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Taylor Swift songs are back on TikTok after a dispute caused her record label to stop licensing her content to the app.
Her music returns on Thursday, ahead of the release of her new album, The Tortured Poets Department.
Universal Music in January removed songs from its artists, including Rihanna and Ariana Grande, citing licensing disputes.
Many artists have complained about insufficient royalties from TikTok.
While many of her songs – including “You Belong With Me” and “Cruel Summer” – are once again available for users to add to their videos, music belonging to other Universal artists has still not been relisted.
That’s likely because unlike other artists, Swift owns the rights to her music under the terms of a 2018 deal with Universal Pictures. Some reports speculated that Swift struck a separate deal with TikTok.
“Swifties” – fans of Swift – took to the platform to share their joy at the return of her music.
“OMG this made my whole year,” wrote verified user Jessica Golich, adding that users will “have the entire new album to play.”
Divendra Rai recorded a video lip-syncing to “Cruel Summer” and captioned it: “Welcome back Taylor!!!”
In an open letter published on January 30, Universal claimed that “ultimately TikTok is trying to build a business based on music without paying fair value for the music.”
Universal said it is also concerned about AI-generated songs that sound like real songs, such as those that sound like Drake and The Weeknd, which have gone viral, and whether artists can receive fair compensation.
Earlier this year, Swift announced her upcoming album while accepting the 13th Annual Grammy Awards.
“The Tortured Poets Department”, which will be released on April 19, is her 11th album.
The BBC has contacted Universal Pictures and TikTok for comment.
