St. Vincent on Taylor Swift fans’ power to “change world economies” after success of ‘Cruel Summer’
St. Vincent has praised the power of Taylor Swift‘s fanbase and spoken about the resurgence of ‘Cruel Summer’, which she co-wrote with the pop star.
The song appears on Swift’s 2019 album ‘Lover’, but it wasn’t initially released as a single. St. Vincent (aka Annie Clark) penned the track alongside the singer and the pair’s mutual collaborator, producer Jack Antonoff.
‘Cruel Summer’ enjoyed a huge spike in popularity last year off the back of Swift’s ongoing ‘Eras Tour’, where it appears second in the setlist. It subsequently re-entered the Billboard Hot 100, shot up the charts in the UK, and was serviced as an official single.
The song eventually reached Number One in the US and peaked at Number Two in the UK, four years on from its original release (via Official Charts).
During a new interview with NME, St. Vincent reflected on the belated success of ‘Cruel Summer’. “That was crazy. I mean, I always thought in the context of that record, like, ‘That should be a single, it’s a great song’,” she explained.
“And I don’t even think it was a single; it just was a fan favourite. And it’s like the fans just decided: ‘No, this is your hit song.’ Which is so wild and so modern, you know. That was just a real bonus Jonas there. And I mean, that’s one hell of a fanbase.”
When it was put to her that Swifties had been able to turn a non-single into a Number One, Clark responded: “I mean, changing world economies, let’s go!”
The ‘Eras Tour’ is set to become the most lucrative tour in music history, and has already had a significant impact on the US economy. Recently, it was reported that the massive run of concerts would also bring 0.2 percentage points of GDP to Singapore’s economy (roughly equivalent to $200million).
Clark, who released her seventh album ‘All Born Screaming’ today (April 26), was then asked whether she thought about her own career in terms of separate ‘eras’.
“I don’t,” she told NME. “I think of my life in terms of ‘Wait, where was I on tour?’ Like, there’s a whole chunk of life, especially from my second record [2009’s ‘Actor’] to [2017’s] ‘Masseduction’ where it’s just a blur of touring.”
She continued: “It was crazy – I would finish a year-and-a-half long, gruelling tour and then start writing a record the next day. I just was ‘on one’ as they say, and some parts are blurrier than others if I’m very honest.
“But it’s not that I think of my life in specific eras. It’s more like I look back and try to figure out what was happening in my life by which record I was doing. That’s how I trace life and death and relationships, you know.”
Last summer, Swift said her fans had streamed ‘Cruel Summer’ “so much” that her label “decided to make it the next single”. She also explained how the COVID-19 pandemic had prevented it from being released previously.
When the track hit Number One in the US, Jack Antonoff said: “Our favourite song from ‘Lover’, from five years ago. This song that we said was the best song, but we thought, ‘You know what, this will be our secret best song’.”
A live version of ‘Cruel Summer’ from the ‘Eras Tour’ concert film came out last autumn along with some new remixes.
In 2021, Swift, Antonoff and Clark were all given writing credits on Olivia Rodrigo’s ‘Deja Vu’ – after the latter admitted that it had been inspired by ‘Cruel Summer’.
St. Vincent revealed in 2018 that it was Swift who had given her the idea to release a pop re-working of her ‘Masseduction’ cut ‘Slow Disco’. In 2015, Clark performed on stage with the singer in LA during her ‘1989’ tour.
Swift released her 11th studio album ‘The Tortured Poets Department’ last Friday (April 19), as well as an extended ‘Anthology’ edition of the record.
Meanwhile, the star has shared a video from rehearsals for the next ‘Eras Tour’ shows – fuelling speculation that her new material could be added to the setlist. The European and UK/Ireland leg is scheduled to begin in Paris on May 9.
This summer will see Swift bring her career-spanning spectacle to Wembley Stadium in London, where she’ll play eight sold-out concerts with Paramore. In a new interview, Florence Welch – who features on the ‘Tortured Poets’ song ‘Florida!!!’ – hinted that she could make a surprise appearance on stage in the capital.
Elsewhere in her conversation with NME, St. Vincent talked about recording with Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl, covering Kate Bush and shared more details about ‘All Born Screaming’. Watch the video interview above.
The post St. Vincent on Taylor Swift fans’ power to “change world economies” after success of ‘Cruel Summer’ appeared first on NME.
Tom Skinner
NME
