Group C Taylor Swift

[00:00:18] Speaker A: Welcome to Friendly Competition, a podcast to discover the best of all time. I'm Nick Carey alongside my co host and best friend, Cody Lena. Discuss various pop culture topics and narrow down to truly the best of all time. [00:00:31] Speaker B: Or as we like to call it, the boat. Before anyone step up foot on the boat, we put him into a sweet 16 style tournament. We argue each round till we decide a winner. [00:00:41] Speaker A: Nick, criteria boat, whatever the hell we want. Cody, you want to tell them what we're talking about? [00:00:49] Speaker B: Absolutely. We're talking about the best thing to happen to american pop culture music since Michael Jackson signs all the bad stuff of Michael Jackson. We. Let's just keep it to the music. Okay? [00:01:04] Speaker A: Oh, geez. Off the wall. I mean, I was going to. I was going to pick Beyonce, but I guess. I guess beehive go after Cody. He thinks Beyonce is terrible. He thinks that she's awful and is a Taylor Swift fan. I will let you defend yourself. [00:01:21] Speaker B: I will say, for the record, proud member of the Beehive. I've seen her on the run toward 2020. Whatever it was, it was great. Here's the thing. I think Taylor Swift has done more for pop music than Beyonce. I would say Beyonce is a better musician, but that's not what we're talking about. [00:01:37] Speaker A: Also, I would argue. I think, and I think this is what's great about what Beyonce is doing. And I will not speak on more of this. To be clear. This. I'm not. This is going to last once this sentence is over. We are not talking about this. But I think what her current mission is with reclaiming black music, saying, like, no, house music actually is. Is black. Country music is black. And I cannot wait for her punk rock album. That's the thing. Knowing that the next album is a punk rock album. If she. If this is what. Or scar. Oh, my ska album is what. That's what I'm saying is what we might be staring. [00:02:17] Speaker B: Beyonce Goldfinger collaboration. I will poop, put on my skate shoes tomorrow and shred the gnar. I will be the first person to drop into a half pipe if Beyonce is doing fucking some gold finger shit. If real big Fish comes out, it. [00:02:32] Speaker A: Is like, in the way in which she took. She re. She redefined Jolene when she redefined Superman. It's gonna change the world. Like, it might actually be what world peace is. Is Beyonce doing ska? But, folks, we are not here to talk about that. [00:02:51] Speaker B: And we're not also, we're not ready because we're not ready. [00:02:53] Speaker A: We're not ready. And we. And we also can fantasize this for the net. This could be. I can see it in Cody's eyes right now. This is all he wants to discuss. He owned. This is what we. This is. This is. We tapped on something that is like. But if Beyonce did do Scott music, it would change the world, right? Like, there's no. It's undeniable that that's how powerful it would be. But, folks, that's literally. [00:03:15] Speaker B: Nick, I have so many opinions on this. We have to leave. We have to speaker two. [00:03:19] Speaker A: We cannot talk about it. We cannot talk about this. But what we are here to talk about is Taylor Swift. And we are here to focus on 16 of what you all and I and us consider to be her best songs. Thank you so much to every motorboater who gave us these songs. And we are here in group c, which means that out of the 16 songs that we are doing, we've already covered eight of them. Go listen in group a and group b. But here we are in the group seed quadrant, where we are going to discuss the two seed champagne problems going up against the 15 seed cruel summer. And then we have the seven seed 22 going up against the ten seed fortnight. Cody, where do you want to start? [00:04:10] Speaker B: I want to start by addressing the things you left out. One, this is our 40 year anniversary. [00:04:15] Speaker A: Thank you. [00:04:16] Speaker B: This is episode 503. Two, this episode 502. And, oh, the third point is to celebrate this season. Nick and I are heavily under the influence. [00:04:28] Speaker A: Yep. Take that as you will. [00:04:30] Speaker B: Well, take that as you will. But we are definitely. [00:04:32] Speaker A: You could assume. Here's the things you can assume. [00:04:34] Speaker B: If you had a sauce. If you had a sauce, whatever sauce you're a fan of, we are lost in it. [00:04:40] Speaker A: Well, hold on. Um, I just want to point out some things you can maybe determine. It's not heroin. Cause we're not asleep. [00:04:47] Speaker B: Yep. That's fair. [00:04:47] Speaker A: And meth, because we are not going that fast. I'll let you do anything else. I'll give you any other drug. I just want to be clear. Cody and I do not do heroin or meth. Those are the two. [00:05:00] Speaker B: Or mescaline anymore. [00:05:02] Speaker A: Any. Well, see, once again, that's why I don't bring it up, because it's like, get it. So I can't. Well, we all dabble in mess anyway. Folks got this bracket. Cody, I didn't know why I yelled at the folks. I need to yell at Cody. Cody, where we're gonna start? [00:05:18] Speaker B: Okay. I want full transparency. So I. Nick made a beautiful play. You can all listen to it and I hope you have. He released it on Friday, so you have three days before the season started to listen to it. [00:05:29] Speaker A: Yeah. FCP. FCP. Taylor Swift on Spotify. [00:05:34] Speaker B: Yes. [00:05:35] Speaker A: That's where it is. This. [00:05:36] Speaker B: This bracket is really one that I didn't know a lot about coming into it. These are the songs that at the least, because these are not her pop hits. This is not Taylor Swift. [00:05:46] Speaker A: I would. Oh, wow. Dog, you are. Hey, we agree. We are about to. We are about to switch back to the old world because you cannot say that about cruel summer and 22, but keep going. Okay. [00:05:59] Speaker B: Okay. No, I know. The point I was trying to make is. I know cruel Summer. I know 22. I did. [00:06:06] Speaker A: I. [00:06:06] Speaker B: Before today, I didn't know. Champagne problems. I didn't know fortnight. Between the champagne problems of fortnight, I have opinions on them. [00:06:14] Speaker A: Unfortunately, those two aren't going up against each other. So which way? That's. [00:06:18] Speaker B: Where do you want to start? You're the expert here. You're the one that's like, lead me. You have. [00:06:22] Speaker A: Okay, that's fine. That's fine. I know. I hear what you're saying, and I'm happy to lead you to the fucking right answers. So we're going to start. We're going to start at the top. We're going to start with the number two seed. Champagne problems. Going up against the 15 seed, cruel summer. Cody. [00:06:40] Speaker B: Here's why. [00:06:40] Speaker A: Here's why I had to stop. Here's why I had to shut you down right away. Usually, I let you talk. Usually. I've never cut you off. I don't think I've ever cut you off in combat. [00:06:48] Speaker B: No, you've cut me off thousands of times. But, yeah, go on. [00:06:51] Speaker A: It's not how I remember it, but the two seed or the. Sorry. The 15 seed, cruel summer, okay. Has 2.17 billion. Listen. Like, that. I don't know what the highest number song is. I. That is within it. She is scraping by on. She is scraping the top. It's either her, the weekend, or Ed Sheeran. It's one of those two that would have a bigger song than hers, but that. This is one of the biggest songs of all time. Like, in modern history. In modern history. So just when you. I just. That's why I had to be like, hey, brother. Hey, brother. Watch what? Watch what you say. [00:07:35] Speaker B: I'm sorry. I was misspeaking. Okay? Again, we're under the influence. But I'm saying, like, I was familiar with cruel Summer in 22, but I didn't know fortnite and champagne props till today, that's very. [00:07:46] Speaker A: No, and that's okay. Okay. [00:07:47] Speaker B: And I'm not on the streets. I don't know what's popular. That's fine. If you were like, hey, Cody, make a popular radio station, it'd be a lot of the police and super tramp, and everyone be like, is this just two bands? [00:07:58] Speaker A: Old one? Yeah, just two bands for one radio station. [00:08:02] Speaker B: Two bands. [00:08:03] Speaker A: I will, uh. Okay. So I think. So the fun thing about these two is, so champagne problems is on the evermore album, right? So the second of the two pandemic albums, right. This is. We are so deep in a singer songwriter era. We are working with the main guy in the national, which I didn't even know, you know, I should have known who the national was. After listening to him, I was like, oh, this. This is actually the nationals. [00:08:31] Speaker B: Like, literally right up