The careers of Eric Church and Taylor Swift have intersected numerous times over the years.
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However, there was one moment in 2013 when either the "Springsteen" singer took things a step too far or Swift's fans simply misunderstood the situation. It'll be up to you to decide.
How Eric Church (Kind Of) Helped Taylor Swift
Church quickly established his rebel persona early in his career. In 2006, while on the "Me & My Gang" Tour, the singer was fired by Rascal Flatts as its opening act. Why, you ask?
Church played too loud and for too long.
After Church's departure in 2006, Swift—then an emerging artist—replaced him as the opener.
"I don't know what happened to her," Church joked in an interview with the Arizona Daily Star. "But she called and said, 'I want you to know that I love what you do.'"
"I joked with her, 'This is your crowd; they're going to love you. You're going to owe me your first gold record,'" he added. "I was kidding, but when she got her first gold record, she gave me one. It came with a note: 'Thanks for playing too long and too loud on the Flatts tour. I sincerely appreciate it. Taylor.'"
We all know what happened after that.
"One Will Rise, One Will Fall."
By late 2013, Church was about to release his fourth album, The Outsiders. It's an interesting foray into a classic rock sound, highlighting Church's rebellious style and his love of Springsteen.
It was also around this time when movies, television shows, and record albums often leaned into mysterious marketing. Church was no exception. He (or his marketing team) released a clip titled "One Will Rise and One Will Fall".
The Boot said the video began with Church at the 2013 Country Music Awards. Then the camera follows a dark figure down a stairway. A gloved hand comes on the screen and taps Church's album The Good Fight.
Then Swift's voice accepting the Pinnacle Award at the CMAs comes on. It's in this speech where Swift thanks Church for playing too long as Rascal Flatts' opener. The last line repeats as the video ends with the gloved hand writing, "ONE WILL RISE, ONE WILL FALL."
Sinister, right?
Fans began to take it as a threat toward Swift, so the video was made private.
A New Video Cleared Things Up, Sort Of
A new video was made with the same gloved hand. This time, the message was loud and clear.
"Eric adores Taylor for who she is and what she has done," the message read. "You're headed down the wrong trail, so we must stop this. 'One will rise and one will fall' has nothing to do with Swift."
The Outsiders came out in early 2014 and topped both the country and pop charts.
In an ironic twist, it may have even inspired one of Swift's biggest hits.
In 2017, Swift was sued for copyright infringement for her hit "Shake It Off". The songwriters behind "Playas Gon' Play" by 3LW claimed that the title inspired the song's line "players gonna play, haters gonna hate."
In her deposition, Swift said she first heard the phrase in Church's song, "The Outsiders". He was served by the plaintiffs a few weeks later, but the case was eventually dismissed.
Church told Rolling Stone he sent her a text joking about the incident.
"I sent her a text... I was like, 'Hey, thanks! Next time, let's just skip that part?' And she sent me a text: 'I'm sorry. It's the truth, though. That's when I first heard that phrase.'"
Despite all these misunderstandings, it all worked out for everyone in the end.
