Taylor Swift said she and co-writer Jack Antonoff drew inspiration from Randy Newman’s musical style when crafting “I Knew It, I Knew You” for the Toy Story 5 soundtrack.
“It really hit me the weight of this, how lucky we were to get to take up what Randy Newman has created and continue that legacy,” Swift said on American Country Countdown with Ryan Fox. “I’m a huge Randy Newman fan, so is Jack. Randy tends to go to really different kind of chord progressions and has very different musical sensibilities than I do. So we try to channel that, you know, what would Randy do.”
Swift joined Newman onstage at the Toy Story 5 premiere and performed his composition “You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” with Newman accompanying on piano.
The single became an immediate chart success. “I Knew It, I Knew You” topped the Hot Country Songs chart, reached number eight on Country Airplay, and hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100. It made history as the first song by a woman to achieve 100% panel impact on country radio in its first week, with every reporting station adding the track.
Swift’s rare appearances across country radio—including Y’all Access with Kelly Sutton—came alongside her return to country music with the single’s June release.
Source: Rolling Stone Music
