‘Taylor Swift vs Scooter Braun: Bad Blood’ Documentary to Air on Discovery+

The two-part series will explore the highly publicised dispute between the pop superstar and the music industry mogul, focusing on the $300 million deal that sparked their feud.

A new documentary, “Taylor Swift vs Scooter Braun: Bad Blood,” is set to air on Discovery+ in June 2024. The two-part series will explore the highly publicised dispute between pop superstar Taylor Swift and music industry mogul Scooter Braun, triggered by Braun’s acquisition of Swift’s former record label, Big Machine, and the rights to her first six albums.

The deal, worth a reported $300 million, saw Braun gain control of the master recordings of Swift’s early music, including the albums “Taylor Swift,” “Fearless,” “Speak Now,” “Red,” “1989, and “Reputation.” This sparked a bitter feud between the two, with Swift taking to Tumblr to express her outrage and paint Braun as a “manipulative bully.”

Swift’s Tumblr post, published in July 2019, revealed her distress at the sale of her masters: “I walked away because I knew once I signed that contract, [Big Machine founder] Scott Borchetta would sell the label, thereby selling me and my future… All I could think about was the incessant, manipulative bullying I’ve received [from Braun] for years.” She also claimed that she only found out about the deal when it was announced to the world.

However, Borchetta disputed this, stating that Swift, as a shareholder, was notified about the pending sale in advance and that he personally texted her before the news broke. He also claimed that Swift had been given the opportunity to buy her masters but chose to walk away from Big Machine.

The feud escalated with the involvement of other celebrities, including Justin Bieber, who posted a photo of himself, Braun, and Kanye West on Instagram with the caption “Taylor Swift what up.” Swift accused Braun of orchestrating the post as a form of bullying, while Bieber later apologised and took sole credit for the post.

The highly publicised dispute between Taylor Swift and Scooter Braun has sparked intense debates and discussions on the complex nature of artist-label relationships, the power dynamics within the music industry, and the role of fandom in modern celebrity culture. The conflict has brought to light the challenges faced by artists, particularly women, in retaining control over their creative works and the emotional responses that such disputes can evoke from fans who feel personally invested in the artists they admire. The documentary aims to provide a nuanced exploration of these issues, presenting a range of perspectives and examining the broader cultural context that shaped the feud between Swift and Braun.