TAYLOR VS SKOOTER PART 2
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Comments
The thing is… just because it’s “legal” does not mean it’s ethical. There’s a big difference. And I think it speaks volumes that everyone is saying Taylor is down to earth and kind hearted and cares about her fans… the only “nice” things that scooters team said about him was that he was a “good business man” and “a famous producer”. If people aren’t saying you’re a good person… you’re probably not. And him buying her music was completely unethical. Also him saying it was a business deal that she made personal, no he made it personal when he REFUSED to let her buy back her own music without signing an NDA that says she can’t talk badly about him or tell anyone that he black mailed her into sign it. That’s also unethical. Him not letting her buy back her music is what forced her into putting this in the public light. He made that choice and he dug his own grave and then realized who was dealing with and threw a fit.
Caitlin Myers
2024-07-23 22:48:39 +0000 UTCThey left out soooo much context about why she was upset and what she was actually upset about. She understood her music would be sold when they wouldn't let her just buy the music but it's who thry chose to sell to that was the problem. But I do think Scott B should have gotten more blame than he did by the fans.
Elisa Hanna
2024-07-12 19:49:38 +0000 UTCAnd it actually was a good deal for her when she 1st signed because they let her write her own music, that's unusual for a new artist especially one so young. The contract standards are built to be against artists interests and for the benefit of the record companies. And that doesn't change that Scott with Big Machine acted like family until it was in his best interest to screw her. His main concern was to sell Big Machine for as much as possible and Taylor was their biggest artist by FAR so he wanted to twist her arm to male her stay.
Elisa Hanna
2024-07-12 19:42:43 +0000 UTCShe understood that thry would sell her music she was upset they sold to Scooter of all people
Elisa Hanna
2024-07-12 19:27:23 +0000 UTCAs a non Taylor fan (not a hater, just indifferent), I watched this doc and honestly it seemed very fair to me. I think a lot of you Swifties here in the comments are just blindly defending her because of your parasocial relationship with her. Swifties are like an actual cult, and the things stated in this doc have some merit, and they shouldn’t be discarded because you think your queen can do no wrong. Every person is fallible. She does play the victim at times. She has weaponized her fans, encouraging them to spread hate. (Her extreme parasocial fans, not ones that are just fans of the music). Doing bad things doesn’t make you a bad person. This can be true for Taylor. The world should be allowed to call Taylor out on what she does wrong without fear of death threats.
Ally D.
2024-07-09 02:57:26 +0000 UTCAlso, what is Scooter talking about? None of his artists have weaponized their fan bases? Does he forget what Kanye did to Taylor, she went into hiding for a year, she was afraid to answer the phone, she was getting death threats and thought her career was over. I get this was new territory for Scooter, and he shouldn't have gotten death threats but Taylor has been getting them for years even when she does nothing. Its even reported that she travels with a full trauma kit incase she is shot or attacked when out because of the level of threats she receives. Boo hoo, I feel so bad for Scooter for getting an ounce of the hate Taylor has received
Sasha
2024-07-08 06:38:34 +0000 UTCLooks like a lot of other people added some great, in-depth comments about the content of this video so I won't rehash all that. I will say if you want to get a better understanding of what Taylor said, please watch her on Sunday Morning and her full Billboard Woman of the Year speech. They really misrepresented that speech and I think it is not only a disservice to Taylor but also the viewer. https://youtu.be/nDzhoofkRJI?si=cNN-MbZWgOvyVKMx https://youtu.be/ZVpkFb9-fts?si=0YXY1nvS5C7_dcWO
Sasha
