Carolina (Taylor Swift song)

Where the Crawdads Sing is an American mystery thriller drama film starring Daisy Edgar-Jones in the lead role, directed by Olivia Newman and produced by Reese Witherspoon. It is a film adaptation of the 2018 novel of the same name written by American author Delia Owens. The story is set in the 1950s, revolving around an abandoned girl named Kya, who grew up in a marsh in North Carolina and becomes the prime suspect in the murder of a man who once romantically pursued her.{{Cite web|last=Seth|first=Radhika|date=July 27, 2020|title=See The New Trailer For Daisy Edgar-Jones's 'Where The Crawdads Sing', Featuring An Original Song By Taylor Swift|url=https://www.vogue.co.uk/arts-and-lifestyle/article/where-the-crawdads-sing-movie-adaptation|access-date=June 23, 2022|website=British Vogue|archive-date=May 21, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220521011541/https://www.vogue.co.uk/arts-and-lifestyle/article/where-the-crawdads-sing-movie-adaptation|url-status=live}}

The first trailer for the film was released on March 22, 2022, and featured "Carolina" being played in the background. The trailer also revealed that the song was written and performed by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift.{{Cite web|last=Rearick|first=Lauren|title=Taylor Swift Debuts New Song 'Carolina' In 'Where the Crawdads Sing' Trailer|url=https://www.teenvogue.com/story/taylor-swift-debuts-new-song-carolina-in-where-the-crawdads-sing-trailer|date=March 22, 2022|access-date=June 23, 2022|website=Teen Vogue|archive-date=June 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624063326/https://www.teenvogue.com/story/taylor-swift-debuts-new-song-carolina-in-where-the-crawdads-sing-trailer|url-status=live}} Another snippet of the song was revealed through a longer trailer of the film on May 22, 2022.{{Cite web|first=Cerys|last=Kenneally|title=Hear another snippet of Taylor Swift's 'Carolina' song in the latest Where The Crawdads Sing trailer|url=https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/news/latest-news/taylor-swifts-carolina-song-snippet-in-new-where-the-crawdads-sing-trailer|date=March 17, 2022|access-date=June 23, 2022|website=The Line of Best Fit|archive-date=June 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624063327/https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/news/latest-news/taylor-swifts-carolina-song-snippet-in-new-where-the-crawdads-sing-trailer|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|first=Will|last=Richards|date=May 18, 2022|title=Hear more of Taylor Swift's 'Carolina' in new 'Where the Crawdads Sing' trailer|url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/hear-more-of-taylor-swifts-carolina-in-new-where-the-crawdads-sing-trailer-3228113|access-date=June 23, 2022|website=NME|archive-date=June 23, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220623163437/https://www.nme.com/news/music/hear-more-of-taylor-swifts-carolina-in-new-where-the-crawdads-sing-trailer-3228113|url-status=live}} The release date of the song was teased by the film's official Instagram account, when they made a series of posts on June 22 with captions that had capitalized letters, spelling out "Carolina This Thursday" together.{{Cite web|first=Alex|last=Hopper|date=June 23, 2022|title=Taylor Swift is Set to Drop 'Where The Crawdads Sing' Theme Song 'Carolina'|url=https://americansongwriter.com/taylor-swift-is-set-to-drop-where-the-crawdads-sing-theme-song-carolina/|access-date=June 23, 2022|website=American Songwriter|archive-date=June 23, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220623171522/https://americansongwriter.com/taylor-swift-is-set-to-drop-where-the-crawdads-sing-theme-song-carolina/|url-status=live}} The next day, the song's release date was confirmed as June 24, 2022.{{Cite web|last=Willman|first=Chris|date=June 23, 2022|title=Taylor Swift to Release 'Carolina,' Theme Song for 'Where the Crawdads Sing' Film, Tonight|url=https://variety.com/2022/music/news/taylor-swift-carolina-release-theme-song-where-crawdads-sing-1235301468/|access-date=June 23, 2022|website=Variety|archive-date=June 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624063326/https://variety.com/2022/music/news/taylor-swift-carolina-release-theme-song-where-crawdads-sing-1235301468/|url-status=live}} A lyric video on YouTube accompanied the release.{{Cite web |last=Corcoran |first=Nina |date=June 24, 2022 |title=Listen to Taylor Swift's New Song "Carolina" |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/listen-to-taylor-swift-new-song-carolina/ |access-date=June 24, 2022 |website=Pitchfork |archive-date=June 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624043143/https://pitchfork.com/news/listen-to-taylor-swift-new-song-carolina/ |url-status=live }} On June 15, 2024, Swift performed "Carolina" as part of a mashup with her song "No Body, No Crime" (2020) during the Liverpool stop of her Eras Tour (2023–2024).{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Katie Louise |date=June 15, 2024 |title=Here's Every Surprise Song Performed on Taylor Swift's Eras Tour |url=https://www.capitalfm.com/artists/taylor-swift/eras-tour-surprise-songs-setlist/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616051004/https://www.capitalfm.com/artists/taylor-swift/eras-tour-surprise-songs-setlist/ |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |access-date=June 16, 2024 |publisher=Capital FM}}

