Taylor Swift continues her quest to own her music (while reshaping the recording industry, in the process) by re-recording and releasing her fifth studio album “1989 (Taylor’s Version)”. 

Re-released on Oct. 27, the much anticipated album has gained a massive following, resparking the attention Swift earned after the original release. “1989” was by far considered Taylor Swift’s greatest body of work at the time of its original release in 2014, so it’s no surprise that its re-release has garnered so much attention. 

While Swift’s previous four albums all had country elements, “1989” was her very first pop album, a major genre shift for the Nashville star. This record highlighted not only certain romantic entanglements of Swift’s, but most notably her relocation to New York and experiences with the media. This album truly was the beginning of a new era for the “Anti-hero” singer. 

Swift’s re-recordings come as a direct result of the bad blood between herself and her old management team. In 2019 Scott “Scooter” Braun, a music executive and manager, infamous for his connection to stars like Swift, Demi Lovato, Kayne West, Justin Bieber, and more, sold Taylor Swift’s masters of her first six albums without her involvement or consent. This was particularly cutting considering Swift expressed fervent interest in buying the rights to her own music. When these masters were sold, Swift was shut out of the conversation. This prompted the singer to create her own label and leave her old team at Big Machine Records behind entirely.

It wasn’t until 2021 that the 12-time Grammy award winner announced her plan to re-record all of her old albums, with her matured vocals, in order to own the music she wrote and created once and for all. She began her re-releases with her first Grammy winning album “Fearless” before quickly dropping “Red” additionally in 2021. In 2022 Swift directed and starred in a short film music video connected to the 10-minute version of her cult favorite song “All Too Well”.

In 2022 Swift released her 10th studio album “Midnights”, then began her Eras Tour in early 2023. July of 2023 saw the release of her third album “Speak Now”, and also teased at the release of her birth year album “1989”. Fans of Taylor Swift were ecstatic with this news, as “1989” has long been considered one of the best albums of Swift’s to date. 

The multi-talented 33-year-old shines diamond bright in the vocals of this newest re-recording. Where Swift’s younger voice often attempted to reach notes at the top of her range, this new version (Taylor’s Version) opts for slightly lower registers in favor of packing a mightier punch with her vocals. On this re-release (much like her other three re-recordings) Swift added in several additional songs that didn’t make the original cut. 

The five new-to-us songs are titled ““Sl*t!””, “Say Don’t Go”, “Now That We Don’t Talk”, “Suburban Legends”, and “Is It Over Now?” All five songs pair well with the original album, but each with their own sparkling quality that definitely showcases Swift’s matured talent along with her continued collaboration with producer Jack Antonoff. 

In “Sl*t” Swift makes a pass at the media that has long portrayed her as a serial dater, noting that she is always the one to take the heat when the relationships turn and break-ups happen. YouTuber “Favour” live-reacted to the album on Oct. 27. To the lyrics “Adorned with smoke on my clothes / Lovelorn and nobody knows / Love thorns all over this rose / I’ll pay the price you won’t” Favour remarked, “Double standards in society. We know it, we see it, we live with it, it’s true. ‘Cause why is it when a guy gets all the girls he’s a player, he has rizz (charisma), but when a girl does it she’s a sl*t?”

The other four songs all revolve around a relationship that seems filled with chemistry, but is fraught with issues of infidelity and fame. These are all subjects Swift is famous for tackling in her music, though “1989” is the first time listeners really got an inside look at what Swift’s take was on her own skyrocketing stardom, the cruel judgment of the media, and the misogyny that colors the world we live in. 

Though her album was only released a week ago, Swift has continued to make huge waves. As of Oct. 30 Taylor’s Version of “1989” has earned her more than 220 million streams, and sold the equivalent of 550,000 album units in the first three days of its public release, according to Billboard. Swift continues to dominate the music industry, with millions of fans waiting with bated breath for her every maneuver. 

Though Swift has at times been a controversial figure, it is impossible to deny the massive success she has had in the music industry in her 17 year career, and knowing her stamina and creative drive are not slowing down we can only imagine where she will go from here. This album will thrill old fans as well as draw new ones into the fold. There is no doubt that this album will be talked about for months and years to come, even with two more re-recordings Taylor Swift has yet to release.