How Taylor Swift Did Her Label Mates a Major Favor By Simply Signing a New Contract

Earlier this month, it was announced that Taylor Swift was signing an exclusive deal with Universal Music Group, effective immediately. The contract deepened the “Look What You Made Me Do” singer’s relationship with the music production company, which is the parent to Republic Records — who her former (and only) label, Big Machine Records, had a long-term partnership with. (Swift will be under the Republic umbrella and therefore UMG going forward.)

Buried among the tedious legalese of Swift’s agreement, there’s a clause that will have a major positive effect not just on Swift’s career, but for her music industry peers — and one whose importance she may not have realized when she negotiated her terms.

The ask seems simple enough: As part of Swift’s Universal contract, she has requested that when the company eventually divests its assets in the music streaming service Spotify, she, along with all ofher label mates, receive a portion of the profit Universal will make, essentially helping artists recoup some of the money that they are losing from having their music distributed via streaming services.

UMG, along with Sony Entertainment and Warner Music, got stock in Spotify when the fledgling company first started streaming a decade ago, in 2008. Sony and Warner sold, respectively, half and all of their Spotify stocks earlier this year, and offered their talent payouts in turn. UMG has been the holdout among major labels to hang onto its own five percent stake in the company.

What makes Swift’s contract surprising for a major artist, however, is that while both Sony and Warner paid out musicians of their own choice, Swift’s contract demand not only guarantees the payouts, but also includes a no-strings-attached clause that financially protects smaller artists (who may owe their labels money for marketing or studio time).

Of course, this isn’t the first time the 29-year-old has gone toe-to-toe with the streaming service. Back in 2014, she pulled all her music off Spotify, citing their business model as one that devalues the labor of working musicians, although her music reappeared on the streaming service in 2017.

In 2015, in a now-deleted Tumblr post, Swift also called out Apple Music when, during its three-free-months initial offering, the company said it was not planning on paying royalties to artists whose music was streamed on the platform.

“This is not about me,” she wrote. “This is about the new artist or band that has just released their first single and will not be paid for its success. This is about the young songwriter who just got his or her first cut and thought that the royalties from that would get them out of debt. This is about the producer who works tirelessly to innovate and create, just like the innovators and creators at Apple are pioneering in their field…but will not get paid for a quarter of a year’s worth of plays on his or her songs.”

As David Turner points out in Slate, the music industry is one where collective labor doesn’t really exist, and most of the people in the industry are working tirelessly, sometimes thanklessly, and often for little to no financial gain, for their work. Echoing those who (somewhat jokingly) call Swift a “labor radical,” Turner argues that Swift’s demand is the singer’s attempt at creating favorable working conditions for those who struggle to make ends meet while entertaining the masses.

“Perhaps Universal Music Group already thought about giving its Spotify money back to artists and Swift’s demand was just good PR,” he questions, but with a caveat: “Even if that was the case, though, Swift again showed musicians, who might be more distrustful of management than any other American workforce, that it’s never too late to ask for better treatment.”

(Photo by Samir Hussein/Redferns)

No matter what kind of day you're having, Marissa Cooper's having a worse one. Mischa Barton's The O.C. character went through the ringer during the first three seasons of the teen drama (remember how she overdosed in Tijuana...and also saw her parents post-hookup after their divorce?).

And during her time on The O.C., Mischa Barton struggled with drug and alcohol abuse. She was arrested for a DUI in 2007 and eventually received involuntary psychiatric hospitalization in 2009 after allegedly threatening to end her own life. And in a new interview, Peter Gallagher (who played Sandy Cohen on the show) says he's "just so grateful" for "the fact that she’s still alive."

  • Mischa Barton starred alongside Peter Gallagher in The O.C. from 2003-2006.
  • The actress has revealed the "trauma" of being a star at that point in her life.
  • Peter recently opened up about how he's thankful "she’s still alive."


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The O.C. follows Ryan Atwood, who moves in with the Cohens after getting kicked out of his mom's house, and starts a relationship with Marissa shortly after. While Peter Gallagher played Adam Brody's TV dad instead of Mischa's, Sandy was a definitely father figure for Marissa, and it seems like Peter felt that same responsibility off camera.