File:Great dismal swamp.jpg|alt=A photograph of a forest area of the Great Dismal Swamp in North Carolina.]]"Carolina" was written solely by Swift and produced by her and Aaron Dessner, with whom she collaborated on her 2020 studio albums Folklore and Evermore.{{Cite magazine|first=Gil|last=Kaufman|date=June 23, 2022|title=Taylor Swift About to Drop 'Where the Crawdads Sing' Theme Song 'Carolina'|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/taylor-swift-release-date-where-the-crawdads-sing-theme-song-carolina-1235104775/|access-date=June 23, 2022|magazine=Billboard|archive-date=June 23, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220623171059/https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/taylor-swift-release-date-where-the-crawdads-sing-theme-song-carolina-1235104775/|url-status=live}} She wrote the song well over a year and a half before the release date of June 24, 2022.{{Cite magazine |last=Dailey |first=Hannah |date=June 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Explains the Story Behind Her New Song 'Carolina' – And Why It's Taken So Long to Come Out |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-carolina-where-the-crawdads-sing-movie-song-1235105582/ |access-date=September 20, 2022 |magazine=Billboard |archive-date=September 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922041910/https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-carolina-where-the-crawdads-sing-movie-song-1235105582/ |url-status=live }} According to Witherspoon, Swift wrote the song while working on Folklore but did not reveal that she had written "Carolina" until after she finished the song.{{Cite web|last=Goggins|first=Joe|date=June 23, 2022|title=Taylor Swift confirms arrival of new soundtrack single 'Carolina'|url=https://www.rollingstone.co.uk/music/news/taylor-swift-confirms-arrival-new-soundtrack-single-carolina-19148/|access-date=June 23, 2022|website=Rolling Stone UK|archive-date=June 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624063328/https://www.rollingstone.co.uk/music/news/taylor-swift-confirms-arrival-new-soundtrack-single-carolina-19148/|url-status=live}} Swift's eagerness to contribute to the film grew after she was aware that Witherspoon would be producing. Swift stated on Instagram that she enjoyed the original novel by Owens, and as soon as she heard a film adaptation was "in the works", she wanted to be a part of its soundtrack. She said she aimed to create a "haunting and ethereal" song that captured the novel's "mesmerizing" story. "Carolina" plays over the ending credits, and Newman opined that it "reflects the tone of the story's ending".

{{listen

| filename = Carolina by Taylor Swift.ogg

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| title = "Carolina"

| description = A sample of the first chorus in "Carolina", showing its fiddle line and mellow strums of guitar and mandolin. Critics noted Swift's "haunting" vocals in the song.}}

