Alex Myers July 1st, 2019 - 9:08 PM
Shade was thrown yesterday at one of music’s biggest agents Scooter Braun from the country-pop diva Taylor Swift when he bought Big Machine Records, the record label that own’s the rights to Swift’s first six albums, from Scott Borchetta for $300 million. The singer left Big Machine Records and moved to Universal Music Group in order to have more creative control, but Braun, a “bully” as Swift described him in a Tumblr post, took hold of the singer’s music rights.
“For years I asked, pleaded for a chance to own my work. Instead I was given an opportunity to sign back up to Big Machine Records and ‘earn’ one album back at a time, one for every new one I turned in. I walked away because I knew once I signed that contract, Scott Borchetta would sell the label, thereby selling me and my future” Swift wrote.
Indie pop artist Sky Ferreira took to Instagram to comment on the situation. “The entertainment industry is filled with under qualified bullies & morons with way too much power for their own good,” Ferreira said.
The singer encouraged artists to not let people in the music industry gas light them and to always seek a healthy work environment rather than what appears to be the best option financially.
Taylor Swift and Ferreira both touched upon the common themes of gas lighting that many people in the music industry tend to do, which has caused both artists immense stress. Swift claimed that Kanye West’s illegally recorded phone call of her in 2016 was a part of Braun’s plan to intimidate the artist. Even with the singer’s plea to expose Braun, others still defended him.
Justin Beiber took to the defense of Braun on social media when said to Taylor Swift, “Scooter has had your back since the days you graciously let me open up for you.! As the years have passed we haven’t crossed paths and gotten to communicate our differences, hurts or frustrations. So for you to take it to social media and get people to hate on scooter isn’t fair. What were you trying to accomplish by posting that blog? seems to me like it was to get sympathy u also knew that in posting that your fans would go and bully scooter.”
Even Todrick Hall commented on the issue when he posted on Instagram about his dealings with Braun. “For those asking, I left Scooter Braun a long time ago… I am saddened by this news, but not shocked. He is an evil person whos only concern is his wealth and feeding his disgusting ego” the singer said.
The drama also had Braun’s wife commenting on the issue with a three page Instagram post that claimed that the singer had the opportunity to buy her records. Along with that, Scott Borchetta made his own post that was in accordance with Braun’s wife’s comments. Taylor Swift has not responded to the comments.
