Scooter Braun doesn’t want any more bad blood with Taylor Swift.
The 38-year-old manager expressed his desire to find resolution in an open letter to the artist posted via Instagram on Friday.
“@taylorswift,” he began. “Since your public statement last week there have been numerous death threats directed at my family.”
Referencing his first public comments since their drama began, Braun then recalled how he said he “wouldn’t participate in a social media war.”
“However, I came home tonight to find my wife had received a phone call threatening the safety of our children, as well as other threats seen above,” he continued, sharing a photo of a threat they received. “I won’t go in to the details of this past week. I have been at a loss. Thinking of my wife and children, my team and their families, I have gone through a range of emotions on how to deal with this. I write this now only after a deep breath and much reflection. I am certain there is no situation ever worth jeopardizing anyone’s safety.”
While he wrote this likely wasn’t Swift’s intentions, he emphasized the “tremendous amount of weight” her words can carry and how her messages “can be interpreted by some in different ways.”
“While disappointed that you have remained silent after being notified by your attorneys four days ago of these ongoing threats, I’m still hopeful we can fix this,” he added. “We are living in a time of pointless violence and as a husband and father I am concerned.”
Braun then claimed “this is a world filled with toxic division” in which “people express their opinions over social media instead of having conversations in person.” He then made it clear he wants “no part of that.”
“To be frank, I was shocked and disheartened to hear that my presence in the Big Machine deal caused you so much pain as the handful of times we have actually met I have always remembered them being pleasant and respectful,” he wrote. “Knowing what I know now all I have wanted to do is rectify the situation. I’m open to ALL possibilities.”
He then claimed his “attempts and calls to have an open discussion” with Swift over the past six months “have all been rejected.”
“While some on your team and many of our mutual friends have tried to get you to the table, all have had no luck. It almost feels as if you have no interest in ever resolving the conflict. At this point with safety becoming a concern I have no choice other than to publicly ask for us to come together and try to find resolution. I have tried repeatedly through your representatives to achieve a solution but unfortunately here we are. The game of telephone isn’t working.”
While he admitted he was “frustrated” by Swift’s accusations against him and made it clear he “respectfully” disagreed with “many” of her comments, he wanted to make one thing clear.
“No artist should ever feel cornered or bullied,” he continued. “I have spent my entire career in service of creatives and artists, never the other way around.”
He then touched on her upcoming performance at the 2019 American Music Awards.
“As the world now knows you can and should perform any song you would like at the AMAs,” he added. “I have never and would never say otherwise. You do not need anyone’s permission to do so legally but I am stating it here clearly and publicly so there is no more debate or confusion.”
He then reiterated his desire to find “resolution.”
“I will make myself available whenever works for you,” he wrote. “Many have told me that a meeting will never happen as this is not about the truth or resolution but instead a narrative for you. I am hopeful that is not the case. I’m right here, ready to speak directly and respectfully. But if you would prefer to make large public statements while refusing to work towards resolving things amicably then I just pray that nobody gets seriously hurt in the process. I continue to wish you the best and hope we can resolve this.”
Swift and Braun’s drama goes way back. In June, the 10-time Grammy winner took to Tumblr to address Braun’s company Ithaca Holdings LLC acquiring her former record label Big Machine Label Group. Swift claimed she was “sad and grossed out” over the sale of her music catalog and accused Braun of “incessant, manipulative bullying.”
Then, in November, Swift talked about her AMAs performance and claimed Braun and Big Machine Label Group founder Scott Borchetta “said that I’m not allowed to perform my old songs on television because they claim that would be re-recording my music before I’m allowed to next year.” She also claimed “Scott and Scooter have declined the use of my older music or performance footage” for an upcoming Netflix documentary about her life.
“Scott Borchetta told my team that they’ll allow me to use my music only if I do these things: If I agree to not re-record copycat versions of my songs next year (which is something I’m both legally allowed to do and looking forward to) and also told my team that I need to stop talking about him and Scooter Braun,” Swift wrote on Instagram at the time. “I feel very strongly that sharing what is happening to me could change the awareness level for other artists and potentially help them avoid a similar fate. The message being sent to me is very clear. Basically, be a good little girl and shut up. Or you’ll be punished. This is WRONG. Neither of these men had a hand in the writing of those songs. They did nothing to create the relationship I have with my fans.”
She then asked her fans for help and called on them to “please let Scott Borchetta and Scooter Braun know how you feel about this.”
“I just want to be able to perform MY OWN music. That’s it,” she argued, adding that she “tried to work this out privately through my team but have not been able to resolve anything.”
Many celebrities rallied around Swift and reacted to the news. However, up until yesterday, Braun had remained silent on the matter.
Check out the Instagram post to see his full statement.