"Carolina" has been described as an Americana{{Cite web |date=July 19, 2022 |title=WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING – Mychael Danna |url=https://moviemusicuk.us/2022/07/19/where-the-crawdads-sing-mychael-danna/ |access-date=December 3, 2022 |website=MOVIE MUSIC UK |archive-date=December 3, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221203095400/https://moviemusicuk.us/2022/07/19/where-the-crawdads-sing-mychael-danna/ |url-status=live }} and Appalachian folk song, with country folk{{Cite web |last=O'Rourke |first=Ryan |date=June 24, 2022 |title='Where the Crawdads Sing': Taylor Swift Releases "Carolina" Track and Lyric Video |url=https://collider.com/taylor-swift-carolina-where-the-crawdads-sing/amp/ |access-date=June 24, 2022 |website=Collider |archive-date=June 25, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220625025002/https://collider.com/taylor-swift-carolina-where-the-crawdads-sing/amp/ |url-status=live }} and bluegrass elements, on minor chords. It was recorded in one take and only features instruments available before 1953—around the time when Where the Crawdads Sing takes place—acoustic instruments{{Cite magazine |last=Dailey |first=Hannah |date=June 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift's New Song 'Carolina' for 'Where the Crawdads Sing' Is Finally Here: Stream It Now |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-carolina-where-the-crawdads-sing-1235104871/ |access-date=June 24, 2022 |magazine=Billboard |archive-date=June 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624040259/https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-carolina-where-the-crawdads-sing-1235104871/ |url-status=live }} such as mandolin, fiddle, gently strummed acoustic guitar and "sweeping" strings. The song begins with the sparse strums of the guitar and eventually expands into a "misty atmosphere" incorporating strings and banjo. The lyrics deal with how Kya, the narrator in the song and the lead character of the film, "roams the lonesome marshes, despairs over those who have left her and hints at the many secrets she's keeping". The lyrics are heavy with naturalistic imagery, such as creeks, backroads, mist, clouds, mud, pines, beaches and forests, inspired by the story's setting in coastal North Carolina. Swift's vocals in the song have been characterized as a "breathy" lower register.

"Carolina" received acclaim from music critics. People journalist Jack Irvin described "Carolina" as a downtempo, "haunting ballad" with lyrics about "sneakily moving through various locations without being seen".{{Cite magazine |last=Irvin |first=Jack |date=June 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Releases Haunting New Song 'Carolina' from Where the Crawdads Sing |url=https://people.com/music/taylor-swift-releases-new-song-carolina-from-where-the-crawdads-sing/ |access-date=June 24, 2022 |magazine=People |archive-date=June 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624065658/https://people.com/music/taylor-swift-releases-new-song-carolina-from-where-the-crawdads-sing/ |url-status=live }} Variety critic Chris Willman felt the song is stylistically reminiscent of the music in Folklore and Evermore "at their most folky and subdued."{{Cite web |last=Willman |first=Chris |date=June 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Treats 'Carolina' Like 'Folklore' in 'Where the Crawdads Sing' End Credits Theme |url=https://variety.com/2022/music/news/taylor-swift-drops-carolina-track-released-where-crawdads-sing-movie-1235302333/ |access-date=June 24, 2022 |website=Variety |archive-date=June 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624100914/https://variety.com/2022/music/news/taylor-swift-drops-carolina-track-released-where-crawdads-sing-movie-1235302333/ |url-status=live }} Emily Zemler and Kat Bouza reviewed the song for Rolling Stone, noting that the "haunting" song evokes the film's backwoods setting and the "elegiac" tone of Appalachian folk ballads and praising Swift's "otherworldly and siren-like" vocals.{{Cite magazine |last1=Zemler |first1=Emily |last2=Bouza |first2=Kat |date=June 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Is Haunted by Loneliness in Ethereal New Song 'Carolina' |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-carolina-where-the-crawdads-sing-1372872/ |access-date=June 24, 2022 |magazine=Rolling Stone |archive-date=June 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624095435/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-carolina-where-the-crawdads-sing-1372872/ |url-status=live }} Will Lavin of NME described Swift's vocals as "eerie".{{Cite web |last=Lavin |first=Will |date=June 24, 2022 |title=Hear Taylor Swift's new song 'Carolina' for 'Where The Crawdads Sing' |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/taylor-swift-is-releasing-brand-new-track-carolina-tonight-3254482 |access-date=June 24, 2022 |website=NME |archive-date=June 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624005601/https://www.nme.com/news/music/taylor-swift-is-releasing-brand-new-track-carolina-tonight-3254482 |url-status=live }}

