Taylor Swift’s music cannot be denied, contained or banned from TikTok.
TikTok users woke up on Thursday, April 11, to discover that the music she released under Universal Music Group was back on the streaming platform. Swift, 34, and other UMG artists had their music yanked from the platform in late February after the label and the social media platform couldn’t agree on royalty rates. Now, roughly a month later, Swift’s music has returned.
“MY TAYLOR SWIFT EDIT AUDIOS ARE BACK ON TIKTOK,” shouted one jubilant fan on X. “We won!” said fan X account@TheSwiftSociety, showing that songs from Lover, Folklore, and the Taylor’s Versions of 1989 and Red were available. Over on TikTok, fans commented on how Swift “IS THE MUSIC INDUSTRY.” They theorized that, with her 11th studio album, The Tortured Poets Department, arriving in a week, having her music unavailable for use wouldn’t fly.
Other fans speculated that Swift’s ownership of the master recordings of her UMG albums — Lover, Folklore, Evermore, and all the Taylor’s Versions re-recordings — allowed her to negotiate independently with TikTok to restore her music. But a few TikTok users noted that other UMG artists like Olivia Rodrigo and Bad Bunny also had their music restored. Us Weekly reached out to UMG for comment on this development.
Whether Swift or UMG brokered a deal, fans were happy. Some celebrated the return by posting videos of them lip-syncing to songs like “Cruel Summer.” Others exclaimed that their videos that used Swift’s music weren’t muted anymore (though some noted “not all of [her songs] are” back on the platform).
Swift and other artists’ music vanished from TikTok after the platform and UMG failed to reach a new licensing deal. In an open letter, UMG claimed that TikTok “proposed paying our artists and songwriters at a rate that is a fraction of the rate that similarly situated major social platforms pay.” UMG said the social media platform barely compensates artists and songwriters, claiming “TikTok accounts for only about 1% of our total revenue” despite its “massive and growing user base.”
TikTok responded by saying UMG was putting “their own greed above the interests of their artists and songwriters.” The social media platform claimed that, with “well over a billion users,” it acts as a “free promotional and discovery vehicle for [UMG’s] talent.” TikTok also said it’s been able to establish an “artist-first” agreement with every other label and publisher and claimed that UMG was not acting “in the best interests of artists, songwriters and fans.”
With Swift’s music back on TikTok, users will now be able to make videos showing their reactions to The Tortured Poets Department. The recently minted billionaire’s new album, released through Republic Records (a subsidiary of UMG), arrives on April 19.
