Taylor Swift’s new album, Reputation, is one of 2017’s most hotly-anticipated music releases.
But it looks like fans won’t be able to find the LP on streaming services for a full week following its release on Friday (November 10).
That’s all streaming services, according to sources – in what’s being seen as a clear attempt to drive up week-one physical and digital full-album sales.
Bloomberg reports that Swift’s representatives have told streaming services not to expect Reputation on their platforms for at least seven days – although she still technically has time to change her mind.
MBW has also spoken to sources close to the campaign who have also indicated a week-long streaming blackout is on the cards.
Interestingly, four singles from the album – Call It Want You Want, Gorgeous, …Ready For It? and Look What You Made Me Do – are already available on services such as Spotify and Apple Music.
Quite how Team Swift plans to police/stem user-uploads on YouTube, of course, is quite another matter.
The news comes seven months after Swift’s distributor, Universal Music Group, inked a deal with Spotify that allowed its artists the option to window their music exclusively on the service’s premium tier.
Taylor Swift’s catalogue finally landed on Spotify in June, after the artist kept her music off the Swedish service in a presumed protest against the concept of ‘free’ streaming.
Swift pulled her catalogue off Spotify in November 2014, commenting at the time: “It’s my opinion that music should not be free, and my prediction is that individual artists and their labels will someday decide what an album’s price point is.”Music Business Worldwide
