Fast Facts
- What: Alien Swirling Saucers debuts a new overlay called Lilypad’s Jams at Disney’s Hollywood Studios
- Who: Lilypad, a frog-shaped smart tablet character from Toy Story 5, works the ride as its new DJ
- Debut: Friday, September 25, 2026
- Surprise: An instrumental cut of Taylor Swift’s “I Knew It, I Knew You” joined the rotation with no advance warning
- Games: Lilypad runs puzzles, drawing, jokes, and multilingual greetings on her screen outside the queue
- Logistics: You do not need to ride to hear the new soundtrack or play the games
OPEN Brief: If you want every confirmed detail on Alien Swirling Saucers: Lilypad’s Jams, the new soundtrack, the interactive character, and the surprise song nobody announced, this OPEN guide maps out exactly what changed at Disney’s Hollywood Studios today. The update went live Friday, September 25, 2026, in Toy Story Land. Lilypad, a frog-shaped smart tablet character from Toy Story 5, now works as the ride’s DJ, both inside the vehicles and on a screen mounted outside the queue. An instrumental version of Taylor Swift’s “I Knew It, I Knew You” slipped into the rotation without warning, a first for any Walt Disney World attraction soundtrack.
What Is Lilypad’s Jams at Alien Swirling Saucers?
Alien Swirling Saucers: Lilypad’s Jams is a new soundtrack and character overlay that launched today without changing the ride itself.
Toy Story Land’s spinning ride has operated since 2018, and the vehicles, layout, and 32 inch (81 cm) height rule stay the same. Imagineers traveled to Nashville to record the new soundtrack with musicians working across pop, country, EDM, and alt-rock. Lilypad serves as the main antagonist in Toy Story 5, but the Alien Swirling Saucers version recasts her as a friendly DJ who mixes and remixes tracks in real time.
Guests do not need a boarding pass to get anything out of this update. Lilypad runs her full set from a screen outside the ride, so the overlay works for riders and bystanders alike, which cuts down on any bottleneck at the queue entrance.
Who Is Lilypad From Toy Story 5?
Lilypad is an oversized, frog-shaped smart tablet character introduced in Toy Story 5, now mounted outside Alien Swirling Saucers.
Lilypad sits on an orange base among the greenery near the attraction entrance, alongside other backyard toys like Buzz Lightyear and the Toy Story robots. Her design includes a green frame, large cartoon eyes, and webbed feet gripping the edges of her own screen. Lilypad arrived on-site about a week before her soundtrack went live, giving Imagineers time to test her games and audio before the September 25 debut.
Lilypad’s personality carries over from the film even in DJ mode. She fires off text-style messages and jokes with a second character, Smarty Pants, giving the queue area a running bit to follow between songs.
What Songs Play During Alien Swirling Saucers Lilypad’s Jams?
Alien Swirling Saucers now rotates through reimagined Toy Story classics, brand-new originals, and several late additions.
Each ride cycle plays one song at random, and Lilypad’s outdoor screen plays a separate random rotation for anyone standing nearby. The reimagined tracks include “You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” “We Belong Together,” and “I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away,” each reworked with new swirling energy. The two brand-new originals are “Pizza Planet Promo” and “Spin It Back, Lilypad.” Here is the full lineup guests can currently hear.
| Song | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| You’ve Got a Friend in Me | Reimagined Classic | Reworked version of the Randy Newman original |
| We Belong Together | Reimagined Classic | Reworked from Toy Story 3 |
| I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away | Reimagined Classic | Reworked from Toy Story 4 |
| Hay Un Amigo En Mi | Reimagined Classic | Spanish-language version of “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” |
| Pizza Planet Promo | New Original | Written new for the attraction, themed to the Pizza Planet arcade |
| Spin It Back, Lilypad | New Original | Written new for the attraction as a tribute to Lilypad |
| Partysaurus Rex Anthem | Newly Added | Added to the rotation alongside Lilypad’s Jams |
| I Knew It, I Knew You | Newly Added | Instrumental Taylor Swift track from Toy Story 5, not part of the original announcement |
| Ride Like the Wind, Bullseye! | Legacy Holdover | Carried over from the previous rotation |
| Zu-Zu (Ken’s Theme) | Legacy Holdover | Carried over from the previous rotation |
| When She Loved Me | Legacy Holdover | Carried over from the previous rotation |
| Strange Things | Legacy Holdover | Carried over from the previous rotation |
| Emperor Zurg’s Planet | Legacy Holdover | Carried over from the previous rotation |
What Is the Surprise Taylor Swift Song at Alien Swirling Saucers?
