“It’s driving me insane”: Netizen compares Taylor Swift's “Patient Zero” to AI song about trains

Taylor Swift's "Patient Zero" is already one of the biggest songs of 2026, but it is picking up attention online for a very different reason. The previously unreleased track, part of The Life of a Showgirl: Encore, is now being compared to a viral AI-generated song about transporting large metal coils on trains.

A Netizen on Threads put it plainly, sharing that

"Taylor Swift's new song Patient Zero sounds exactly like that f*cking song about how they transport large metal coils."

"It's driving me insane that no one else has noticed," added the user.

Another user went further, adding that

"I've never said this before and will never say this again, but the AI is better. I feel gross now."

Spotify confirmed "Patient Zero" became the platform's most-streamed song by a female artist in a single day in 2026 so far. Swift herself also claimed the title of most-streamed female artist in a single day this year.

Taylor Swift reveals the real-life friendship moment that inspired Patient Zero:

Taylor Swift has opened up about the inspiration behind "Patient Zero," the first single from The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore. As per a report shared by Capital FM, whose Instagram post from Sept. 25 covered Swift's revelation, the singer traced the song back to a conversation she had with a group of friends.

"I was hanging out with a bunch of friends, and one of my friends told us that she had been reached out to by the new girlfriend of an ex of hers, asking for guidance on if she had had the same experiences with this guy that this new girlfriend was having," Swift told the outlet.

What followed surprised her. Everyone in the group had a story of their own.

"And everyone in our group just immediately started saying like, 'Oh, I've been through that too', and telling the stories of when this kind of reach out had happened for them," Swift continued.

"And I thought to myself, if this has happened to all of us, it's such an interesting kind of angle on humanity and on relationships, and I wonder if I could write something from the perspective of getting this phone call, and really only from the perspective and the side of the phone call of the ex who's been through it before," she added.

Taylor Swift's The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore track list and "Patient Zero" lyrics unpacked:

"Patient Zero" wastes no time setting the scene. The song's first verse sees Swift singing,

"I've gotta be honest, I've been expecting your call/ No, it's not a bad time at all/ I heard somebody saying there's trouble in paradise/ And my lips are sealed tight now."

The chorus then drives the song's central perspective home, with Swift adding,

"It's not for me to tell/ Someone else what to do/ But if you wanna party with somebody who might know/ About the devil on his shoulder under his halo/ When the toxins take their hold, you'd rather die than let it go/ But if you're sick of him, I got you, I was patient zero."

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The lyrics tie directly back to the real-life conversation Swift described, written entirely from the perspective of the ex who has already lived through it.

The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore, the deluxe version of Swift's twelfth studio album, is out now. Alongside "Patient Zero," the record also features three newly recorded tracks, "Babylon," "Pink Clouding," and "Cleveland!"

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