Debuting in the early 2000s, Taylor Swift made her mark in the music industry with her curly hair and country accent. Today, she's comfortably switching from genre to genre and breaking records left and right. But in between those records, she's got a (Taylor's Version) next to her re-recorded albums.
For Swifties, these versions are like opening a treasure chest filled with unreleased songs Taylor calls “From the Vault.” They're also filled with intriguing Easter eggs and a nostalgic trip back to her past eras.
Beyond all that fan service, there's a reason why Swift is re-recording her first six albums in the first place. And here's everything you need to know about (Taylor's Version) albums.
What are (Taylor's Version) albums?
To put it simply, (Taylor's Version) is all about Taylor Swift taking back ownership of her songs. This means she can call the shots on where to use it and collect the money they make.
Now, Taylor originally didn't own her first six albums — her self-titled debut album, Fearless, Speak Now, Red, 1989, and Reputation. She made these albums while she was still with Big Machine Records.
Later on, Scooter Braun purchased them, and Shamrock Capital has since taken control of her masters.
Why is she making the (Taylor's Version) albums?
For years, Swift has long been an advocate for artists' rights as an artist who writes her own albums herself. But when she signed with Big Machine Records for her debut, she was not allowed to own the master recordings of those albums.
To regain ownership of her masters, she had to give her old label one new album for every one they owned.
Fast forward to 2018, Swift left her old record label and signed with Republic Records. Along with her company Taylor Swift Productions, Inc. This new contract allowed her to own her future albums, with Lover being the first.
However, in 2019, Swift reveals on her Tumblr that her old record label sold the masters of her first six albums to Scooter Braun for a hefty $300 million.
This gave Braun control over the master recordings of her older music. If anyone wanted to use her old songs in TV shows, movies, or ads, they had to go through Braun and pay a fee.
This was deeply distressing to Swift, especially given Braun's association with Kanye West. It's worth remembering that Kanye and his now ex-wife, Kim Kardashian, publicly ‘canceled' Swift over a song she didn't approve of, called “Famous” due to its misogynistic undertone.
Unhappy with this situation, Swift decided to re-record her entire catalog before 2019.
By doing this, she could own the copyrights to the new recordings. This move would allow potential users to work directly with Swift, bypassing Braun, and granting Swift more control over her music.
Her old record label gave her the green light to re-record her albums five years after their original release. In 2019, she was allowed to re-record the first five. Reputation, which came out in 2017, will become fair game for her to re-record in 2022.
There's a twist, though; she had to make sure her re-recordings have a fresh sound, making everything brand new. That's why she now has (Taylor's Version) attached to each of her re-recorded albums.
Which (Taylor's Version) albums has she made?
Swift started re-recording her (Taylor's Version) albums in April 2021 with Fearless (Taylor's Version), her fresh take on her 2008 sophomore album.
Next up was Red (Taylor's Version), which hit the scene in October of the same year. This one made waves with its release of a new 10-minute-long version of Swift's beloved classic “All Too Well.” It went on to win a Grammy award too.
In July of this year, she treated fans to Speak Now (Taylor's Version) while on the “Eras” tour.
It was also during “Eras” tour when she announced 1989 (Taylor's Version), where she'll revisit one of her most critically-acclaimed albums. 1989 was a record that marked her transition from a crossover teen sensation to a fully-fledged adult artist.
1989 (Taylor's Version)
To build anticipation for the re-release, Swift used some marketing magic. Over a month before the album's October 27 release date, she made fans unlock vault tracks in Google search. There were 33 million riddles to solve, all tied to her 1989 era in 2014.
The very next day, Swifties successfully cracked the code and Taylor Swift unveiled her long-awaited vault tracks.
Before the October 27 release, Taylor Swift had already dropped “Wildest Dreams (Taylor's Version)” and “This Love (Taylor's Version)” on streaming platforms. Thanks to this, 1989 (Taylor's Version) racked up more than 600 million pre-release streams.
Taylor Swift's re-release of 1989 (Taylor's Version) faces a double challenge. First, it must surpass the iconic status of the original album, known for its memorable polaroids, pop anthems, chart-topping hits, and record-breaking sales and streams.
Second, it must also outperform her 10th studio album, Midnights. While Midnights was also a pop sensation, it achieved even higher sales and streams than 1989, which was already a massive success.
Which (Taylor's Version) albums does she still have to make?
As Taylor Swift gears up to release 1989 (Taylor's Version), she has just two more albums left to re-record. The first is her self-titled debut album, a country classic that solidified her legacy in the genre. The second is Reputation, an iconic cultural-reset album after the 2016 Kanye-Kim fiasco.
What (Taylor's Version) album is next?
While Swift takes a break from her “Eras” tour, fans are eagerly guessing whether Reputation or the self-titled Taylor Swift album will drop first. The last two re-recorded albums were announced during the tour, which adds to the anticipation.
Many think Reputation (Taylor's Version) will come first, especially after catching snippets of “Look What You Made Me Do” and “Delicate” used in movies.
However, Taylor herself has playfully referred to herself as “unhinged,” which means we can't be entirely sure which of the remaining albums will be released first. What we can trust is that it's bound to shatter records, as always.
1989 (Taylor's Version) will be released on October 27.
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