Taylor Swift song in Toy Story 5

Taylor Swift said on June 1 that she wrote and recorded an original song, “I Knew It, I Knew You,” for Disney and Pixar’s “Toy Story 5.” Variety reported the announcement after a countdown on Swift’s website ended Monday afternoon, and Disney said the track is tied to Jessie, the cowgirl character introduced in “Toy Story 2.” Disney described the song as “a return to Taylor Swift’s country roots,” according to Variety’s account of the studio release. The announcement landed after Swift completed six sold-out shows at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, a run that had fueled fan speculation around the countdown and a possible film tie-in. (variety.com) ### How was the song announced? Swift’s website carried a “Toy Story”-styled countdown that pointed to 2 p.m. Eastern on June 1. Billboard reported a themed timer had gone live as rumors spread that Swift was involved with the fifth “Toy Story” film, and USA Today said Swift used her website that day to unveil the single. (variety.com) Variety reported Swift revealed the title after the countdown expired and identified the song as part of “Toy Story 5.” Deadline separately reported the song will arrive on streaming platforms on June 5. ### What did Disney say about Jessie? Disney’s release, as quoted by Variety, said the song was inspired by “the rootin’ tootin’ cowgirl Jessie’s ongoing journey” in the new film. (billboard.com) That language tied the track directly to one of the franchise’s central characters rather than to the broader ensemble. (variety.com) Andrew Stanton, the film’s writer-director, said in the statement cited by Variety that it had been meaningful to have Swift write and perform the song. Variety reported Disney, not Swift, was the source of the description of the song as a country return. (variety.com) ### Why are people focusing on the “return to country” line? Variety reported that Disney framed the track as a move back toward the sound associated with Swift’s early career. Forbes and Axios both said the announcement immediately prompted attention to Swift’s Nashville roots and to whether the Pixar song would revisit elements of her earlier country work. (variety.com) That framing matters because Swift now owns her catalog, according to the background cited in the source briefing, which has shifted fan discussion away from rerecordings and toward new projects. In this case, the studio’s language centered on a new film song rather than a new Swift album cycle. (variety.com) ### What set off the speculation before Monday? Billboard reported that the first clue was the countdown itself, which used blue-sky imagery associated by fans with Andy’s bedroom wallpaper from the “Toy Story” films. USA Today also reported that a similar countdown had briefly appeared earlier, helping drive online theories about a Pixar connection. (axios.com) Us Weekly said the reveal came as Swift was wrapping six sold-out SoFi Stadium dates in Los Angeles. That timing gave fans a fixed window for an announcement and helped push the countdown into broader entertainment coverage before Swift confirmed the song. (billboard.com) ### What happens next? June 5 is the next scheduled date in the rollout, with Deadline and other outlets reporting that “I Knew It, I Knew You” will be released to streaming services that day. “Toy Story 5” is scheduled to open in theaters on June 19, according to USA Today and other reports surfaced in the coverage around the announcement. (deadline.com) (usmagazine.com)