Taylor Swift and Jack Antonoff re-create iconic moment to celebrate her historic masters purchase
Taylor Swift is enjoying her 'Reputation' era again after breaking the news that she now owns her master recordings.
Swift announced in a May 30 letter on her website that after re-recording four of her albums — dubbed 'Taylor's Version' — she bought back all of her masters, including her 2006 self-titled debut and 2017's 'Reputation.'
Swift's longtime friend and producer, Jack Antonoff, shared a video of the duo on X the night of May 30 as they enjoyed a 'guilt free' listen of 'Reputation' to celebrate the news.
In the clip, Swift and Antonoff sang the album's ninth track, 'Getaway Car' and re-created a viral moment from her 2020 documentary 'Miss Americana' where they wrote the song together. Swift was initially carrying her cat Meredith at the start of the video before placing the feline down to finish the tune with Antonoff, who screamed as the clip ended.
'rep forever guilt free listening!' Antonoff captioned the post.
After re-recording four of her albums, including 'Fearless,' 'Speak Now,' 'Red' and '1989,' Swift addressed in her May 30 letter to fans whether she would be re-releasing the rest of her first six albums to complete the project.
'What about Rep TV? Full transparency: I haven't even re-recorded a quarter of it,' Swift wrote on her website. 'The Reputation album was so specific to that time in my life, and I kept hitting a stopping point when I tried to remake it…To be perfectly honest, it's the one album in those first 6 that I thought couldn't be improved upon by redoing it. Not the music, or the photos, or the videos. So I kept putting it off.'
However, Swift shared, 'I've already completely re-recorded my entire debut album, and I really love how it sounds now.'
Whether fans will get to hear 'Taylor's Version' of those two albums — or even just the vault tracks — remains unknown, with the singer writing, 'But if it happens, it won't be from a place of sadness and longing for what I wish I could have. It will just be a celebration now.'
After working with Swift on several tracks from 2014's '1989,' Antonoff and Swift kicked off a long partnership of co-writing and producing her subsequent albums, including 'Reputation,' 'Lover,' 'Folklore,' 'Evermore,' 'Midnights' and several songs on her most recent record, 'The Tortured Poets Department.'
During an October 2023 appearance on 'Sunday Sitdown with Willie Geist,' Antonoff opened up about his friendship and working relationship with Swift over the decades, including why he thinks they work so well together.
'That relationship has gone on and on and on and I think we've just pushed each other endlessly,' Antonoff explained. 'I could quantify our relationship in very reductive ways about the things we agree on, the sounds we like, but the truth is, we've just grown together. She's put an amazing amount of belief in me.'
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Scotsman
2 days ago
- Scotsman
Taylor Swift's Versions: did the re-recordings outperform the original works leading to a sale?
Did the Taylor's Version album releases lead to Shamrock Capital's hand being forced to sell her masters? Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Swifties have been celebrating over the weekend after news broke that Taylor Swift now owns the masters to her first six records. The deal also sees videos, concert films, album art, photography, unreleased songs from those albums now in Swift's ownership. So, did the practice of releasing 'Taylor's Versions' lead to a drop in revenue for the firm due to dwindling streaming returns? After years of acrimony and re-recording albums to devalue the original masters, Taylor Swift is now the owner of her original recordings. An announcement was made last week (May 30) that the 1989 and Reputation singer had bought the rights to the masters of her original six albums from Shamrock Capital, who acquired the recordings in a deal with Scooter Braun's Ithaca Holdings in 2020. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad However, the original deal was structured to ensure that Braun (and Ithaca Holdings) would continue to profit from her old musical catalogue for many years. This profit stream for Braun was a major point of contention for Taylor Swift and fuelled her determination to pursue her re-recordings. Did the re-recording of some of Taylor Swift's earlier albums lead to Shamrock Capital having no other choice but to sell her masters back to her due to streaming revenue? | Getty Images/Canva/Spotify Consequently, Swift initially declined an offer from Shamrock to partner, stating that Braun's continued financial participation was a 'non-starter' for her. She expressed that she couldn't 'in good conscience bring myself to be involved in benefiting Scooter Braun's interests.' But after several years and back-and-forth, coupled with the successes of Taylor's Versions, the singer bought back the rights for an estimated $300 million to $360 million. This was a direct purchase deal, rather than 'earning back' the rights to the previous works through new album sales. Crediting her fanbase after her victory, Swift stated that she still intends to release the re-recorded versions of her debut album and Reputation, but 'from a place of celebration now.