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Home , Backstreet Boys, Brian Kelley (musician), Britney Spears, Florida Georgia Line, Jason Aldean, Nellyville

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Yes, Taylor. Stop pretending ME?to be surprised: You’re the only musician who matters

PHOTOGRAPH ILLUSTRATION BY CREDIT TK CREDIT BY ILLUSTRATION PHOTOGRAPH TK CREDIT BY ILLUSTRATION PHOTOGRAPH By Devin Leonard 54 exclusively at Target for $13.99. edition CD, buy whichfans can offslips the white case the special current hitrecord. Hecarefully deluxe editionof 1989, the singer’s -based label,picks upa Machine Records, ’s founderScott of Borchetta, Big its release in May. That’s roughly athird ofSwift’s first-week initsfirst copies of737,000week andhassolda total since was ’s, which didapiddling 383,000 Ghost Story year:Compare that withthis Before 1989 Let Go included of 2002, after TheEminemShow andthe8 681 in the U.S. million. In 2002 album sales 56 total hovered at half of2014 were down 19 reported thatofCDsfor thefirst sales ofAmerica Association been indeclinesince2000. monththeRecording Last Industry 2008 release, on theBillboard 200—her2012album, at sittingcomfortably No. 1.is, otheralbums Shealso had two ing week, Swift had songs onthe Billboard Hot heavy hitters such asBeyoncé, Coldplay, Gaga.That andLady 2002, andthebiggest release years inthepasttwo by far, topping weeksales for a record since ’s intheU.S.,sales according It’s to NielsenSoundScan. thelargest were millioncopies 1.29 sold.That was 22percent ofallalbum popalbum.” documented, official very first, In1989 in an Augustmusic scene, described Yahoo! Live stream as “her debut of1989 ‘Oh, my We’re God! justhaving somuch fun!’ ” says. Borchetta she’d beenretweeting ofthePolaroids. fans’pictures “Shesaid, the day of the album’s release, says Borchetta Swift to say called of online lovea flurry 27, between Swift andherfans.OnOct. the Polaroid created by gimmick, Swift’s marketing ledto team, handwritten linefrom oneofthealbum’s says songs.Borchetta buy on her website for $60. At the bottom shot of each there’s a long-sleeved aversion shirt, of which fans can that is) (the shirt, lounging inbed,andathird wistfully ofherposinginapurple inNew theferry Yorkher riding Harbor, anotherinwhich she’s tures of Swift in various of dreamy states repose. There’s one of CD,Inside, inaddition to anactual apacket is ofPolaroid pic Swift’s an anomaly success is that’s in an ailing industry It’s aFriday afternoon in early November, 11days after the ,thealbum’s firstsingle, which was, andstill million (down from 2001’s 763 million).Thetop 10albums (4.1 Nellyville (4.9 millionalbumssold),’s million), andtheDixieChicks’ Home , which Swift, upinNashville’s who came country Fearless for its 221st week,, on the chart at No. 117.

percent from the year before, to in The EminemShow in , theyear’s biggest , at No. 84, andher

Mile (3.7 million). soundtrack, ’s first week, 100, includ - - would take another of his big acts, Florida Line,off Georgia would Florida bigacts, take anotherofhis Youback. can’t inisolation,” lookat wrote Ek. habitshavelistening changed—and they’renotgoing to change millions every year. That justdoesn’t happen anymore; people’s popular Spotify. “Intheolddays, soldmultiple multiple artists ing music by piracy notsharing and hersongsviatheaccessible royalties)$2 billionintotal andargued that she was encourag was ontrack to pay Swift $6 Spotify’sDaniel Ek, chiefexecutive officer, his service agreed.” (Swift declined toarticle.) commentfor this be veryandbold.Allof specific your music has value.’ And she went to herandsaid,‘Ifwe’re going to make let’s astatement, on Nov.service says 3. Borchetta itwas ashort conversation: “I decision,”this spokesman aSpotify 29. told Mashable onOct. nearly 2millionactive followers who willbedisappointed by are over 40 millionmusic fansonSpotify, andTaylor Swift has the back of her hand to her followers “There on the service. That’s what is.” Spotify butitcan’tfantastic, ofour beat own thedetriment business. sible for models,” new business says. Borchetta “Ifthey work, early weeks. “We’re not against anybody, but we’re not respon hold 60¢, alotofmoney compared ofapenny,” to afraction she says. music analyst.Enders, aLondon-based “Sothat’s industry or 50¢ Swift will probably takepercent home50 of retail,” says Alice “For timeusersstream asong. each download, adigital Taylor arerose ofapenny often 28percent. paidafraction Butartists 2014. Meanwhile, revenue from like streaming services Spotify formatfor this declined by 14 percent in the first months of make upfor low buttheRIAAreports that albumsales, sales can’t even seeher. its second week. Swift so far ahead of the pack that they is and1989 sales, Swift from the thenpulledherentire andBorchetta catalog Borchetta isn’tBorchetta swayed. He says way, that ifhe had his he promptedHer decision alongandimpassioned essay by releasedSpotify a statement suggesting that Swift was giving For that reason, andSwift Borchetta choseto initially with For awhile, there downloads was hopethat digital would 1989 from Spotify. They didthesamethingwithRed is expected is to sellanother400,000 in copies million in2014 (andhasalready paid inits - - -

