Taylor Swift’s Full Interview with Ellen
Taylor Swift’s Full Interview with Ellen
Transcript
00:00 [MUSIC - TAYLOR BLANK, "I'M TOO MANY"]
00:01 That's what people say.
00:02 That's what people say.
00:05 I'm too many.
00:08 Your musical crush, somebody in the business.
00:10 Oh, Justin Timberlake.
00:11 Justin Timberlake is your favorite?
00:12 Justin!
00:13 [MUSIC - TAYLOR BLANK, "I'M TOO MANY"]
00:14 [APPLAUSE]
00:18 That's the best surprise ever.
00:20 This is the best day ever.
00:21 Yeah, that's great.
00:23 Finish this statement.
00:26 I am Taylor Blank.
00:27 I think just like birth certificate wise, it's Swift.
00:31 But I am Ellen Blank.
00:32 I am Ellen DeGeneres.
00:33 I am Ellen DeGeneres, and I am married to Portia de Rossi.
00:36 I am Taylor Swift.
00:37 I am dating Blank.
00:39 Nobody.
00:40 That's true, though.
00:47 I am Taylor Swift, and my publicist
00:48 told me to say Blank.
00:51 My publicist told me not to answer any personal questions.
00:54 Now we're getting somewhere.
00:56 [MUSIC - TAYLOR BLANK, "CATCALLS"]
00:57 [APPLAUSE]
01:01 Kitty Corner is a show for people who love cats.
01:03 And we'll answer your questions.
01:05 About cats.
01:06 Yeah, you can call us with your questions.
01:08 And we can call it Cat Calls.
01:11 Or look with the cat call, then.
01:15 [MUSIC - TAYLOR BLANK, "CATCALLS"]
01:17 Every single time I come on this show,
01:19 it's really weird, really weird.
01:21 All because of Ellen.
01:23 I've been on this show eight times now.
01:29 And I still remember Ellen hiding in the bathroom
01:34 with a hidden camera.
01:36 And she scared me so bad.
01:38 [SCREAMING]
01:39 [MUSIC - TAYLOR BLANK, "CATCALLS"]
01:40 [LAUGHTER]
01:41 You've got that jeans, jeans, jeans, jeans look in your eye.
01:46 And I got the best--
01:48 Taylor!
01:50 Taylor!
01:51 [MUSIC - TAYLOR BLANK, "CATCALLS"]
01:52 --under pressure.
01:53 Down, we come back.
01:55 [INTERPOSING VOICES]
01:56 [SCREAMING]
01:57 Why you do that?
01:58 [MUSIC - TAYLOR BLANK, "CATCALLS"]
02:00 [SCREAMING]
02:01 [MUSIC - TAYLOR BLANK, "CATCALLS"]
02:02 [SCREAMING]
02:03 [MUSIC - TAYLOR BLANK, "CATCALLS"]
02:05 [SCREAMING]
02:06 Up in the air.
02:08 Being on Ellen's show is one of the best--
02:10 Monotone, like that.
02:11 Being on the Ellen show is one of the best experiences
02:13 you can have.
02:14 Now laugh in a monotone way.
02:15 [LAUGHTER]
02:16 [MUSIC - TAYLOR BLANK, "CATCALLS"]
02:18 [SCREAMING]
02:21 [APPLAUSE]
02:25 That was an amazing montage.
02:26 I know.
02:27 And that's-- no, no one's in there.
02:30 OK.
02:31 We're not going to do it to you today.
02:32 And it's not amateur hour.
02:33 No, no.
02:34 I'm not going to--
02:35 because I can't top how I did it the first time.
02:38 You were the best scare--
02:39 well, I don't know, Sarah Paulson was pretty good too.
02:42 That was a near-death experience.
02:43 It kind of was.
02:44 You went down.
02:45 Yeah.
02:46 Were there injuries?
02:46 In several ways, I could have died.
02:48 Well, now you're being dramatic.
02:50 Yeah.
02:51 Yeah.
02:51 No, that's extreme.
02:52 Yeah.
02:54 I really just was watching that backstage.
