In today’s world, Taylor Swift is a monopoly buster though perhaps not in the way you might think. Yet at the same time, she’s managing to rekindle a feud with pop compatriot Charli XCX. This year, Swift successfully regained control over her first six records. This shrewd and powerful move erased hundreds of millions of dollars of value from Scooter Braun’s investment in her back-catalog. While she marked this achievement, Swift’s Eras Tour was already shattering records. At the same time, it grossed over $2 billion in ticket sales, becoming the most successful tour of all time and propelling UK consumer spending on live music to an all-time high of $67 billion.
Swift’s recent rumored engagement to American football player Travis Kelce only adds another muted color to her already technicolor tapestry of a story. The scrutiny has shifted to her fraught, fractious relationship with future-pop innovator Charli XCX. This rivalry flared up further with the release of Swift’s new album Midnights, which includes a diss track aimed at XCX. The album opener “Girl, So Confusing” probably owes quite a bit to Charli XCX and Lorde. It is a testament to Swift’s continued interest in dramatizing the contradictions she sees in her own life.
Charli XCX released her sixth studio album, Brat, today, June 7, 2024. She’s processing the difficult realities and fraying relationships at home and in her music. Her song “Sympathy Is a Knife” addresses her fears that Swift will be hurt, written while Swift was dating Matty Healy for a short time. Instead, both lyricists have become sucked into a deadly cycle of retaliation. This competition forces the self-reflection that makes clear how far into their careers these professionals have come.
Taylor Swift’s re-recordings, dubbed “Taylor’s Versions” have been a key aspect of her timeline in the fight to earn back ownership of her master recordings. Yet reclaiming her first six albums is a hugely important personal victory for her. More importantly, it underscores the power imbalance pervasive in the music industry. By regaining ownership of her work, Swift has devalued Braun’s financial stake in those albums, demonstrating her resilience and business acumen.
“Fucking hell”
Swift has only recently dropped six new UK-exclusive deluxe reissues of her album, The Tortured Poets Department. Insiders think she did this to personally upstage Charli XCX’s album debut, strategically orchestrating this music release agenda at the last minute. This tactic mirrors Swift’s own history of settling disputes through her song. Her last bonus track, “thanK you aIMee,” roasted Kanye West and Kim Kardashian. This illustrates her talent for getting at opponents’ throats through vivid, incisive narrative driven rap.
On these new songs, Swift’s tone veers from self-reflection to sharp critique. Lines such as “High-fived my ex and then said you’re glad he ghosted me / Wrote me a song saying it makes you sick to see my face” reveal a candid exploration of relationships and rivalries. She explores her self-awareness with lyrics like “Some people might be offended / But it’s actually sweet, all the time you’ve spent on me.”
And even as Swift wears out her welcome as the self-proclaimed Pop Princess, Charli has always already been a huge star—just a much more monstrous one. XCX recently remarked on the similarities in their images and styles, stating, “people say we’re alike / They say we’ve got the same hair.” This recognition suggests a strange respect tempered with rivalry.
Swift’s new relationship with Kelce has gotten everyone talking. This anticipation has only been heightened by its serendipity with her current struggles and triumphs with and in the record business. Swift is now officially the biggest pop star of all time. Her powerful spirit and poise in overcoming life’s challenges continues to inspire audiences across the country.