Taylor Swift The private equity firm criticized music industry mogul Scooter Brown over the sale of its master recordings, alleging that it tried to use a non-disclosure agreement to “silence me forever” about possible sale terms.
The story dates back to the beginning of Swift’s career, when he signed a six-album deal with the label Big Machine, which kept key recordings as part of the terms of the deal. After leaving for a new deal with Swift Republic, Big Machine was sold to Bran in June 2019, giving her control over her big machine masters. Swift complained at the time: “My musical legacy is in the hands of someone who tried to destroy it,” accusing artist manager Brown of years of “relentless, manipulative defamation.” Bruin did not respond to allegations of bullying, but Big Machine owner Scott Borchetta said at the time: “The scooter has never been positive about Taylor.”
As disagreements continued, Bruin requested a resolution in November 2019: “I am open to all possibilities … it almost seems as if you are never interested in resolving the conflict.”
Bran has now sold on Master Recordings to private equity firm Shamrock Capital in a deal worth more than $ 300m through Variety. “This is the second time my music has been sold without my knowledge,” Swift said in a statement on Twitter about the sale. With the satisfaction of having created the perfect music, if she owns her master recordings, she earns more royalties and sales revenue and has more control over how her recordings are used.
She also claims that, prior to the sale, she negotiated control of her masters with Brunn. “The Scooter team wanted me to sign the Iron NDA, saying I would never say another word about Scooter Brown unless it was positive,” he said. “I have to sign a document that will silence me forever before I get a chance to bid on my work … it will never even give my team a price tag. These master recordings were not for me to sell.”
He shared a letter he sent to Shamrock Capital in October stating that he hoped to work with the company following the sale, but said “I can’t get myself involved in a good end conscience directly or indirectly benefiting Scooter Bran’s interests.”
Commenting on the sale, Shamrock Capital said: “Taylor Swift is a transcendent artist with a timeless list. We have invested this because we believe in the immense value and opportunity that comes with its work. We fully respect and support his decision and, while we hope for a formal formal partnership, we also know that this is a potential outcome that we have considered. We appreciate Taylor’s open communication and professionalism with us over the past few weeks. We hope to partner with him in new ways going forward and remain committed to investing in his work with artists.
Bran made no comment on the sale; The guardian has contacted him for a response.
Swift has long said she wants to re-record her large machine albums under her new Republic deal, as part of a reg regulation of partial reg on the song list. In his Shamrock letter, he said: “This is my only way to get a sense of pride once I hear the songs from my first six albums.”
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