it might make you cry.  I’m happy that my singing voice shines through on the track. 

How long did you the ex?

Stewart Taylor:   We dated for about two years and also tried to do the long-distance thing. It didn’t work for either of us.

Do you still speak?

Stewart Taylor:   We do!  More than seven years after meeting, we’re still friends. I chatted with him earlier today. 

Has he heard the song?

Stewart Taylor:   I played it for him.  Thankfully, he’s flattered and not angry that I wrote about him.   His response was actually very sweet. He cried several times.

In the song, you sing how your mom and friends still love him.  Is that true?

Stewart Taylor:     Oh yes, my mom and my friends are all my ex’s number one fans.   That’s one of my favorite lines in the song, by the way.

It sounds like you regret leaving him.

Stewart Taylor:     It’s a decision I’ve had to live with, but my heart was calling me out West to pursue my music business dreams. 

Has the song been therapeutic for you?

Stewart Taylor:    Completely! I was even humming the lyrics under my breath when I met my ex’s new man.  It’s one of those songs that really had to be written in order for me to process the magnitude of my breakup and my ex’s decision to move on as well. 

The accompanying visual is spectacular.

Stewart Taylor:    The video is one of my favorite music videos I’ve ever made. We shot in Malibu and the Mojave Desert and it was simply magical.   I was dressed head to toe by German designer Joseph Auren. He made me feel like a star. 

Are you dating now?

Stewart Taylor:    I go on dates here and there.

It’s going to take a very special guy to match up to your “Favorite Ex”.

Stewart Taylor:    Future boyfriends have some big shoes to fill.  They should also know that I have a lot of energy and it’s going to be tough to keep up with me. 

What’s next?Stewart Taylor:   I’m writing for a lot of other artists in Los Angeles right now.  I’m also signing with an indie label and I have a new single and music video ready to come out. I’m going to start teasing it on TikTok this month and release the full video in November

Produced by Romanian hitmaker MADS (David Guetta, Imagine Dragons), Stewart Taylor’s “Favorite Ex” is being distributed independently and is available on Apple Music, Spotify, and all digital platforms.  Its video is available on Youtube.

The new remix of the song released this week:  https://spotify.link/cwpEBFv5yDb

Follow on IG @imstewarttaylor and stewarttaylorofficial.com