## End of the Eras ###### *Is Taylor Swift Buying Back Her Music Maybe Not Enough For Swifties?* The most overly dramatic I have ever been in my life was when I was seventeen, listening to Taylor Swift’s “Love Story” for what I thought would be the last time ever. In the minutes I waited for the release of “Love Story (Taylor’s Version),” I listened to the original, crying as I said my final goodbye. I was excited to hear the re-recorded version of the song but at the same time I was devastated, because the song I once sat on my bedroom floor listening to everyday after elementary school, would no longer be the same. I wouldn’t be listening to a hopeless romantic, high school girl who reminded me so much of myself. I would, from then on, be listening to a grown woman singing about a teenage love from which she was far removed. On May 30, (which fans are now calling Taylor Swift Independence Day) I listened to the original “Love Story” for the first time since 2021. I’m not embarrassed to admit that it made me cry again, because this time my tears had nothing to do with Taylor Swift, but everything to do with me yearning for the girl I once was. Swift’s music has remained as a nostalgic touchstone for girlhood amongst many fans. Regardless of how anyone feels about her, her role in the lives of young women remains valuable. So what made May 30 th so special? Taylor Swift announced that she is now the owner of all her life’s work, which is unfortunately rare for most artists. Her first six albums were previously owned by her old record label, who refused to sell them to her without locking her into another questionable contract. In 2019, they were sold to Scooter Braun, a man who had “bullied” Swift years prior. In 2020, they were sold again to Shamrock Holdings through an agreement that still allowed Braun to profit off of her music. During this period of time, Swift re- recorded four of those albums, releasing them with the title addition “(Taylor’s Version).” ![taylor swift sitting with her life's work](https://mewnfmdmrrhdiglqsppr.supabase.co/storage/v1/object/public/images/content/tswift-end-eras-1-1280w.webp) Swift wanted the re-released albums to sound better than the original versions, in efforts to add value. Her voice had changed so much since the original recordings especially on Fearless and Speak Now, which she mostly recorded when she was still a teenager. While this may have been something other fans were excited about, I found myself longing for the teen angst to that was completely absent in the new versions. For example, I always loved the quirkiness in Swift’s country accent as she says, “stir case” in “Speak Now.” In Taylor’s Version she plainly pronounces it as “staircase.” And in “Last Kiss” you can hear Swift’s shaky voice, knowing that the heartbreak she sings of is still fresh. The re-recordings rid us off all those things that made Swift’s music seem so down to earth for young women. But out of our love for her, we rallied together to abandon the original albums, regardless of whether or not we liked them better. Fans relived the releases of these albums by buying the many vinyl variants of each. Her re-recording of “1989” had five different vinyl variants, as well as eight editions of the CD. Her fans who already had multiple copies of the original recording, flocked to buy all editions of Taylor’s Version. There were also multiple merch releases that came along with each album. Fans celebrated Swift’s re-recordings at The Era’s Tour, the highest grossing concert tour of all time. The tour was looked at as a revival of girlhood, while fans traded friendship bracelets and danced in sparkly dresses, living the dream of their younger selves. That’s how Swift’s re- recordings were marketed to fans, as a way for them to reclaim their girlhood while she reclaimed hers. Through this, Swifties around the globe unknowingly participated in a fundraiser for Taylor Swift to buy her albums from Shamrock Holdings for $360 million. Now that Swift has accomplished her dream of owning her life’s work, some fans aren’t ready to say goodbye to their revival of girlhood. Swift herself might not be either. Fans have begged and Swift has alluded to the idea of finishing and releasing the last two re-records (reputation and her debut album). There would be no point since the original recordings are in her hands now. So where is the desire for more coming from? ![taylor swift sitting with her life's work](https://mewnfmdmrrhdiglqsppr.supabase.co/storage/v1/object/public/images/content/tswift-end-eras-2-1280w.webp) If the goal the entire time was for Swift to own her work, like every artist should be able to, then why is that not enough for us? Swift’s critics would jump to the idea of her finishing her re-records as a money grab. That might be true on some level, especially looking at how she marketed the re-records with so many album variants. So I’m not going to fully deny any sense of greed, but I will say that it is obvious how her purchasing her first six albums wasn’t necessarily a smart financial decision on her part. She made that choice for the sake of having control of her own artwork. That is why I feel more compelled to analyze her fans rather than her in this situation. Regardless of how much money us gullible fans have spent on the re-records, Swift has gifted us with an “era” to reembrace our girlhoods, and some fans aren’t willing to move on from that. Furthermore, fans aren’t ready to give up their fascination with Swift’s personal girlhood. There is lore to her albums, and fans are always in search of more. No matter how much fans claim to care about Swift’s privacy, the fact of the matter is that they thrive off of every little detail they get from her personal life. That’s just how celebrity obsession works. Half of the fandom is celebrating Swift’s accomplishment while the other half is still gripping onto the hopes of reputation (Taylor’s Version). Is that what these fans are wanting to get out of her finishing the last two re-records, more lore about her reputation life? This only provides more fuel to grapple with girlhood in the form of a spectacle rather than a reality. It makes me question how much of this “era” was truly about embracing girlhood, and how much was merely about exploiting it. I know there are plenty of fans like me who listen to Swift’s albums as a way to reconnect with their past selves. But in reality most fans aren’t thinking of themselves while listening to these albums. They are listening to further speculate on Swift’s life. And she has orchestrated that speculation further through the re-records. Her fan favorite song, “All Too Well” held a personal space in most fan’s hearts as they went through tough breakups. But the re-recording changed the intentions of the song entirely. Swift mentioned in past interviews that the song was originally 10 minutes long, but she had to shorten it. So for the re-records, fans begged to have the lengthened version of the song. “All Too Well (Taylor’s Version) (Ten Minute Version)” is impossible to relate to. There are so many private details about Swift’s relationship that fans can no longer listen to the song and think of themselves. Her music was no longer about finding her relatable and down to earth, it was about getting the tea on her personal life. She might have perpetuated that, but her fans where the ones that accepted is as the new value of her music. While I would like to look at this era in Swift’s career as a win for women in the music industry, I can’t help but think about the many fans that have allowed it to become just another moment of celebrity spectacle. Is this era going to forever change how we interact with pop music, or will we ever stop letting our fascinations fester? I won’t know until it happens. But in the meantime, I’ll be listening to the original recording of “Love Story,” clinging to the memories of my younger self.