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{{short description|2020 song by Taylor Swift}}
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"'''Invisible String'''" is a song by the American singer-songwriter [[Taylor Swift]] from her eighth studio album, ''[[Folklore (Taylor Swift album)|Folklore]]'' (2020). She wrote the song with its producer, [[Aaron Dessner]]. The lyrics are about how fate brings two soulmates together and refer to specific moments from their lives, containing references to the literature classics ''[[Jane Eyre]]'' and ''[[The Sun Also Rises]]''. Musically, "Invisible String" is a [[Folk music|folk]] tune with elements of [[blues]], [[Pop music|pop]], and [[Country music|country]]. Its spare acoustic arrangement is driven by acoustic guitar [[
Music critics lauded "Invisible String" for showcasing what they deemed a masterful songcraft with endearing sound and lyrics; some picked it as an album highlight. [[NPR Music|NPR]] named it one of the best songs of 2020. Commercially, "Invisible String" peaked at number 36 on the US [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] and on charts of Australia, Canada, Portugal, Singapore, and the United Kingdom, where it received a silver [[Music recording certification|certification]]. Swift performed "Invisible String" on the first four shows of her sixth headlining concert tour, [[the Eras Tour]], in 2023, and as a surprise song in a [[mashup (music)|mashup]] with “Superstar” from [[Fearless (Taylor Swift album)|Fearless]] on the first [[Gelsenkirchen]] show.
== Background and release ==
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"Invisible String" charted in Australia (19),<ref name="Australia" /> Singapore (19),<ref name="Singapore" /> Canada (29),<ref name="Canada" /> and Portugal (134).<ref name="Portugal" /> In the United States, the track peaked at number 37 on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]]<ref name="BHot100" /> and number 12 on the [[Rolling Stone Top 100|''Rolling Stone'' Top 100]].<ref name="RSTop100" /> In the United Kingdom, it peaked at number 43 on the [[Official Charts Company|OCC]]'s [[Official Audio Streaming Chart|Audio Streaming Chart]]<ref name="UKStreaming" /> and received a silver [[Music recording certification|certification]] from the [[British Phonographic Industry]] (BPI).<ref name="BPI" /> In March 2023, Swift performed "Invisible String" as the opening song for the ''Folklore'' act at the first four concerts of her sixth headlining tour, [[the Eras Tour]].<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Kreps |first=Daniel |date=April 1, 2023 |title=See Taylor Swift Deliver Debut Performance of 'The 1' at Arlington Concert |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-debut-performance-the-1-arlington-concert-1234707820/ |url-access=limited |access-date=December 15, 2023 |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |archive-date=April 8, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230408174556/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-debut-performance-the-1-arlington-concert-1234707820/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
Starting from the March 31, 2023 show in [[Arlington, Texas]], she replaced it with "[[The 1]]".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lewis |first=Isobel |date=April 10, 2023 |title=Taylor Swift fans spot Eras tour setlist change amid Joe Alwyn split rumours |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/taylor-swift-joe-alwyn-eras-setlist-changed-b2317057.html |access-date=December 15, 2023 |website=[[The Independent]] |archive-date=December 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231215062857/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/taylor-swift-joe-alwyn-eras-setlist-changed-b2317057.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In May 2023, in celebration of the Eras Tour's [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]] shows, [[List of mayors of Nashville, Tennessee|Mayor]] [[John Cooper (Tennessee politician)|John Cooper]] issued a proclamation recognizing "Taylor Swift homecoming" as Nashville was the city where Swift started her music career. The city installed a bench at [[Centennial Park (Nashville)|Centennial Park]] with a plaque reading, "For Taylor Swift. A bench for you to read on at Centennial Park. Welcome home, Nashville;" it is a nod to the song's lyrics referencing the said park.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Avila |first=Daniela |date=May 4, 2023 |title=Nashville Celebrates Taylor Swift's 'Homecoming Weekend' on Tour with Proclamation and Park Bench (Exclusive) |url=https://people.com/music/taylor-swift-nashville-homecoming-weekend-how-city-is-celebrating/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230504221135/https://people.com/music/taylor-swift-nashville-homecoming-weekend-how-city-is-celebrating/ |archive-date=May 4, 2023 |access-date=May 5, 2023 |website=[[People (magazine)|People]]}}</ref> To honor this, Swift performed "Invisible String" instead of "The 1" at the second show in Nashville.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Leimkuehler |first=Matthew |date=May 7, 2023 |title=Taylor Swift in Nashville: What surprise songs did she sing on night two of 'Eras'? |url=https://www.tennessean.com/story/entertainment/music/2023/05/07/taylor-swift-in-nashville-eras-tour-surprise-songs-saturday-night-two-celebrity-guests/70192187007/ |access-date=August 3, 2024 |website=[[The Tennessean]] |language=en-US |archive-date=August 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230809150329/https://www.tennessean.com/story/entertainment/music/2023/05/07/taylor-swift-in-nashville-eras-tour-surprise-songs-saturday-night-two-celebrity-guests/70192187007/ |url-status=live }}</ref> She performed it as a "surprise song" in a mashup with "Superstar" at the first show in [[Gelsenkirchen]], on July 17, 2024.