After nearly two decades in the music industry, Taylor Swift can finally say what she’s been fighting for since 2019: she owns all her music. In a surprise announcement posted to her website on May 30, Taylor revealed that she officially bought back the original masters of her first six albums – those recorded before she left Big Machine Records – from investment firm Shamrock Capital.
If you’ve been following Taylor for a while, you know how personal this victory is. Back in 2019, her masters were sold to Scooter Braun’s Ithaca Holdings without her knowledge, in a deal she described as her “worst case scenario.” As you may know, she began rerecording the albums as “Taylor’s Version” releases so she could be in control of her own art.
But now? It’s official. Taylor not only owns all her re-recordings, but the originals too – including music videos, concert films, photos, and even unreleased tracks. According to reports, the deal cost her more than $300 million, but to Taylor (and to Swifties across the globe, including myself), it’s absolutely priceless.
And to address the elephant in the room – yes, I did think she was going to drop Reputation (Taylor’s Version) at the AMAs on May 26. But, this was even better. It’s been a long time coming, and I couldn’t be a prouder fan.
To celebrate, I’m ranking my top three songs from each original album (which we can now listen to guilt-free!). Keep in mind, my favorites change all the time, as is the life of a Swiftie.
Debut
3. Mary’s Song (Oh My My My)
To be completely honest, I wasn’t fully familiar with this song until I was preparing for potential surprise songs for the Eras Tour in 2023. But once I listened to it all the way through, it skyrocketed to one of my favorites on Debut. It’s such a sweet, romantic song – and can we talk about how it kind of describes her relationship with Travis? She’s not beating the mastermind allegations anytime soon.
Favorite lyric: “I’ll be eighty-seven; you’ll be eighty-nine / I’ll still look at you like the stars that shine”
2. Picture To Burn
I have a vivid memory of my best friend’s Taylor Swift Barbie (decked out in a hat and guitar) belting out this song when you pressed a button on her back, and I’ve loved it ever since. It’s such a classic, country Taylor moment, and the sassiness makes it an impeccable early song.
Favorite lyric: “There’s nothing stopping me / From going out with all of your best friends”
1. Our Song
This one will always have a special place in my heart, since I sang it at a recital when I was nine. It’s nostalgic, catchy, and one of the first songs that got me into Taylor’s music. I also can’t believe how clever the lyrics are, considering how young she was. But it’s Taylor – why am I surprised?
Favorite lyric: “Our song is a slammin’ screen door / Sneakin’ out late, tappin’ on your window”
Fearless
3. The Way I Loved You
I’ve always loved this one, and its appearance in The Summer I Turned Pretty season 1 made me love it even more – it perfectly captures Belly and Conrad’s dynamic in both the books and the show.
Favorite lyric: “I miss screaming and fighting and kissing in the rain / It’s 2 a.m. and I’m cursing your name”
2. You Belong With Me
This one brings back a vivid memory of four-year-old me scream-singing it into a pink plastic microphone while running around the kitchen. It was one of my childhood faves, and I’ll always love it. Plus, as a full-circle moment, my big/little reveal for my sorority was themed after the “You Belong With Me” music video – plaid PJ pants, signature-covered white T-shirt, the whole nine yards.
Favorite lyric: “Standing by and waiting at your back door / All this time, how could you not know, baby?”
1. Forever and Always
I LOVE this song, and it consistently ranks in my top five Taylor songs ever. It’s one of those tracks I can cry to and dance around in my room to – depending on my mood.
Favorite lyric: “So here’s to everything coming down to nothing / Here’s to silence, that cuts me to the core”
Speak Now
3. Better Than Revenge
I couldn’t not include this one, now that we can finally listen to the original “She’s better known for the things that she does on the mattress” line (sorry Taylor, the moth-to-a-flame line just didn’t hit the same). It’s chaotic, extremely dramatic, and so, so fun.