OPENING SPREAD: GETTY IMAGES (12); (2). PHOTOGRAPH BY ALEX WELSH FOR BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK dising, andoccupy fourdising, hasmultiple buildings.The business whoees work in music management, publishing, and merchan launching in2005 it hasevolved into a company with 88 MCA Nashville. BigMachine billsitselfasanindielabel,butsince its better-known competitors, includingCapitol Nashville and eight songs on Billboard’s more than Songs chart, Borchetta’s passionfor expensive cars. fixtures danglefrom tirerims and exhaust inhonorof pipes, ing TimMcGraw andReba McEntire, hangfrom chains.Light Row. In the hallway, of Big Machine’s portraits includ artists, workstation at officeon his Nashville’s standing inhis is Music AngelesLos playing punkrock andlikes to wear leather—and on herface.Today Borchetta’s clad allinblack—he grew upin together, she’s often bendingdown, alookofmildexertion over inheels,towers 6feet tall over ofthem him.Inpictures makes himlooklike thebad guy in an’80smovie. Swift, who’s has aruddy complexion curly andamassofblack, hairthat of a record company most people haven’t heard of. Borchetta good apretty All ofthat is week ofwork for the52-year-old head very seriously contemplating now,” thesamethingright hesays. oneofthem.“He musicis country acts, of thebiggest-selling prominent Nashville manager, says clientJason one his Aldean, and managers are paying closeattention. Clarence Spaulding, a may have helpedmove somephysical CDs—butotherartists Music Group, andUniversal.) to three majorSony companies, Warner Music Entertainment, to record labelsandmusic alarge publishers, ofwhich goes part having,” says pays (Spotify Borchetta. 70 percent ofitsrevenue Group’s . “That’s a side conversation we’re Spotify, buthecan’t because withUniversal ofadeal Music Sandi (left), inBigMachine’s Borchetta (center) andwife, The week of1989 The impact of pulling the catalog isn’t of pulling yet the catalog The impact clear—though it Nashville office ’s Group theBigMachine Label had debut, employ - - - his blackFerrari,his bopping alongto Pharrell’s Happy.Thevalet says.Borchetta A little later the underdog driving is to lunch in musicas acountry outlaw. He often ofgetting speaks “respect.” wins yet anotheraward. himself casts part, for Borchetta, his singer’s “surprised face,” theshocked lookshe gets when she , includinganentire Internetto memededicated the former highschoolnerd. Much hasbeenmade ofheraw-shucks $200 there(her estate haseightfireplaces) andhasanet ofworth inNew homes York,between Nashville, andRhodeIsland L.A., themselvesdescribe as outsiders. Swift, who splits her time dent for music at ABCTelevision. runningallofNashville,”is says Dawn Soler, seniorvicepresi hit ­ after divorcing Scott’s anaspiring motherandmarrying car. of his in the trunk carried He moved to Nashville to getto radio andtrying stations themto play albumshe record promoter who spent much timedriving around ofhis to Nashville. father, His Mike music was Borchetta, acountry into thespace infrontcar of theentrance. ing downtown, say, “Welcome, Mr. Borchetta,” his asheeases parking attendants at Etch, arestaurant gentrify inthecity’s market music theoriginal from anddistribute Nashville, ABC’s largest record company. to adeal struck In2012,Borchetta tures withRepublic Records, adivision ofUniversal, theworld’s other labels,Republic Nashville andDotRecords, are jointven include theSwift family singer andcountry .) Two owns 60percent holders of BigMachine; otherreported equity controlled entirely (Borchetta by partners. andhis Borchetta record labels.Two ofthem,BigMachine andValory Music, are “There’s alittlebitofanunderdog complex inNashville,” Despite their respective and Swift success, Borchetta both Over Turkish fish tacos, Borchetta talks aboutOver how talks Borchetta Turkish hegot tacos, fish prime-time soapopera. asaValley “Heprime-time started boy andnow million, according to , stillpresents herselfasa now is running all “He as a started Valley boy and of Nashville” - - - 55 country singer. Scott stayed in with his mother, her country roots. When some of Taylor’s longtime Nashville played bass, and, to hear him tell it, acted out. Big Machine sold producers struggled with her new material, Borchetta says he In 1981 he visited his dad and his stepmother in Nashville and recommended she bring in , a Swedish producer never left. He played for a while in country bands, and when he known for crafting career-defining hits for ...