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Iasimone |first=Ashley |date=August 2, 2024 |title=All the Surprise Songs Taylor Swift Has Performed on The Eras Tour (So Far) |url=https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-eras-tour-surprise-songs/ |access-date=August 3, 2024 |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |language=en-US |archive-date=March 19, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230319011405/https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-eras-tour-surprise-songs/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
== Production ==
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| description = A sample of "Invisible String" demonstrating the [[fingerpick|finger-picked]] [[strum]]s and vocal [[backbeat]]s
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Swift wrote "Invisible String" with Dessner, who produced the song.<ref name="DessnerVulture">{{cite web |last=Gerber |first=Brady |date=July 27, 2020 |title=The Story Behind Every Song on Taylor Swift's ''folklore'' |url=https://www.vulture.com/2020/07/taylor-swift-folklore-aaron-dessner-breaks-down-every-song.html |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200728234347/https://www.vulture.com/2020/07/taylor-swift-folklore-aaron-dessner-breaks-down-every-song.html |archive-date=July 28, 2020 |access-date=June 7, 2021 |website=[[Vulture (website)|Vulture]]}}</ref> Dessner composed "Invisible String" using [[Fingerpick|finger-picked]] [[
Several critics commented that the arrangement was spare but melodious and left room for Swift's conversational sing-speaking style.<ref>{{Cite web |last=D'Souza |first=Shaad |date=July 24, 2020 |title=Taylor Swift frees herself from tabloid drama on ''Folklore'' |url=https://www.thefader.com/2020/07/24/taylor-swift-folklore-album-review-2020-national-essay |access-date=December 15, 2023 |website=[[The Fader]]}}</ref><ref name="Harvilla-2020">{{Cite web |last=Harvilla |first=Rob |date=July 27, 2020 |title=Taylor Swift Is Singing About More Than Taylor Swift—and Rediscovering Herself in the Process |url=https://www.theringer.com/music/2020/7/27/21339589/taylor-swift-folklore-review |access-date=December 15, 2023 |website=[[The Ringer (website)|The Ringer]] |archive-date=August 28, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200828040229/https://www.theringer.com/music/2020/7/27/21339589/taylor-swift-folklore-review |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Thompson-2020">{{Cite web |last1=Thompson |first1=Stephen |author-link=Stephen Thompson (journalist) |last2=Powers |first2=Ann |author-link2=Ann Powers |last3=McKenna |first3=Lyndsey |date=July 28, 2020 |title=Let's Talk About Taylor Swift's ''Folklore'' |url=https://www.npr.org/2020/07/28/896193188/taylor-swift-folklore-critics-roundtable |access-date=December 15, 2013 |publisher=[[NPR]] |archive-date=July 30, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730020352/https://www.npr.org/2020/07/28/896193188/taylor-swift-folklore-critics-roundtable |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Jon Caramanica]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' found the production "airy and earthy".<ref name="NYTimesReview222">{{cite news |last=Caramanica |first=Jon |author-link=Jon Caramanica |date=July 26, 2020 |title=Taylor Swift, a Pop Star Done With Pop |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/26/arts/music/taylor-swift-folklore-review.html |url-status=live |access-date=June 7, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200910132513/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/26/arts/music/taylor-swift-folklore-review.html |archive-date=September 10, 2020}}</ref> Recorded at Dessner's Long Pond Studio in the [[Hudson Valley]] and [[La Gaîté Lyrique]] in Paris, France, "Invisible String" was [[Audio mixing (recorded music)|mixed]] by Jonathan Low. According to ''Folklore''{{'s}} [[liner notes]], Dessner played acoustic guitar, bass, electric guitar, [[Mellotron]], percussion, piano, and [[synthesizer]], and he [[Programming (music)|programmed]] the [[Drum machine|drums]] with <bdi>James McAlister</bdi>. Dessner's brother [[Bryce Dessner|Bryce]] was the [[orchestrator]] for [[cello]] (played by Clarice Jensen), [[viola]] and [[violin]] (Yuki Numata Resnick).<ref name="booklet" />
