Taylor Swift was so inspired after seeing “Toy Story 5” in a preview screening that she wrote and recorded its end credits song the very same day.
The Grammy winner recounted “one of the most fun days of my life” in a new video posted to social media Thursday, sharing that after seeing the Disney-Pixar sequel at 11 a.m., she “got the songwriter zoomies” and jetted off for a day of writing and recording.
The product? “I Knew It, I Knew You,” which debuted ahead of Friday’s “Toy Story 5” premiere at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and broke streaming records across Spotify, Amazon Music and Apple Music.
Watch the video, recorded mid-session in Swift’s studio, below:
“Been kind of a hectic day,” she says in the video. “At 11 a.m., went to go see ‘Toy Story 5.’ Got so inspired, got the songwriter zoomies. Went home, wrote the end credit song for ‘Toy Story 5.’ We have now produced it and I am doing vocals. It’s 6:57 p.m. In two hours, Bob Iger and Tom from Pixar are coming to hear it. We have not recorded it yet. And I think this is one of the most fun days of my life.”
(In referencing “Tom from Pixar,” it’s safe to bet Swift was meeting with Tom MacDougall, president of Walt Disney Music and executive music producer for Pixar Animation Studios.)
Swift released her new anthem for âToy Story 5â one week ago, marking a return to her country roots.
The pop star commemorated the release of the new track, which was confirmed earlier that week, by sharing a home video of herself dressed as a cowgirl as a child. She also penned a lengthy note to fans, in which she said writing the new song for Joan Cusackâs character Jessie felt like âcoming home.â
âWriting this song felt like a musical departure and coming home at the same time,â Swift shared on Instagram. âCreating something for Jessie was a new challenge and also felt like second nature all at once. And being a @toystory kid from the age of 5 til now ⌠is an adventure I plan to be on, to infinity and beyond.â
She added: âThank you to the brilliant Andrew Stanton for imagining me for this, all those years ago when you wrote this newest film. Thank you to the incomparable [Randy Newman] for the gorgeous sonic tapestry of songs and scores youâve meticulously woven over the years. You created the Toy Story musical world, and we are lucky to get to live in it.â
As Swift went on, she noted that along with her frequent collaborator, Jack Antonoff, they âwrote this with so much adoration for these characters that made us laugh and helped us learn lessons and think outside the backyard all throughout our childhoods.â
Read her full statement, and hear a snippet of her new song, below:
