Big Machine Records Reportedly To Be Up For Sale
Nashville’s and country music’s most influential record label is reportedly getting ready to be put up for sale according to a new report from Hits Daily Double, and Taylor Swift’s 1989 album release and pending contract situation could have a big impact on it. $200 million dollars is said to be the asking price for Scott Borchetta’s prized possession.
Despite being a big label with many famous artist and significant subsidiaries, the Big Machine Label Group remains independently owned, operating through distribution deals with Republic Records in the United States, and Universal Music Group internationally. Along with Taylor Swift, the label group is the home of Florida Georgia Line, The Band Perry, Tim McGraw, Rascal Flatts, Justin Moore, Reba McEntire, and many more.
This is not the first time Big Machine has been rumored to be up for sale. In 2011, Sony was reportedly in negotiations to acquire the label for the same sum of $200 million, and they weren’t the only ones showing interest. Big Machine’s distribution partners Universal Music Group were also rumored to be considering entering a bid on the label.
Key to this new deal would be Taylor Swift according to reports, who after the release of 1989 will owe Big Machine one more record before being free of her contract. Whether Scott Borchetta can re-sign the mega-star, or whether she will decide to run her own labeling and distribution similar to how she does with booking and management remains in question. “Swift’s valuation will be far more meaningful for Borchetta if he can re-sign her, because she’s clearly the jewel in Borchetta’s crown,” says Hits Daily Double. “The fact of the matter is that Borchetta must bring Swift with him in order to make his company truly attractive in the eyes of prospective bidders.”
Taylor Swift is considered one of the biggest artists, if not the biggest artist of this generation, and many of the early estimates of how many albums 1989 could sell have her becoming 2014’s first Platinum-selling act, denoting 1 million albums sold. Her last album Red debuted with 1.2 million in sales on the way to marking over 4 million units moved, but this was two years ago before music streaming took over in earnest. Others are wondering if Swift moving from country to pop will put a dent in her sales from loyal country fans.
Also interesting, and something that has gone virtually unreported is that Borchetta recently dropped his moratorium on releasing albums to Spotify, Rhapsody, and other streaming service until after a certain time period. “We’re not putting the brand-new releases on Spotify,” Borchetta told Rolling Stone near the release of Taylor Swift’s Red in 2012. “Why shouldn’t we learn from the movie business? They have theatrical releases, cable releases. There are certain tiers. If we just throw out everything we have, we’re done.” But recent Big Machine releases from Tim McGraw and Florida Georgia Line were available immediately on Spotify. So far, Swift’s 1989 released officially on 10-27 has not surfaced on the streaming service, though her first single “Shake It Off” is available. The Spotify quotient could cause cause Swift’s album sales numbers to be more robust compared to other 2014 releases that went straight to streaming.
Another question appears to be the standing of both Scott Borchetta and Taylor Swift in the greater country community. Swift leaving country may have ruffled the feathers of Big Machine’s Music Row bunk mates who also may fill the roster of prospective buyers. Meanwhile Borchetta has been making waves of his own on Music Row, with his aggressive practices angering some in the business. Borchetta tends to play by his own rules as opposed to the unspoken writs of the Music Row oligarchy. His big deals with iHeartMedia (formerly Clear Channel) on radio play rights, Cumulus Media with NASH Icon, producer Dr. Luke with writing and production work, and similar deals have Borchetta running circles around his Nashville competition, and leaving some with a sour taste.
The Big Machine Label Group was founded by President and CEO Scott Borchetta in 2005 after he left DreamWorks Records, and includes the subsidiary labels Valory Music Group, Dot Records, NASH Icon, and a joint venture with Universal Republic Records, Republic Records Nashville. The label began as a partnership with Toby Keith, but Keith dropped his affiliation with Big Machine in 2006 to start his own Show Dog-Universal label. Keith still owns a stake in Big Machine however, and this is one of the reasons he remains the highest-paid entertainer in country music. Taylor Swift’s father, Scott Swift, also owns a stake in Big Machine. Taylor Swift was Big Machine’s first signing.
October 27, 2014 @ 10:19 am
“Taylor Swift”™s father, Steve Swift, also owns a stake in Big Machine. Taylor Swift was Big Machine”™s first signing.”
The truth hurts, Taylor Swift fanboyz and fangirlz.
October 27, 2014 @ 10:29 am
Scott Swift bought a 3% stake in Big Machine records after Swift got signed, so nice try.
October 27, 2014 @ 12:06 pm
Not according to the article:
The value attached to Swift will have a significant impact on that of Big Machine Label Group, as Borchetta, whose attorney is Joel Katz, prepares to put the company on the block for a reported $200m. (Interestingly, Swift”™s father has a stake in Big Machine as one of the early investors brought in by Borchetta to fund the label.)
October 27, 2014 @ 1:29 pm
Nothing in that paragraph refutes Ahmed’s comment.
October 27, 2014 @ 1:44 pm
The phrase “one of the early investors brought in by Borchetta to fund the label” doesn’t scream out anything to you?
October 27, 2014 @ 2:00 pm
It does not mention anything about the percentage of shares that Scott Swift purchased.
October 27, 2014 @ 9:35 pm
Nothing painful about that. Mr. Swift and Toby Keith made a good move.
October 28, 2014 @ 7:30 am
The beautiful thing about business is that it can always be measured.
Unless you’re suggesting that Mr. Swift also bought millions of his daughter’s albums and personally pays for 50K people to fill everyone of her stadium shows, the role his money played in getting her signed is irrelevant.
Plenty of people have gotten signed for legitimate and illegitimate reasons. None but Adele sells the way she does.
October 27, 2014 @ 10:26 am
Her father is called Scott Swift, not Steve. Just saying.
October 27, 2014 @ 11:12 am
“Taylor Swift”™s father, Scott Swift, also owns a stake in Big Machine.”
Trigger, I would suggest amending the article to mention the percentage of this stake, as well as the time period of the purchase of the stake. Otherwise, as the MH comment above shows, this may just fuel baseless speculation.
October 27, 2014 @ 11:16 am
Eric,
Are you and Taylor ever, ever, ever getting back together?
October 27, 2014 @ 11:32 am
No, I’m not going to amend it, because it has so very little bearing on what is at the heart of this story, it is virtually inconsequential. The fact that Scott Swift owns a very small stake in the company is nothing more than an interesting fact, and has little bearing on anything. I didn’t reveal anything that wasn’t already known by the public. This isn’t some “gotcha” moment. At the same time, I can’t confirm what Scott’s percentage stake is, so I don’t want to post something that is incorrect.
October 27, 2014 @ 12:19 pm
I know her album is pop, but I am just interested in your opinion on her new album and your thoughts on the whole transition. Will you be reviewing her new album?
October 27, 2014 @ 12:41 pm
To the consternation of many (who will complain publicly, but still read), I am planning to review Taylor’s new album. Not sure when it will be posted because I had to wait like everyone to receive my copy.
October 27, 2014 @ 9:54 pm
What’s the point of reviewing her album here? I don’t see how the album is relevant to a site called Saving Country Music, when the singer herself has said that it is a pop album.
October 28, 2014 @ 12:01 am
No shit it’s a pop album, but I could make the argument that Taylor Swift is still the most relevant artist in country music, and that’s spelled out in the particulars of this very article. And moreover, I want to review it, and have received dozens of requests to because I’m one of the few people out there with the balls to give my honest opinion on her music, pop or not.
October 27, 2014 @ 11:18 am
Anyway, back to the topic of this article.
In my opinion, this sale could serve as one of the most negative events in the recent history of the country music industry. Borchetta’s best traits as a CEO have been his willingness to grant a high level of artistic freedom and to pull out all the stops to maximize airplay for his artists. There is no guarantee that a new management will follow the same path.
October 27, 2014 @ 3:10 pm
I put in an offer for $3.75. I’m waiting to hear back from them…
October 27, 2014 @ 3:19 pm
“Taylor Swift is considered one of the biggest artists, if not the biggest artist of this generation”
This , imho , is without a doubt the saddest and scariest part of this story ,
October 27, 2014 @ 8:53 pm
With disappointing autumn album sales for Jason Aldean, Blake Shelton, Lady Antebellum and Florida Georgia Line, country music should take a leaf or two from Taylor Swift.
Her current album could easily sell more in one week than these so called “country” artists combined this year. And so much for accusing her for leaving or “betraying” country music. Just look at where she is now in the music world.
She even can sell an empty 8 seconds track to iTunes and made it to number one….just look at the news.