02:56 And I was just thinking, thank you
02:58 so much for going so above and beyond to make people happy.
03:02 Yeah.
03:02 Well--
03:03 That's not a good example of it.
03:05 No, no.
03:06 But--
03:06 No, you could have hit your head on the toilet bowl.
03:07 It was funny afterward.
03:08 You did this laugh afterward that I have found myself--
03:12 I loved the sound so much that I found myself doing it.
03:14 Sometimes when I laugh hard enough, you went--
03:16 [IMITATES LAUGHING]
03:20 You went--
03:20 [IMITATES LAUGHING]
03:22 Like, you couldn't breathe.
03:24 That's how happy I was.
03:25 That's how happy you were to see me fall down like that.
03:28 Yes, yes.
03:28 And now you do it too, you said.
03:30 It's caught on.
03:31 Yeah.
03:31 It's a great sound.
03:32 If you go back and watch it on YouTube, listen for her laugh.
03:36 And then who will be the one that's embarrassed?
03:38 Not the one on the ground.
03:39 Keep in mind that--
03:41 you haven't been here in four--
03:43 no, how long has it been?
03:44 Yeah, four years.
03:45 I was recovering from the fall.
03:46 No, no, no.
03:48 But look at all the content we had.
03:50 And you haven't been here in four years.
03:52 You'd think you'd want to come back
03:53 because you had so much fun.
03:55 I know.
03:55 And now I have.
03:56 OK, and now you've come back.
03:58 Yeah, I have come back.
03:59 I mean, I had an album out called Reputation.
04:01 I know.
04:02 And I really--
04:03 [APPLAUSE]
04:06 You guys.
04:08 You guys are friendly.
04:11 Yeah, with the album, I just basically
04:12 wanted to just make music and not explain it.
04:17 But I missed you so much.
04:18 It was really--
04:19 You still sold a bunch of albums without even talking.
04:23 I mean, usually people go to promote their music
04:26 because it helps sell albums.
04:27 You don't have to do that.
04:29 Well, that's nice of you to say.
04:30 I mean, I am having fun being back here.
04:33 It's been really great to be back here.
04:34 And I definitely do--
04:37 I think as a songwriter, I enjoy communicating
04:40 about what I've made.
04:41 I really do like that part of the process.
04:43 But I also just feel like with my career,
04:45 I want to do what feels right at the time.
04:47 Yeah.
04:48 So it just-- at that time, I coined this phrase,
04:52 there will be no explanation.
04:54 There will just be reputation.
04:56 Because I am dramatic.
04:57 That's a very dramatic thing.
04:59 But it rhymed.
05:00 It was kind of catchy.
05:02 And so I stuck with it.
05:03 Right.
05:03 Is that in one of your songs?
05:05 Because if it isn't, it should be.
05:07 Thank you, no.
05:08 And I think it's a little late for that,
05:09 but we're on to another different album.
05:11 I know, but you still could have that.
05:14 For an album that's not reputation?
05:17 Yeah.
05:19 It's a little off brand.
05:20 No, no.
05:21 But I will think about it.
05:21 No, just like clothing comes back in style,
05:24 you can come right back around to that topic
05:27 again if you'd like.
05:28 It could be a vintage.
05:29 You can do anything you want, Taylor Swift.
05:30 Thank you for saying that.
05:31 Yeah.
05:32 [APPLAUSE]
05:34 You know, you--
05:37 I mean, really, people thought, oh, God,
05:40 she's been away for so long.
05:41 How is this album going to do?
05:43 And they put so much--
05:44 I don't think pressure on you, because I
05:46 don't think you felt--
05:46 Yeah, there's pressure.
05:47 Really?
05:47 Yeah, for sure.
05:48 Oh, OK.
05:49 But because it seemed like people
05:50 were expecting this not to be as good,
05:54 or that album not to be as--
05:55 and you just came back and proved them all wrong.
05:58 Aw.
05:58 You know?
05:58 It's true.
05:59 Because you didn't worry about how certain people do things.
06:03 You do things your own way, and it all works out for you.
06:06 Thank you so much.