2024-07-08 06:01:17 +0000 UTCThis!! They didn’t provide any updates after 2020 on scooters life. Like, his wife is now his ex-wife… that Taylor has made up with Katy perry. Heck, Katy perry went to the eras tour and was dancing and singing to bad blood lol
Savvy H
2024-07-08 02:04:18 +0000 UTCI hate that people keep saying you shouldn’t watch Taylor bc “it’s not your taste” or “you don’t seem to enjoy it”. I enjoy your fresh perspectives (as a new Swiftie and Danny as a non-Swiftie) and I actually do think you seem to enjoy yourselves. You don’t need to be a super fan to enjoy something. Also, your appreciation for Taylor as a person even though you don’t gravitate toward all of her music actually affirms for me that I’m not just a biased Swiftie when I think she is a phenomenal person. Lol. I think you guys nailed this! The Taylor side I actually thought was pretty fairly done and mostly seemed like a good explanation of her side but the 🛴 side, since the facts weren’t really going to paint him as a victor, they just went for emotional manipulation. The thing is; the contract was fulfilled and then she used her right to re-record her stuff and bc of who she is and her fans was massively successful at doing that. She’s not the first to do it just the first to outshine the original recordings the second time around. No one including Taylor is trying to claim the sale was illegal; but that it was morally corrupt. The damage done in the beginning was to Taylor’s heart or feelings bc Scott Borchetta was family to her (though clearly in the end he was a businessman first) and she never expected that treatment from him. She would have expected to be allowed to buy the masters outright and then move on to UMG rather than be essentially enslaved while “earning” them back but this obviously would have devalued Big Machine to 🛴. The damage in the end (with her re-recording project nearly over) has ultimately been to 🛴’s reputation bc of his own actions both past and present. He likes to portray this good guy persona like he would have just sold them back for a fair price but by all accounts (from anon sources or the few who haven’t been locked into ironclad NDAs) he is a ruthless business man and no doubt tried to prohibit Taylor from uttering a single negative word about him ever again. Taylor has flaws but one thing I’ve always admired about her is that she isn’t going to be bullied into silence. 🛴 had bullied her publicly (and most likely privately) since she was a young teen and to be bullied into saying nothing were it to happen again would be a non-stater for her, as I think it should be. 🛴 likely knew this going into the dealings but if she did acquiesce then he still won bc he could do whatever he wanted with no fear of her speaking out about it. His side of this was ultimately trying to create a victim narrative for him which is ironic considering that’s what everyone constantly accuses Taylor, an actual victim in some cases, of doing. On another note I would suggest a watch of her Billboard Women in Music speech. It is obviously from her side but it is a powerful, somewhat informative, and clearly emotional speech. It isn’t unbiased but gives a good look at how affected she was by all of this. You can see her genuine emotion and I’m fairly certain it was not too long after the sale was announced. Thanks again for doing what you do; I really enjoy it and love having a community where we can talk all about things we love without fear of being trolled! lol l
Nikki Badgett
2024-07-07 19:16:59 +0000 UTCI’d suggest listening to the full unedited phone call on YT you can better see how manipulative Kanye is being rather than these edited clips in the documentary. Also, she explicitly tells Kanye that she was worried he was going to call her “that B” in the phone call so even if the lyrics “changed” he knew she wouldn’t have consented to that. As for the 🛴 stuff that’s def a possibility but it seems more likely given the timing of everything that he “chose” to leave management when all of his clients made it known they were dropping him. Otherwise he would’ve just announced he was leaving management and then his clients would have announce new mgmnt instead of the other way around. But I don’t think anyone has proof either way likely due to the strict NDAs he is known for having everyone be works with sign.
