Music

Taylor Swift Pens New Song for "Toy Story 5," Returning to Country Roots

Taylor Swift announced she has written an original country song, "I Knew It, I Knew You," for the upcoming "Toy Story 5," fulfilling a childhood dream of contributing to the beloved film series.

Rolling Stone·Jun 1, 2026·via Rolling Stone

Taylor Swift Pens New Song for "Toy Story 5," Returning to Country Roots

It’s a Tay Story

Taylor Swift Will Return to Country Roots on New Song ‘I Knew It, I Knew You’ for ‘Toy Story 5’

"I’ve always dreamed of getting to write for these characters who I’ve adored since I was a 5 year old kid watching the first Toy Story movie," Swift says

Althea Legaspi , Jon Blistein June 1, 2026

The upcoming adventures of Woody, Jessie, and Buzz Lightyear just got more exciting with a newly revealed plot twist: Taylor Swift has recorded a new song for Toy Story 5 called, “I Knew It, I Knew You.”

The pop star announced the track on her website today, revealing three special CD singles featuring different versions of the song (regular, piano, and acoustic). The track is set to arrive June 5. (If the song’s title seems familiar, Gracie Abrams has a track called, “I Knew It, I Know You.”)

“I’ve always dreamed of getting to write for these characters who I’ve adored since I was a 5 year old kid watching the first Toy Story movie,” Swift wrote on Instagram . “I fell instantly in love with Toy Story 5 when I was lucky enough to see it in its early stages, and I wrote this song as soon as I got home from the screening. Sometimes you just know, right?”

Swift co-wrote and produced “I Knew It, I Knew You” with her frequent collaborator Jack Antonoff (marking their first work together since 2024’s The Tortured Poets Department ). Per a press release, the track was inspired by Jessie, the cowgirl toy voiced by Joan Cusack, and will find Swift returning to her country roots.

“It’s incredible just how meaningful it’s been having Taylor write and perform this song,” Toy Story 5 director Andrew Stanton said in a statement. “Her connection to Jessie and the immediate way she understood what the character was going through was undeniable. The song is so deeply connected to Toy Story . So much so that on first listen, it instantly felt like it had always belonged there, like a long-lost family member. It was kismet.”

The singer confirmed that Toy Story news involving her was coming via a countdown clock on her website that featured Jessie riding on a horse and dancing around. At 2 p.m. ET on Monday, June 1, the news arrived.

The news was not completely surprising. Hints of Swift’s participation have been circulating in the days leading up to Swift’s official announcement. It started on April 30, when Swift’s official website housed a countdown (which then was deleted), that appeared to boast a Toy Story -styled background. The timer appeared to be counting down 48 hours before it would reveal something , only to disappear a few minutes later.