your wheelhouse, too. [00:08:33] Speaker A: It's, like, literally the template for so many. Like, yeah, it's like, watch. It's like. It's the same to me. It's the Monty Python of, like, the music I like where it's like, every. I can tell that everything I've liked is based off of it almost because of how much I'm like. I'm like, well, your shit sounds cliche. It's like, no, no, no. It's can't be cliche. They invented it. [00:08:54] Speaker B: So. [00:08:55] Speaker A: So once again, so she's in this era, and I. To me, and I will, and I'm willing. I'm willing to be wrong. I don't need the hatred. I don't need that. I think champagne problems of those two albums is maybe the best that she did off of. Off of what she's trying to do. I think that it is hands down the storytelling, what she's, like, described, like, the emotion she evokes of being like, I don't love this person, and I left them and, like. And that we've all been there, we've all felt, or most of us have been there and felt that. [00:09:27] Speaker B: Here's the thing, though, about rule Summer. [00:09:29] Speaker A: Is maybe the best. Pops is, like, I would say maybe one of the greatest pop songs I've ever heard. [00:09:33] Speaker B: Yeah, it's an amazing pop song. The problem I have a champion problems is I heard it today, I think, for the first time, and that was my problem. Like, oh, this is what Taylor Swift's cooking up. And none of the swifties ever thought for a second to, like, email me or, like, send me a fucking, like, venmo, let's take a penny. And I think what's that venmo. And they're like, listen to fucking champagne problems. So, like, here's the problem with champagne problems, is if you're a swifty and you think this is her best shit, then you're a weak swiftie. Because you ain't out here. You ain't out. [00:10:06] Speaker A: You ain't repping it. [00:10:07] Speaker B: You ain't repping it. [00:10:08] Speaker A: And you should. And you should stand by your convictions. This is a great. [00:10:14] Speaker B: The problem is you fucking didn't. So now we got cruel summer, which, even if you did stand by your convictions, might be better. But now I got this pop banger that I like. [00:10:26] Speaker A: Whatever. Whatever. I don't know what exactly happens between the end of the verse and the beginning of the chorus, but that swoop. Whatever. [00:10:35] Speaker B: That. It. [00:10:36] Speaker A: I don't know if that. Like, how they mat. What I know. I know this musician. [00:10:41] Speaker B: Okay. The swoop. It's a swoop. Do you think that is the. [00:10:43] Speaker A: That is, to me, the magic? That is the. That is the rainbow or not the rainbow, but the sparkle that flies over Disney image like that is like, it's so perfect that it, like, it immediately transports you into an incredible chorus. [00:11:01] Speaker B: Absolutely. I understand, Nick. I think the way that. This is a two part question. [00:11:05] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:11:06] Speaker B: I think the way they get that swoop is that Taylor Swift is singing the note and they have a giant bird come and take her away. Right? [00:11:13] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. They grab her. [00:11:15] Speaker B: Grab her and pull away from. [00:11:16] Speaker A: Well, that's how you get that. [00:11:17] Speaker B: That's how you get that. Like that, you know? Second part of the question is, how would you, Nick Carrey, save Taylor Swift from a giant bird? How are you going to get out on the street and save Taylor Swift? We need you. We're calling on you. I'm not saying we. I'm saying fucking biden calls you Nick Carrey. You're the only one that can save. [00:11:38] Speaker A: Her from this bird, Cody. Here's the beauty. And I don't. And I don't want to negate your question. I don't want to. I don't want to, like, immediately just poopoo. I think what you're asking is very important, but you forgotten a very key detail about your boy. Hey, guards. No, no. I do hate birds, but birds love me. [00:11:59] Speaker B: They do. [00:12:00] Speaker A: I am. If I. If you can put me in. If, like, all you would have to do if there was a fear, right? If Biden gets the alert, that. Hey, the giant birds of Eldar. Off. Eldon. [00:12:12] Speaker B: It's elder off. No, you nailed it in the first one. Elder. [00:12:15] Speaker A: Oh, my. [00:12:15] Speaker B: The giant