Image: Instagram/Taylor Swift
When Taylor Swift on the Speak Now album sang “there is nothing I do better than revenge”—she wasn’t kidding. This weekend, Swift announced that she has purchased the master recordings of her first six albums, the initial sale of which to a third party kicked off a re-recording revenge campaign.
Let’s rewind:
What does owning your masters mean? With the reported ~$360 million purchase from Shamrock Capital, Swift gains full control over how her music is used, distributed, and monetized. Masters are the original sound recording of a song from which all other copies are made.
Other stars are learning from Swift’s example: Olivia Rodrigo worked the ownership of her masters into her contract before signing with Geffen Records in 2020, while Zara Larsson bought back her catalog in 2022. Chappell Roan and Bad Bunny have also attested to having some of the best deals in modern music.
🏰 Get ready for a spunky new wizarding trio to rule your TV screens for the next decade. HBO has officially selected three Muggles to lead its upcoming Harry Potter series.
🍿 Disney’s Lilo & Stitch outpaced Mission: Impossible — Final Reckoning to lead a record-setting Memorial Day box office.
🚢 Cruise companies are pulling a reverse Paul Revere—$1 if by sea, $2 if by land. In an effort to drum up revenue, these businesses with ships the size of countries are increasingly focusing their efforts on land-based ventures located on private islands that they’ve purchased.
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