Fearless Taylor Swift strikes back. The Grammy-winning superstar had a successful showing of her "City of Lover" concert over ABC on May 17, Sunday. She then immediately released the live versions of some songs from her tracklist taken from the Paris concert on streaming platforms.
Last month, the singer-songwriter was alerted by her loyal Swifties that her former label has streamed a live album. The "Live from Clear Channel Stripped 2008" album went out in mid-April without her knowledge and approval. The album, which has not been released previously, was confirmed by the singer that it contains the live recordings a 2008 radio show performance she did with Clear Channel when she was 18 years old. Big Machine Label Group, where she used to have a contract, allegedly "listed the date as a 2017 release," as Taylor wrote on her IG story.
The radio show took place as a promotional gig for the album "Fearless." Swift shared a mouthful on her IG, decrying it as "another case of shameless greed in the time of Coronavirus." The "unauthorized" album consisting of 8 songs did not even create a ripple to the listening public. There were no significant sales or streams enough to make its appearance on the Billboard chart.
The "Blank Space" singer had a fall-out from the former label, Big Machine after she ended her business with them. Swift was the recording company's first contract artist when she signed with them at the young age of 15. In 2010, music manager Scooter Braun and other investors bought out the record label, and part of the deal was the acquisition of the extensive back catalog of Swift.
With Braun and company holding on to Swift's massive collection, they have complete control of her songs, and they can do whatever they want with or without the artist's awareness and permission. Since the group holds the right, expect more of her works to find its way in the air at the back of the "I Knew You Were Trouble" pop star.
The "City of Lover" show held in September 2019 was an intimate, laid-back concert with a specially chosen audience of die-hard Swifties. The one-night concert, filmed at L'Olympia Theater in Paris, showcased Swift in her raw, stripped-down version singing several of her new songs over her acoustic guitar or with a piano.
Most of the tracks she performed during the acoustic set were part of her seventh studio "Lover" album. After the one-hour TV special was broadcasted, she immediately released for some of the live tracks on all streaming platforms. It was the singer's way to share with her followers more of her music and could be her self-vindication of getting back at Braun and others. Her move overshadowed her unapproved album.
Surefire hits from the Lover (Live from Paris) that were uploaded for streaming are "Lover," "Daylight," "ME!" "Cornelia Street," "Death by A Thousand Cuts," "You Need to Calm Down," and "The Archer." Another single, the live version "The Man," was the first one to be released in February 2020.
Expect the feud between Swift and Braun to unfold more in the future. But as the "Shake It Off" singer declared before that, if they keep on calling out on her, she will keep on singing back to them.
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