hoax

“hoax” is the final track from Taylor Swift and her eighth studio album “folklore”, which was released on the 24th July 2020. “hoax” was written by Taylor Swift and multi-instrumentalist Aaron Dessner, who also produced the song.

“hoax” is a piano-led ballad that discusses the breakdown of a relationship, and the pain that comes with it. In an interview with Vulture Magazine a few days after the release of “folklore”, Dessner spoke about each track on the album and his own interpretation of them, and how both him and Swift came up with the final product:

“This is a big departure. I think she said to me, “Don’t try to give it any other space other than what feels natural to you.” If you leave me in a room with a piano, I might play something like this. I take a lot of comfort in this. I think I imagined her playing this and singing it. After writing all these songs, this one felt the most emotional and, in a way, the rawest. It is one of my favorites. There’s sadness, but it’s a kind of hopeful sadness. It’s a recognition that you take on the burden of your partners, your loved ones, and their ups and downs. That’s both “peace” and “hoax” to me. That’s part of how I feel about those songs because I think that’s life. There’s a reality, the gravity or an understanding of the human condition.”

There is currently no music video for the song, but the official lyric video for “hoax” was uploaded to Swift’s YouTube channel on the 24th July 2020. As of mid-August 2020, the lyric video has 4.5 million views and over 190 thousand likes.

Release Date: 24th July 2020

Songwriter/s: Aaron Dessner & Taylor Swift

Producer: Aaron Dessner

Label: Republic

Chart Rankings: “hoax” has reached #71 on the US Singles Top 100 chart, #51 on the Canada Single Top 100 chart and #43 on the Australia Singles Top 50 chart.

The lyrics to “hoax” can be accessed here: LINK