Taylor Swift got visibly emotional while sharing one of the most significant achievements of her career — buying back her master recordings — during an appearance on her boyfriend Travis Kelce’s New Heights podcast.
Joining Travis and his brother Jason Kelce on the August 13 episode, the 35-year-old superstar spoke candidly about the long journey toward owning her music. The So Highschool hitmaker explained that she had been setting aside money since her teenage years with one ultimate goal in mind: full ownership of her catalogue. “It’s usually the label that owns it, but I’ve always wanted this to happen,” she said.
Taylor recalled the painful turning point in 2018 when her masters were sold to Scooter Braun without her consent. “It ripped my heart out of my chest,” she admitted. That moment sparked the now-famous re-recording project, which she described as both a creative challenge and a deeply personal mission. “Owning my music was something I thought about every day — it was an intrusive thought.”
After the global success of the Eras Tour, Taylor reached out to Shamrock Capital, the then-owners of her masters. “I’m in the business of human emotion,” she said. “My lyrics are handwritten diary entries from my whole life… everything I’ve ever done is in this catalogue.”
When the deal was finalized, Taylor described collapsing to the floor in tears. Sharing the story of telling Travis, she laughed through the memory. “He was playing video games, put his headset down, and thought something was wrong. I just started sobbing — my legs couldn’t even hold me up. This changed my life.”
For Taylor, the milestone was more than a business victory — it was the reclaiming of her life’s work, now firmly in her own hands.