Taylor Swift's smart move that made her a 'billionaire' is scaring the music world

Swifties say Taylor Swift-Karma is real and the pop music legend’s genius clapback to record labels is prompting agencies to change their rules.

Her record-making music tour is on its way to becoming the highest-grossing concert tour in the U.S. But Taylor Swift became a billionaire thanks to her mastermind. Taylor’s huge success in re-recording her albums to allow her to ‘own’ her old music has set a precedent as companies are now imposing new rules to stop their artist from doing the same. So how exactly did Taylor manage to challenge the record company conglomerates?

Taylor Swift’s smart move that made her a ‘billionaire’

Tay Tay has joined the high-profile club of musical billionaires including Jay-Z, Rihanna, and more. But the catch is Tay’s billionaire status largely comes from her musical endeavors including her tours, album sales, merchandise, and digital streams.

While Rihanna or Jay-Z’s ‘side hustles’ contributed to their billionaire status, the 12-times-Grammy-winning celebrity proved to be a mastermind when it comes to the music business.

She gained the billionaire status after her latest re-recording album 1989 Taylor’s Version released worldwide breaking new records.

Music labels ‘scared’ of Taylor’s decision

Taylor’s quest to ‘own’ her music started years ago. The masters were released with Big Machine Records but later sold off without her consent. And it led to a revolution.

While many criticized the move, initially skeptical of how successful it will turn out to be, Swifties around the world showed once again that there is nothing ‘impossible’ for Taylor Swift.

The digital streams of her re-recorded albums along with physical sales led to her becoming a billionaire. But it also prompted record companies to make new rules. This is allegedly so they can stop artists from re-recording the albums within the first two or three decades of release.

Reports claim big music labels like Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, and Warner Music Group are now changing their contracts. Bosses reportedly expect new signees to wait 10, 15, or even 30 years before they can re-record an album if need be. They won’t be pulling a Taylor Swift for decades.

Emphasizing the bizarre new rules, Josh Karp, a music attorney who has seen the new restrictions in UMG contracts tells Billboard of the new clauses hidden in contracts.

He said: “I was just like, ‘What is this? This is strange. Why would we agree to further restrictions than we’ve agreed to in the past with the same label?’”

Gandhar Savur, attorney for Cigarettes After Sex echoes the sentiment. He revealed: “I recently did a deal with a very big indie that had a 30-year re-record restriction in it. Which obviously is much longer than I’m used to seeing.”

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