You Can Officially Add a Movie-Musician to Taylor Swift's Resume. The Grammy-winning recording artist penned a special song for Olivia Newman's upcoming film Where the Crowds Sing — based on a novel of the same name — and shared a glimpse of it on her Instagram.
Swift posted the film's first trailer, and spoke about the opportunity to create a song for the film. "Where the Crowds Sing is a book I got lost in reading years ago," Swift wrote. "As soon as I heard that there was a movie in the works starring The Incredible [Daisy Edgar-Jones] and produced by Fantastic [Reese Witherspoon], I knew I wanted to be a part of it from the musical side." The track composed by Swift was based on the novel's mysterious shades. "I wrote the song 'Carolina' alone and asked my friend @aarondessner to make it," she continued. "I wanted to create something haunting and ethereal to match this mesmerizing tale. You'll hear it in full soon, but for now watch the @crawdadsmovie trailer for a clip!
Where the Crowds Sing was initially released as a best-selling novel in 2018. The book, written by Delia Owens, follows a young woman named Will Clark (Edgar-Jones), who finds herself at the center of a murder investigation. The story takes place in 1969, and is set in Barclay Cove, a small town on the coast of North Carolina. According to the synopsis, Clark is a town-legend known as the "Marsh Girl" who is rumored to have raised herself in the woods. When a young man she is linked to goes missing, Clark becomes the prime suspect.
After it was published, Where the Crowds Sing became a New York Times best seller and held its position on the list for two consecutive years. The novel was endorsed by Reese Witherspoon, who added it to her book club and garnered rave reviews. "I can't even express how much I love this book! I didn't want this story to end," she wrote.
The gripping novel has been described as "an excellent ode to the natural world, a heartwarming coming-of-age tale, and a surprising tale of potential murder". It should come as no surprise that the best seller is finally being adapted into a movie.
Edgar-Jones (Normal People) will star in the film as Kya. The rest of the cast includes Taylor John Smith (Tate), Harris Dickenson (Chase), David Strathen (Tom), Ahna O'Reilly (Ma), Garrett Dillahunt (Pa) and JoJo Regina.
Where The Crowds Sing, premieres this summer on July 22. Watch the trailer, and listen to an excerpt from Swift's new song below.