Swift Releasing Live Show—via Former Nemesis

Apple Music made amends over artist pay, will stream '1989 World Tour LIVE' to users for free
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Dec 13, 2015 1:11 PM CST
Swift Releasing Live Show—via Former Nemesis
Taylor Swift performs during the "1989" world tour at Staples Center on Saturday, Aug. 22, 2015 in Los Angeles.   (Photo by Matt Sayles/Invision/AP)

It's her 26th birthday, and Taylor Swift will release a concert special from her star-studded 1989 World Tour if she wants to—and she wants to exclusively on Apple Music. The pop star announced Sunday she'll release "The 1989 World Tour LIVE" on Dec. 20, and it'll be free for Apple Music users to stream. Swift, who wrote a critical Tumblr post in June about Apple's decision to not pay artists during its free, three-month trial of Apple Music, said Apple contacted her about filming one of her concerts for a special. "I think that is probably the starting point because I didn't have a personal relationship with Apple until that point," Swift said. "I'm sure there are better ways to introduce yourself than to say, 'This is what I'm upset about, please think about our industry.' It got more attention than I thought it would."

Apple changed its mind, but Swift said she was a bit terrified after her post. "Are they going to turn my phone off? Am I going to wake up tomorrow and all of my music will be off of iTunes?" she said. "Absolute terror hit." She added Apple "had shown such humility in what they did. so that's how we get (here)." In the special, she performs in front of 76,000 fans in Sydney, Australia, on Nov. 28. Swift's top-grossing tour included Mick Jagger, Justin Timberlake, Lorde, the Weeknd, Fetty Wap, Steven Tyler, Ellen DeGeneres, Serena Williams, Lena Dunham, Julia Roberts, and the US women's soccer team. "It happens different ways different times," she said of the guests. "I hadn't met Fetty Wap before but love him, so we'd reach out and go, 'Here are the dates we have'. but then there were people like my friend Selena (Gomez) or Lorde or whatever—I'd just text them." (More Taylor Swift stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X