birds. [00:12:16] Speaker A: Are you fucking serious? [00:12:17] Speaker B: You nailed it. You fucking. [00:12:18] Speaker A: Everyone. Anyone who's listening right now, as you hear this, you do have to venmo me. Ten. That was crazy. I am, dog. I am. We are easily six spears deep. We are absolutely. [00:12:30] Speaker B: We're easily 6ft. Hey, Nick, could you please take your headset out like your headphones up for like 3 seconds? [00:12:36] Speaker A: Okay? [00:12:37] Speaker B: Just 3 seconds. Go. I want to watch you do it. Okay. I don't know what the birds of Eldarath are, and I don't know what he's talking about, but we have to support him. So we just got. Just go with it, okay? He's about to plug him back in. Just support him. He needs this. [00:12:49] Speaker A: Are you, are you good? Or do you need me to. [00:12:50] Speaker B: Yeah, we're good. You do? [00:12:52] Speaker A: Okay. [00:12:52] Speaker B: Thank you. Thank you. [00:12:53] Speaker A: Perfect timing. Okay, so. So the birds of elder, you know, in Lord of the Rings, they grab them, right? [00:12:59] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:12:59] Speaker A: If in a situation, Biden's like, hey, we know that the birds of elder off. They're coming. [00:13:03] Speaker B: Yeah. And he would, because he's the president. [00:13:06] Speaker A: Well, and he would. Of course he would know. He knows so much stuff. You got behind closed doors. This guy is maybe the most knowledgeable president dude that we've ever had. [00:13:16] Speaker B: He's like awake for like 60% of his meetings and it's behind closed doors compared to the last president. That's really good. [00:13:25] Speaker A: So. So anyway, so Biden calls me. He's got my. Well, obviously has my number. He has the NSA. So he's like, hey, brother, we know that DNA by your blood type, that birds are attracted to you and will hunt you down in any given space, and they will. Will you protect Taylor Swift? [00:13:43] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:13:44] Speaker A: And with that, I would say, let me ask my wife, because I do need to check in with her because, like, I don't know, like, if I. I don't want to die for Taylor Swift because I. My wife really enjoys Taylor Swift, so I feel like if I died for Taylor Swift, it kind of ruins it. And Taylor Swift feels ubiquitous for the next 50 years. What do you think? [00:14:01] Speaker B: You think there's like, a conspiracy of pelicans to carry away Taylor Swift? Like, what's here? [00:14:07] Speaker A: I'm telling you, Biden told me to be there. I don't know what's going to happen, Cody. I don't know. [00:14:13] Speaker B: I'm telling you, Biden told me. That's the problem. Okay? Champagne problems, bangs, ass. But cruel summer is a absolutely pop classic we have. [00:14:23] Speaker A: It's funny because like, this is someone who has not listened to this type of, like, I am not deep in the pain on this type of music, but I'm going to make you agree with me, or you have to violently disagree with me. Is this the best indie folk pop song? [00:14:37] Speaker B: Champagne problems, the best indie folk pop song? No. I'm sure the shins have something to say about this. [00:14:46] Speaker A: The shins are way more punk anyway. All right, maybe. [00:14:50] Speaker B: Okay. But are they more pop than Taylor Swift? [00:14:53] Speaker A: All right, all right, all right. This is. You're right. This is not worth getting into. We also not the people. I just like to. I just want to argue that. I just think it's like. It's like, that's how good this song reaches, that kind of level conversation. And yet cruel summer is such an easy pick. I'm like, yeah, summer. All right, next up we have the seven seed 22. Going up against the ten seed Fortnite. Cody Fortnight is the most recent song. This is the. This is the current. [00:15:25] Speaker B: Yes. [00:15:26] Speaker A: Off the tortured poets department. 