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The Reasons Why Taylor Swift is Rerecording Her Albums
Ever since she was a little girl, Taylor dreamed of being a famous country singer. Read about her journey to the top....
A Short History
Taylor Swift's first album, named after herself, was released in 2006 through Big Machine Records and she quickly rose to fame. So why is Taylor Swift now rerecording her albums?
Let's start from the beginning. Ever since she was a little girl, she dreamed of being a famous country singer. She finally got her big break at just sixteen years old when she debuted in the industry.
Her family relocated to Nashville permanently when she was 14 years old so that she could follow her dream of obtaining a record deal. In 2005, while playing one of her own songs at BlueBird Cafe in Nashville, Taylor caught the attention of Scott Brochetta who signed her for his independent label called Big Machine Records. This is how her first album, Taylor Swift, came into existence in 2006.
Taylor Swift's Music Career
After her debut album, Taylor Swift's next album Fearless came out in 2008 and she broke numerous records. While receiving an award and giving her speech at the show, Kanye West rudely interrupted her which started a decade-long feud between the two artists.
Taylor's second country album, Speak Now, was released in 2010. After that, she explored different techniques with her music and soon gained popularity in the pop genre as her sound changed. Red came out in 2012 and was quickly associated with celebrities such as Jake Gyllenhaal, Connor Kennedy, and Harry Styles.
The Relationship Between Taylor and Her Record Label
Her success mirrored that of her record Big Machine Records. Owner Scott Brochetta was the first to recognize her talent and give her a record deal for songs she had written herself. Over the years of their contract, it appeared as though Taylor and her label had a positive relationship.
As time passed, it became clear that the family was not as happy as they seemed from the outside. Once Taylor's agreement with the record label ended, she started speaking up about being denied ownership of her music. According to their contract, Red Machine owns all the master recordings of her music and will continue to make money off it long after she is gone.
Leaving Big Machine Records
In November 2018, Taylor announced that she was leaving Big Machine Records after Scott Borchetta sold it to Scooter Braun. With the label went ownership of her old portfolio, and she was unable buyback her hard work and career.
For years, Taylor has been asking to buy her own records, but Scott maintained that she could only earn one album back by releasing a new one.
Rerecording Her Previous Albums
After releasing three additional albums, Lover, Folklore, and Evermore, Taylor Swift announced she will re-record her own songs so she can maintain ownership of all the work she has done for the past two decades. To fans' excitement, she also announced that many songs which couldn't previously make it to the albums will be released as well.
This announcement caused a ripple effect in the music industry as artists became more aware of how important it is to own their music and how record labels can end up being conniving and exploitative.
The public greeted her re-recording of her discography with overwhelming positivity, as did other artists. This is likely because she has been nothing but honest and transparent about the process.
Fearless And Red (Taylor's Versions)
Many fans were surprised when Taylor Swift released her own versions of her older albums. These new versions included many tracks which hadn't been heard before, like Mr.Perfectly Fine, Right Where You Left Me, and You All Over Me.
In November 2021, she finally released the long-awaited version of Red which included the heavily rumored ten-minute opus All Too Well. The original short film was written and directed by Taylor herself and featured Sadie Sink and Dylan O'Brien. Its success changed the entire landscape of popular music trends.
Do you think that Taylor Swift's rerecording of her old albums has positively or negatively affected music and the industry as a whole?
