Dick Clark Productions has shared a statement to Rolling Stone denying they were involved with the one issued earlier by Big Machine.
“At no time did Dick Clark Productions agree to create, authorize or distribute a statement in partnership with Big Machine Label Group regarding Taylor Swift’s performance at the 2019 American Music Awards,” it read. “Any final agreement on this matter needs to be made directly with Taylor Swift’s management team. We have no further comment.”
Singer and songwriter Taylor Swift’s former label Big Machine shared a statement with NPR saying they had reached a licensing agreement with the producers of the American Music Awards, Dick Clark Productions, that would allow Taylor Swift to perform her old songs at the show this Sunday.
“The Big Machine Label Group and Dick Clark Productions announce that they have come to terms on a licensing agreement that approves their artists’ performances to stream post show and for re-broadcast on mutually approved platforms. This includes the upcoming American Music Awards performances. It should be noted that recording artists do not need label approval for live performances on television or any other live media. Record label approval is only needed for contracted artists’ audio and visual recordings and in determining how those works are distributed.”
The Big Machine Label Group and Dick Clark Productions announced that they had come to terms on a licensing agreement that approved their artists’ performances to stream post show and for re-broadcast on mutually approved platforms. This includes the upcoming American Music Awards performances
Representatives for Big Machine, Dick Clark Productions and Swift did not immediately return Rolling Stone’s request for comment. It’s unclear which songs Swift will perform on Sunday’s show.
The announcement comes one week after Swift released a statement on social media claiming that Big Machine Label Group’s Scott Borchetta and Scooter Braun had told her she’s “not allowed to perform my old songs on television because they claim that would be re-recording my music before I’m allowed to next year.” Swift said that Big Machine had specifically told her she couldn’t use her old music in a Netflix documentary about her life, and in a career-spanning medley on the American Music Awards.
In response, Big Machine Label Group released a statement saying, “At no point did we say Taylor could not perform on the AMAs or block her Netflix special. In fact, we do not have the right to keep her from performing live anywhere.” A representative for Swift immediately hit back, saying Borchetta “flatly denied the request for both American Music Awards and Netflix,” adding, “Please notice in Big Machine’s statement, they never actually deny either claim Taylor said last night in her post.”
The dust-up over the Netflix doc and the AMAs marks the latest escalation in Swift’s ongoing feud with Big Machine, which began earlier this year when Braun – a longtime Swift nemesis – purchased Big Machine for $300 million and took control of the masters for her first six albums. Swift then announced that she planned to re-record her first six albums next year in order to regain control of her songs.