22 being off of 1989. Her, like, seminal best album considered by Apple. So what did you. Because I would say. Whereas, like, in the last one, even though they're both strong contenders, cruel Summer is such a clear pop hit. 22 can be grading. So where do you stand on this convert? Like, Fortnite feels very fun, very light, airy, or Lana Del Rey. 22 is like, I am a. I'm shooting my pop cannons. [00:15:58] Speaker B: Um, here's the thing. I. Again, this is the bracket I'm least familiar with, but I did hear Fortnite for the first night time today. That's Taylor Swift and Post Malone, right? That's the one. [00:16:10] Speaker A: That's one, yep. [00:16:11] Speaker B: I really liked that song. I enjoyed it, actually. It was the second time because my wife did send me. I gotta give a shout out to my wife. She does this beautiful thing that I really love. She knows that I like to keep up with, like, pop music. [00:16:24] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:16:24] Speaker B: But she also knows the pop artists I'm not a huge fan of, and Taylor Swift's one of them. Right? Like, I'm not a huge Taylor Swift fan. When Beyonce's album came out, I was the first one in line to listen to it. [00:16:33] Speaker A: Right, right. Yep. [00:16:34] Speaker B: Taylor Swift album comes out. My wife always does this beautiful thing where she'll listen to a Taylor Swift album and she'll send me a playlist of just the songs I need to listen to. [00:16:44] Speaker A: Dog, this is so good. So your wife. [00:16:47] Speaker B: So your wife does the best person on earth? She's the absolute best person. [00:16:52] Speaker A: Yes. She is. This is so your wife does what target did in the early two thousands, where they would take an album and then give you the seven best songs. Exactly. Twelve song out. Like, they would. They're like, hey, I know you don't want to listen to the whole hooba stank album. No one does. [00:17:10] Speaker B: No one. [00:17:10] Speaker A: But here are the seven songs. If you're going to know this album, you should know these seven. [00:17:17] Speaker B: And we pay it back and forth. Cause she knows I'm gonna do beyonce. She knows if there's a hip hop guy, I'm gonna do it. She knows if there's, like, some weird rock person, like, if Duran Duran releases a new album, which they just did, like, a year ago, it's so fucking good. I'm going to listen to it and send her the clips. [00:17:33] Speaker A: Sure. Okay. [00:17:35] Speaker B: It goes both ways. But, like, for Taylor Swift was like, yeah, I'm going to let my wife curate that. And fortnight was number one on it. And by the way, it does bang for night. [00:17:45] Speaker A: Bang. It's good. I. I know you haven't listened to the whole torture, tortured poets department. And this is. I mean, of. I think, her releases, it's one of the more divisive, I think, amongst the fan base. Right. It has. It doesn't. I think the biggest thing, knock on it, you could say, is that it's. It's not full of bangers. It's very. It's clearly very personal. It's very. It's very autobiographical. She is tearing down dudes left and right in a way that she wasn't before. Like, when everyone's like, who could this song be about? I love this album. Because she's like, this song is about Matt healing. Like, without express, it would be like. It's, uh, the song, uh. You're so vain. I bet you think a song. This song is about you. But then she then says, warren Beatty. She's like, warren Beatty. This song is about you. I just. Just to be clear, I know you probably figured that out, and that's why I called you vane. It's about you and, like, you motherfucker. This whole album is those type of songs where, like, she doesn't exactly say it, but it could not be more clear. And so I appreciate, like, hey, we're getting older. I don't have time for clues. I need. I need answers. Yeah, I think. I think what's hard for me is that my opinion of the whole album affects how I feel about Fortnite 22, to me is just like, is. Is maybe is like cocaine, okay? It brings you up quickly, and then there's nothing there. [00:19:12] Speaker B: Here's the problem. [00:19:13] Speaker A: Nothing to hold on to. [00:19:15] Speaker B: This is what I have about 22, right? She's. She's like, oh, I can be a pop princess. I can do the pop music. Right? [00:19:21] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:19:22] Speaker B: And this is. I don't know if it's a first for right. But it's like her first real. Like, I'm pop now. I'm not country anymore. [00:19:28] Speaker A: 1980. Yeah. No, you're right, because album Red is the problem. [00:19:33] Speaker B: Not very good. 23 is not very good. Wait, the song 22 is not. [00:19:38] Speaker A: Okay, sorry. I thought you're gonna say. I think you said the album Red is not very good. And I was like, I'll fucking kill. [00:19:41] Speaker B: No, no, no. The