So once again, Taylor Swift has found herself in a huge media scandal. For those of you who don't know about Swift's situation, it's probably the biggest scandal to happen in the music world right now, but it's definitely not the first of its kind. Before discussing the scandal, it's important to understand how the music industry operates and the importance of who owns the "master" recording.
When artists sign deals with record companies, they are given a cash advance before recording the album; they are also able to receive royalties after the release. And although these cash advances can sometimes seem enticing, by signing a contract with a record label, it usually comes with heavy strings attached. Not only does it prevent artists from recording with other labels, but usually, the artist is also signing away the full rights to the master recording of the songs. The master recording is important, because it is where all of the copies are made. The owner of the master track also is the first to receive the payment whenever the track is streamed or downloaded.
Unless an artist has established him or herself as an international star, this is how most artists have to record their music. And although Taylor Swift is one of the biggest stars in the music industry, she signed her first record deal as a fifteen-year-old girl with little knowledge of how the industry worked. The first deal she signed gave Big Machine Records ownership of her first six albums, Taylor Swift, Fearless, Speak Now, RED, 1989, and reputation. In a recent deal, Big Machine Records was just signed over to talent manager Scooter Braun, who is known for managing some of Swift's biggest tormentors like Justin Bieber, Kanye West, and Demi Lovato.
Looking beyond the fact that Braun will now be profiting off of Swift despite being known to bully her, people criticizing Swift seem to be missing the bigger picture.
Swift was criticized by the previous owner of Big Machine Records, Scott Borchetta, where he claimed that she was given the opportunity to buy her music back. And although she was, the deal had strings attached to it. The deal Borchetta gave Swift was that she can gain the ownership of an album for every new album she presents them. Swift decided to sign a contract based on her future rather than her past and declined to resign with Big Machine Records and instead signed with Republic Records and Universal Music Group. She was never given the opportunity to buy back her work.
This Artist vs. Corporatescenario is definitely not the first of its kind; it has happened to other notable musicians like Paul McCartney and Prince. This is also why many artists such as Beyonce, Miley Cyrus, Katy Perry, and Rihanna have decided to stand with Taylor Swift on this issue, And people may say Swift and these artists are huge and make enough money already, but what about those smaller artists? If someone as big as Taylor Swift doesn't have the ownership to her own music, then who does?
I strongly believe that Swift's callout of Borchetta and Braun is not a plea for attention, but rather a call to change how the industry works and that it's time for the artists to start gaining the recognition they deserve. She has already led this movement back in 2015 when she persuaded Apple Music to pay music writers, producers, and singers for streamers' first free trial and with her new contract she signed in 2018, where she persuaded Universal Music Group to distribute the sale of their Spotify shares to their artists.
Although Swift has been a game changer in the industry for over a decade, I think her legacy is just beginning, and I look forward to seeing her positive influence on the corporate music industry.