Taylor Swift reclaims music, buying back first six albums
In a post on her website on Friday, Swift announced: "All of the music I've ever made now belongs to me."
The pop star said she purchased her catalogue of recordings — originally released through Big Machine Records — from their most recent owner, the private equity firm Shamrock Capital.
She did not disclose the amount.
The singer's master recordings had been sold in 2019 by Hybe America CEO Scooter Braun, and the pop star said she was not given the opportunity to buy them at the time.
She rerecorded four of the albums with the subtitle "Taylor's Version".
Swift's rerecordings represent her effort to control her own songs and how they are used, a trend many musicians have been emboldened to follow.
In April, Australian musician Pete Murray announced on social media that he was releasing a new version of Better Days (Pete's Version), and that he was now an independent artist, rather than signed to a label.
"Taylor did it and I was thinking, 'Wow, that's how you do it,'" Murray said.
Swift's purchase includes videos, concert films, art, photography and unreleased materials, which are now under her control.
"I can't thank you enough for helping to reunite me with this art that I have dedicated my life to, but have never owned until now," Swift addressed fans in the post.
Fans have theorised that Reputation (Taylor's Version) would be the next album the singer will rerecord.
But according to the note shared on Friday, Swift said she had not "even rerecorded a quarter of it".
The singer announced that she had completely rerecorded her self-titled debut album, "and I really love how it sounds now".
Swift wrote that both her self-titled debut and Reputation (Taylor's Version), "can still have their moments to re-emerge when the time is right".
Representatives for Swift and HYBE did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
AP/Reuters
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