( One wasn’t touring, he worked in the mailroom of his dad’s company, More Time), (I Kissed a Girl), and (Since sending out bulk orders of records and making calls to radio U Been Gone). “After a couple of conversations, she agreed,” stations on behalf of acts like and the Oak Ridge Borchetta says. Swift strummed a few cowboy chords on the Boys. He was better at peddling music than playing it. In 1991 he album, but her songs played more like throbbing top 40 anthems. got a job in promotions at Universal’s MCA Records label, home There was talk at the time that Red might not match the sales of $3,086 of Nashville icons like and McEntire, the singer and Swift’s ­previous . Instead, it sold 1.2 million copies in its Price of a second-row ticket for the Taylor Swift concert at WB star. release week in October 2012, making it her biggest opening yet. the on Aug. 25, 2015. It’s the most expensive 1.287 option currently listed on the resale market Borchetta worked with McEntire, and the singer intro- The same year, Borchetta signed an agreement to provide duced him to his future wife, Sandi Spika, who styled the music for Nashville. He also negotiated the first deal with McEntire’s hair and designed her dresses. Sandi thought Clear Channel Communications, now IHeartRadio, enabling his released its second album, Anything Goes, in early October, Borchetta could use her help, too. “He needed some tweak- record company to collect royalties when its artists’ songs play. it debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200. (“Well played, ing,” she says. “I helped tighten him up in some classier Traditionally, radio stations pay only music-publishing compa- Satan,” wrote one disgruntled YouTube commenter.) suits and changed the shoes he was wearing and things nies that represent composers. “Scott doesn’t follow the past,” Fresh from this triumph, Big Machine unveiled 1989 on like that.” More recently, Sandi Borchetta designed Big says Bob Pittman, CEO of parent IHeartMedia. “He looks to the Oct. 27. And it released that special edition in Target stores and Machine’s offices. millioncopies of Taylor future and finds new ways of doing business.” Pittman declined on Target.com, just as it did with and Red. According At MCA, Borchetta was an involved manager, choosing Borchetta got a call to say how much money has flowed to Big Machine through this to Nielsen SoundScan, Swift, who has promotional partnerships singles and dispensing advice. from Swift. “She goes, Swift’s 1989 in new royalty stream, but Borchetta says the numbers are “mean- with , , and Diet Coke, sold 647,000 physical The last album to He could be overbearing, and ‘Hey, Scott, it’s Taylor. ingful. It’s going really well.” copies of the album, and 640,000 digital ones, that first week. sell more copies still can be, according to col- I just want to let you the week of its Borchetta also had another country act that crossed over A source familiar with Swift’s thinking says it was the leagues. “There are days when know I’ve made up my to pop in a big way: ­singer’s idea to pull Artists who sold more than 1 million in one week than I would like to choke Scott mind, and I’m waiting release and Tyler her songs from Spotify, 1989 was 2002’s Borchetta,” says Spaulding, the for you.’ ” Hubbard, two gym- copies in a debut week since 1991* not Borchetta’s, and The Eminem Nashville manager whose clients In June 2006, Big Machine released Tim McGraw, Swift’s first toned Southern guys that the Big Machine include , now with single, a tangy track about a guy with a Chevy truck who shares who make up Florida Artist Album Year Number of copies CEO is exaggerating his 1 ’N Sync No Strings Attached 2000 2.415m Show Big Machine, as well as Aldean. her love for the country star (“When you think Tim McGraw/ Georgia Line. Kelley involvement because 2 Eminem The Marshall Mathers LP 2000 1.760 “But it’s hard to be upset with the I hope you think my favorite song,” she sang, strumming a flat- and Hubbard, who sing 3 Black & 2000 1.591 he’s currently looking guy. When Scott truly believes top ). That summer, 16-year-old Swift sat in Big Machine’s about imbibing Fireball 4 Britney Spears Oops!...I Did It Again 2000 1.319 to sell the company for in a record, he’s able to turn the office, stuffing review copies into envelopes. “With every -enve Cinnamon Whisky 5 Taylor Swift 1989 2014 1.287 $200 million. Now would 56 tide at stations that might not lope that I would seal I would look at the address and the station and swig from a bottle 6 Taylor Swift Red 2012 1.208 be the time. Swift owes 57 have believed in it.” on there and think, ‘Please, please just listen to this one time,’ ” onstage, came up with 7 2005 1.140 Big Machine only MCA fired him in 1997, but Swift told Billboard in 2010. “I would say a little message to each their own methods 8 Backstreet Boys Millennium 1999 1.133 one more album 9 Born This Way 2011 1.108 he soon landed at the Nashville envelope: ‘Please, whoever gets this, please listen to this.’ ” Monte of engagement. They under her contract. 10 Confessions 2004 1.096 division of DreamWorks Records, Lipman, CEO of Universal’s Republic label, noticed Swift’s main- dragged a gas grill 11 Double Live 1998 1.085 After that, she could where he hawked records by stream potential in her next single, . “I behind their SUV on 12 Chocolate Starfish 2000 1.054 sign with any number Toby Keith and . It called Scott up and said, ‘I don’t know if you realize this, but their early tours and And The Hot Dog Flavored Water of labels, all of which was fun until Universal bought that’s a pop record. I can cross that over,’ ” Lipman remembers. cooked hot dogs and 13 Taylor Swift Speak Now 2010 1.047 would be ­overjoyed to DreamWorks in 2004 and “He said, ‘Bring it.’ ” hamburgers for fans. 14 Feels LIke Home 2004 1.022 have her. Borchetta found himself working In October 2006, Big Machine released Swift’s self-titled debut. They became poster 15 Tha Carter III 2008 1.005 Borchetta says for his old bosses from MCA. So It went to No. 5 on the , selling 5.4 million copies boys for what music his company isn’t for he decided to start his own label. in the U.S. This was a good start for a new label. “It meant we critics refer to as “bro-country.” sale. “Every time we have a Taylor record, they’re like, ‘Oh, he’s Before he left, he struck up a were never in debt,” Borchetta says. “We never had a year when ’s first album,Here’s To The Good Times, selling the company,’ ” he scoffs. But the next minute, he rethinks relationship with Swift, then a we lost money.” The success of Taylor Swift also established Big went to No. 4 on the Billboard Country Charts in 2012, thanks his stance. “The business is changing so quickly, and if I see a teenage singer- shop- Machine as a force in Nashville. The following year, Borchetta in large part to a of its party anthem, Cruise, which fea- strategic opportunity that’s going to be better for our artists ping songs around town. One added a second imprint, Valory (“the name stands for fierce- tured rapper . For some purists, it was bad and executives, it’s going to be a serious conversation,” he says. night that year, when Swift ness,” he says), and signed another blond singer, Jewel, to her enough what Borchetta had done with Swift. Cruise was too Borchetta was smart enough to sign Swift when she was was performing at Nashville’s first country album. It went to No. 1 on the Billboard Country much. “I call the antichrist of country music,” 15, but now, at 24, she doesn’t need him. Big Machine, on the , Borchetta made Charts, although she’s since left the label. says Kyle Coroneos, editor of the Saving Country Music website. other hand, can’t afford to lose her. The company claims to have an offer to Swift Luckily for Borchetta, he Borchetta says he’s simply letting his artists follow sold 40 million of its artists’ albums, and accord- and her parents. He “I called Scott still had Swift. Her next two their own muses. When Florida Georgia Line ing to Nielsen SoundScan, Swift’s total sales have said he was leaving albums—Fearless (2008) and reached 24 million. On Nov. 10, Swift appeared on DreamWorks to start Speak Now (2010)—sold a total the cover of the latest issue his own label. He up and said, ‘I of 12 million copies in the U.S. only of Wonderland, a British didn’t have an office, Swift helped Borchetta lure 1989 is the magazine, looking retro and and he still needed don’t know if the actual Tim McGraw to edgy, with a beachy bob, financing. But he Big Machine in 2012. “When her normally groomed eye- promised Swift that you realize this, you look at the success that album released brows untamed. She spoke as soon as he was set Scott’s had with Taylor, it about how grown-up she up, she’d have a deal makes you stand up and pay feels and how comfortable with him. “They all but that’s a pop attention,” McGraw says. this year to exceed she is being single. “I like it,” looked at me like I Meanwhile, Swift was said Swift. “I’m not willing to was crazy,” he says. record. I can working on her fourth album, give up that independence Two weeks later, cross that over’ ” Red, and moving away from PHOTO; ZHENJIE/IMAGINECHINA/AP DING IMAGES; TRUSCELLO/WIREIMAGE/GETTY DENISE LEFT: TOP FROM CLOCKWISE IMAGES POLK/GETTY RICH IMAGES; BISHOP/GETTY LLOYD IMAGES; DIPASUPIL/FILMMAGIC/GETTY D UNRELIABLE ARE FIGURES FIRST-WEEK LAUNCH, 1991 SOUNDSCAN’S TO *PRIOR SOUNDSCAN; NIELSEN DATA: 1 million in sales for anyone.”