In a glowing review for Clash, Robin Murray called the song a timeless "grand achievement" and the greatest example of Swift's ability to "suggest inner movement, the passing of time and emotion in only a few words." He praised the "innate" instrumentation, Swift's "minimalist yet potent" vocals, and the lyrics "somehow distilling Delia Owens' work—in all its breadth and depth—into a song of real brevity and power."{{Cite web |last=Murray |first=Robin |date=June 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift's 'Carolina' Yearns Towards The Timeless |url=https://www.clashmusic.com/reviews/taylor-swifts-carolina-yearns-towards-the-timeless |access-date=June 24, 2022 |website=Clash Magazine |archive-date=June 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624095417/https://www.clashmusic.com/reviews/taylor-swifts-carolina-yearns-towards-the-timeless |url-status=live }} Collider{{Apostrophe}}s Ryan O'Rourke called "Carolina" a "chilling" tune with a haunting melody and is "almost a loose re-telling of the events of the book." Emily Zemler of Observer said the song "perfectly captures the bittersweet conclusion" of Where the Crawdads Sing, complementing the film's "palpable mood".{{Cite web |date=July 14, 2022 |title='Where the Crawdads Sing': One of the Most Faithful Literary Adaptations in Years |url=https://observer.com/2022/07/where-the-crawdads-sing-one-of-the-most-faithful-literary-adaptations-in-years/ |access-date=August 17, 2022 |website=Observer |archive-date=July 18, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220718090329/https://observer.com/2022/07/where-the-crawdads-sing-one-of-the-most-faithful-literary-adaptations-in-years/ |url-status=live }} ABC News journalist Peter Travers wrote Swift captures "the haunting, folklore quality" of the film's story in the song, via her music and lyrics that suggest an "abiding mystery".{{Cite web |last=Travers |first=Peter |title=Review: 'Where the Crawdads Sing' falls short of the book's magic |url=https://goodmorningamerica.com/culture/story/review-crawdads-sing-falls-short-books-magic-86821023 |access-date=August 17, 2022 |website=ABC News |archive-date=August 17, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220817093845/https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/culture/story/review-crawdads-sing-falls-short-books-magic-86821023 |url-status=live }}

British Vogue journalist Radhika Seth described the song as a "sweeping earworm" with a "mournful, intensely atmospheric" composition tonally reminiscent of Evermore.{{Cite web |title=Everything We Know So Far About Daisy Edgar-Jones's Where The Crawdads Sing |url=https://www.vogue.co.uk/arts-and-lifestyle/article/where-the-crawdads-sing-movie-adaptation |access-date=August 15, 2022 |website=British Vogue |date=July 27, 2020 |archive-date=August 5, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805173834/https://www.vogue.co.uk/arts-and-lifestyle/article/where-the-crawdads-sing-movie-adaptation |url-status=live }} Sam Sodomsky of Pitchfork said "Carolina" is an understated song, one that stems from the "darker corners" of Folklore and Evermore, abandoning the "language and texture of pop music in favor of old American folk songs". He further complemented the synergy between Swift's musical approaches in the song: the "ghost story-writing" of the lyrics, and the deep and slow vocals.{{Cite web |last=Sodomsky |first=Sam |title=Taylor Swift: "Carolina" |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/taylor-swift-carolina/ |access-date=June 25, 2022 |website=Pitchfork |archive-date=June 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624192722/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/taylor-swift-carolina/ |url-status=live }} Lindsay Zoladz of The New York Times named "Carolina" one of the "spookiest" tracks in Swift's discography and "the closest [Swift has] come to writing an outright murder ballad" other than "No Body, No Crime" (2020).{{Cite news |last1=Pareles |first1=Jon |last2=Caramanica |first2=Jon |last3=Russonello |first3=Giovanni |last4=Zoladz |first4=Lindsay |date=June 24, 2022 |title=Beyoncé's Dance-Floor Salvation, and 12 More New Songs |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/24/arts/music/playlist-beyonce-taylor-swift.html |access-date=June 27, 2022 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 27, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220627183735/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/24/arts/music/playlist-beyonce-taylor-swift.html |url-status=live }} Jonathan Broxton of Movie Music UK also described the song as a murder ballad; "not one of her usual chart topping efforts—instead this is a mournful, soulful piece". He praised "Carolina" as "a superb piece of traditional Americana, stripped down and carried by little more than a guitar, a banjo, and Swift’s unexpectedly dreamy voice, and has poetic lyrics that directly reference elements of the story." In a review of the film for Consequence, Liz Shannon Miller wrote "Carolina" is a "perfect match for the content of the film as well as its mood."{{Cite web |date=July 12, 2022 |title=Where the Crawdads Sing Review: A Lush, Lyrical, and Engrossing Southern Gothic Drama |url=https://consequence.net/2022/07/where-the-crawdads-sing-review-daisy-edgar-jones/ |access-date=July 21, 2022 |website=Consequence |archive-date=July 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220721044753/https://consequence.net/2022/07/where-the-crawdads-sing-review-daisy-edgar-jones/ |url-status=live }} Pat Padua of The Washington Post said the song, making use of ominous lyrics, "bridges pop music with Americana".{{Cite news |last=Pat |first=Padua |date=July 13, 2022 |title='Where the Crawdads Sing': 'Blue Lagoon' meets 'Murder, She Wrote' |newspaper=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/movies/2022/07/13/where-the-crawdads-sing-movie-review/ |access-date=August 17, 2022 |issn=0190-8286 |archive-date=July 13, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220713204558/https://www.washingtonpost.com/movies/2022/07/13/where-the-crawdads-sing-movie-review/ |url-status=live }}