"I’ve always felt very protective of her," Peter told The Independent. "First fame is toxic. First fame can kill you. She was 16 years old when she started working with us, so just the fact that she’s still alive, I’m just so grateful."

“You can go to therapy every day for the rest of your life,” Mischa said in a 2023 interview with The Sunday Times. “There’s just a certain amount of trauma [from] all that I went through, particularly in my early twenties, that just doesn’t go away overnight.”

Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage revealed that season 1 overdose not only served as a cliffhanger, but gave “network executives an escape hatch on a performer they had been wary about” (via People). But Mischa Barton got her big break, becoming "how people knew the show," and (thankfully) Marissa recovered — only to die after a car crash in season 3.

As hard as that season 3 ending is to watch, Mischa did have the opportunity to watch it with Rachel Bilson and Melinda Clarke for the first time on their rewatch podcast. "It needed to be a thing, after everything she's been through, but if it's here I'll watch it with you," Mischa says.

"I couldn't do it, Mischa, I couldn't do it," Rachel adds. "But I'm going to do it if you're going to do it."

Mischa says even though being written off the show "was a little bit of a bummer," it wasn't necessarily a surprise. "The character was just doing too much," she told Vanity Fairin 2023. "And I think they ran out of places for her to go. It was not the best thing in the world, [but] there wasn’t much you could do at that point. It was whether she could sail off into the sunset, or die. At that point, I guess it’s better to have the more dramatic ending.”
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Former Disney Channel star Dylan Sprouse and model Barbara Palvin are certainly living the sweet life after tying the knot in Palvin's native Hungary. The couple, who have been together for nearly five years, have always been pretty low-key — except for the occasional and undeniably adorable Instagram post (and a stunning wedding!). We are simply ~obsessed~ with this celebrity couple, especially after they pulled out all the stops for their couple's Halloween costume. Keep scrolling to see some of their best moments :').

See Dylan Sprouse & Barbara Palvin's Halloween Couple's Costume!

For Halloween Dylan Sprouse and Barbara Palvin stunned as the Phantom and Christine from Phantom of the Opera. Dylan wore a mask and a black cape, while Barbara wore a beautiful white dress. While the costume is obviously a nod to the musical, it also totally reminds us of their day as bride and groom.

"In Sleep He Sang to Me," Barbara said in a post, quoting the musical's titular number. "@dylansprouse my forever Phantom."

Who did Dylan Sprouse marry?

www.instagram.com

On the couple's wedding day (July 15, 2023), Barbara wore a Vivienne Westwood wedding gown to celebrate her Hungarian nuptials, bringing together their nearest and dearest for an intimate(-ish) celebration. Barbara and Dylan tied the knot on her parent's property, which conveniently doubles as an event venue, with plans to host an larger wedding in California in the fall.

"This past weekend was supposed to be an intimate event, but we ended up having 115 guests in the end because there are a lot of people we care about, and we wanted them all to be there," Barbara told Vogue.

When did Dylan Sprouse and Barbara Palvin get engaged?

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Barbara Palvin on Instagram: "♥️"

After months of speculation surrounding the couple's engagement, Dylan and Barbara confirmed their engagement in conversation with Sprouse's twin brother, actor Cole Sprouse, for V Magazine in June, sharing that they got engaged last September.

"We didn't necessarily feel the need to be fully transparent with the public about that aspect of our engagement," Dylan said. "What we wanted to do with Stephen [Gan, V editor-in-chief] and the V team is make something that was kind of tongue-in-cheek about the nature of private versus public. We're playing with the idea of perception."

Barbara noted that the lovebirds wanted to announce the news "on our time," adding, "When some people leaked the information that we got engaged, our PR team was like, 'Hey, so you guys should do maybe a post about it or talk to this magazine or talk to that magazine…' That really annoyed me because I knew we were building this story up. So, I'm very happy that we ended up doing it our way."

When did Barbara Palvin and Dylan Sprouse start dating?