October 27, 2014 @ 9:46 pm
I find it difficult to believe Borchetta will sell his company anytime in the near future and I don’t buy that anyone is pissed that Taylor left the genre.
October 27, 2014 @ 9:57 pm
“I don”™t buy that anyone is pissed that Taylor left the genre.”
I am.
As someone who owns a rather significant library of songs from each of her previous albums, I will not spend a dime on “1989”.
October 27, 2014 @ 10:31 pm
So Eric, would you prefer if she had stuck with her “Taylor Swift 1.0” persona and continued to release more songs like “Teardrops On My Guitar” and “Fifteen” to country stations? Would you prefer that she continue to sing about high school and breakups, and pass it off as “country” music, as she is going on 25?
October 27, 2014 @ 11:21 pm
No. In fact, I was just listening to some of the songs posted on Tumblr, and much of the lyricism is not bad at all. I just would have preferred that she had maintained a warm, melodic musical style rather than going the modern pop route. The former suits her voice and her goal of emotional delivery far better.
October 28, 2014 @ 9:43 am
One standout song from Red that I loved was “All Too Well.” A very powerful, still pop song, but has the crossover appeal to work in the country market as well. That’s the type of song I love from Taylor Swift, and I’m not big on her full pop sound found on “Welcome to New York” or “Shake It Off.” But she’s doing what she wants and it’s working for her. Can’t hate her for that.
October 28, 2014 @ 1:04 pm
She’s doing it to make money. In Trigger’s article about the CMA’s he talks about how women are dominating the pop genre right now, so that’s the place to go to make money. Max Martin has been behind 90% of the biggest pop music hits in the last 15 years, so he’s the guy she should work with to make more money. This album isn’t about the lyrics and passion of music that made her popular. This album is about making as much money as she possibly can off of the popularity she earned. By selling out and playing to the lowest common denominator, she might be doing what she wants in the short run, but I bet her 15 year old self is disappointed.
October 28, 2014 @ 9:55 pm
I doubt that money is the primary motivation behind her shift to pop. Completely dumping country music, including her refusal to put even a single country-leaning song on the album, is a risky strategy that could easily alienate many of her loyal fans who actually buy her albums and attend her shows rather than just listen to her radio singles.
The willingness to sacrifice some loyal fans in order to win over fickle pop fans shows that fame, more than money, serves as the goal of her musical shift.
October 27, 2014 @ 10:37 pm
What different does it make where she is? It’s pop either way. 1989 is damn good, I think.
October 27, 2014 @ 10:15 pm
“As someone who owns a rather significant library of songs from each of her previous albums, I will not spend a dime on “1989
That would also mean you won’t spend a dime on about 90 percent of “country” music today.
October 27, 2014 @ 11:17 pm
I think that goes without saying 😉
October 28, 2014 @ 12:14 am
“I think that goes without saying”
As Bill Lawrence put it “Stop fighting it. Taylor Swift is pretty damn impressive” :)))))
October 28, 2014 @ 3:46 am
No, she really isn’t. Her music won’t stand up well over time either.
A few days ago, my wife asked me to copy some Judds music to her car. I told her that was funny because I had just listened to a Judds album and had actually been listening to them a lot lately. The Judds have stood up well over time (I kind of think of the Judds as Country music comfort food). Taylor Swift’s catchy pop music is not going to stand up well at all.
Also, remember Taylor Swifts weird over reaction to Amy Poehler and Tina Fey making fun of her dating life. That was a rare glimpse at the nut job hiding just under the surface.
October 28, 2014 @ 6:25 am
When i say impressive i mean her accomplishment in music and her untold success.
October 28, 2014 @ 9:17 am
Let’s have Universal Music Group purchase Big Machine Records before Big machine Records has to get rid of country artists like Tim McGraw and country music industry before Big Machine Records switched over to pop music. So have Big Machine Records get rid of Danielle Bradbery, Laura Bell Bundy, The Cadillac Three, Tim McGraw and Rascal Flatts and have the said artists resigned to Valory Music Co, Republic Nashville, Dot Records, and/or Nash Icon Music. Keep Taylor Swift but others will have to resign Big Machine Records and moved to Valory Music Co/Republic Nashville/Dot Records/Nash Icon Music before Universal Music Group will buy Big Machine Records now that 1989 was a big success since it came out yesterday and 1989 is the first pop album made by Big Machine Records. All Taylor Swift songs including her country songs like Mean are now pop songs and all Taylor Swift songs will only play on pop stations once Universal Music Group buy Big Machine Records. That means, all Taylor Swift’s radio hits will no longer play on country radio and all her radio hits including her country radio hits will only play on pop radio. Plus, all Taylor Swift songs can now be played on pop music stations and not playing on country music stations anymore. Am I smart or what? 🙂
October 28, 2014 @ 10:44 am
Trigger,
The biggest reason your getting asked to judge Taylor’s music is because they knoe you cant be a critic without biasis. I’m so glad Taylor has stepped away from country music. That way they can stop using her ratings.
