Mike Wuerthele
Taylor Swift's new album "reputation" has appeared on Apple Music and Spotify internationally, nearly three weeks after release — with a U.S. release likely imminent.
"Reputation" was released on Nov. 10 by digital download or at retail at Target. Upon release, reports circulated that Swift's management team was still negotiating with streaming music services.
The album consists of 15 tracks, and will be available both on Apple Music and from the iTunes Music Store. At present, only one track is available in the U.S.
According to Nielsen SoundScan, Reputation sold 1.216 million copies in the US during its first week, becoming 2017's best-selling album in the country, with 2 million copies sold worldwide.
Swift has been a frequent critic of streaming services, arguing that they devalue both her music and other artists. She also wrote an open letter complaining about Apple's plans to skip royalties during three-month Apple Music trials. As a result, Apple quickly reversed its previous stance on the matter.
For a long time Apple Music became the only way to stream the album "1989," or simply more than a handful of Swift songs. The situation only reversed course in June this year.
Apple meanwhile used Swift in marketing, and offered up an exclusive concert video.
Swift's popularity has allowed her more control over terms than most artists. Independent musicians may sometimes be more likely to benefit from services such as Apple Music and Spotify, since they provide badly-needed exposure.
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5 Comments
Puerile and banal pop tunes. So glad when this fad-girl passes.
Who?
She can bitch and whine all she wants about streaming music...its the way of the world now and were not going back to physical media. The sooner she embraces it the better. She can't keep pulling these release only on CD stunts much longer. She's actually alienating a lot of her fans by doing this. People are carrying around phones and other digital handheld devices, not CD Walkmans and most of today's new(er) vehicles don't even come with a CD drive anymore. I know a lot of cars, you have to PAY extra for it and some its not even an option.