May 30, 2025 10:03 PM IST
Taylor Swift on Friday announced that she has successfully acquired the master recordings of her first six albums
Taylor Swift on Friday announced that she has successfully acquired the master recordings of her first six albums—Taylor Swift (2006), Fearless (2008), Speak Now (2010), Red (2012), 1989 (2014), and Reputation (2017)—from Shamrock Capital. In an emotional handwritten letter posted on her website, the Grammy winner said: “All of the music I’ve ever made now belongs to me.”
This ends a high-profile ownership dispute between Swift and Scooter Braun and Shamrock Capital. The ‘Love Story’ singer had been fighting to regain control of her music after Scooter Braun’s Ithaca Holdings purchased Big Machine Label Group (BMLG) for $330 million in 2019, and subsequently sold the masters to Shamrock Capital for $405 million in November 2020.
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How much did Taylor Swift pay for the masters?
While Swift did not disclose the terms of the deal, Billboard cited sources to report that she paid a price close to the $360-million price tag Shamrock paid back in 2021.
“We are thrilled with this outcome and are so happy for Taylor,” Shamrock Capital said in a statement. This comes years after Taylor Swift started re-recording and releasing her first six albums in an attempt to regain control of her music.
Taylor Swift vs Scooter Braun
In June 2019, Braun’s Ithaca Holdings acquired BMLG, including Swift’s masters, for $330 million. Swift claimed she was not informed of the sale and was denied a fair opportunity to buy her masters.
In November 2020, Braun sold the masters to Shamrock Capital for $405 million. Swift alleged Braun required Shamrock to withhold communication with her until the deal was complete and rejected an equity partnership with Shamrock because Braun would continue to profit.
Starting in November 2020, the pop star re-recorded four of her six albums, releasing Taylor’s Version editions that outperformed the originals.
In between re-recordings, Taylor Swift has released new music, including last year’s ‘The Tortured Poets Department’, announced during the 2024 Grammys and released during her record-breaking tour.