06:07 Oh, you're welcome.
06:08 Now, let's talk about me.
06:11 No, not talk about me.
06:12 But so these-- here, let's talk about--
06:15 you're on the cover of Entertainment Weekly,
06:17 and you have all these Easter eggs on here, right?
06:19 Yeah, yeah.
06:20 And I feel like--
06:21 Explain what the eggs are to people who don't understand.
06:24 Yeah, because I think that is necessary.
06:26 So it's like, when we say Easter eggs,
06:28 we're not only talking about Easter eggs
06:30 that you would go on an Easter egg hunt for on Easter.
06:34 It's kind of like a clue, like a foreshadowing kind of thing.
06:41 I like to plant Easter eggs in a video that
06:44 will be a lyric from unreleased music, or a little hint,
06:48 or a little link to what's coming in the future.
06:50 Right.
06:52 So yeah, that was kind of the theme
06:53 of what we did the Entertainment Weekly thing on.
06:56 And it's just been really fun to expand the musical experience
06:59 past just listening to a song.
07:02 I also want people to be watching the music video,
07:05 and what's that thing in the background,
07:06 and what's that song playing underneath there,
07:08 and is there a reason she said that in French?
07:12 Right.
07:13 Because people-- and usually your fans
07:15 are pretty good at figuring it out, right?
07:17 They're excellent at figuring it out.
07:21 How far off have they been?
07:22 What's the worst they've been?
07:23 Oh, man.
07:26 Well, there were some fans that thought
07:29 I had something to do with Avengers Endgame.
07:31 Oh, really?
07:33 Which I would have loved to have been asked, but I wasn't.
07:36 No, you weren't.
07:37 Asked to be in it at all.
07:38 Yeah.
07:38 Because we had the single coming out the same day,
07:40 and I have a song that was called Endgame.
07:42 And so they were like, oh my god, she's
07:43 going to defeat Thanos.
07:46 I let everyone down.
07:47 Yeah.
07:48 Again.
07:49 Well, that was confusing.
07:50 On your jacket, you have a lot of things on here,
07:53 but you don't have something that next time you wear a jacket--
07:58 That's--
07:59 Thank you.
07:59 You're welcome.
08:01 It's you as a kitty cat.
08:03 And that's two things you love.
08:04 Those are the two things I love the most in the world.
08:07 Together.
08:07 Yeah.
08:08 All right.
08:08 We have to take a break.
08:09 I'll let you cry about that.
08:10 We'll be back.
08:11 We're back with Taylor Swift, who was just telling me
08:13 about washing her legs in the shower.
08:15 I couldn't hear you.
08:16 Did you say you do wash them or you don't?
08:18 I do, because when you shave your legs,
08:20 isn't the shaving cream is like soap, right?
08:23 Yeah, it is.
08:24 That is-- I think that's a reason that most women wash
08:26 their legs, because we have to, because we shave our legs.
08:29 Yeah.
08:29 Yeah.
08:30 So that counts.
08:31 So yeah.
08:31 Oh, for sure.
08:32 It's--
08:32 I'm on the right side of history, then.
08:35 Unless you're not shaving, and then you're not washing.
08:38 So whenever you're not shaving, you don't wash, you're saying?
08:41 No, I don't think I would say that.
08:44 Well, it seems like you did just say it.
08:46 But I kind of always shave my legs.
08:49 Every day?
08:51 I mean, yeah.
08:52 Every day?
08:53 Yeah.
08:54 God, you must be hairy.
08:58 All right, so let's talk about--
09:02 So sweet.
09:02 I think you felt--
09:04 I don't know why you don't come here more often.
09:07 All right, let's talk about Me.
09:08 We were just playing it during the commercial break,
09:10 which I love that song.
09:11 I love that video so much.
09:13 Thank you.
09:13 That must have been so fun to shoot.
09:15 It was so fun.
09:16 That's actually--
09:17 Is that your new kitten?
09:18 That's my new kitten, Benjamin.
09:19 Wait, did-- first of all, let's finish
09:21 talking about the video, because it's so good.
09:22 Brendan Urie, right?
