Big Red Machine & Taylor Swift Share ‘Renegade’ Single

Aaron Dessner (The National) and Justin Vernon (Bon Iver) continue to preview their forthcoming Big Red Machine album by releasing “Renegade,” a single featuring Taylor Swift. Big Red Machine’s How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last? LP is due out via Jagjaguwar/37d03d on August 27.

The 15-track How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last? is the second Big Red Machine album following the pair’s self-titled debut album in 2018. Swift is among many guests who appear on the LP which was produced by Aaron Dessner and recorded at his Long Pond studio in upstate New York. Sharon Van Etten, Naeem, Ilsey, Lisa Hannigan, Anaïs Mitchell, Shara Nova, La Force, Ben Howard, This Is The Kit and Anaïs Mitchell are also featured on How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last?

Aaron Dessner previously collaborated with Taylor Swift on her folklore and evermore albums. Vernon also appeared on each of Swift’s 2020 records.

Dessner described the genesis of “Renegade” in a statement:

“While we were making folklore and evermore last year, Taylor and I sometimes talked about experimenting and writing songs together some day for Big Red Machine. Making music with your friends just to make it — that’s how Big Red Machine started and has grown — and that’s how Renegade came about too. This song was something we wrote after we finished evermore and it dawned on us that this was a BRM song. Taylor’s words hit me so hard when I heard her first voice memo and still do, every time. Justin lifted the song further into the heavens, and my brother [Bryce Dessner]’s strings and drummer Jason Treuting add so much. The feeling and sound of this song feel very much at the heart of ‘How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last?’ I’m so grateful to Taylor for continuing to share her incredible talent with me and that we are still finding excuses to make music together.”

Check out the video for Big Red Machine & Taylor Swift’s “Renegade” below: