Taylor Swift upended the economics of the music industry by buying back her first six albums.
Now, her most famous co-writers have sold the publishing rights to at least two of her chart-topping singles to a private equity company. It’s a deal that puts a price tag on the hidden half of Swift’s catalog — not the recordings fans and Swift fought over, but the songwriting royalties investors believe will keep paying for decades.
HarbourView Equity Partners bought the publisher’s share of Swift’s songs “Style” and “Ready for It” co-written by Max Martin and Shellback, two of the most recognizable songwriter-producers of the 2000s, and the deal includes songs by Ariana Grande and the Weeknd, among others.
It’s a transaction Variety exclusively reported on Wednesday to be in the low nine-figure range, according to inside sources, and HarbourView declined to confirm that number and provide details.
The acquisition doesn’t detract at all from Swift’s existing ownership, but gives HarbourView the slice of copyright that Max Martin and Shellback have as co-writers on “Style”, “Ready for It” and the other pop songs included in the deal.