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See Dylan Sprouse & Barbara Palvin's Dreamy Halloween Costume: "My Forever"

According to People, the couple met back in 2017 after a party when the Suite Life On Deck star slid into the model’s DMs (and as they say, the rest is history). The duo made their relationship Instagram official back in 2018 with Barbara’s sweet birthday tribute for Dylan’s 26th birthday.

Let’s be real here for a second though, we all knew they were endgame the minute Dylan went above and beyond to support Barbara at the Victoria Secret Fashion Show that same year (remember this viral video?). Three days after the fashion show, the Hungarian model told Vogue Australia that she hadn’t had a boyfriend in six years, but had now found “the perfect guy” in Dylan (we aren’t crying, you are).

How old are Barbara Palvin and Dylan Sprouse?

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Barbara Palvin was born on October 8, 1993, making her 31 years old. Dylan Sprouse was born on August 4, 1992, meaning he's 32 years old. So there's only a one-year age gap between them!

Stay up to date with all of Brit + Co's favorite celebrity relationships. Let us know your thoughts on Twitter!

This post has been updated.

2017's The Beguiled gave us one of the best groups of people of all time: Elle Fanning, Nicole Kidman, Sofia Coppola, and Kirsten Dunst just to name a few. And we're finally getting an Elle and Nicole reunion thanks to Apple TV+! "THRILLED to bring @rufithorpe genius hysterical heart-wrenching heartwarming book to your TV screens alongside a dream group of people!" Elle says on Instagram. Rather than having to test the success of its pilot, the series has already been ordered — even though the book it's based on isn't even out yet! Here's everything you need to know about the series.

  • Dakota and Elle Fanning will produce the upcoming Apple TV+ show Margo's Got Money Troubles.
  • The series follows Margo, who signs up for OnlyFans after learning she's pregnant.
  • The cast includes Elle Fanning, Nicole Kidman, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Nick Offerman.

Who's in the Margo's Got Money Troubles cast?

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Margo's Got Money Troubles Cast

We couldn't contain our excitement when we learned Margo's Got Money Troubles will star Nicole Kidman and Elle Fanning, but knowing Michelle Pfeiffer is also joining the cast is too much to bear! This is the first time the actress will collaborate with her husband, TV creator David E. Kelley, so we can't wait to see the magic they'll create (via Deadline).

Nick Offerman from The Last of Us and Parks and Rec will also star.

When is Margo's Got Money Troubles coming out?

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Margo's Got Money Troubles Release Date

We don't have an official release date for Elle Fanning and Nicole Kidman's TV show yet. I'm thinking if the TV show is in the early stages of planning, we could see it in 2025! Check out all of this year's best New TV Shows to hold you over until then.

What is Margo's Got Money Troubles about?

Amazon

Margo's Got Money Troubles Plot

Margo Millet is the daughter of a Hooter's waitress named Shyanne (Michelle Pfeiffer) and an ex-wrestler (via Deadline). She's always had to make it on her own, even though she's not sure how. When she enrolls in her local junior college, she's totally unprepared to get swept up into a torrid love affair with her English professor — or to get pregnant.

Now at 20 years old, Margo needs an income and fast. She decides to experiment with OnlyFans and ends up taking some of her estranged father's advice from the world of wrestling to create a character users will fall in love with. You can order the book now!

What is Elle Fanning and Nicole Kidman's new TV show?

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Margo's Got Money Troubles is coming soon to Apple TV+ thanks to a bunch of different producers. A24 is backing the film, as well as Elle and Dakota Fanning’s production company Lewellen Pictures and Nicole Kidman’s Blossom Films, to name a few.

What else has Elle Fanning and Nicole Kidman starred in?

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Elle Fanning and Nicole Kidman starred in 2017's The Beguiled. The movie follows John McBurney, an injured Union soldier, who winds up at a female Southern boarding school after deserting the Civil War. But soon, as the women help him, tensions turn to rivalries and friends turn to enemies.

Are you excited for Elle Fanning and Nicole Kidman's TV reunion? Let us know what other New TV Shows you're watching in the comments.

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This post has been updated.