At the 65th Annual Grammy Awards (2023), "Carolina" contended for Best Song Written for Visual Media—Swift's fourth nomination in the category, following "Safe & Sound" (2011) from The Hunger Games: Songs from District 12 and Beyond, "I Don't Wanna Live Forever" (2017) from Fifty Shades Darker, and "Beautiful Ghosts" (2019) from Cats, the first of which won.{{Cite web |title=Taylor Swift - The Grammys |url=https://www.grammy.com/artists/taylor-swift/15450 |access-date=December 5, 2022 |website=Grammy.com |archive-date=December 4, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221204231826/https://www.grammy.com/artists/taylor-swift/15450 |url-status=live }} Swift also garnered her career's first-ever Critics' Choice Movie Award nomination with the song.{{Cite magazine |last=Rich |first=Katey |date=December 14, 2022 |title=Critics Choice Awards 2023: See All the Nominations Here |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/12/awards-insider-2023-critics-choice-nominations |access-date=December 14, 2022 |magazine=Vanity Fair |archive-date=December 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221216002426/https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/12/awards-insider-2023-critics-choice-nominations |url-status=live }} The song was shortlisted for Best Original Song at the 95th Academy Awards.{{Cite web |last=Davis |first=Clayton |date=December 21, 2022 |title=Oscar Shortlists: Rihanna and Lady Gaga Advance, 'RRR' Snubbed for VFX and Sound, 'Good Night Oppy' Shut Out of Doc Race |url=https://variety.com/2022/awards/awards/oscars-shortlists-2022-1235466775/ |access-date=January 25, 2023 |website=Variety |archive-date=January 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230125100523/https://variety.com/2022/awards/awards/oscars-shortlists-2022-1235466775/ |url-status=live }}

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of Where the Crawdads Sing soundtrack''.

• Taylor Swift – vocals, songwriter, producer
• Aaron Dessner – producer, engineer, acoustic guitar, banjo, bass guitar, mandolin, piano, synthesizer, orchestration
• Reid Jenkins – fiddle
• Jonathan Low – mixer, engineer
• Randy Merrill – mastering engineer
• John Hanes – Dolby Atmos mixer

{{reflist}}

{{Taylor Swift songs}}

Category:2020s ballads

Category:2022 songs

Category:Folk ballads

Category:Taylor Swift songs

Category:Songs written by Taylor Swift

Category:Song recordings produced by Taylor Swift

Category:Song recordings produced by Aaron Dessner

Category:Appalachian folk songs

Category:Songs about North Carolina

Category:Music based on novels

Category:Songs about nature

Category:Americana (music)