image source, Good pictures
Taylor Swift's songs are back on TikTok
His music returns on Thursday ahead of the release of his new album, The Tortured Poets Department.
Universal Music pulled songs from its artists including Rihanna and Ariana Grande in January, citing a licensing dispute.
Many artists have complained about insufficient royalties from TikTok.
While several of his songs, including You Belong With Me and Cruel Summer, are available again for users to add to their videos, music by Universal's other artists is not yet listed.
That's because, unlike other artists, Swift owns the copyright to her music under the terms of a 2018 deal with Universal. Some reports suggest that Swift has reached an exclusive deal with TikTok.
“Swifties” — fans of Taylor Swift — took to the stage to share their joy at the return of her music.
“OMG this made my whole year,” wrote verified user Jessica Golich, adding that users “must play with the whole new album.”
Divendra Roy recorded a lip-synching video for Krul Summer, “Welcome back Taylor!!!”
In an open letter published on January 30, Universal said it was “ultimately trying to build a music-based business without paying fair value to music.”
Universal said it was concerned about fair compensation to artists for AI-generated songs, like Drake and The Weeknd's made-to-sound songs that went viral.
Swift announced her upcoming album while accepting her 13th Grammy Award earlier this year.
His 11th album, The Tortured Poets Department, is out on April 19.
The BBC has contacted Universal and TikTok for comment.
