Taylor Swift is angry about reselling her former record company Big Machine Records. The label was purchased by entrepreneur and manager Scooter Braun. The singer finds it horrible that the rights to her music are now in his hands.
At the age of fifteen, Swift signed with the company that was just started by Scott Borchetta. The singer released her six albums, including Reputation from 2017, with the label. This year she makes the switch to Republic where singles ME! and You need to calm down .
Swift left the rights for her music with the former label
Swift explains in an extensive statement on Tumblr why she does not have the rights over her own music. “I have been working for years to become the owner of my music. At Big Machine Records they gave me the chance to ‘earn back’ one album every time I release a new one,” she writes about Borchetta’s plans.
“I left because I knew that Borchetta would sell the label and with it my future as soon as I would sign. I made the difficult choice about my past, and with it the music I wrote and the video clips I made and myself financed, to leave it behind, “she explains.
“Scooter Braun teased me and my music is now his property”
The pop star admits to be shocked that Braun, manager of Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande, among others, is the one who bought the record company. “I can only think of his ceaseless and manipulative harassment,” she writes. She cites examples of Braun’s involvement in Swift’s fight with Kanye West and Kim Kardashian.
“The bottom line is that my musical legacy is now in the hands of a man who has tried to get me down”, she summarizes the situation. “This is the worst thing that could have happened. This happens when you sign a contract at the age of 15 with someone for whom ‘loyalty’ is just a contractual concept,” she writes about her former record boss.
Swift closes her argument with a warning to young artists. “Hopefully they read this and learn how to better protect themselves in negotiations. You deserve to be the owner of the art you make.”
Braun and Borchetta have not yet responded to the story of Swift. The two celebrate the resale of the record company with photos on Instagram.
Swift releases its new album Lover on August 23 .