1989 (Taylor's Version)
Fourth re-recorded album by Taylor Swift, released in 2023.
1989 (Taylor's Version) is the fourth re-recorded album by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, released on October 27, 2023, through Republic Records. It is a re-recording of Swift's fifth album, 1989 (2014), consisting of re-recorded versions of the 16 songs from the original deluxe edition and five previously unreleased "From the Vault" tracks. The album was produced primarily by Swift, Jack Antonoff, and Christopher Rowe, with original producers Ryan Tedder, Noel Zancanella, Shellback, and Imogen Heap reprising their roles. A 1980s-inspired synth-pop album, it is characterized by upbeat arrangements of synthesizers and percussion.
Quick Facts
- Longtype
- (re-recorded)
- Artist
- Taylor Swift
- Genre
- Synth-pop
- Length
- 77:49
- Released
- 2023-10-27
- Label
- Republic
- Producer
- Taylor Swift / Christopher Rowe / Jack Antonoff / Ryan Tedder / Noel Zancanella / Imogen Heap / Shellback / Patrik Berger
- Prev Title
- Speak Now (Taylor's Version)
- Prev Year
- 2023
- Next Title
- The Tortured Poets Department
- Next Year
- 2024
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Swift announced 1989 (Taylor's Version) on August 9, 2023, during the final Los Angeles show of her Eras Tour at SoFi Stadium, performing in five new blue outfits. The album was released exactly nine years after the original 1989. Prior to the full album, Swift released re-recordings of some tracks: "Wildest Dreams" (Taylor's Version) on September 17, 2021, after the original went viral on TikTok; "This Love" (Taylor's Version) on May 6, 2022, after its snippet featured in a trailer for the series The Summer I Turned Pretty; and snippets of "Bad Blood" and "Out of the Woods" appeared in other media. The re-recording project began in November 2020 following Swift's 2019 dispute over the master recordings of her back catalog, after Scooter Braun acquired Big Machine Records, which held the masters to Swift's first six albums.
Reader's Guide
1989 (Taylor's Version) represents a key installment in Swift's re-recording project, allowing her to regain ownership of her master recordings. The album topped charts in Australia, Canada, and multiple European territories including France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom. In the United States, it became Swift's 13th number-one album on the Billboard 200 and her record-extending sixth album to sell over one million first-week copies. Seven of its songs concurrently became top-10 entries on the Billboard Hot 100, with the vault tracks "Is It Over Now?", "Now That We Don't Talk", and "Slut!" occupying the top three spots. Music critics praised the album, emphasizing the production, Swift's vocals, and the vault tracks. In 2024, Apple Music placed the album at number 18 on its list of the 100 Best Albums. The album's "From the Vault" songs, written for the original 1989 but excluded from the final track list, explore themes of slut-shaming, failed relationships, and moving on, with production elements influenced by Swift's later album Midnights (2022).
Did You Know?
- The vault track "Slut!" refers to the slut-shaming Swift experienced as a public figure.
- Max Martin, who produced multiple songs on the original 1989, was not involved in the production of the re-recording.
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