In a plot twist straight out of a revenge movie, Taylor Swift has finally bought back the rights to her first six albums—wresting them from the very woke corporate music machine that tried to control her legacy. After years of fighting behind the scenes, Swift now owns her entire music catalog outright, no strings attached.
The long-running saga began in 2019 when Scooter Braun, the pop industry powerbroker behind Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande, scooped up Big Machine Records in a deal that gave him control of Swift’s early masters. The move sparked outrage from Swift and her massive fanbase, who accused Braun and Big Machine founder Scott Borchetta of cutting her out of her own history.
At the time, Swift said she learned of the deal “as it was announced to the world”—and called it “manipulative,” “bullying,” and a “stripping of my life’s work.” From there, she launched an ambitious plan: re-record all six albums, under the defiant branding “Taylor’s Version,” to undercut the originals and take back her power.
And now? Mission accomplished. Swift took to Instagram to announce that she had officially bought back her masters from private equity firm Shamrock Capital, who had acquired the catalog from Braun in 2020. She didn’t just get her music—she got the videos, the art, the memories, the full archive.
“All of the music I’ve ever made... now belongs to me,” Swift wrote. “No partnership. Full autonomy.”
It’s a rare win for any artist in today’s industry, where woke executives and corporate overlords usually pull the strings. Swift may be a progressive icon in pop circles, but in this battle, she became an accidental poster child for artistic independence—and in doing so, exposed the hypocrisy of the very system that once cheered her on.
Behind the scenes, it’s no secret the modern music industry is run by gatekeepers who pride themselves on “equity” and “empowerment”—as long as they’re the ones cashing the checks. Swift’s fight exposed how little those values mean when control and profit are on the line.
Despite her own brand of woke politics, Swift’s move is a major blow to the industry's elite. By re-recording her work, dominating the charts, and ultimately buying back her catalog, she proved that no amount of boardroom maneuvering can compete with sheer determination—and a fan base willing to follow her to war.
While the pop world celebrates another “empowering moment,” the real story is this: Taylor Swift just beat the system at its own game. And this time, the house didn’t win.
"Taylor Swift 2010" by avrilllllla is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