album Red's great. [00:19:42] Speaker A: No, yeah, yeah. [00:19:44] Speaker B: That's a transition, and we see it fortnight. She knows who she is. She got who she is. The only problem I have with Fortnite is that I think. I don't know how I'm gonna feel about saying this sentence. I don't think post Malone is featured enough. That's the only problem I have with it. I need a little more post Malone, man. [00:20:01] Speaker A: I would say this is like, well, okay, this isn't. She's one song, and we're about to talk about in the next bracket where I do feel like she is. She's willing to step aside for the artist. I would say this is a problem I have with most of her features, because. Or not features. When she lets someone feature on her album. Because, like, she has a song on the previous album, midnight with Lana Del Rey. That is, like, everyone's like, where is Lana? She's here. Like, she's. If Lana's in the room, could she speak up? Like, no one? [00:20:32] Speaker B: Like, blink twice if you're in trouble. [00:20:34] Speaker A: If you're here, Lana. Like, please. So, like, I agree. I think sometimes she. She does it in a way that it's like, actually post is kind of doing some bullshit. Let. Yeah. [00:20:44] Speaker B: Like, cook dog. [00:20:46] Speaker A: Let the boy. [00:20:46] Speaker B: First of all, like, I'm not a huge post Malone fan of a single stuff, and that's just because I don't know it, right? Every time I hear post Malone on a track, I'm like, oh, that's fine. Like, let him cook dog. Let him. [00:20:59] Speaker A: Yeah, he's. He's never disappointed as a feature. Where are you? Where? Where? Okay, I. I'll go with you. I'll go. I'll go. I'm going to go against you because I know it doesn't matter. I'm going to be honest. I know. It doesn't matter. [00:21:15] Speaker B: It doesn't matter. [00:21:15] Speaker A: I feel stronger about 22 because I do feel like it is more. It's a great anthemetic song, right? It's a great, like, for the great. [00:21:25] Speaker B: Anti semitic song anti juice. [00:21:29] Speaker A: I'm not. I'm not even going because I don't. I have too much liquor in my body. [00:21:33] Speaker B: I'm not even going there because he's so drunk and he has opinions on jews. [00:21:37] Speaker A: That's not. God damn it. Don't you put that on me, Ricky Bobby. Don't you put that on me, Ricky Bobby. I'm trying to back away right now. [00:21:46] Speaker B: No, Nick is. Nick loves Nick. [00:21:49] Speaker A: Every. All the people. [00:21:53] Speaker B: It's just literally anti killing each other. That's what. [00:21:55] Speaker A: Yeah, that's. It's pretty much that. I would just say. Speaking. I. Like. I would like most people to live. [00:22:00] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:22:00] Speaker A: The vast majority of people would prefer if they stayed alive. [00:22:04] Speaker B: Nailed it. [00:22:05] Speaker A: So anyway, we will go to the american voting coin of 2004 as brought to you by random.org. low seed gets a pick. That's going to be Cody with Fortnight. We got George Bush facing up. John Kerry on the bottom. Cody, who you going with? [00:22:19] Speaker B: I gotta go John Kerry because I don't think George Bush knows what a fortnight is. [00:22:22] Speaker A: He would not know. [00:22:23] Speaker B: And he'd be like, oh, we're gonna have. We're gonna get together and build a fort tonight. And I beg no dog. Like, he's like, I got all the pillow cushions up and I'm like, also, I do. [00:22:32] Speaker A: I do feel like we don't give enough shit to the word Fortnite for being a measurement of time. Like, we give the word yard. We give yard a lot. [00:22:40] Speaker B: Yeah. Now, Fortnite's absolutely out of control. [00:22:42] Speaker A: 40 nights. A wild measurement of time. Like, I get it. It's the D. Like, that was the tradition. Like, that's how long the distance was between two parts. That's not a measurement of time. Please stop using it. [00:22:53] Speaker B: And, hey, man, it's too late. [00:22:55] Speaker A: We got also, no, here. No, I'm not done, actually. I'm back on my shit. Because here's the problem. I don't mind the Taylor Swift. Use that. This isn't a rant against Taylor Swift. This is a rant against, like, fucking pretentious hipsters who, like, would also say, like, oh, yeah, I saw her about a fortnight. [00:23:12] Speaker B: If you say the word unacceptable, if. [00:23:15] Speaker