Taylor Swift
Beth GarrabrantTaylor Swift isn’t the only one leaning into the Taylor’s Version era. While the singer is busy promoting the 30-track re-recorded version of her beloved Red album, the nation’s largest chain of radio stations, iHeartRadio, announced on Tuesday (Nov. 16) that fans listening to their 850 stations will only be able to hear the revamped titles on their network.
“iHeartRadio is replacing all of Taylor’s previous albums with the Taylor’s Version of each of them as Taylor releases each project, and will play only Taylor’s Version of her songs on the air,” read a story from iHeartRadio.
“Whenever Taylor re-records a new track, we immediately replace the old versions. Our stations will always deliver songs that artists are eager to share and fans want to hear,” said iHeartRadio chief programming officer Tom Poleman. “Listeners have made it known that they cannot wait to hear Taylor’s Version of each track. We are thrilled to provide a platform to share those with them, as well as the stories behind the songs from Taylor herself.”
According to iHeart, Swifties are already hearing Taylor’s Version versions on their stations, with Mediabase reporting that this week the top ten Version songs played include (in order): “Message In A Bottle (Taylor’s Version),” “I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor’s Version),” “Love Story (Taylor’s Version),” “Wildest Dreams (Taylor’s Version),” “You Belong With Me (Taylor’s Version),” “I Knew You Were Trouble (Taylor’s Version),” “All Too Well (Taylor’s Version),” “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together (Taylor’s Version),” and “22 (Taylor’s Version).”
So far, Swift has released Taylor’s Versions of her 2012 Red album and 2008’s Fearless, which both feature newly recorded takes on the original collections plus some unheard or newly recorded “From the Vault” tracks written during those eras but not included on the originals. The re-recording project began last year after the singer’s former label, Big Machine Group, was sold by manager Scooter Braun for $300 million in a deal that included the master rights to Swift’s first six albums.
NEWS
Even StubHub wants to get in on the Kendrick Lamar and Drake beef. StubHub revealed that ticket spiked on Thursday afternoon (June 12) for Kendrick Lamar's Grand National Tour at Toronto's Rogers Centre. In a X post, the company announced that Kendrick's tour has made Toronto one of the top five best-selling cities. The new record was based on total ticket sold.
The Toronto stop was always an anticipated show because of Kendrick Lamar's 2024 rap battle with hometown hero Drake. The two exchanged chart-topping diss tracks towards each other, including "Euphoria," "Family Matters," and "Not Like Us." Lamar would release the GNX album at the end of the year.
Kendrick's Toronto stop on the tour includes a two-night event co-headlined by SZA. The new Toronto record follows Wednesday's announcement of the Grand National Tour headed to Australia this summer. Kendrick Lamar has broken concert attendance records cities across the nation, including Dallas, Los Angeles, and Seattle.
Kendrick Lamar’s Grand National Tour has shattered several historic records, solidifying his status as a dominant force in hip-hop and live music. The tour’s Minneapolis opener set a new benchmark as the highest-grossing hip-hop concert of all time, pulling in over $9 million from more than 47,000 fans. In Atlanta, he and SZA drew a massive 45,000 attendees at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, setting a single-night hip-hop stadium attendance record, even as Pearl Jam played across town.
Streaming numbers mirrored the tour’s explosive impact. Lamar became the first rapper in history to surpass 100 million monthly Spotify listeners, joining the elite ranks of global pop icons. His album GNX also broke records, debuting with over 44 million first-day streams on Spotify and notching the largest opening streaming week for a hip-hop or R&B release in 2024.
Spanning 21 stadiums across North America between April and June 2025, the tour added extra shows in Los Angeles and Toronto due to overwhelming demand. The Grand National Tour isn’t just a concert series—it’s a cultural moment. With unmatched scale and reach, it redefines what's possible for hip-hop artists on a global stage.