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad So, how much of an effect did Taylor's Versions have on the original Big Red Machine recordings, and was it enough to force the hand of Shamrock Capital and, by proxy, Scooter Braun? Did Taylor's Versions earn more streams than her original albums in the end? To compare Taylor Swift's original recordings with her new Taylor's Versions, we analysed Spotify streaming statistics provided by Kworb. We specifically cross-referenced releases that are available on streaming services, encompassing both sets of recordings from her battle for the masters. Fearless Original (Main Version): Fearless - 2,961,959,672 streams Taylor's Version: Fearless (Taylor's Version) - 4,961,308,265 streams Difference: +2.00 Billion streams Red Original (Main Version): Red (Deluxe Edition) - 3,746,587,693 streams Taylor's Version: Red (Taylor's Version) - 6,304,100,156 streams Difference: +2.56 Billion streams Speak Now Original (Main Version): Speak Now (Deluxe Package) - 3,557,666,436 streams Taylor's Version: Speak Now (Taylor's Version) - 3,286,728,208 streams Difference: -0.27 Billion streams 1989 Original (Main Version): 1989 (Deluxe) - 9,130,478,775 streams Taylor's Version: 1989 (Taylor's Version) - 5,252,299,630 streams Difference: -3.88 Billion streams Why hasn't the Taylor's Version of 1989 or Speak Now eclipsed the original versions? There are a couple of key reasons why 1989 (Taylor's Version) and Speak Now (Taylor's Version) haven't yet surpassed the streaming levels of their original counterparts. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad One of the biggest reasons stems from their respective release dates: 1989 (Taylor's Version) and Speak Now (Taylor's Version) debuted in 2023, while their original releases came out in 2014 and 2010, respectively. As two massively popular albums that appeared on countless playlists, the original master recordings have a significant advantage in cumulative streams due to their longer time on the market – for now, at least. For years, the original versions of these mega-hits were the only ones available for streaming, and so they likely reside in countless user-created playlists, curated Spotify playlists, and are the versions people naturally sought out for a very long time. The albums that haven't been eclipsed yet are simply fighting against a longer history of accumulated streams and the immense, enduring popularity that their original versions cultivated over years in a heavily streaming-dominated era. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Given time and continued fan support, it's very possible that Speak Now (Taylor's Version) and 1989 (Taylor's Version) will eventually surpass their original counterparts in total streams, as part of Swift's strategy to re-release her music now that she owns her masters. Did you add the newer versions of Taylor Swift's catalogue to your playlists when they were released, or are you still using the original album versions? Let us know your thoughts on the sale and what you think Taylor will do next by leaving a comment down below.
NBC News
3 days ago
- NBC News
Taylor Swift and Jack Antonoff re-create iconic moment to celebrate her historic masters purchase
Taylor Swift is enjoying her 'Reputation' era again after breaking the news that she now owns her master recordings. Swift announced in a May 30 letter on her website that after re-recording four of her albums — dubbed 'Taylor's Version' — she bought back all of her masters, including her 2006 self-titled debut and 2017's 'Reputation.' Swift's longtime friend and producer, Jack Antonoff, shared a video of the duo on X the night of May 30 as they enjoyed a 'guilt free' listen of 'Reputation' to celebrate the news. In the clip, Swift and Antonoff sang the album's ninth track, 'Getaway Car' and re-created a viral moment from her 2020 documentary 'Miss Americana' where they wrote the song together. Swift was initially carrying her cat Meredith at the start of the video before placing the feline down to finish the tune with Antonoff, who screamed as the clip ended. 'rep forever guilt free listening!' Antonoff captioned the post. After re-recording four of her albums, including 'Fearless,' 'Speak Now,' 'Red' and '1989,' Swift addressed in her May 30 letter to fans whether she would be re-releasing the rest of her first six albums to complete the project. 'What about Rep TV? Full transparency: I haven't even re-recorded a quarter of it,' Swift wrote on her website. 'The Reputation album was so specific to that time in my life, and I kept hitting a stopping point when I tried to remake it…To be perfectly honest, it's the one album in those first 6 that I thought couldn't be improved upon by redoing it. Not the music, or the photos, or the videos. So I kept putting it off.' However, Swift shared, 'I've already completely re-recorded my entire debut album, and I really love how it sounds now.' Whether fans will get to hear 'Taylor's Version' of those two albums — or even just the vault tracks — remains unknown, with the singer writing, 'But if it happens, it won't be from a place of sadness and longing for what I wish I could have. It will just be a celebration now.' After working with Swift on several tracks from 2014's '1989,' Antonoff and Swift kicked off a long partnership of co-writing and producing her subsequent albums, including 'Reputation,' 'Lover,' 'Folklore,' 'Evermore,' 'Midnights' and several songs on her most recent record, 'The Tortured Poets Department.' During an October 2023 appearance on 'Sunday Sitdown with Willie Geist,' Antonoff opened up about his friendship and working relationship with Swift over the decades, including why he thinks they work so well together. 'That relationship has gone on and on and on and I think we've just pushed each other endlessly,' Antonoff explained. 'I could quantify our relationship in very reductive ways about the things we agree on, the sounds we like, but the truth is, we've just grown together. She's put an amazing amount of belief in me.'
