By Prashi Agarwal, Staff Reporter
We all know Taylor Swift has been re-recording her music to gain rights over her albums. However, what many may not know is the extent of the scandal behind the scenes regarding one major figure: Scooter Braun.
Braun established Scooter Braun Projects in 2007. From there, he scouted various singers such as Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) Ariana Grande and then-13-year-old Justin Bieber. Braun then secured Big Machine Records in 2019, acquiring the legal ownership of Swift’s first six albums, worth $300 million.
This was when Braun revealed his true self.
He limited Swift’s ability to sing her own songs in public. At the 2019 American Music Awards, Braun prevented Swift from singing her old songs when she received the Artist of the Decade award, claiming that singing at the awards would be rerecording her music before she was actually allowed to the year after. Taylor Swift spoke up about Braun mistreating her several times on X (then Twitter) over the time that Braun managed her music career.
“I feel very strongly that sharing what is happening to me could change the awareness level of other artists and potentially help them avoid a similar fate,” Swift wrote on Twitter in 2019. “The message being sent to me is very clear. Basically, be a good little girl and shut up. Or you’ll be punished. This is WRONG.”
It’s not just Taylor who suffered under Braun’s manipulation. Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande and Demi Lovato all simultaneously ended or paused their working contract with Braun as their manager in August of this year, as he was getting settled in his new role as the CEO of Hybe America.
According to CNN, Grande fired Braun in 2016 because he was getting too involved in her romantic relationship at the time. Braun struggled to keep working life aside from personal life, which was a considerable factor as to why these artists were content with their contracts ending.
Top celebrities are rightfully dropping Scooter, and he completely deserves the hate he is getting. Scooter takes these roles for the money only and has no compassion toward those he manages. He brings about a facet of the broader industrial problem and how it is corrupt because of selfish figures like himself. With this information, truly reconsider if you would really want to support someone who contributes to the ever-growing dark side of the industry.
A common defense against Braun is that he still helped famous stars like Justin Bieber rise to their lasting fame today. While this may be true, Braun stayed very controlling over Bieber’s personal life even after he became a legal adult. He had an overbearing involvement in Bieber’s relationship with Selena Gomez, which was unnecessary and none of Braun’s business. Braun messed up almost every one of his client’s relationships due to his deceptive tactics.
The whole Scooter Braun drama really opens our eyes to the problems in the music industry, and how we fans may not know what’s really going on behind the scenes. Artists are often silenced by higher figures, but some, such as Taylor Swift, speak out and inform the world of the unjust actions in the industry.
By streaming Taylor Swift’s original albums, you are giving Scooter money, whether you like it or not. Don’t give a devious man who wronged his clients multiple times over the right to earn money.
Scooter, get on a scooter and scoot away.
Prashi Agarwal can be reached at [email protected].
