Taylor Swift’s surprise Toy Story duet and other memorable covers
Taylor Swift made a surprise appearance at the Toy Story 5 world premiere on Tuesday, held in Los Angeles, writes Music News Blitz’s Megan Hamilton.
The singer put on a pared-back, acoustic performance of her new song ‘I Knew It, I Knew You’, which will feature on the new film’s soundtrack.
A wholesome duet
Swift then brought out Randy Newman, the composer behind the soundtracks to all the Toy Story films and many other beloved Disney and Pixar movies, who she described as “the architect of the Toy Story musical universe”.
The pair sang a wholesome cover of ‘You’ve Got A Friend In Me’, which Newman wrote and recorded for the original 1995 Toy Story film, which is sure to have moved some viewers to tears.
Last week, Swift thanked Newman in a post on Instagram, saying that he “created the Toy Story musical world, and we are lucky to get to live in it”, and stating that she has been “a Toy Story kid from the age of 5 til now”.
Previous covers
The scene brought back memories of other covers the Eras Tour singer has done over the years, so here are a few of her best:
During 2011’s ‘Speak Now’ tour, she performed with John Rzeznik, frontman of the Goo Goo Dolls, singing their iconic power ballad ‘Iris’.
The youthful quality of then 21 year-old Swift’s vocals contrasts with Rzeznik’s gravelly tone, but somehow it works.
On the same tour, the singer performed what some consider to be her best cover, of Train’s ‘Drops of Jupiter’.
For anyone doubting her vocal chops, this cover showcases just how good she really is, its simplicity highlighting the quality of her voice.
Joining Fall Out Boy on stage at the 2013 Victoria’s Secret fashion show, she covered ‘My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark’.
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‘Swifties’ have long been pining for more of a rock influence in her music, and this definitely scratches that itch.
Fall Out Boy must have thought the same, as they went on to record ‘Electric Touch’ with Swift for Speak Now (Taylor’s Version).
Lastly, we can’t forget the Eras Tour which hosted numerous guest appearances, like Gracie Abrams, Phoebe Bridgers, and Ed Sheeran.
Among these was Sabrina Carpenter, and in October 2024 the two sang a mashup which included an acoustic version of Carpenter’s hit ‘Espresso’.
It’s clear that these covers, and her participation in the Toy Story 5 soundtrack, are chosen carefully and mean a lot to both Swift and her fans, making this walk down memory lane even more special.
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