Scooter Braun's wife came to his defense following Taylor Swift's scathing Tumblr post, in which she deemed the music manager and the new owner of her music catalog as a "manipulative bully." Braun's company Ithaca Holdings purchased Big Machine Label Group, the label that represented Swift and owned the master records of her 2006 self-titled debut along with every other Swift album through 2017's Reputation, on Sunday.
A frustrated Swift allegedly caught wind of the deal after reading the news with the rest of the world and shared an open letter Tumblr in response to the acquisition on Sunday, calling it her "worst case scenario." She insinuated she was in the dark about the $300 million deal, which she further claimed not only prevented her from owning her own discography but also put the rights to her music "in the hands of someone who tried to dismantle" her career.
The viral post caught the attention of many on social media, including Braun's wife, Yael Cohen Braun, who blasted Swift in an Instagram post and claimed the artist was well aware of the deal before it was made public.
"I have never been one for a public airing of laundry, but when you attack my husband... here we go. Let's start with @taylorswift, whoa. Then let's get the facts straight," Cohen Braun wrote. "You were given the opportunity to own your masters, you passed. Interesting that the man you're so 'grossed out' by believed in you more than you believe in yourself. Your dad is a shareholder and was notified, and [Scott Borchetta, CEO of Big Machine] personally told you before this came out. So no, you didn't find out with the world."
In his own follow-up response, Borchetta confirmed Big Machine's shareholder and Swift's father, Scott Swift, was represented on the call by a 13 Management lawyer regarding the deal. He also said he texted Taylor Swift at 9 p.m. on Saturday over the deal, writing, "I truly doubt that she 'woke up to the news when everyone else did.'"
Cohen Braun went on to criticize Taylor Swift's choice to label her husband as a bully considering her past agression towards other artists and people in the industry. "And girl, who are you to talk about bullying? The world has watched you collect and drop friends like wilted flowers," Cohen Braun wrote.
"My husband is anything but a bully, he's spent his life standing up for people and causes he believes in," she continued. "Beyond that, it's easy to see that the point of putting this out was to get people to bully him. You are supposed to be a role model, but continue to model bullying. He's a manager, not God."
In Taylor Swift's Tumblr post, the 29-year-old accused Braun, 38, of sending his henchmen to bully her online and claimed he colluded with Kim Kardashian to orchestrate the illegally recorded snippet of her phone conversation with Kanye West—regarding her name drop in his 2016 hit "Famous." Cohen Braun knocked those claims too.
"He cannot control the actions of humans, even ones he manages. Don't blame him because Kim [Kardashian] caught you in a lie, it's embarrassing I know—but adults own up to their mistakes. We learn and grow from them, we don't divert blame and blur the lines of reality to suit our needs," Cohen Braun wrote.
"What you haven't seen is what happens behind closed doors, when he has supported and stood up for you. When he has challenged his clients to be kind or be quiet. When he has reached an olive branch out to you on numerous occasions," she continued. "Scott (Scooter) was so excited to work and build with you. How embarrassing this temper tantrum is because you didn't get your own way. He believes in and supports you, I sincerely hope you can learn to love and believe in yourself the way my husband does."
She concluded: "Lastly, if you think he can control his clients, please control your fans. Leave our personal life and kids out of this. You don't understand yet what line that crosses, but one day you will. And I hope you have the dignity, class and kindness to leave your fans out of this and have an open discussion. Tumblr can't fix this, a phone call can."
Others like Braun's clients Justin Bieber and Demi Lovato have also sided with the music manager, while singer Halsey and model Cara Delevingne have taken up for Taylor Swift.
