A band soon to play in Cincinnati has eyebrow-raising lore tied to some of the biggest celebrities – including Taylor Swift and Bruce Springsteen.
And the band isn't even a household name.
Bleachers, or more specifically the band's lead singer, Jack Antonoff, was all over the internet earlier this year.
Not because of the band's music. Bleachers has an impressive 12.8 million monthly listeners on Spotify. But when you compare that to Taylor Swift (103.9 million monthly listeners) or even Sabrina Carpenter (54.6 million) ... well. (Antonoff regularly collaborates with Swift and has worked with Carpenter.)
No, his name was the talk of magazines and celebrity news Instagram pages thanks to the release of his ex Lena Dunham's revealing memoir in April.
But to truly understand the impact of Dunham's memoir, we have to start more than a decade ago.
Let's unpack Antonoff's unexpected internet lore, which includes Scarlett Johansson, the 2012 hit song "We Are Young," Taylor Swift, pop star Lorde, a viral PowerPoint, the very controversial Dunham, "The Boss" Bruce Springsteen, Lana Del Rey and more.
(Deep breath.)
So, here's all the pop culture knowledge you need to know about Antonoff before he steps into the Queen City on Wednesday, when his band performs at the Andrew J. Brady Music Center.
Early days: High school sweethearts with Scarlett Johansson
(OK, this is a bit before our story really begins, but I just had to include it!) Before either of them truly became a celebrity, Antonoff and actress Scarlett Johansson were high school sweethearts from 2001-2002. The two were classmates at the Professional Children’s School in New York City and attended prom together, according to InStyle.
Their romance recently resurfaced after another celeb, their classmate and Disney star, Christy Carlson Romano, posted a yearbook photo with them in it in 2026.
The duo broke up shortly after graduation, when Johansson became a Hollywood starlet. This reportedly didn't sit well with Antonoff. Fans speculate his 2005 song, “Better Love,” is about her, with lyrics like: “Scars are in her name / And she scars me in blame / Hey Scarlett, you’re not the same.” Ouch.
A No. 1 hit with the band 'fun.'
(Alright, now for the real story.) Antonoff first hit the mainstream music scene as lead guitarist for the band fun. Remember them? Their song "We Are Young" reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2012 and earned a Grammy. OK, Jack!
Antonoff dates Lena Dunham
Around this same time, Antonoff started dating comedian Lena Dunham. The two became the "it" couple of the early 2010s. While Antonoff was riding the high of fun.'s success, the public crowned Dunham a young comedy genius for her HBO hit show, "Girls." From the outside, their relationship was #millennialgoals for the next five years.
Taylor Swift collaboration
Antonoff also met Taylor Swift in 2012 at the MTV Europe Music Awards. The two first collaborated on Swift's 2013 single "Sweeter Than Fiction. This was the start of a decades-long partnership with Antonoff that spans 11 albums, including all four re-recorded albums. (Swift wrote her "1989" track "You Are in Love" about Antonoff and Dunham's relationship, according to Today. Awww.)
Lorde and a viral PowerPoint
But then things started to get a little rocky in the public eye. Antonoff produced pop singer Lorde's second album, "Melodrama," which she released in 2017. Lorde fans still rave about this album and consider it her magnum opus. But the album is noteworthy for another, totally different reason: rumors swirled that Lorde and Antonoff had some kind of affair while collaborating, even though Antonoff was living with Dunham at the time. **Although this was completely speculative,** a fan made an impressive PowerPoint outlining every detail of the theory with the passion of a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter. That PowerPoint has gone down in pop culture history.
Dunham and Antonoff reps confirm they split in early 2018
This is important.
Antonoff collaborates with Bruce Springsteen
In 2020, Bleachers and Bruce Springsteen released the song "Chinatown." Antonoff, who is also a New Jersey native, grew up idolizing Springsteen. Honestly, great song.
Antonoff marries Margaret Qualley
Antonoff went on to date other people after Dunham. He eventually settled down with "Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood" actress Margaret Qualley. The duo married in August 2023. And Antonoff just kept making more internet moments. He and Grammy-nominated singer Lana Del Rey created the song "Margaret" about Qualley in 2023, which became popular on TikTok.
Dunham's releases memoir 'Famesick'
Okay, finally to the present day! Dunham released a memoir, "Famesick," in April 2026. The book chronicles her life from 2010 to 2020 and gives readers a look at her relationship with Antonoff. In sum, the duo broke up due to strain from Antonoff's touring, Dunham's health issues and wanting different things.
But, what especially sparked the internet's attention? Dunham does go into the Lorde of it all.
Though she never names Lorde, she writes about a teenage pop star who Antonoff becomes "ensconced" with while producing her album.
Dunham goes on to write that she once found the pop star “sprawled across our sectional couch, weeping into Jack’s lap as he told her that ‘your teens are for experimenting’ in a tone so comforting, it almost brought tears to my eyes. It had been so long since he’d spoken to me with that kind of expansive generosity.”
This was just one of the passages that earned virality.
Dunham also revealed that Antonoff and Springsteen developed a friendship after she and Antonoff had broken up. She shared that when she met Springsteen later on, she had "verbal diarrhea" and passionately expressed her feelings of anger and betrayal from Antonoff to Springsteen.
Antonoff and Margaret Qualley separate
Antonoff also made headlines this summer when he and Qualley separated after nearly three years of marriage, People confirmed on July 8.
The news was all over Instagram, with fans speculating the split had something to do with Dunham's memoir.
But a source told People after the split that the two remain a united front.
“They love each other deeply and are very sweet to each other,” the source said. “They are going through this process with nothing but kindness and unity.”
Antonoff confirms split on tour
I'll just leave this here.
@usatodayentertainment Jack Antonoff jokes about his song "Let's Get Married" during his final night at the Troubadour in Los Angeles.
♬ original sound - USA TODAY Entertainment
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Why a singer playing in Cincy was all over the internet this spring