Nikki Badgett
2024-07-07 19:08:56 +0000 UTCThis episode is VERY biased and just talking about the legalities while completely missing the point. They are deliberately cutting out key information to fit their narrative while talking about things that have nothing to do with this. I do wanna say, I don't agree with bullying EVER, and I think it's horrrible that Scooter has received death threats, and even worse, his wife and kids. That is UNACCEPTABLE. But Taylor didn't incite that kind of behaviour and it's not her fault that some people are so unhinged they send people death threats, even innocent kids. Should she say have chosen her words more carefully? Absolutely. Should she say something and condemn this kind of behaviour? Yes, I think she should. But she's still not responsible for other people and it's not like she deliberately wrote that statement in hopes that people would send him and his family death threats. At the same time, I don't blame Scooter for people on his side sending Taylor death threats (which they have). Even though he's treated her horribly, he's NEVER insinuated he wanted her dead. It's still wrong what he's done but there's a clear difference. However, Scooter IS responsible for HIS words and actions, and while he's never explicitly said anything bad towards Taylor himself (nor has she about him except for the truth), he's been associated with people that have: Kanye, Kim, Justin and even Demi. Also, it's funny their whole argument is that the contract and the sale was legal and above board but when Taylor decided to re-record her albums, which she was LEGALLY allowed to do, they had a a problem with it. Just shows the double standards. Both parties were legally in the right but only one was morally in the right. Things they cut out/twisted to fit their narrative or completely unrelated things: Scooter's upbringing/beginnings in the industry. Not fully explaining why Taylor had a problem with Scooter in the first place. Taylor's contract where she was not given a chance to buy her masters UNLESS she did 6 more albums under the label in exchange for the first 6 she didn't own (one new album for one old album). The Kimye phone call/Famous song. Taylor's dad's NON-involvement in the deal/her rise to fame. Taylor's "victim narrative"/writing songs about her exes. Bad Blood video/Her and Katy making up after their feud. Most of Scooter's biggest clients left his management last year. I also could not stand "Dr. Jennifer Otter Bickerdike" or Marina Bogorad, Nola Ojomu and Lucas Shaw (especially the first two)! Zing Tseng (the one you pointed out) on the other hand was amazing and in spite of clearly being a Taylor fan she was able to be the most unbiased and admit Taylor's wrongdoings and her influence as well as her privilege, while still recognising that she has been treated unfairly in the industry (especailly as a woman). Scooter, who was born in NYC and raised in Connecticut, came from a wealthy family and his parents were both dentists (his dad was a basketball coach as well). But after he moved out he didn’t like borrowing money from his parents. In 1999, when he was a freshman in Emory University in Atlanta, he started organising parties at local nightclubs and working as a promoter for local rap and hip-hop artists, including Ciara, Cee-Lo, Ludacris (who collaborated with Justin on Baby) and Usher. His big break came in 2002 when Ludacris was about to go out on tour with Eminem and asked him to organise a few parties, during one he met producer Jermaine Dupri (who was also Janet Jackson's boyfriend at the time) who named him So So Def’s executive director of marketing (they managed Usher, TLC and more). Jermaine was fascinated by Scooter’s ability to get white kids into historically black clubs. Scooter threw parties for N'Sync Celebrity Basketball Weekend and Britney Spears’ Onyx Hotel Tour 2004 in Miami. (Btw, at 22:40 in your reaction, right after they talk about Britney, there is a photo of Scooter with a man and a woman — the man in the middle is Wilmer Valderrama, actor from That '70s Show & NCIS and Demi Lovato's ex. When they first began dating he was 29 and Demi was 17 — he also had a history of dating younger girls who were barely legal. I highly recommend Demi's song 29 about their relationship and how he groomed her). Anyway, back to Scooter. In 2005, he left/was fired (there are conflicting reports on that) from So So Def and made a $12 million deal between Ludacris and Pontiac, a car company. He then got a gig as an entertainment consultant for the Atlanta Hawks basketball team. In 2007, he founded SB Projects, an entertainment and media company. Scooter DID discover Justin in 2008 when Justin was 14, after his mum posted videos of him on YouTube (though mainly to share with family and friends). He convinced Justin's mum to bring him to Atlanta