Scooter Braun. Image: Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP
NEW YORK — Scooter Braun, one of the most recognizable names in the music business known for representing artists like Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande, will no longer work as a music manager.
On Monday, the executive and entrepreneur announced the news on his Instagram page. Instead, he will focus his attention on his current roles: as a board member of HYBE, and CEO of HYBE America, the South Korean entertainment company.
The announcement comes nearly a year after Braun’s direct management of his superstar roster was the subject of intense speculation.
“After 23 years this chapter as a music manager has come to an end,” he wrote in a lengthy statement. “I was really just 19 years old when I started. So for my entire adult life, I played the role of an artist manager on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. And for 20 years I loved it. It’s all I had known. But as my children got older, and my personal life took some hits.
“Every client I have had the privilege of working with has changed my life, and I know many of them are just beginning to see the success they deserve,” he continued. “I will cheer for every single one of them.”
In his statement, Braun mentioned a number of his clients from over the years: Grande, Bieber, Andrew Watt, Lil Dicky, Tori Kelly, J Balvin, Demi Lovato, Zac Brown Band, Martin Garrix, David Guetta, Steve Angello, Carly Rae Jepsen, PSY, and Quavo among them.
FILE PHOTO: Music executive Scooter Braun, left, appears with Justin Bieber at the World Premiere of “Justin Bieber’s Believe” in Los Angeles on December 18, 2013. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)
Last week, representatives from HYBE said Braun was no longer managing Grande, but that she was still working with him. “Ariana Grande and HYBE, led by CEO Scooter Braun, look forward to continuing their long-standing business partnership and pursuing creative opportunities in Weverse and REM Beauty,” a statement read.
In August, rumors circulated online that Bieber was leaving Braun, his longtime manager — and the man credited with discovering him. In the days that followed, media outlets began reporting that some of Braun’s other hype-profile clients like Grande and Lovato were also parting ways with him.
A person familiar with SB Projects’ business dealings, who was not authorized to speak publicly, told The Associated Press at the time that the artists on the company’s roster have day-to-day managers who are not Braun, and he consults with them. The person noted that no single person would be able to manage his roster of some of the biggest names in music on their own.
Representatives for Carly Rae Jepsen, BabyJake, and Asher Roth confirmed to AP last summer that those artists no longer work with Braun and haven’t for quite some time. A person close to Idina Menzel told AP the singer is no longer managed by Braun but was not authorized to speak publicly.
At the time, there was speculation that Braun’s artists were leaving SB Projects management because he was placing his focus on HYBE America instead of acting as an artist manager, but there was no official confirmation, until Monday.
Braun said in his statement that his silence was his attempt to take “the high road.”
“But for the last 3 years I have begun to feel that taking the high road has created confusion and ambiguity as to who we are,” Braun said, citing members of his team that are now handling artist management responsibilities.
AP’s request for additional comments was directed back to Braun’s Instagram statement, which addressed multiple aspects of his business interests.
“We at Hybe will continue to grow,” Braun detailed some of his future goals. “With… our existing business at Big Machine, we will continue to add amazing execs and artists to the roster.”
In 2019, Braun bought Big Machine Records, the label that originally signed Taylor Swift and released her first six records. Its CEO Scott Borchetta stayed in place. With the purchase, Braun purchased ownership of Swift’s master recordings, which he sold to an investment fund the following year. As a result, Swift announced that she would re-record her albums to own her new masters in a project called “Taylor’s Version.”