James is the fictional male character at the center of Taylor Swift’s “august” love triangle. In the story, the narrator has a summer romance with James, who is already connected to Betty.
The narrative continues across three Folklore songs. “August” presents the perspective of the unnamed girl involved with James, “Cardigan” follows Betty’s perspective, and “Betty” gives James a voice as he reflects on his actions.
Swift created these characters as part of Folklore’s imagined story world. The song’s narrator is not officially named in the lyrics, although Swift said she privately thought of possibilities such as Augusta or Augustine. James, by contrast, is explicitly named in the connected songs.