09:23 Is that his last name?
09:24 Brendan Urie is one of the most--
09:25 From Panic!
09:26 At the Disco.
09:26 --incredible performers.
09:27 Yes.
09:29 Amazing.
09:30 I love that y'all were together in that.
09:33 Oh, yeah.
09:33 I mean, he does this little dance coming up.
09:35 He already did it.
09:36 But all his little dances are like that.
09:38 He's so good at--
09:40 he's just like-- he would raise the energy in any situation.
09:44 I love him.
09:45 He was just amazing.
09:46 All right, we're going to get to the kitten in a minute.
09:49 But did the speaking French in the beginning of it,
09:51 does that mean something?
09:53 Yeah.
09:54 Definitely.
09:55 Did you know French already?
09:56 Or did you learn it for that?
09:58 I've tried to learn French several times in my life,
10:01 because I think it's a really beautiful language.
10:03 It is beautiful.
10:03 And I definitely made sure that I had native French speakers
10:06 on set, because I didn't want to butcher the language of love.
10:09 Like, that's not what I came here to do.
10:10 Say something in French right now.
10:13 You're putting me on the spot.
10:14 But I mean, [FRENCH]
10:17 Ah, thank you.
10:18 I don't know.
10:19 What does that mean?
10:20 It means I am calm.
10:21 Oh.
10:23 [FRENCH]
10:25 Oh, that's good.
10:26 That's a good one.
10:27 Thanks.
10:27 I don't know what that means, but that sounded real French.
10:30 All right.
10:31 It means I love cats.
10:32 OK, let's talk about cats.
10:33 So was that kitten--
10:34 It doesn't--
10:35 No.
10:35 So was that kitten just there to be in the video?
10:39 And then you took it home?
10:40 Or did you put it in the video, and it was yours already?
10:43 He was a little cat actor.
10:46 He was there.
10:47 Apparently, there was--
10:48 I didn't know this at the time.
10:49 All I know is we had to have a kitten in the scene,
10:51 because I wanted to have this scene where it's like,
10:54 he gives me a ring.
10:55 I'm like, no.
10:55 He gives me flowers.
10:56 I'm like, no.
10:57 And then he gives me a kitten, and I'm like, yes, absolutely.
11:00 You know me clearly.
11:02 And so they show up with this little kitten,
11:05 and his handler was like, do you want to hold him first?
11:08 I was like, absolutely I do.
11:11 And so they hand me this tiny cat.
11:12 And I've never really experienced a cat
11:14 that the second I held this little kitten,
11:17 he started purring like a motor.
11:20 And I was like, OK, whose cat is this?
11:22 You're really lucky whoever owns this cat.
11:24 And then the girl was like, actually,
11:26 he doesn't have a home.
11:27 And then I just-- my eyes turned into hearts.
11:30 Yes.
11:31 I just immediately was like, I can't think about anything
11:35 else.
11:35 And so how did the other two get along?
11:38 You can't just bring a cat home.
11:40 Cats don't-- they're not like that.
11:42 They're like little puff balls getting in a fight.
11:44 It's like marshmallows throwing each other.
11:46 That's good, then.
11:47 And his name is Benjamin?
11:49 Benjamin Button.
11:50 That's right.
11:51 Because it's an incredible movie.
11:52 Yes, it is.
11:53 It's an incredible film.
11:54 He ages backwards.
11:56 All right, so we're back with the only person
11:59 who loves cats possibly as much as I do, or more.
12:03 But I think--
12:04 I don't want to get in a fight about it.
12:07 No, we both love cats.
12:08 Let's just leave it at that.
12:09 All right, Taylor Swift is who I was talking about.
12:12 OK, so there's video of your other two cats on the plane,
12:16 I think.
12:17 Is that what we have?
12:18 I think it's just a picture.
12:19 But it's a good demonstration of just what
12:22 my personal life looks like.
12:24 Yeah.
12:24 It's just-- well, that's--
12:25 I mean, that's just Olivia stretching.
12:28 That's just--
12:29 That's my middle child.
12:30 Yeah, she's kind of like a seal.
