Taylor Swift Finally Owns All of Her Old Music

Published: Friday, May 30, 2025 at 3:32 pm

Taylor Swift Finally Owns Her Music Catalog: A Victory for Artist Control

In a major win for artist rights, Taylor Swift has finally regained ownership of her master recordings, six years after her old label, Big Machine Label Group, sold them to Scooter Braun's Ithaca Holdings. The pop superstar announced the news on Friday, May 30th, expressing her joy and gratitude to fans in a heartfelt message on her website and Instagram. This monumental deal grants Swift control over not just her music, including unreleased tracks, but also her music videos, concert films, album art, and photography.

The acquisition marks the culmination of a long and complex journey. Swift's initial departure from Big Machine in 2018, and the subsequent sale of her catalog to Braun, sparked a public feud and fueled her determination to reclaim her artistic legacy. She embarked on a highly successful project to re-record her first six albums, cleverly titled "Taylor's Version," to regain control over her music.

While the exact financial details remain undisclosed, sources suggest previous estimates of the catalog's value were inaccurate. Swift specifically thanked Shamrock Capital, who acquired the catalog from Braun in 2020, for facilitating the deal. The singer also clarified that Braun played no role in her recent acquisition.

Swift's journey to ownership highlights the challenges artists face in controlling their creative output. She emphasized the importance of this victory, noting the positive impact it has had on other artists negotiating for ownership of their master recordings. While the re-recording of her debut album is complete, Swift admitted that she is unsure if she will finish re-recording her 2016 album, Reputation.

Keywords: Taylor Swift, music ownership, master recordings, Scooter Braun, Big Machine Label Group, Shamrock Capital, Taylor's Version, re-recordings, artist rights, music industry, album, Reputation, unreleased songs, music catalog, Eras Tour.

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