Alien Swirling Saucers quietly added an instrumental version of Taylor Swift’s “I Knew It, I Knew You” on launch day.
Disney’s original September 16 announcement named the reimagined classics plus “Pizza Planet Promo” and “Spin It Back, Lilypad,” but it never mentioned Swift. The track is the version that appeared on the Toy Story 5 soundtrack, and the Alien Swirling Saucers cut is instrumental only, so riders hear the melody without her vocals. Because each cycle plays one random song, catching this specific track may take a few consecutive re-rides.
What Interactive Activities Does Lilypad Run at Disney’s Hollywood Studios?
Lilypad turns the space outside Alien Swirling Saucers into a playable stop with puzzles, drawing, and jokes.
Between songs, Lilypad displays greetings in different languages and cycles through short activities on her screen. Guests do not need to enter the queue to play, which makes her a quick stop for anyone touring Toy Story Land at a fast pace.
What Games Can You Play With Lilypad?
Lilypad’s screen runs a character puzzle and a simple drawing tool between songs.
The puzzle mode presents a modular grid that guests unscramble to reveal a character image. The drawing mode shows a painter’s palette and paintbrush icon that invites sketch-style play right on her screen.
What Jokes Does Lilypad Tell Guests?
Lilypad and Smarty Pants trade jokes about the ride’s playlist right on her screen.
The dialogue plays out like a text exchange, with Smarty Pants ribbing Lilypad’s song choices and Lilypad firing back. Short bits like this give the outdoor screen its own rotation of content separate from the music itself.
What Does the New Lilypad’s Jams Marquee Look Like?
The Alien Swirling Saucers entrance sign now looks like an oversized friendship bracelet spelling out “Lilypad Jams.”
Lilypad’s face appears as one charm on the bracelet design, with a butterfly charm set at the other end of the beads. The banner followed a permit filed this summer, separate from the earlier permit that cleared Lilypad’s on-screen installation a few months prior. OPEN’s Permits and Construction Tracker keeps a running log of filings like these across Walt Disney World property.
Some fans reading the marquee see a nod to Taylor Swift, since friendship bracelets became her signature accessory during the Eras Tour and her song now plays inside the same ride. Disney has not confirmed any intentional connection between the bracelet design and the song.
How Long Is the Wait for Alien Swirling Saucers Right Now?
Alien Swirling Saucers kept its original ride rules for Lilypad’s Jams, and opening-morning waits ran short.
The height minimum stays at 32 inches (81 cm), Lightning Lane is still available, and guests must transfer from a wheelchair to ride. One side of the attraction closed for refurbishment work in the days leading up to today’s debut to get everything ready. Posted wait times were reported between 5 and 10 minutes on opening morning.
Since each ride cycle only plays one random song, budget for a couple of back-to-back re-rides if you are chasing a specific track. For a full day of touring, Walt Disney World operating hours and Toy Story Land’s layout both factor into how early you should get to this side of the park.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Alien Swirling Saucers: Lilypad’s Jams?
Alien Swirling Saucers: Lilypad’s Jams is the new soundtrack and character overlay that debuted at Disney’s Hollywood Studios on September 25, 2026, adding a frog-shaped DJ named Lilypad from Toy Story 5 to the Toy Story Land attraction.
Do you have to ride Alien Swirling Saucers to hear Lilypad’s new music?
No. Lilypad’s Jams plays from a screen and speaker outside Alien Swirling Saucers, so guests can hear the soundtrack and watch Lilypad’s games without boarding the ride.
Is the Taylor Swift song at Alien Swirling Saucers a full vocal track?
No. The Alien Swirling Saucers version of Taylor Swift’s “I Knew It, I Knew You” is an instrumental cut, so riders hear the melody without her vocals.
How tall do you have to be to ride Alien Swirling Saucers?
Alien Swirling Saucers keeps its original 32 inch (81 cm) height minimum under the new Lilypad’s Jams overlay, and Lightning Lane access is still available.
Status Brief
Alien Swirling Saucers: Lilypad’s Jams turns an eight-year-old spinning ride into a bigger sensory update without touching the ride vehicles themselves. The Nashville-recorded soundtrack, the friendship-bracelet marquee, and the surprise Taylor Swift instrumental give Toy Story Land more to talk about than any refresh since the land opened in 2018. Budget a few consecutive re-rides if you want to catch a specific track, since each cycle only plays one song at random, and stop by Lilypad’s screen even if you skip the queue entirely. OPEN keeps tracking Toy Story Land updates alongside the rest of Central Florida on our Orlando entertainment hub.
Follow the OPEN News Desk on X (Twitter) for real-time Central Florida park updates.
