Scooter Braun speaks of 'shock' over Taylor Swift's attack

Music mogul Scooter Braun has said he was "shocked" by Taylor Swift's "deeply unfair" reaction when he acquired the rights to her first six studio albums.

Braun said he thought buying Swift's former label Big Machine in 2019 would be an "exciting thing".

But in a Tumblr post published soon after the sale, the singer said she was "sad and grossed out" by her master recordings being controlled by Braun, who she accused of "incessant, manipulative bullying".

Last month, the US star announced that she had bought back the rights to her music in a deal with the private equity firm that had acquired them from Braun in 2020.

On Monday, Braun told the Diary of a CEO podcast: "When I bought Big Machine, I thought I was going to work with all the artists on Big Machine. I thought it was going to be an exciting thing."

He had previously met Swift three or four times, including one occasion when she "invited me to a private party and we respected each other", he said.

"In between that time, since I'd seen her last, I started managing Kanye West, I managed Justin Bieber. I knew she didn't get along with them."

Braun said he thought there might be an issue given Swift's history with West and Bieber.

West famously stole Swift's thunder at the 2009 MTV Awards by coming on stage during her acceptance speech. Rumours about Swift and Bieber not getting on have circulated for years, and began before Braun's company bought her master recordings.

Braun, who is now retired from talent management, explained: "I had a feeling - this is where my arrogance came in - I had a feeling she probably didn't like me because I managed them. But I thought that once this announcement happened, she would talk to me, see who I am, and we would work together."

He said he spoke to other artists signed to Big Machine, who were "excited", and was set to call Swift too.

"And then this Tumblr [post] comes out and says all this stuff. And I was just, like, shocked."

He claimed the experience taught him that "everything in life is a gift".

"Having that experience allows me to have empathy for the people I worked with who I'd always say, 'Yeah I understand', but I never knew what it was like to be on the global stage like that.

"I never knew what criticism like that felt like. And like I told you, the biggest gift that I got from that was understanding that all the praise I had received up until that moment was not deserved, and all the hate I got after that moment was not deserved, because none of these people knew me. She didn't know me."

He resolved to sell the rights, and reconciled that the public reaction was out of his hands. "I can't worry about everyone's niece being mad at me," he said.

The BBC has contacted Swift's representatives for comment.

Swift recently bought back the rights to her first six albums - Taylor Swift, Fearless, Speak Now, Red, 1989 and Reputation - ending the long-running battle over the ownership of her music.

It is not known how much it cost Swift to acquire her masters, but the catalogue previously sold for $300m (£222m) in 2020. The BBC understands that rumours she paid between $600m to $1bn are inaccurately high.

"All of the music I've ever made now belongs to me," said the star, announcing the news on her website recently. "I've been bursting into tears of joy... ever since I found out this is really happening.

"To say this is my greatest dream come true is actually being pretty reserved about it," she added.

Swift responded to the original sale of her masters by vowing to re-record those records, effectively diminishing the value of those master tapes, and putting ownership back in her hands.

To date, she has released four re-recorded albums - known as "Taylor's Versions" - with dozens of bonus tracks and supplementary material.

Additional reporting by Mark Savage.