On Friday, October 27th, Taylor Swift released her newest album 1989 (Taylor’s Version). Her fourth re-recorded album. The response from the fans was tremendously supportive. After just three days, it ranked as the second most listened to album of the year. A major accomplishment. On top of that, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) is the topmost listened to album of the year. Whether you’re a fan of hers or not, Taylor Swift’s influence on the music industry and her fans is worth noting.
The original album, 1989 was Swift’s pop music debut. Released in 2014, it spent five weeks as number one on the Billboard 200. There is no doubt that it was already an extremely liked album. So why rerelease it? Well, she does not actually own the rights to the original album. Scooter Braun does. He was formerly Swift’s manager and companion. Until reportedly in 2019, he sold her six albums for $3 million dollars without her knowledge. He still earns commission for every single listen of them. She has addressed this publicly and is now rerecording and rereleasing all six of her previously owned albums. Doing this under a new record label allows her to own all the rights to the albums and earn most of the proceeds.
In 1989 (Taylor’s Version), there is the main, original soundtrack plus 5 “vault tracks”. A vault track is a song not previously released by Taylor Swift but written at the same time as the original album. This concept is widely liked by fans and promotes more streams on her rerecordings. The anticipation for this album after its surprise announcement on 8/9 (get it, because 1989) was high. It certainly did not disappoint. Fans are raging on social media platforms, rating it five stars. Many fans make sure to place emphasis on their excitement about the vault tracks. I believe the album’s success will only continue to rise in the next few months.
To give you an idea about the fans’ reactions, here are some statistics about 1989 (Taylor’s Version). The album sold 1.1 million copies in just the U.S. after its first six days of release. It is already her most successful first week of any of her rerecorded albums. And, it has become this year’s best-selling album. Passing her other albums Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) and Midnights. Taylor Swift’s influence on the music industry this year has grown rapidly. And with her tour and movie, she is projected to become a billionaire. Only the second woman to do this. This album is successful and brings fans a good sense of nostalgia from the original album. It also conveys a message that it is not too late to take back what is yours. I am beyond excited to see the future growth of 1989 Taylor’s Version and Taylor Swift herself.
