Taylor Swift took the world by storm in October of 2006 when her self-titled debut album was released. With songs like “Tim Mcgraw,” “Our Song,” and "Picture to Burn,” the beginning of a brand new life began for the Pennsylvania resident. Over the next 10 years, Swift would release 5 more studio albums; Fearless, Speak Now, Red, 1989, and Reputation. It wasn’t long before the young artist would start selling out stadiums, winning numerous awards, and touring the world. At the start of Swift’s career, she signed to Big Machine Records, which was previously owned by Scott Borchetta. On June 30th, 2019, just 2 months before the release of Taylor's 7th studio album Lover, Borchetta handed over Big Machine Records to Scooter Braun. 

But who is Scooter Braun? 

Scooter Braun, an American entrepreneur, is known for working with successful artists such as The Kid Laroi, Demi Lovato, Ariana Grande, Justin Beiber, and Kanye West. However, his personality doesn’t line up with his success. Prior to taking over Big Machine Records, Braun was known for publicly working with people who had bullied Swift in the past, as well as bullying her himself. Braun taking over Big Machine Records was possibly one of the worst things that could’ve happened to Swift’s career. The master recordings for her first 6 albums were sold for over $300 Million, and not to Taylor herself. The young woman did not take this lightly, and with the help of her fans, she was able to release her first album under her name.

Despite working with Swift for years prior to Braun’s overtake, Borchetta teamed up with Braun and told Taylor that she wasn’t allowed to sing any songs from her first 6 albums at her American Music Awards performance. This was Swift’s breaking point. From the early age of 10 years old, the world-famous blondie was writing songs, and 2 short years later she began learning guitar. Both now and then, she was able to capture her own feelings, as well as stories she’s created, and put them into songs. Taylor, along with millions of people worldwide, was furious that she didn’t have the rights to her own music. 

Following the release of Lover and the drama surrounding the AMA, Covid-19 put the world on pause. However, the pandemic did not put Taylor’s pen on pause. During quarantine, Swift released her 8th and 9th studio sister albums Folklore and Evermore, once again, finally under her name. But she didn’t stop there. Swift refused to hand over her music to someone who manipulated and bullied her for years, so with the help of Jack Antonoff and Aaron Dessner, the rerecording process began.