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The first [[Verse drama and dramatic verse|verse]] recalls their lives before they met; the female narrator was a girl who used to read at Nashville's Centennial Park and dreamt of a romance there ("Green was the color of the grass where I used to read at Centennial Park"),<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Sheffield |first=Rob |author-link=Rob Sheffield |date=October 28, 2023 |title='Invisible String' (2020) |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/taylor-swift-songs-ranked-rob-sheffield-201800/invisible-string-2020-1093994/ |access-date=December 15, 2023 |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |archive-date=December 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231215074311/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/taylor-swift-songs-ranked-rob-sheffield-201800/invisible-string-2020-1093994/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and the male partner once wore a teal shirt and worked at a yoghurt shop as a young man.<ref name="Willman-2020" /> The second verse details how the two's lives intertwined without them knowing; Swift also alludes to her song "[[Bad Blood (Taylor Swift song)|Bad Blood]]" and her publicized dispute with the singer [[Katy Perry]]: "Bad was the blood of the song in the cab/ On your first trip to LA/ You ate at my favorite spot for dinner."<ref name="Ahlgrim-2020">{{cite web |last=Ahlgrim |first=Callie |date=July 30, 2020 |title=Every detail and Easter egg you may have missed on Taylor Swift's new album ''Folklore'' |url=https://www.insider.com/taylor-swift-folklore-lyrics-easter-eggs-2020-7 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20211202000344/https://www.insider.com/taylor-swift-folklore-lyrics-easter-eggs-2020-7 |archive-date=December 2, 2021 |access-date=June 7, 2021 |website=[[Insider Inc.|Insider]]}}</ref><ref name="rs">{{cite magazine |last=Sheffield |first=Rob |date=July 24, 2020 |title=Taylor Swift Leaves Her Comfort Zones Behind on the Head-Spinning, Heartbreaking ''Folklore'' |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/taylor-swift-leaves-her-comfort-zones-behind-on-the-head-spinning-heart-breaking-folklore-1033533/ |url-status=live |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200724155901/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/taylor-swift-leaves-her-comfort-zones-behind-on-the-head-spinning-heart-breaking-folklore-1033533/ |archive-date=July 24, 2020 |access-date=February 21, 2021 |url-access=limited |authorlink=Rob Sheffield}}</ref> The next lines mention her trip to the [[Lake District]] in England ("Bold was the waitress on our three-year trip/ Getting lunch down by the Lakes/ She said I looked like an American singer"), a detail that is also on the ''Folklore'' bonus track "[[The Lakes (song)|The Lakes]]".<ref name="Ahlgrim-2020" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Mylrea |first=Hannah |date=August 6, 2020 |title=Taylor Swift–'The Lakes': the ''Folklore'' bonus song decoded |url=https://www.nme.com/blogs/taylor-swift-the-lakes-theories-lyrics-folklore-bonus-song-2722662 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200908195832/https://www.nme.com/blogs/taylor-swift-the-lakes-theories-lyrics-folklore-bonus-song-2722662 |archive-date=September 8, 2020 |access-date=June 7, 2021 |website=[[NME]]}}</ref>
The final verse references Swift's reputation and past relationships: "Cold was the steel of my ax to grind/ For the boys who broke my heart/ Now I send their babies presents."<ref name="Harvilla-2020" /><ref name="Ahlgrim-2020" /> The [[Refrain|chorus]] uses "invisible string" as a metaphor for love guided by happenstance: "And isn't it just so pretty to think/ All along there was some invisible string/ Tying you to me."<ref name="Mapes-2020" /><ref name="Bate-2023" /> The English literary professor [[Jonathan Bate]] said these lyrics referenced two literature classics: ''[[The Sun Also Rises]]'' (1926) by [[Ernest Hemingway]] ("Isn't it pretty to think so?") and ''[[Jane Eyre]]'' (1847) by [[Charlotte Brontë]] ("it is as if I had a string somewhere under my left ribs, tightly and inextricably knotted to a similar string situated in the corresponding quarter of your little frame").<ref name="Bate-2023">{{cite news |last=Bate |first=Jonathan |author-link=Jonathan Bate |date=April 10, 2023 |title=Why Taylor Swift is a literary giant—by a Shakespeare professor |newspaper=[[The Times]] |url=https://www.thetimes.
== Critical reception ==
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==Credits and personnel==
Credits are adapted from the liner notes of ''Folklore''.<ref name="booklet">{{Cite AV media notes |title=Folklore
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{{single chart|Portugal|134|artist=Taylor Swift|song=Invisible String|rowheader=true|access-date=June 7, 2020|refname="Portugal"}}
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! scope="row"| Singapore ([[Recording Industry Association Singapore|RIAS]])<ref name="Singapore">{{cite web|url=https://www.rias.org.sg/rias-top-charts/|title=RIAS International Top Charts Week 31|work=RIAS |publisher=Recording Industry Association (Singapore)|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805124940/https://www.rias.org.sg/rias-top-charts/|archive-date=August 5, 2020}}</ref>
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{{single chart|UKstreaming|43|date=
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{{single chart|Billboardhot100|37|artist=Taylor Swift|rowheader=true|access-date=June 7, 2021|refname="BHot100"}}
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{{Certification Table Entry|region=Brazil|type=single|artist=Taylor Swift|title=invisible string|award=Platinum|relyear=2020|certyear=2024|access-date=July 25, 2024}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|artist=Taylor Swift|title=Invisible String|type=single|award=Platinum|access-date=December 19, 2024|source=radioscope|relyear=2020|certyear=2024}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=single|artist=Taylor Swift|title=Invisible String|award=
{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true | nosales=true | noshipments=true}}
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