Six years ago, Taylor Swift was left nothing short of bereft after her former label sold ‘her entire life’s work’ to music mogul Scooter Braun.
What transpired was one of the nastiest feuds in music history involving Swift and Braun, who controversially acquired the rights to Taylor’s material for $300million after buying Big Machine Media.
He then went on to sell the catalogue of her first six albums to private equity firm Shamrock Capital for profit.
But in a stunning moment of business brains versus Braun, Taylor has bought back ‘her entire life’s work’ – largely thanks to her lucrative Eras tour last year, but also a string of other profitable ventures.
The billionaire songstress, 35, could barely hold back her happiness as she announced yesterday ‘all my music I’ve ever made now belongs to me’ following an eye-watering buy-back deal thought to be in the hundreds of millions.
Sources close to the negotiations told MailOnline the recent figure touted of ‘between $600million-$1billion’ was ‘highly inaccurate’ and is believed to be closer to the figure Shamrock originally paid, at around $360million.
Taylor, who thanked Shamrock Capital for their ‘honest, fair and respectful’ way they handled the deal, said: ‘I really felt like they saw it for what it was to me: My memories and my sweat and my handwriting and my decades of dreams.’
She also joked: ‘My first tattoo might just be a huge shamrock in the middle of my forehead.’
Six years ago, Taylor Swift was left nothing short of bereft after her former label sold ‘her entire life’s work’ to music mogul Scooter Braun
In a stunning moment of business brains versus Braun, Taylor has bought back ‘her entire life’s work’ – largely thanks to her lucrative Eras tour last year
Taylor’s record-breaking Eras tour became the highest-grossing tour of all time after passing a staggering $2billion in revenue
The whopping sum represents a sizeable yet affordable chunk of the $1.6billion Taylor is said to have accumulated, according to Forbes.
Last October, the outlet reported she is now the world’s richest female music artist, having overtaken Rihanna, who owns the wildly-successful Fenty cosmetics and lingerie brand.
So just how has the Love Story singer launched herself into the billion-dollar stratosphere?
First and foremost, her record-breaking Eras tour became the highest-grossing tour of all time after passing a staggering $2billion in revenue.
Comprising of distinct ‘eras’ based on her 10 studio albums, the singer committed herself to a three-hour-long, 40 song setlist for each show.
Millions around the world – including A-listers, politicians and Royal Family members – flocked to see Taylor on a two-year tour that encompassed 149 shows.
But while her jaw-dropping schedule would have been more than enough for most to contend with, Taylor additionally busied herself with other projects over those 24 months.
The pop icon released re-recorded versions of Speak Now (July 2023) and 1989 (October) 2023 – announcing each release during tour dates, and accompanying them with music videos and never-before-heard songs.
Millions around the world – including A-listers, politicians and Royal Family members – flocked to see Taylor on a two-year tour that encompassed 149 shows
Comprising of distinct ‘eras’ based on her 10 studio albums, the singer committed herself to a three-hour-long, 40 song setlist for each show
Braun acquired the rights to Taylor’s material for $300m after buying Big Machine Media
In February 2024 she shocked fans after announcing in her victory speech for Album Of The Year at the Grammys that she would be releasing yet another album, The Tortured Poets Department (TTPD).
And that was not all: when TTPD was released last April, Taylor surprised Swifties by revealing it was a double album, meaning she effectively released the equivalent of four albums throughout the duration of the tour.
Using her business nous to the max, Taylor further monetised the tour by releasing a film, which streamed on Disney+, and a book, published by her own company, documenting her record-breaking concerts.
Secondly, her music catalogue itself has generated $600million in wealth for Taylor.
The 14-time Grammy Award winner has been releasing music since she was 15 and has 11 original studio albums, including six that Braun had bought the rights to in 2019.
Taylor, who branded the mogul a ‘bully’ for his tactics, claims she was unaware of his plan and alleged that when she previously approached Big Machine label head Scott Borchetta about buying her masters he would only sell them to her one at a time, starting from her earliest, least-profitable recordings.