October 28, 2014 @ 6:23 pm
Along with the dish to help get Big Machine going, the word around town is the Swift family also bought out extra tix to many of Taylor’s first gigs to make them “sell-outs”
Takes money to make money.
October 28, 2014 @ 9:49 pm
That’s funny. Did you talk with all the people who supposedly got these free tickets from the Swift family to these “gigs”?
October 29, 2014 @ 1:28 pm
No…But I did have a friend that worked at the Wildhorse Saloon at the time tell of 200+ tickets bought by Mommy to make it a sell out and that’s what they were doing at a lot of the club shows back then.
October 29, 2014 @ 6:44 pm
Were the tickets distributed for free (or at a significantly reduced price) to customers? Otherwise, it seems like a pretty bad idea from a business perspective to reserve seats that others could have bought.
Also, what date was this on?
October 29, 2014 @ 7:39 am
Man ..I finally heard TS album in its entirety courtesy of a student of mine who is 16 . I know no one asked …but I have to say this is the MOST substance-less , trite musical drivel I’ve heard in a very very long time . Surely this will be a forgettable footnote in the history of pop music years from now -Most definitely geared to an even younger audience than her earlier stuff , I think . It echoes Katy and Miley and Bieber without a doubt …but with a more immature lyric content and relying on sonic style even more heavily than most contemporary pop fare . Vocals ( thank goodness ) are not challenged in the least . Kids ( and I mean KIDS of the cartoon-watching variety ) will eat this up like its spoon-fed but I can think of about 25 other 25 year olds writing , singing and performing far better music…. .pop or otherwise . Taylor may have jumped ship…..but “artistically ” she needs a lifeboat .
Carry on , folks …..
October 29, 2014 @ 6:46 pm
I won’t defend this album, but arguing that the lyrical content is more immature than Miley’s or Bieber’s lyrics is a pretty big stretch.
October 31, 2014 @ 2:32 pm
Without looking it up, I’m pretty sure Miley Cyrus and Justin Beiber don’t write their own songs.
Although Taylor Swift is stuck with being known for writing her own songs and she has absolutely no real-world life experiences (and hardships) to draw on. At 24 years old she’s never dealt with having to go to college and she’s never had a serious long term relationship. Everyone always talks about how smart she is but I’d bet serious money she is very emotionally immature.
October 31, 2014 @ 10:01 pm
Many (probably most) songwriters have never gone to college. However, it is definitely true that they typically have more experiences of material hardship to draw from than Taylor has. As far as relationships go, she has never had a long-lasting romantic affair, but she has had some long friendships (e.g. Selena Gomez) that would serve as a good lyrical foundation.
November 3, 2014 @ 8:26 am
All artists signed to Republic Nashville and Dot Records would stay with UMG even if BMLG isn’t sold but switches distribution. Swift likely would too, given how integral Republic has been to her pop career’s success.
So, really, there’s only one potential label deal for Swift that makes any sense in the world, that’s to start her own in partnership with Universal Republic.
Also, any sale of Big Machine will give Taylor AND Toby Keith and UMG equity $$.
In the end, though, I see Big Machine being ‘bought’ by Universal or someone in the Universal ecosystem like Disney (this would give Disney a good Nashville label operation again, and would move Lucy Hale here).
February 5, 2015 @ 6:10 pm
I can see Big Machine sold in the next year. Scott has to look out for himself.
March 22, 2015 @ 8:34 am
The record sales is coming to and end soon for swift and Scott knows it will
not last and better sell and take the money and run before the bottom drops out,
which it will.
Taylor will not last and better get your money out while on top and don’t be like
the Tech world was in their bubble. There were a few that got out of the tech
bubble like the guy on shark tank and now he is a billionare.
Scott better do the same with this Big Machine company.