Washington: Taylor Swift has officially regained control of her entire music catalog, buying back the master recordings of her first six studio albums — a move that brings a long and emotional journey to a triumphant close.
“All of the music I’ve ever made… now belongs… to me,” Swift announced in a heartfelt letter posted to her website Friday. “I’m trying to gather my thoughts into something coherent, but right now my mind is just a slideshow. As a flashback sequence of all the times I daydreamed about, wished for, and pined away for a chance to get to tell you this news.”
The singer-songwriter lost ownership of her early masters in 2019 when her former label, Big Machine, sold them to music executive Scooter Braun — a decision she publicly criticized, calling it the “worst-case scenario” and accusing Braun of “incessant, manipulative bullying.” Braun later sold the catalog to investment firm Shamrock Capital. Despite Braun’s claim in a 2021 interview with Variety that he had offered to sell the masters back to Swift, her team reportedly declined.
Now, six years later, Swift has reclaimed what she considers a deeply personal part of her artistic legacy.
“I almost stopped thinking it could happen, after 20 years of having the carrot dangled and then yanked away. But that’s all in the past now,” she wrote. “I’ve been bursting into tears of joy at random intervals ever since I found out that this is really happening.”
Swift expressed immense gratitude to her fans, the Swifties, crediting their “passionate support” of her re-recorded albums and blockbuster Eras Tour for helping her make the purchase possible.
In a strategic effort to reclaim her work, Swift began re-recording her old albums under the “Taylor’s Version” banner. She released Fearless and Red in 2021, followed by Speak Now and 1989 in 2023. The effort not only restored her creative autonomy but also sparked a broader conversation in the music industry about artists’ rights.
Her Eras Tour, which concluded in Vancouver in December 2024, spanned nearly two years, covering 50 cities across five continents in 149 shows — widely hailed as the most lucrative concert tour in music history.
“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,” she wrote.
Fans have long awaited the re-recorded versions of Taylor Swift and Reputation, affectionately dubbing the anticipation “Debutation.” On Friday, Swift revealed she has completed recording her debut album, which includes early hits like “Teardrops On My Guitar” and “Tim McGraw,” but admitted she’s only just begun working on Reputation, which features fan favorites like “Delicate” and “Look What You Made Me Do.”
“These albums can still have their moment to re-emerge when the time is right,” she teased.
With this latest victory, Swift not only reclaims her voice — she redefines what artistic ownership means in a new era of music.