In exchange for the option to buy the masters back, Taylor claimed she would have to record a new album for the label in exchange for each old recording she bought, shackling her to Big Machine for years to come.
The singer posted an emotional Tumblr at the time telling fans she made the ‘excruciating choice to leave behind my past.
While her jaw-dropping tour schedule would have been more than enough for most to contend with, Taylor additionally busied herself with other projects over the last two years
Taylor surprised fans by releasing a staggering four albums while her Eras tour was running
Now that her music is back under her control, Taylor’s royalties and income from her music could skyrocket further
‘Music I wrote on my bedroom floor and videos I dreamed up and paid for from the money I earned playing in bars, then clubs, then arenas, then stadiums.’
She added: ‘Never in my worst nightmares did I imagine the buyer would be Scooter.
‘Any time Scott Borchetta has heard the words ‘Scooter Braun’ escape my lips, it was when I was either crying or trying not to.
‘He knew what he was doing; they both did. Controlling a woman who didn’t want to be associated with them. In perpetuity. That means forever.’
She added that when she heard the news: ‘All I could think about was the incessant, manipulative bullying I’ve received at his hands for years.’
Taylor then listed a string of examples accusing Kim Kardashian and Kanye West – then Braun’s client – of bullying.
Shamrock acquired the master recordings to Taylor Swift, Fearless, Speak Now, Red, 1989 and Reputation – which Taylor has now regained ownership of.
But prior to that she had begun a campaign to re-record her first six albums and has released the first four in recent years.
Prior to regaining control of her music, Taylor began a campaign to re-record her first six albums and has released the first four in recent years
Taylor is rumoured to be looking into buying a home with NFL star boyfriend Travis Kelce
Reputation (Taylor’s Version) was heavily tipped to be her next release and the singer addressed the rumors in her open letter, saying it’s the ‘one album I thought couldn’t be improved upon by redoing it’ but teased she may still record another version, as well as offer up ‘unreleased Vault tracks’ from that album.
Taylor says she has re-recorded the entirety of her debut self-titled album which, like Reputation, will ‘re-emerge when the time is right.’
Now that her music is back under her control, Taylor’s royalties and income from her music could skyrocket further.
Last but not least, Taylor’s third significant source of income is said to come from her impressive property portfolio, which Forbes estimates to be worth around £125million.
The pop superstar first embarked on the property ladder in 2009 at the tender age of 19 when she snapped up with a three-bedroom penthouse in Nashville for $1.99m.
Now Taylor boasts further homes in New York, California and Tennessee after opting for several stunning properties with fascinating histories.
Most recently, the star revealed plans to expand her ocean-front estate in Rhode Island.
After splashing out $17.75 million on the home in 2013, the Cruel Summer hitmaker plans to drop a further $1.7 million on a grand renovation.
Taylor’s third significant source of income is said to come from her impressive property portfolio, which Forbes estimates to be worth around £125million
Elsewhere, new reports claim the singer is eyeing up property in Kansas City, Missouri, as Taylor allegedly looks into buying a home with NFL star boyfriend Travis Kelce.
As for where Taylor’s business acumen comes from, one does not have to look far to see where her natural nous comes from – with the singer heaping praise on her own parents for helping launch her to stardom.
Her father Scott, 73, has played a key role in his daughter’s business management team over the years.
He is a longtime Merrill Lynch (a Bank of America company) employee, whose registered investment adviser The Swift Group is based in the family’s hometown of Wyomissing, Pennsylvania.
A disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission lists him as linked to 10 companies affiliated with his daughter, according to Bloomberg.
This includes merchandising and rights-management businesses and entities that own her tour bus, two private jets and real estate.
Meanwhile her mother Andrea, 73, is a former marketing executive described as ‘calculated, logical, and business-minded’.