to record demos and meet Usher (they actually had a choice between Usher and Justin Timberlake). Scooter eventually convinced them to move permanently from Canada to the US and Justin signed with Island Def Jam in partnership with Raymond-Braun Media Group (RBMG), a joint-adventure between Scooter and Usher. They were both kind of mentors/father figures/older brothers to Justin, especially since his own father wasn't really around (until he became famous - shocker). Even if you aren't a fan of Justin or Scooter, I really recommend his documentary/concert films "Never Say Never" (which remains the highest grossing music documentary in domestic box-office history), Justin Bieber's "Believe", 10 episode docu-series "Justin Bieber: Seasons" on YouTube - about his struggles with Lyme disease, mental health, drug addiction and his relationship/wedding to his wife Hailey (which broke the all-time record for the most-viewed premiere in its first week of all YouTube Originals to date) and "Justin Bieber: Our World" on Amazon Prime. I also recommend Ariana Grande's Dangerous Woman Diaries" on YouTube and "Excuse Me, I Love You" on Netflix, all produced/co-produced by SB Projects. In addition, they are working on the documentary "Child Star" on Hulu, which is Demi Lovato's directorial debut, about growing up as a child star in Hollywood (former child stars like Drew Barrymore and Raven Symoné are expected to appear). Aside from Justin, Kanye, Ariana and Demi, Scooter has also managed clients like The Black Eyed Peas, Tori Kelly, J Balvin, David Guetta, Martin Garrix, Ava Max, Kelly Rowland, Carly Rae Jepsen, Psy, Dan+Shay, The Kid Laroi and Idina Menzel. He started managing Kanye in 2016, around the same time Kim leaked the phone call. The Kanye/Taylor thing started in 2009 at the VMAs. Y'all know what happened there. In spite of all that, Taylor forgave him in the song Innocent off her album Speak Now and later they even appeared to have become friends. Then in 2016 Kanye released his song Famous and said he called Taylor and asked her if he could use the "b****" line in the song and she agreed. But when Taylor denied it, Kim released a 3 minute highly edited recording of the phone call between them in which Taylor appeared to have consented to it (the recording may have been illegal btw depending on what state they were in, but they lived in California at the time where they would've had to have to get consent from the other party to record). Taylor was called a liar and people started to turn on her so she went into hiding. Then came the music video and as Kanye's manager at the time, Scooter had to have AT LEAST known about it beforehand, if not had some part in it. During her speech after winning Album of the Year at the 2016 Grammy Awards, Taylor said: "As the first woman to win AOTY at the Grammys twice, I want to say to all the young women out there, there will be people along the way who will try to undercut your success or take credit for YOUR accomplishments or YOUR fame". She also spent quite a deal of time praising other female artists, but of course they didn't mention that. Finally in 2020, a 25 minute uncut version of the call surfaced, proving that Kanye did NOT tell Taylor about the use of the word b****. First, he asked her if he could use the line "I feel like Taylor Swift might OWE ME SEX" (which was later changed to "I feel like me and Taylor MIGHT STILL HAVE SEX"), and Taylor was more concerned with other people's reactions to that. She was also RELIEVED that he did NOT call her a b****, saying "I'm glad it's not mean. I thought it was going to be like, 'That stupid, dumb b****.' But it's not." He then asked "What if later in the song I also say 'I made HER famous'?" While Taylor seemed to accept that lyric, her exact words were "Well, what am I going to do about it?" which tells me she wasn't 100% comfortable about it. She actually sounded very uncomfortable to me throughout most of the conversation. Yet, she kinda laughed it off because she thought it was just tongue-in-cheek since even though he might not have known who she was, she had already sold 7 million of the album Fearless before the 2009 VMA incident (politely shading him like the Queen she is 🤣) and she even thanked him for letting her know. Kanye also said he was gonna send her the song with the exact lyrics once he was finished but he never did, which is also something they conveniently forgot to mention. The conversation also includes Kanye rambling on about I don't even know what. On Twitter, Kim accused Taylor of lying again and denied editing the video. Taylor's publicist Tree Paine responded to her with "when you take parts out, that's editing". Taylor didn't say anything. Instead, she just took to Instagram and urged her followers to donate to Covid-19 relief efforts. You can watch the whole unedited