12:33 And she just lays on her back?
12:34 Oh my god.
12:35 Isn't she amazing?
12:36 And her tail just never grew.
12:37 Oh my god.
12:38 And then she stands up.
12:38 Here's meerkat.
12:40 Yeah, get it.
12:42 She's a really special animal.
12:43 And that was when she was a baby.
12:46 Meowing.
12:46 Oh my god.
12:47 They're just so cute.
12:48 And now--
12:49 They're not good ones.
12:50 So you would be-- and you're doing the movie Cats.
12:52 Yeah.
12:53 So you probably have an advantage,
12:56 because you probably act more like--
12:57 I understand them.
12:58 Yes.
12:59 Yeah.
12:59 More study.
13:00 Because James Corden had to learn--
13:02 they went to cat school.
13:03 We all went to cat school.
13:04 You have no idea.
13:05 It was like all my dreams came true on the set of this film.
13:09 It was like they literally--
13:11 they're like, you can come to set as much as you want.
13:14 And I ended up being there like every day for four months.
13:17 Just like they're like, oh, Taylor's doing cat school again.
13:21 Again.
13:22 She's still here.
13:23 She's still doing cat school.
13:24 What did you learn?
13:25 Well, you crawl around on the floor,
13:26 and you pretend to be a cat.
13:28 Right.
13:29 I bet you're really a good cat.
13:31 I mean, I don't--
13:33 we'll see.
13:33 I really don't know.
13:34 I had the best--
13:35 I had the most fun.
13:36 Yeah.
13:37 I had the best time.
13:39 All right.
13:39 So wait, there's a new album coming out.
13:41 Are you finished with the album yet?
13:43 Yeah, unless I like write something else.
13:45 OK.
13:46 Then I'll just like probably put it on the album.
13:48 OK.
13:48 And then you have another video coming out soon.
13:51 Ish.
13:52 Yeah.
13:53 When is it coming out?
13:54 I don't know yet, because we have to finish it first.
13:56 OK.
13:57 Yeah.
13:57 And then I think you said you wanted me in it.
14:01 Yeah, I mean, that would be a dream.
14:03 Yeah.
14:04 Would you want to do that?
14:05 I don't know, but I'll think about it.
14:10 OK.
14:11 For sure.
14:11 Please do.
14:12 Yeah.
14:13 OK.
14:15 Great.
14:16 Yeah, I'll do it.
14:17 Cool.
14:17 OK.
14:18 That's great.
14:18 All right.
14:19 [LAUGHTER]
14:22 All right.
14:26 We have to take a break.
14:27 And then we're going to come back,
14:28 and she's going to talk all about her boyfriend.
14:30 We'll be back.
14:31 What I'll do is I'll read a question,
14:33 and then you will answer the question,
14:35 and then hit this for no apparent reason.
14:38 I love it.
14:38 It's fun, right?
14:39 Yeah.
14:40 Yeah.
14:41 It's like a game show, but yet you win nothing.
14:44 What's the title of your next single?
14:46 Oh, I can't tell you that.
14:49 That's crazy.
14:50 I was going to try.
14:51 Can you sing some of it?
14:53 No.
14:53 OK.
14:54 [DING]
14:55 All right, if you can't sleep in the middle of the night,
14:57 what do you do?
14:58 I go downstairs and rummage through the kitchen
15:01 and eat whatever I can find.
15:03 And it's really less like a human being
15:05 and more like a raccoon in a dumpster.
15:07 Like, the next morning, we just-- we walk downstairs,
15:10 and we're like, what happened here?
15:11 And I don't remember.
15:12 [DING]
15:14 Does that help you sleep if you eat a whole lot?
15:17 It's not really voluntary.
15:19 [DING]
15:20 Oh, do you sleep eat?
15:21 I think so.
15:23 I don't really remember it, but I
15:25 know it happens because it could have only been me or cats.
15:28 Right.
15:28 Well, that wasn't the question.
15:29 We're learning something different.
15:31 I said, if you can't sleep at night, what do you do?
15:33 But it sounds like--
15:34 I'm still sleeping and doing it?
