Inside the roller-coaster career of Scooter Braun: How multi-millionaire music manager found success when he discovered a 12-year-old Justin Bieber before a very public feud with Taylor Swift and getting dumped by Ariana Grande
In the dizzying realm of the music industry, where talent and business acumen dance in perfect harmony, Scott Samuel Braun – better known as Scooter – has marked himself out as a real maverick.
With his finger firmly on the pulse of pop culture, 42-year-old Braun has transformed the careers of several prominent artists, leaving an indelible mark on the landscape of contemporary music – and built a net worth of some $500 million in the process.
But his wild success has in recent years given way to controversy.
A very public spat with world-renowned popstar Taylor Swift dealt damage to his personal brand and exposed his ruthless streak, while Swift has gone on to solidify her status as one of the world’s biggest artists.
Now amid the news that both Demi Lovato and longtime client Ariana Grande have chosen to part ways with Braun’s management company, speculation is mounting that there may be more controversy yet to be exposed.
Here, MailOnline recaps the stunning highs and bitter clashes of the music mogul’s tumultuous career so far.
Scooter Braun and Ariana Grande attend the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards at The Forum on August 24, 2014 in Inglewood, California
Scooter Braun with Demi Lovato
Singer Justin Bieber (L) and manager Scoot Braun pose in the audience at the 40th American Music Awards held at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on November 18, 2012 in Los Angeles, California
Born on June 18, 1981, in New York City, Braun’s upbringing laid the foundation for his future in the music industry.
Raised in a tight-knit Jewish family in Greenwich, Connecticut, he demonstrated a passion for music from a young age. After graduating from Greenwich High School, Braun pursued higher education at Emory University in Atlanta.
Ariana Grande ‘dumps’ Scooter Braun too: Hollywood manager’s career in crisis as 7 Rings singer joins Demi Lovato and J Balvin in severing ties… but Justin Bieber insists he’s standing by him
It was during his college years that he truly honed his entrepreneurial skills, organizing successful events and parties that showcased his ability to connect with diverse crowds.
He was hired by record label So So Def as executive marketing director at just 20 years of age, and went on to co-found the Raymond Braun music group with R&B stalwart Usher – something that earned him a spot on Forbes’ ’30 Under 30′ list for 2009.
But Braun’s first major splash in the music world was discovering a young Canadian teenager on YouTube who would go on become a true superstar.
Braun stumbled upon a video of Justin Bieber singing a Ne-Yo cover and, recognizing the kid’s immense potential, tracked the budding star down and convinced his mother to allow him to move to Atlanta and be mentored under Braun’s guidance.
In 2010, the world witnessed the fruits of their partnership in Bieber’s debut album ‘My World,’ which featured the chart-topping hit ‘Baby’ – the track responsible for launching Bieber’s career and solidifying Braun’s status as a music industry magnate.
He went on to work with artists such as Kanye West, Black Eyed Peas, Carly Rae Jepsen, Demi Lovato and Ariana Grande, while also brokering marketing deals between artists and renowned companies and even extending his reach into film and TV production.
But while much of Braun’s career has been marked by triumphs, things began to sour when he sparked a bitter feud with pop superstar Swift.
In 2019, Braun’s company Ithaca Holdings acquired Big Machine Label Group, which held the rights to Swift’s first six albums, for an eyewatering $330 million.
This purchase ignited a highly publicized spat, as Swift accused Braun of orchestrating a campaign of ‘incessant, manipulative bullying’ against her and taking ownership of her artistic work without her consent.
The pair already had bad blood due to Braun’s management and backing of Kanye West, who himself clashed with Swift – firstly after interrupting her acceptance speech at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, and secondly in 2016 after releasing the song ‘Famous’ which contained explicit lyrics about Swift – and nude body doubles.
Later, Kim Kardashian released a recorded phone call between Swift and West discussing the lyrics – which Swift had denounced as misogynistic – suggesting the popstar gave the rapper her blessing to use the words in advance.
The incident led to a widespread public perception that Swift had been dishonest, and saw her relationship with Kanye and Braun fall apart.
So, when Braun acquired the rights to all six of Swift’s first albums and proceeded to enjoy royalties off her hard work and creative talent, the popstar was furious.
‘My musical legacy is about to lie in the hands of someone who tried to dismantle it,’ she wrote at the time. ‘This is my worst case scenario.’
Scooter Braun and Kanye West
Taylor Swift performs onstage during opening night of her 2018 Reputation Stadium Tour at University of Phoenix Stadium on May 8, 2018 in Glendale, Arizona
In 2021, Braun split from his wife of seven years, Yael Cohen, with whom he shares three kids
Swift is now in the process of re-recording all six of her albums and is set to release ‘Taylor’s version’ of 1989 later this year, while embarking on a mega world tour that has propelled her to true superstardom.
Meanwhile for Braun, the 2020s have not been quite so successful.
In 2021, he split from his wife of seven years, Yael Cohen, with whom he shares three kids.
And this year, artists began to sever ties with the 42-year-old mogul.
Colombian singer J Bavin was the first higher profile artist to leave, announcing he’d split from Braun’s SB Management company in May in favour of Jay-Z’s Roc Nation Management.
Then on Monday, both Demi Lovato and Ariana Grande – who partnered with Braun aged just 20 years old and released all six of her albums while on his roster – announced they were leaving SB.
Lovato said the split was ‘amicable’ and was simply seeking ‘a new direction’, while Grande’s decision to leave remains unexplained, according to Billboard.
But the high profile departures have fuelled speculation surrounding Braun’s business dealings – and delighted fans of Taylor Swift.
Representatives for Lovato and Braun declined to comment to DailyMail.com.
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