A: You say the word fortnite as, like, a gent, like, you act like it's a normal turner phrase. Go fuck yourself. [00:23:22] Speaker B: You're not better than me. [00:23:24] Speaker A: You're not. That's a very dumb way to say something. And I will. And once again, I'll just tell you. Go fuck yourself. So here we. So you're going. You're going. John Kerry. [00:23:33] Speaker B: Yes. Cuz I think he knows what it means. [00:23:35] Speaker A: He would know. He is. He's a smart. All right, we'll flip. John Kerry. [00:23:40] Speaker B: Got it, baby. [00:23:41] Speaker A: Damn. All. All w's for Cody. Cody, you are. You are the Taylor Swift whisperer. You know what the actual best songs are? I thought, hey, I'm willing to admit when I'm wrong. I'm willing to say that. And I feel like I missed a few. [00:23:57] Speaker B: You have. You missed most of them. [00:23:58] Speaker A: But, you know, we're not gonna miss moving cruel summer on. [00:24:01] Speaker B: Oh, no, it's absolutely cruel summer. [00:24:02] Speaker A: It's fucking cruel summer. This song. [00:24:04] Speaker B: No, this is fucking out. Like, why for night. I do like Fortnite. I do like, I do wish. I really wish post Malone was more on the track, though. You barely noticed the guy. [00:24:16] Speaker A: I don't. I don't think I. [00:24:17] Speaker B: You. [00:24:18] Speaker A: You could have the right amount of post Malone. There's. It's not going to change the fact that cruel summer is damn near perfect. [00:24:25] Speaker B: It's damn near perfect. Yeah. [00:24:26] Speaker A: Like, you can't, like, this is. And it's crazy that we almost didn't like. The thing is, Cody, I don't know if you know this, so I just want to give you. [00:24:34] Speaker B: I don't know anything. I'm. [00:24:35] Speaker A: Okay, cool. So I want to give you this just so you understand why this song is actually so cool. [00:24:41] Speaker B: You do your thing. I'm going to pour this shot so everyone can hear it. [00:24:44] Speaker A: Perfect. [00:24:44] Speaker B: Okay, cool. [00:24:45] Speaker A: All right, so Cody. So she releases the album lover in 2019, right? This is her first album after everything. Like, she's now left the big machine label group. She is. She no longer. She. This. At this point, we now know that Scooter Braun has bought her records. [00:25:03] Speaker B: So show a scooter brought what? Scooter Braun. [00:25:07] Speaker A: Scooter Braun. [00:25:08] Speaker B: Okay. [00:25:08] Speaker A: That's his name. That's the guy. It's. It's. Hey, man, we don't have enough time to talk about the fact that the guy who attempted to ruin her life and then actually made her bigger than she ever would have been was. Name is. Yeah, we don't have time for that. So we just have to move on. So Sony is like, hey, we'd love to have. Or universal. I don't fucking care. They're like, hey, you will have the rights to all your music. That's all yours. And her first album she releases is Love in 2019. [00:25:36] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:25:36] Speaker A: And she releases the songs the man, everyone loves. That one. She has the one with the guy from panic at the disco. She's got a very fun queer anthem on it. [00:25:50] Speaker B: What's your point? What are we doing? What are we here? [00:25:52] Speaker A: Okay, anyway, anyway, generally below, she announces that she's going to do a festival. Like, instead of doing big tours, she's going to do three festivals in LA, New York and London. And then the pandemic and the song that she was gonna give us, because this album doesn't come out in the summer. It comes out more towards the fall. The song she was gonna give us for the summer of 2020 was gonna be cruel summer. And obviously it doesn't happen. [00:26:16] Speaker B: So then we didn't deserve it. [00:26:18] Speaker A: We didn't deserve it. [00:26:18] Speaker B: The pandemic took it from us. [00:26:21] Speaker A: Pandemic knew that we didn't. We didn't deserve it. Everything happens with the pandemic. Then she releases folklore evermore, which are wildly different albums. Right? And then the people were like, hey, Taylor, we love that you're doing this big tour. Way to go. But there's not. None of your songs off of those albums really give us that vibe. But you did make one song, Taylor. You made one. Could you put it out one more time? And she