Taylor Swift Purchases Rights to Her First Six Albums
The American pop star announces the acquisition of her music rights, concluding a lengthy dispute over ownership.
Taylor Swift, the renowned American pop artist, announced on Friday that she has acquired the rights to her first six albums, marking the end of a protracted battle for ownership of her music.
In a statement on her website, Swift expressed her contentment, stating, "All the music I’ve made belongs to me now.
All my music videos.
All my concert films.
The album designs and photos.
The unreleased songs.
The memory, the magic, the madness.
Every era.
The entire body of my work."
The singer previously clashed with music industry mogul Scooter Braun, who purchased Big Machine Label Group in 2019 for an estimated $300 million, thereby gaining control over the majority of Swift's recordings.
This acquisition left Swift feeling "stripped" of her work, as the owner of the "masters"—the original recordings used to create vinyl, CDs, and digital copies—holds the rights to how the songs are reproduced and sold.
Master rights significantly contribute to artists' revenue streams.
Shortly after Braun's acquisition, the rights to Swift's six initial albums were sold to investment firm Shamrock Capital.
In an effort to regain control over her music, Swift began re-recording four of her early albums, adding the designation "Taylor's Version" to these new releases.
Swift indicated that her ultimate goal was to have the opportunity to work hard enough to eventually buy back her music rights independently, stating, "All I ever wanted was the chance to work hard enough to one day be able to purchase the rights to my music, and to do so free of constraints, without partnerships, autonomously." She thanked Shamrock Capital for facilitating the opportunity to reacquire her earlier albums, including "Fearless" and "1989."
While the financial details of the transaction remain undisclosed, Swift has written or co-written the majority of her musical catalog, allowing her to re-record songs without owning the original master recordings.
Swift signed with Big Machine at the age of 15 in 2005 and departed from the label 13 years later.
The global recorded music market, which has seen record revenues of $29.6 billion, experienced its tenth consecutive year of growth in 2024, driven by subscriptions to streaming platforms and the success of artists like Swift, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI).
Streaming accounted for more than two-thirds (69%) of global revenues in this sector due to an increase in paid subscriptions.
Swift was also recognized as the most streamed artist of 2024.
Swift's recent concert tour, "The Eras Tour," which spanned 2023 and 2024, reached approximately $2 billion in revenue, making it the highest-grossing tour in music history, according to industry publication Pollstar.
In a statement on her website, Swift expressed her contentment, stating, "All the music I’ve made belongs to me now.
All my music videos.
All my concert films.
The album designs and photos.
The unreleased songs.
The memory, the magic, the madness.
Every era.
The entire body of my work."
The singer previously clashed with music industry mogul Scooter Braun, who purchased Big Machine Label Group in 2019 for an estimated $300 million, thereby gaining control over the majority of Swift's recordings.
This acquisition left Swift feeling "stripped" of her work, as the owner of the "masters"—the original recordings used to create vinyl, CDs, and digital copies—holds the rights to how the songs are reproduced and sold.
Master rights significantly contribute to artists' revenue streams.
Shortly after Braun's acquisition, the rights to Swift's six initial albums were sold to investment firm Shamrock Capital.
In an effort to regain control over her music, Swift began re-recording four of her early albums, adding the designation "Taylor's Version" to these new releases.
Swift indicated that her ultimate goal was to have the opportunity to work hard enough to eventually buy back her music rights independently, stating, "All I ever wanted was the chance to work hard enough to one day be able to purchase the rights to my music, and to do so free of constraints, without partnerships, autonomously." She thanked Shamrock Capital for facilitating the opportunity to reacquire her earlier albums, including "Fearless" and "1989."
While the financial details of the transaction remain undisclosed, Swift has written or co-written the majority of her musical catalog, allowing her to re-record songs without owning the original master recordings.
Swift signed with Big Machine at the age of 15 in 2005 and departed from the label 13 years later.
The global recorded music market, which has seen record revenues of $29.6 billion, experienced its tenth consecutive year of growth in 2024, driven by subscriptions to streaming platforms and the success of artists like Swift, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI).
Streaming accounted for more than two-thirds (69%) of global revenues in this sector due to an increase in paid subscriptions.
Swift was also recognized as the most streamed artist of 2024.
Swift's recent concert tour, "The Eras Tour," which spanned 2023 and 2024, reached approximately $2 billion in revenue, making it the highest-grossing tour in music history, according to industry publication Pollstar.