Favorite lyric: “Oh they didn’t teach you that in prep school / So it’s up to me / But no amount of vintage dresses gives you dignity”
2. Enchanted
This song, in all its 5 minutes and 52 seconds, is pure perfection. Hearing it live was a mind-altering experience.
Favorite lyric: “Please don’t be in love with someone else / Please don’t have somebody waiting on you”
1. Back to December
Oh, Taylor Lautner, the man you are. This song is so special because she talks about her own regrets and how she wishes she could have treated him better. I love a good apology song (maybe that’s why I’m a huge Gracie Abrams fan), and this one hits just right.
Favorite lyric: “It turns out freedom ain’t nothin’ but missin’ you / Wishin’ I’d realized what I had when you were mine”
Red
3. Stay Stay Stay
Another one I sang during singing lessons when I was younger – it’s just such a fun, upbeat song. I can now admit I always preferred the OG version over the re-recording, so I’m thrilled that I can stream it regularly again.
Favorite lyric: “But you carry my groceries and now I’m always laughing / And I love you, because you have given me no choice but to”
2. The Lucky One
This one’s a quiet masterpiece about fame’s double-edged sword – glamorous on the outside, isolating underneath. It feels increasingly autobiographical the older we (and she) get.
Favorite lyric: “And they tell you that you’re lucky, but you’re so confused / ‘Cause you don’t feel pretty, you just feel used”
1. Treacherous
This song has one of my favorite Taylor bridges of all time. It’s the perfect song to scream along to while driving at night with the windows open (yes, speaking from experience). It’s so underrated, and once again, I love the original version just a little more than the newer one.
Favorite lyric: “Two headlights shine through the sleepless night / And I will get you, and get you alone”
1989
3. Style
The intro of this song makes me absolutely ascend (especially in the OG version). Thank you, Harry Styles, for your part in this masterpiece.
Favorite lyric: “I should just tell you to leave ’cause I / Know exactly where it leads, but I / Watch us go ’round and ’round each time”
2. New Romantics
This song is so fun, and it’s one of my favorite getting-ready tracks. It also perfectly describes the main characters in the Calloway Sisters series, which is one of my favorite book series of all time (if you haven’t read it yet, what are you waiting for?)
Favorite lyric: “We’re so young, but we’re on the road to ruin / We play dumb, but we know exactly what we’re doin’”
1. You Are In Love
I’ve always loved this song, but one of my best friends reintroduced it to me in college, and it’s become a new favorite. It’s so romantic and beautifully written. Also, it has one of my favorite lyrics I’ve EVER heard in a song (see below).
Favorite lyric: “You two are dancing in a snow globe, ’round and ’round / And he keeps the picture of you in his office downtown / And you understand now why they lost their minds and fought the wars / And why I’ve spent my whole life tryin’ to put it into words”
Reputation
3. King Of My Heart
I don’t have a super specific reason for this one – I’ve just always loved it. It has the signature Reputation vibe with incredible lyrics and an insanely catchy chorus.
Favorite lyric: “Up on the roof with a school girl crush / Drinking beer out of plastic cups”
2. Call It What You Want
This song is so soft and sweet – it’s about feeling safe and loved after chaos, and that always has stuck with me.
Favorite lyric: “I want to wear his initial / On a chain ’round my neck, chain ’round my neck / Not because he owns me / But ’cause he really knows me”
1. New Year’s Day
I was first moved by this song in November 2017, when Taylor performed it on The Tonight Show after Jimmy Fallon’s mom, Gloria, passed away. He’d mentioned how his mom used to squeeze his hand three times to say “I love you”- and in this song, Taylor sings about someone squeezing her hand three times in the back of a taxi. It wasn’t planned, but it was one of the most emotional, beautiful coincidences. This song makes me tear up every time, and if I had to pick a single favorite Taylor song, this might be it.
Favorite lyric: “Please, don’t ever become a stranger / Whose laugh I could recognize anywhere”