Wales Online
4 days ago
- Wales Online
Taylor Swift 'bursts into tears' as she gives huge update on album after huge wait
Taylor Swift 'bursts into tears' as she gives huge update on album after huge wait Taylor Swift has announced that she has bought back the master recordings of her first six albums from Shamrock Capital after a prolonged battle Taylor Swift announced that she bought back her master recordings (Image: taylorswift/instagram ) Taylor Swift has finally done it - she now owns the master recordings of her first six albums, closing a chapter in a fight that's lasted more than six years. The deal ends her association with Shamrock Capital, who bought the catalogue from Scooter Braun in 2020. In a heartfelt message to fans, Taylor confirmed she now holds full ownership of her original albums: Taylor Swift, Fearless, Speak Now, Red, 1989, and Reputation. It's a full-circle moment for the artist, who's spent years re-recording her work and speaking out about artists' rights In a handwritten note to her supporters published on her website, Taylor wrote: "I'm trying to gather my thoughts into something coherent, but right now my mind is just a slideshow. A flashback sequence of all the time I daydreamed about, wished for, and pined away for a chance to get to tell this news." For the latest TV and showbiz gossip sign up to our newsletter The pop singer profusely thanked her fans for helping her fulfill her life-long dream (Image: taylorswift/instagram ) "All the times I was thiiiiiiiiiiis close, reaching out for it, only for it to fall through. I almost stopped thinking it could ever happen, after 20 years of having the carrot dangled and then yanked away. But that's all in the past now. I've been bursting into tears of joy at random intervals ever since I found that this is really happening. I really get to say those words. All of the music I've ever made ... now belongs ... to me." Taylor shared that as part of the deal, she had gained ownership of her music videos, concert films, album artwork, photographs, and previously unreleased tracks, reports the Mirror US. She added: "To say this is my greatest dream come true is actually being pretty reserved about it. To my fans, you know how important this has been to me - so much so that I meticulously re-recorded and released 4 of my albums, calling them Taylor's Version." The Grammy-winning artist extended her gratitude to her devoted followers for their fervent support of her re-recorded albums, as well as their contribution to making The Eras Tour a spectacular triumph. Taylor noted that the profits generated from her world tour enabled her to purchase back her musical repertoire. Taylor also noted: "I can't thank you enough for helping to reunite me with this art that I have dedicated my life to, but I have never owned until now. All I've ever wanted was the opportunity to work hard enough to be able to one day purchase my music outright with no strings attached, no partnership, with full autonomy. I will be forever grateful to everyone at Shamrock Capital for being the first people to ever offer this to me. ... My first tattoo just might be a huge shamrock in the middle of my forehead." Responding to the anticipation around a 'Reputation Taylor's Version', she admitted: "I know, I know. What about Rep TV? Full transparency. I haven't even re-recorded a quarter of it. The Reputation album was so specific to that time in my life, and I kept hitting a stopping point when I tried to remake it. "All that defiance, that longing to be understood while Feeling purposely misunderstood, that desperate hope, that shame-born snarl and mischief. To be perfectly honest, it's the one album in those first 6 that I thought couldn't be improved upon by redoing it. Not the music, or photos, or videos. So I kept putting it off. "There will be a time (if you're into the idea) for the unreleased Vault tracks from that album to hatch. I've already completely re-recorded my album, and I really love how it sounds now. Those 2 albums can still have their moments to re-emerge when the time is right, if that would be something you guys would be excited about. But if it happens, it won't be from a place of sadness and longing for what I wish I could have. It will just be a celebration now. "I'm extremely heartened by the conversations this saga has reignited within my industry among artists and fans. Every time a new artist tells me they negotiated to own their master recordings in their record contract because of this fight, I'm reminded of how important it was for all of this to happen." Taylor wrapped up her heartfelt note saying: "Thank you for being curious about something that used to be thought of as too industry-centric for broad discussion. You'll never know how much it means to me that you cared. Every single bit of it counted and ended us up here. Thanks to you and your goodwill, teamwork and encouragement, the best things that have ever been mine... finally actually are." She affectionately concluded her message to her supporters with "Elated and amazed, Taylor." Article continues below
