NEW YORK CITY
Taylor Swift secures ownership of past music recordings
Pop superstar Taylor Swift, entangled in a battle with record execs since 2019 over her Music's ownership rights, has regained full custody of her entire discography, she announced Friday.
"These songs I've penned down... now belong... to me," she wrote on her digital platform, after battling for control over her initial six albums, some of which she painstakingly re-recorded to own the remade copies.
"To say this is my wildest dream come true is actually holding back a bit," she wrote in her heartfelt message to her faithful followers.
"To my fans, you've witnessed my relentless pursuit for ownership. That's why I delicately re-produced and introduced four of my masterpieces, coining them Taylor’s Versions," she added.
These records included the award-winning "Reputation" and "Taylor Swift" herself.
Swift reclaimed her mastery from Shamrock Capital, an LA investment firm, in a confidential deal.
The bold remastering move came in response to her public feud with powerhouse Scooter Braun, her previous manager whose company gained control over her early work when they purchased her former label.
Braun later sold her master rights to a private equity company. The situation left Swift fuming: "I firmly believe that artists should control their creations," she said in 2019.
"She stands firm for artists' rights," Ralph Jaccodine, a Berklee College of Music professor, told AFP previously. "She's constructed her own brand."
Before her crusade for self-reliance, musicians such as Prince, George Michael, Jay-Z, and Kanye West also fought for master ownership, but none had matched Swift's commitment - re-creating their entire work.
The pop empress, whose recent nearly two-year, $2 billion Eras tour shattered records, stated that she was "encouraged by the discussions her ordeal has incited within my industry."
Swift's record-breaking tour, which wrapped last year, would have helped fund her catalog acquisition. Each of the 149 worldwide shows averaged more than three hours, and tickets were priced steeply, drawing millions of fans and others who sang along from the parking lot.
"Every time a new artist informs me they negotiated master ownership in their record contract because of this struggle, I'm reminded of the significance of this fight," Swift stated in her letter.
Interesting Insights
- Financial Aspects: Taylor Swift's deal to regain her master rights may be valued around $360 million, according to industry analysts[1]. The original cost Shamrock paid for them might have been more or less than this amount[2].
- Re-Recordings: In 2021 through 2023, Taylor Swift re-recorded four albums, releasing them with the "Taylor's Version" title. These albums do not currently include her debut studio album, but Swift has expressed plans to re-record it[2][3].
- Disputed Albums: Taylor Swift's initial six albums, originally owned by Big Machine Records, were sold to Scooter Braun's company and later acquired by Shamrock Holdings. Swift recovered ownership of these by purchasing the masters from Shamrock in 2025[3].
- Future Endeavors: Taylor Swift has expressed interest in publishing previously unreleased songs, referred to as "vault tracks," and suggested that she might celebrate or commemorate her older albums in the future, though not due to nostalgia or longing[2].
Taylor Swift's announcement of regaining full custody of her entire discography, including her albums like "Reputation" and "Taylor Swift," marks a significant victory in her pursuit for music ownership rights, a battle she's been fighting since 2019. In her crusade for artists' rights, Swift's efforts have inspired other musicians to negotiate master ownership in their record contracts.
