Taylor Swift hints at April release date for extended Fearless album

Taylor Swift has officially kicked off the campaign to re-record her first six albums in an attempt to regain ownership of her music after Scooter Braun bought her masters.

The US singer promised her fans back in 2019 that the re-recordings would take place, and confirmed today that her 2008 album Fearless will be the first to be shared.

Speaking on Good Morning America, Swift commented that the project is now expanded to 26 songs and will potentially be released on April 9 (according to an Easter egg in her initial statement).

'Love Story (Taylor’s Version)' is out at midnight tonight, with her six new tracks written between the ages of 16 and 18 - "the ones it killed me to leave behind".

“Artists should own their own work for so many reasons,” she writes, “but the most screamingly obvious one is that the artist is the only one who really *knows* that body of work. for example, only I know which songs I wrote that almost made the Fearless album. Songs I absolutely adored, but were held back for different reasons (don’t want too many breakup songs, don’t want too many down tempo songs, can’t fit that many songs on a physical CD).”

The new version, she adds, is “the whole story, the entire vivid picture...the entire dreamscape that is my Fearless album.”

I’m thrilled to tell you that my new version of Fearless (Taylor’s Version) is done and will be with you soon. It has 26 songs including 6 never before released songs from the vault. Love Story (Taylor’s Version) will be out tonight. Pre-order now at https://t.co/NqBDS6cGFl 💛💛 pic.twitter.com/Vjyy2gA72O

— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) February 11, 2021

In 2019, Scooter Braun and his media holding company Ithaca Holdings LLC acquired Big Machine Records—Swift’s former label home — and the masters of Swift’s first albums (Taylor Swift, Speak Now, Red, 1989, and Reputation).

Shortly afterwards, Swift released a statement on Tumblr expressing her frustration over the deal. Accusing Braun of “incessant, manipulative bullying,” Swift claimed that she was never offered the opportunity to buy her own masters before Ithaca Holdings acquired Big Machine. Last November, Braun sold Swift’s masters to private investment firm Shamrock Capital. Swift claimed in a statement that she was offered an opportunity to “partner” with Shamrock, but turned it down when she discovered that Braun will still profit off her masters.

Swift released folklore and evermore last year - her second and third releases on Republic Records after 2019’s Lover.

Check out the tracklisting for Fearless (Taylor's version) below:

1. Fearless (Taylor’s Version)
2. Fifteen (Taylor’s Version)
3. Love Story (Taylor’s Version)
4. Hey Stephen (Taylor’s Version)
5. White Horse (Taylor’s Version)
6. You Belong With Me (Taylor’s Version)
7. Breathe (Taylor’s Version) [ft. Colbie Caillat]
8. Tell Me Why (Taylor’s Version)
9. You’re Not Sorry (Taylor’s Version)
10. The Way I Loved You (Taylor’s Version)
11. Forever & Always (Taylor’s Version)
12. The Best Day (Taylor’s Version)
13. Change (Taylor’s Version)
14. Jump Then Fall (Taylor’s Version)
15. Untouchable (Taylor’s Version)
16. Forever & Always (Piano Version) (Taylor’s Version)
17. Come in With the Rain (Taylor’s Version)
18. Superstar (Taylor’s Version)
19. The Other Side of the Door (Taylor’s Version)
20. Today Was a Fairytale (Taylor’s Version)
21. Bonus Track 1 (From The Vault)
22. Bonus Track 2 (From The Vault)
23. Bonus Track 3 (From The Vault)
24. Bonus Track 4 (From The Vault)
25. Bonus Track 5 (From The Vault)
26. Bonus Track 6 (From The Vault)