One night a few moons ago, Taylor Swift and Lana Del Rey teamed up for a collaboration.
The result was "Snow on the Beach," the fourth track off Taylor's 2022 album Midnights. Though Lana was credited as a featured artist, fans were a bit surprised to hear her signature voice only in the background of the song.
Now, Lana—which co-wrote the tune with Taylor and producer Jack Antonoff—finally set the record straight on why she provided vocal support for Taylor instead of getting her own solo verse. As it turned out, the "Summertime Sadness" singer had "no idea I was the only feature."
"Had I known, I would have sung the entire second verse like she wanted," she explained in a Billboard interview published Feb. 24. "My job as a feature on a big artist's album is to make sure I help add to the production of the song, so I was more focused on the production."
Noting that she "really liked" how their collab turned out in the end, Lana clarified that Taylor was "very adamant that she wanted me to be on the album."
"I thought it was nice to be able to bridge that world," the 37-year-old added, "since Jack and I work together and so do Jack and Taylor."
It's unclear if there was ever a plan to include another featured artist, though Taylor, 33, previously described herself as a "massive fan of Lana Del Ray."
"The fact that I get to exist at the same time as her is an honor and a privilege and the fact that she would be so generous as to collaborate with us on this song is something I'm gonna be grateful for life," she shared in an Oct. 28 Instagram video. "Absolutely love her."
As for what "Snow on the Beach" actually means? "The song is about falling in love with someone at the same time they are falling in love with you," Taylor said. "It's in this sort of cataclysmic, fated moment where you realize someone feels exactly the same way that you feel at the same moment."
Describing the feeling as sort of a dream, the Grammy winner added, "Kind of like it would be if you were to see snow falling on a beach."