Taylor Swift Pulls Fearless (Taylor's Version) from the Running at Grammys and CMA Awards
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Neilson Barnard/Getty Images Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift is bowing out of consideration at the upcoming Grammy and CMA Awards for Fearless (Taylor's Version), the recent re-recording of her 2008 sophomore album Fearless.
In a statement to Billboard Tuesday, a representative for Republic Records said, "After careful consideration, Taylor Swift will not be submitting Fearless (Taylor's Version) in any category at this year's upcoming Grammy and CMA Awards."
"Fearless has already won four Grammys including album of the year, as well as the CMA Award for album of the year in 2009/2010 and remains the most awarded country album of all time," the statement adds.
The rep told Billboard that while Swift's Fearless re-recording won't be up for accolades at the aforementioned shows, the 31-year-old singer's most recent album, Evermore, "will be submitted to the Grammys for consideration in all eligible categories," according to the outlet.
Folklore — which was released in July 2020, less than five months before Evermore — recently nabbed the singer a history-making third album of the year win at the 2021 Grammys.
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Fearless (Taylor's Version) dropped in April, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 — over 12 years after its original version did the same, back in November 2008.
The more recent record, which features six new tracks, became her ninth album to debut at No. 1, according to Billboard.
Additionally, the outlet reported it was the biggest week for an album so far in 2021, as Fearless (Taylor's Version) is the only re-recorded album in history to reach No. 1. Swift is also the first woman to release three new No. 1 albums in a year, with Folklore, Evermore and Fearless (Taylor's Version) spanning eight months and two weeks, per Billboard.
Reacting to Fearless (Taylor's Version) reaching its chart-topping status, the singer took a moment to thank fans on Twitter and also revealed that she's busy at work on the next re-recording.
"Been in the studio all day recording the next one — it's really so amazing what you all have done here," she wrote on April 18. (Swift announced the upcoming 30-track re-recording of her 2012 album Red last month.)
RELATED VIDEO: Taylor Swift Says She Went "Line by Line" on Every Fearless Song to See What to "Improve" on Re-Record
Speaking with PEOPLE (the TV Show!) in April, Swift opened up about the recreation process and how she ensured that Taylor's Version kept the same essence of its Grammy-winning original.
"In terms of production, I really wanted to stay very loyal to the initial melodies that I had thought of for these songs," she said. "And so we really did go in and try to create a 'the same but better' version. We kept all the same parts that I initially dreamed up for these songs. But if there was any way that we could improve upon the sonic quality, we did."
"We just kind of took all the knowledge that we've acquired over decades of playing this music and applied that to it," she added. "But yeah, I did go in line by line and listen to every single vocal and think, you know, what are my inflections here? If I [could] improve upon it, I did. But I really did want this to be very true to what I initially thought of and what I had initially written. But better. Obviously."
In November, Swift was legally allowed to re-record her first five albums, which Scooter Braun gained ownership of last year following his $330 million deal with Big Machine Label Group. Swift previously spoke out after Braun, 40, sold her masters to Shamrock Holdings for $300 million.
Since leaving Big Machine, Swift signed with Republic Records and Universal Music Group in an agreement to own the rights to her music going forward. In 2019, she released Lover, followed by her two pandemic albums, Folklore and Evermore, in 2020.
