Following a brief period earlier this year when Taylor Swift’s music was unavailable on TikTok due to a licensing disagreement between the platform and Universal Music Group (UMG), the musician and TikTok have announced an expansion of Swift’s in-app experience.
The latest collaboration celebrates Swift’s record-breaking The Eras Tour. The #TSTheErasTour is the first, and longest-runnning, interactive in-app artist experience on TikTok to date, the company said Thursday (June 20).
It follows the launch in April of an in-app experience for Taylor Swift’s new album, The Tortured Poets Department (TTPD), offering “first-of-its-kind features” where Swifties can “dive into the album with playlists to create with” as well as challenges to unlock exclusive artwork for their profile.
The TTPD experience on TikTok has seen more than 3.2 million creator videos using the #thetorturedpoetsdepartment hashtag. TikTok noted that hashtags related to the artist continue to see high engagement on TikTok. The #SwiftTok hashtag has grown to over 2.6 million video creations, while #TaylorsVersion has been used on more than 2.1 million videos.
The new update coincides with Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour and offers fans a chance to win album-branded profile frames and collect digital friendship beads by completing themed tasks. Fans who participate in all 11 weeks of tasks will be rewarded with a special Swiftie profile frame.
“TikTok continues to support artists at all points in their journey and serves as the premier platform for artists to promote their music and engage with global fans on and off tour.”
TikTok
In addition to the interactive features, the in-app experience offers video highlights from each tour stop and a playlist tied to the album theme of the week.
“TikTok continues to support artists at all points in their journey and serves as the premier platform for artists to promote their music and engage with global fans on and off tour. By connecting Swifties across the globe through #TSTheErasTour, TikTok is able to support and deepen the connection between artists and fans,” TikTok said.
Fans can access the #TSTheErasTour experience by clicking the anchor that appears alongside Taylor Swift content on TikTok or by searching related terms. The in-app experience allows users to view their collected beads and profile frames, and pop-up messages will celebrate task completions.
Since the tour’s kickoff in March 2023, hashtags related to Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour have generated over 5 million creator videos. Countless fans have also used TikTok to celebrate the tour, the company said.
TikTok’s partnerships with Taylor Swift come after a period earlier this year when her music, along with many other artists, was unavailable on TikTok. The absence followed the expiration of a licensing agreement between TikTok and Universal Music Group (UMG), which represents Swift.
Negotiations initially broke down, leading to the removal of UMG’s music from TikTok. UMG argued that TikTok was not fairly compensating artists for music use and raised concerns about the impact of AI and online safety.
Eventually, a deal was reached between UMG and TikTok, which includes “improved remuneration for UMG’s songwriters and artists, new promotional and engagement opportunities for their recordings and songs and industry-leading protections with respect to generative AI.”
However, even before the dispute was resolved. Swift’s music reappeared on TikTok ahead of the launch of her new album in April. Swift has both recording and publishing agreements with UMG. Its Republic Records is Swift’s label in the US, and Swift signed a deal with Universal Music Publishing Group in 2020.
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