Taylor Swift’s music has been sold without her knowledge...again
Taylor Swift has confirmed the reports that her master rights to her music was sold without her knowledge for more than $300 million by Scooter Braun.
Earlier this week, Variety reported that Scooter Braun sold Swift's music to a private equity named Shamrock Holdings. The second time since Braun’s Ithaca Holdings LLC acquisition of Swift's former record label producer Big Machine Label Group (BMLG) in June 2019. This deal includes all of BMLG's recorded music assets, including Swift's first six albums. "The acquisition encompassed all aspects of BMLG’s business, including its client roster, distribution deals, publishing and owned artist masters," Variety wrote.
On November 17, Swift addressed the matter on Twitter to "clear things up." She wrote a statement to her fans saying that her team received a memo noting that 100% of her music, videos, and album art was indeed sold by the media proprietor, record executive and investor.
Been getting a lot of questions about the recent sale of my old masters. I hope this clears things up. pic.twitter.com/sscKXp2ibD
— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) November 16, 2020
The memo also revealed that Braun—who currently manages some of the biggest names in the industry like Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, and Usher—will continue to profit from Swift's music even after the sale. "I was hopeful and open to the possibility of a partnership with Shamrock, but Scooter'sparticipation is a non-starter for me," she wrote.
She also wrote in a letter to Shamrock that she cannot "in good conscience" bring herself to be involved with the deal. While it is a "shame" and it "pains" to know that her hardwork from years ago will be put in other people's hands, she will take on this sacrifice "to keep Scooter Braun out of [her] life."
Despite this debacle, Swift is staying positive, announcing that she is currently re-working on her older music and that she has "plenty of surprises in store."
Banner image from Taylor Swift's Instagram (@taylorswift)