15:35 Yes, it sounds like you've got an issue.
15:38 Yep.
15:39 [DING]
15:41 Currently, what is your favorite TV show?
15:43 Oh, God.
15:45 OK, so Killing Eve, Game of Thrones, Downton Abbey,
15:50 Queer Eye.
15:51 I'll just-- I got to stop, though.
15:53 I'm getting too excited.
15:54 Yep, Killing Eve is--
15:55 [DING]
15:55 Yes.
15:56 [DING]
15:57 What is the most rebellious thing you did as a teenager?
16:00 Probably when I put Joe Jonas on Blast on your show.
16:07 That was too much.
16:08 Was it?
16:09 Yeah.
16:10 That was too much.
16:11 OK.
16:12 I was 18.
16:14 Yeah.
16:15 [DING]
16:16 We laugh about it now.
16:17 Oh, that's good.
16:18 That was mouthy.
16:19 Yeah.
16:20 Yeah, just some teenage stuff there.
16:22 Wow, that's held onto you, because I
16:24 don't remember that at all.
16:26 What is your favorite curse word?
16:28 OK, you say yours, and we'll say it together on one, two, three.
16:32 One, two, three.
16:33 [BLEEP]
16:34 [DING]
16:35 [APPLAUSE]
16:38 It's just a good, solid one, though.
16:40 Because it can also mean, like, really good.
16:42 Like, [BLEEP]
16:46 Who'd you share your first kiss with?
16:49 It was my high school boyfriend when I was 15.
16:52 What was his name?
16:53 Drew?
16:54 Drew.
16:55 Yeah.
16:55 Oh.
16:57 Did you leave an Easter egg during our interview?
17:00 Yes.
17:00 [DING]
17:01 Really?
17:02 Yes.
17:02 [DING]
17:05 I'm not supposed to do it every word.
17:06 No.
17:07 OK.
17:07 [DING]
17:09 Your friend invites you to dinner.
17:11 What do you bring?
17:13 White wine.
17:14 [DING]
17:15 What kind?
17:15 [DING]
17:17 Sancerre, Pinot Grigio, or Sauvignon Blanc.
17:19 [DING]
17:21 Good choices.
17:21 Thank you.
17:22 I just found a really good one I'll tell you about.
17:23 [DING]
17:24 Thank you.
17:24 What's your favorite holiday?
17:26 I think it's Christmas.
17:28 Definitely Christmas.
17:29 [DING]
17:30 What's your favorite place to go on holiday?
17:32 Like, cold?
17:33 Do you like snowing?
17:33 Do you like an island?
17:35 I'm sorting.
17:35 OK.
17:36 Sorry.
17:37 Stay quiet.
17:37 Sorting.
17:39 I think Rhode Island.
17:41 [DING]
17:43 OK.
17:44 [LAUGHTER]
17:45 It's a great state.
17:47 Yeah.
17:48 What's your favorite movie?
17:50 That's a tough one.
17:51 How do you narrow it down to one?
17:52 You can't.
17:53 You can't.
17:53 No.
17:54 You can't.
17:54 I would have to go with favorite movie
17:55 I've seen in the last week.
17:57 OK.
17:58 Someone Great on Netflix.
17:59 [DING]
18:00 Oh.
18:00 Yeah.
18:00 Don't know that one.
18:01 It's a great movie.
18:02 Well, apparently.
18:03 Watch it.
18:04 OK.
18:05 Name three words to describe yourself.
18:07 Um.
18:10 Curious.
18:12 Cat lover, make it one word.
18:13 Sure.
18:15 Romantic.
18:16 Yes.
18:17 I would say creative also.
18:18 That's nice.
18:19 Thank you.
18:19 Yes.
18:20 OK.
18:21 Smart.
18:22 I would add that too.
18:23 You're doing five, though.
18:25 Yes, because you deserve more than three.
18:27 OK.
18:27 That's-- oh, it's out of time.
18:29 Go to my Spotify page to hear more of Taylor's music.
18:32 We'll be back.
18:33 [BLANK_AUDIO]