.jpg)
This week, reports of multiple, major artists parting ways with Scooter Braun took over headlines: Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato, and even Justin Bieber.
Fifteen years ago, Braun quickly became one of the most powerful managers in Hollywood after signing the talented tween YouTuber that would become global superstar Justin Bieber. However, it seems that a few of his highest-profile clients have cut ties with him over the past year or so, including J Balvin, Lovato, Idina Menzel, and Grande, though there are conflicting reports about her alleged departure.
But who is Braun, and what's actually going on with this exodus of clients from his roster? Below, learn more about the manager himself, his company, his prior controversies, and what insiders are saying could be happening over at SB Projects.
Who is Scooter Braun?
Scott “Scooter” Braun is a talent manager, entrepreneur and music executive. He got his start as a party promoter planner and soon branched out into the music world. Today, Braun is the founder of the entertainment management company SB Projects, and has founded and co-founded a few record labels. He is also the CEO of HYBE America, a subsidiary of the South Korean company HYBE, formerly Big Hit Entertainment; HYBE acquired a 100% stake in his media company Ithaca Holdings in 2021.
Who are — or were — Scooter Braun's celebrity clients?
Justin Bieber is Braun's longest and arguably his most famous client; Braun essentially discovered Bieber on YouTube and launched his career back in 2008 SB Projects has also managedAriana Grande, Demi Lovato, Dan + Shay, Kanye West, The Kid Laroi, Lil Dicky, Tori Kelly, and Carly Rae Jepsen, Ava Max, Quavo, Black Eyed Peas, Ozuna, and many others. (See the full list of clients on his website.)
Why are clients dropping Scooter Braun?
As of late August 2023, there has been what appears to be an exodus of clientele from Braun's portfolio, so much so that it's become a Twitter meme. (Braun poked fun at the meme on August 22 by tweeting that he was “no longer managing myself.”) But what's actually happening behind the scenes at SB Projects?
The rampant speculation began with Bieber. After Puck News reported that Braun and Bieber allegedly hadn't spoken in months and were headed for a split, reps for both told Page Six that the rumors weren't true. Braun and Bieber have been partners for more than a decade and have been through a lot together; for example, Braun opened up about helping Bieber out of a “dark place” in 2014, saying that he “failed” to be there for Bieber in the right ways at the time. Bieber has kept a very low profile in recent years. The musician released his last album in 2021, and in 2022 announced that he was dealing with Ramsey Hunt Syndrome, which led to partial facial paralysis.
Grande’s alleged split and Lovato's departure only added more fuel to the rumor mill. As noted by Entertainment Weekly on August 23, a source confirmed that Ariana Grande and Braun will no longer be working together. This was denied by both Variety and an industry source who spoke to Teen Vogue. On August 31, TMZ reported that Grande is departing from Braun's management: “Scooter's team is spinning the story. Ariana is leaving both Scooter and Hybe. There is absolutely no truth to her staying,” an anonymous source reportedly told the outlet. Grande signed with Braun back in 2013.
First reported by Billboard, Demi Lovato and SB Projects have also parted ways, and the musician is looking for new management. However, Variety reports that their split was “mutual and amicable" and part of a new direction for Lovato, who was “thankful for her time with SB Projects.”
ICYMI: Lovato is currently re-recording many of her previous hits in a punk-rock style for a new album called Demi Lovato Revamped. Colombian artist J Balvin, who signed with SB Projects in 2019, also ended his partnership with Braun in the last year and went to Roc Nation in May of this year. (Representatives for Lovato, Grande, Balvin, and Bieber did not respond to Teen Vogue's request for comment.)
Idina Menzel, who also signed with Braun in 2019, parted ways with the manager in January of this year, per The Hollywood Reporter. The Kid Laroi re-signed with Braun in 2022 after leaving in 2021, and jokingly referred to his time with Braun as a “mistake” on TikTok.
Of course, speculation that there's a darker element to Braun's story that's about to make headlines is just that: speculation. No party has spoken to anything nefarious related to the client departures.
However, a music industry source with knowledge of the situation tells Teen Vogue that things are not as dramatic as they may seem. “All of Scooter Braun’s clients are under contract and negotiations have been going on for several months as Scooter steps into his larger role as HYBE America CEO," says the insider. (HYBE America recently acquired Atlanta's Quality Control label, home to artists like City Girls, Migos, and Lil Baby.) "People are spreading rumors based on what they know, but they are off. Scooter’s team at SB Projects are still handling both Justin and Ariana as they work through what this new structure looks like.”
Billboard published a report on August 24 that supports this statement, claiming Bieber is still currently under contract at SB Projects until 2027; the outlet reported that Grande is planning to part… on friendly terms and that according to a source, she has “outgrown” him and is in pursuit of “a different direction.”
Why is Scooter Braun controversial?
We can't talk about Braun without mentioning the Taylor Swift controversy. In June 2019, Braun acquired Swift's former record label, Big Machine, and thus, control of Swift's masters from 2006 to 2017.
In November of that year, Swift released a scorching essay about Braun and Scott Borchetta, the Big Machine Records founder, and claimed they wouldn't allow her to use her own music in a documentary and an American Music Awards performance. The situation kickstarted the “Taylor's Version” re-records so Swift could own her work once more.
"The message being sent to me is very clear. Basically, be a good little girl and shut up. Or you'll be punished," Swift wrote at the time. “Neither of these men had a hand in the writing of those songs. They did nothing to create the relationship I have with my fans.” There's been some back and forth between Swift, Braun, and Borchetta over the years, but Braun eventually sold her back catalog to private equity firm Shamrock Capitol for $300 million.
In October 2022 while appearing on NPR's The Limits With Jay Williams, Braun expressed “regret” over the situation, and clarified that he would've handled the deal differently if it had happened now.
“I learned an important lesson from that,” Braun said. “I think a lot of things got lost in translation. I think that when you have a conflict with someone, it’s very hard to resolve it if you’re not willing to have a conversation… So the regret I have there is that I made the assumption that everyone, once the deal was done, was going to have a conversation with me, see my intent, see my character, and say ‘Great, let’s be in business together.’ I made that assumption with people that I didn’t know, and I learned… that I can never make that assumption again.”
“I didn’t appreciate how that all went down," he continued. "I thought it was unfair. But I also understand, from the other side, they probably felt it was unfair, too. So I choose to look at it as a learning lesson, a growing lesson, and I wish everyone involved well. And I’m rooting for everyone to win because I don’t believe in rooting for people to lose.”
