James is the teenage love interest of the narrator in Taylor Swift’s “August.” The song presents a summer romance from the perspective of a girl who becomes involved with him while he is connected to Betty.
“August” is one part of a three-song narrative on Folklore. “Cardigan” is associated with Betty’s perspective, while “Betty” follows James’s perspective. Together, the songs form a fictional teenage love triangle rather than a direct account of Swift’s personal life.
The narrator of “August” is not given a definitive name in the lyrics. Swift said she imagined names such as Augusta or Augustine for the character, which can cause confusion in trivia questions. Those names describe the narrator, while James is the boy at the center of her summer romance.