Taylor Swift Bolts Big Machine Group For Multi-Year Deal With Universal Music Group

Emma McIntyre/TAS18/Getty Images for TAS – Taylor Swift
at NRG Stadium in Houston Sept. 29.

Taylor Swift inked a new global recording deal with Universal Music Group, leaving her longtime label Big Machine Records. UMG’s Republic Records will serve as her U.S. label partner.

Swift’s deal with Scott Borchetta’s Big Machine Records ended earlier this month, according to Variety. While BMR released all of Swift’s previous music, Universal served as her distributor. The deal was the subject of industry speculation for months.

“Few artists in history approach Taylor Swift’s combination of massive global hits and creative brilliance. She is so multi-talented, she can achieve anything,” Universal Chairman/CEO Lucian Grange said in making the Nov. 19 announcement of the mulit-year, exclusive deal.

“I have such enormous respect for Taylor, in particular for her use of her hard-earned influence to promote positive change. Because of her commitment to her fellow artists, not only did she want to partner with a company that understood her creative vision and had the resources and expertise to execute globally on her behalf, she also sought a partner whose approach to artists was aligned with hers.

“With these shared beliefs, there is so much we can accomplish together, and all of us at UMG are enormously proud to be embarking on the next chapter of her career alongside her.”

Republic Records founder and CEO Monte Lipman added, “Taylor has not only captured the imagination of an entire generation, but has also redefined the paradigm of the modern music industry.

“Her commitment to songwriting and performing has earned her the respect of her peers and millions of adoring fans around the world. I can only imagine what Taylor is capable of achieving in the years to come, both culturally and creatively. I’m beyond thrilled to create an alliance with Republic Records and the incomparable Taylor Swift.”

Swift has won 10 Grammy Awards, and is the  youngest recipient of the Grammy for Album of the Year, which she’s won twice – the first female to do so. She’s the only artist with four albums to sell more than 1 million albums in the first week and her latest, Reputation, is reported to be the top-selling album of 2018. 

She’s no slouch on the concert trail, either. Her Reputation stadium tour is certain to land near the top of Pollstar‘s Top 100 Tours chart when its released next month. The trek began May 5 and of the 32 shows reported to Pollstar, she sold north of 2.6 million tickets, averaging 82,386 per market appearance and a gross of $9,849,157. 

Booked by AEG Presents partner Messina Touring Group, Swift has most recently been touring Australia and has two shows coming up at the Tokyo Dome in Japan.