does. [00:26:49] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:26:49] Speaker A: And it has 2.1, 7,000,000,004 years late. Three years later. [00:26:57] Speaker B: It's amazing. I love cruel summer. I love it. [00:27:01] Speaker A: We almost didn't. Your life doesn't have it, Cody. You almost don't get it. I mean, it was. It exists on the album. [00:27:09] Speaker B: Yeah, I get it. [00:27:10] Speaker A: I get it. You would have been. Cody. Cody. Could I dare say? Could I dare say. [00:27:14] Speaker B: Yeah, you dare say. Whatever. But, hey, for the record, if you dare say something dumb, I will call you stupid. [00:27:19] Speaker A: Fair enough. [00:27:20] Speaker B: Okay. [00:27:20] Speaker A: I would say many people. Many people would consider Cruel Summer to be the haunted of the lover album. [00:27:30] Speaker B: That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard in my entire life. [00:27:33] Speaker A: That song rips. I'm just saying, she has an album where two songs rip ass and they never got released. [00:27:39] Speaker B: Summer is a great pop classic, kid. And also, it displays. One thing I love about Taylor Swift, she does is the way she layers her vocals in choruses. [00:27:49] Speaker A: Yes. [00:27:49] Speaker B: He's so amazing. Like, ah, Taylor, cruel summers bangs. [00:27:55] Speaker A: Dude, it bangs. It rips so hard. It's all right. We're going to move cruel Summer on into that final four. Thank you all so much for listening to this episode of friendly competition. If you want about your boys, a few things that you can do, as always, share with a friend, tell a friend, wherever you're listening to this, make sure you hit that. Like that. Follow that. Subscribe and give us those five stars. [00:28:15] Speaker B: When you can absolutely give us five stars. Falls on social media set. If you can literally false on any social media and send us a message. And Nick has to answer. He has to answer legally. Otherwise he goes to jail for the rest of his life. [00:28:31] Speaker A: Yeah, I'll go. I could. I could. Honestly, Cody, I could use the workout. Like, just that, like, dedicated. [00:28:38] Speaker B: Oh, my God. [00:28:40] Speaker A: It isn't that. [00:28:41] Speaker B: Okay, here's the deal. I will say because I'm drunk now. My brother's in jail. It doesn't matter. But, like, last time I saw him, he's been in jail for a while. Last time I saw him, dude is fucking chiseled Mike. [00:28:51] Speaker A: He was already Jack. He was already chiselled Jack. [00:28:54] Speaker B: That was the problem. That was. [00:28:56] Speaker A: Yeah, that's what part of why I. That's it, man. This is one of those times where it's like, like, you want to believe that. Like, hey, men and women aren't that different, but, man, the male urge to go to jail for one year, like, that is real. That is real. Like, all men are like, I think I'd love to go to jail. [00:29:15] Speaker B: I would. Like one year in jail if you didn't get stabbed and died, right? [00:29:19] Speaker A: Yeah. You're like, no, no. Like, no, I'm not Max security or anything. Like, I just want to go to, like, a normal jail. I just want to do, like, normal shit and I just want to, like, because every man is like, I would. I would fucking work out and I would read books. Hey, you know? And that's why maybe this is, once again, this is me romanticizing a very real thing that I'm like, you know nothing about that. [00:29:40] Speaker B: No. [00:29:41] Speaker A: Do not know this world. You are. You're existing in a fairy tale where you're like, I'm probably. Everyone's gonna love me. [00:29:47] Speaker B: I'm gonna. Everyone's gonna love me. I can work out and watch tv. There's no tv. There's no friends. [00:29:53] Speaker A: Yeah, there's no friends. There's no tv. And the books they have suck. So you're like, oh, okay. [00:29:57] Speaker B: I did get to work out, though. [00:29:59] Speaker A: But I got. I. Oh, but it's like one of those things where, like, I lost a lot of weight. Why? [00:30:03] Speaker B: Because they didn't feed me enough. [00:30:05] Speaker A: Right. Yeah. Oh, why can't I get big? Oh, because there's not nearly enough food. It's awful. I barely eat every day. Folks, that is the group c champion rule. Summer, thank you so much for listening to this episode of friendly competition. I'm Nick Carey. [00:30:21] Speaker B: And I'm Cody. Lena. See you on the boat.