Scooter Braun, who had unofficially stepped back from managing top artists like Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande at least two years ago, made it official on Monday: He is stepping back from being a manager to focus on his role as CEO of HYBE America, the company to which he sold his Ithaca Holdings in 2021, and to spend more time with his family. He made this announcement in a nearly 1,400-word statement provided in full below.
Starting with Justin Bieber in the late 2000s and continuing with Ariana Grande and several other artists, Braun quickly rose to become one of the most successful and driven executives in the music industry.
By the age of 40, he and his SB Projects company had achieved many of his ambitious goals, helping usher several artists to superstardom. Notably, he organized the “One Love Manchester” charity concert starring Grande, Bieber, Coldplay, Katy Perry, Mac Miller, Miley Cyrus, and more, in just two weeks following a 2017 terrorist bombing at a Grande concert that resulted in 22 fatalities.
However, his reputation took a significant hit with his controversial 2018 acquisition of the rights to Taylor Swift’s first six albums through his purchase of Big Machine Record Group.
Swift claimed the acquisition was underhanded, and it was followed by months of taunts from Braun and some of his clients and friends, including Bieber and Kanye West.
Despite her harsh statements and her fans’ relentless attacks on social media, Braun managed to sell that catalog to Shamrock Holdings for approximately $300 million, making a substantial profit, and then sold Ithaca Holdings to HYBE for $1.05 billion.
Shortly afterward, rumors began to surface that some of Braun’s clients were unhappy, which fully came to light last summer when reports confirmed that both Bieber and Grande had parted ways with him. Despite initial denials from SB, the news was later confirmed, along with off-the-record comments that Braun had long since stepped back from management.
In his lengthy and rather elaborate statement, Braun speaks fondly of his clients over the years, including his first client, Asher Roth, as well as Bieber, Grande, Carly Rae Jepsen, Psy, Lil Dicky, Tori Kelly, Demi Lovato, J Balvin, Quavo, Zac Brown, Martin Garrix, David Guetta, Steve Angello, producer Andrew Watt, YG, Kid Laroi, Dan + Shay, and longtime business partner Usher. He also mentioned that he is leaving the management company in capable hands with Alison Kaye and Jenn McDaniel.
