“Cardigan” and “Willow” set the tone for Taylor Swift’s albums Folklore and Evermore, but she was very close to never singing them. Aaron Dessner, who co-wrote and produced both singles, initially envisioned them as The National songs.
Aaron Dessner and Matt Berninger recently set down with The Telegraph to discuss their upcoming album First Two Pages of Frankenstein but also took a moment to discuss their collaborations with several pop superstars, including Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift.
Berninger revealed that both “Cardigan” and “Willow” could’ve been The National songs, but he didn’t have a lot of luck with them, so Dessner eventually sent them to Swift.
“I always have a lot of music to work on, and I am looking for something to connect emotionally. The reverse has happened too, where Aaron wrote something for Taylor, and I dove right in. It works both ways,” he told The Telegraph.
“Cardigan” and “Willow” were released as lead singles from Swift’s albums Folklore and Evermore, and both debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The National also collaborated with Swift on the Evermore song “Coney Island”, and she’ll soon be featured on their album First Two Pages of Frankenstein, set to come out on April 28.