video here: https://youtu.be/-5FUBwcpjrY?si=cC2z4mbf-3sE0NrJ. Also here if you want to read the transcript in case you don't hear everything: https://variety.com/2020/music/news/taylor-swift-kanye-west-phone-call-leaks-read-full-transcript-1203541363/#amp_tf=From%20%251%24s&aoh=17203584888261&referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com&share=https%3A%2F%2Fvariety.com%2F2020%2Fmusic%2Fnews%2Ftaylor-swift-kanye-west-phone-call-leaks-read-full-transcript-1203541363%2F In 2018, Kanye dropped Scooter but they remained friends. In the summer of 2023 it was reported that Ariana, Demi, J Balvin and Idina Menzel had dropped him. Several others had also left before that. Ariana signed with him in 2013 (though she briefly left him in 2016) while Demi, J Balvin and Idina did in 2019. An anonymous source said all of his clients were under contract not to leave him and not to say anything bad about him. Justin appears to have still been with him, though there were rumours he left too and he seemed to have distanced himself from him. But there was definitely something going on last year and it's weird they didn't mention it (again, trying to fit their narrative). I know this sounds selfish but as a fan of Taylor, Demi AND Justin this whole thing has been very hard for me. I don't agree with the way Justin talked about Taylor around the time all this shit was happening or his friendship with Kanye (and certain other people), but, again, it's more complicated for him. Scooter has always seemed to genuinely care about him. I DO give Justin credit that he apologised for it (see here: https://www.instagram.com/p/BzWYdS9Hj5R/?hl=en) even though he still remained loyal to Scooter. It's sad because he and Taylor used to be friends. Taylor and Demi used to be close too back when Demi, Selena and Miley were on Disney. And again, even I can admit their "beef" was mainly just Demi being a petty drama queen. But Demi stood by Scooter too because "he was nice to HER". She had had a management team that treated her horribly, especially when she relapsed, as she talked about in Dancing with the Devil, so I understand Scooter must have looked like an angel compared to them. There's no denying Scooter has done a lot of good. He has worked with dozens of charities and organised events like the Hand in Hand telethon to raise money for the victims of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. He also participated in the March for Our Lives protest after the Parkland school shooting in 2018. And, along with Ariana, he planned the One Love Manchester concert for the victims of the terrorist bombing at her May 2017 concert, where artists like Justin, Miley Cyrus, Katy Perry, Coldplay, The Black Eyed Peas, Take That, Robbie Williams and Little Mix performed, along with Ariana herself and multiple other artists with messages on video. Some have even said that Taylor was invited but declined. Even if that's true, there could be many legitimate reasons as to why she couldn't be there. Scooter is also a proud Jew and has been very outspoken in his support and advocacy for the Jewish community and Israel, especially since the October 7th attacks. I know a lot of people disagree with his views on that but it is one thing I do agree on. Though I don't know how that or the fact that his grandparents were Holocaust survivors has anything to do with the masters dispute, it's clearly just done to try to gain sympathy and portray him as a good guy with a tragic family history. And they say Taylor keeps playing the victim! Also, while Taylor has never named names (which she never does outright), Bad Blood, which was released in 2014, IS 100% about Katy Perry. Taylor said that it's about a broken friendship with another woman in the music industry and Katy then basically confirmed it was about her, as they had had a rocky relationship ever since Katy "stole" some of her backup dancers for her tour without consulting her. I honestly still don't even know the full story but I can admit Taylor was being childish in the way she handled it. Katy dropped her new song Swish Swish feat. Nicki Minaj, with lyrics like "Don't you come for me. No, not today. You're calculated. I got your number. 'Cause you're a joker. And I'm a courtside killer queen", rumoured to have been aimed at Taylor, who then released Look What You Made Me Do, which includes lyrics like "Locked me out and threw a feast" that many have speculated refers to Katy's song Bon Appetit. In addition, the video for LWYMMD includes a part where Taylor resembles Katy. However, in May 2018, on the same day Taylor's Reputation Tour kicked off, Katy extended a literal olive branch to her and sent her a letter that said "Hey old friend — I’ve been doing some reflecting on past miscommunications and hurt feelings between us", wanted to "clear the air" and said she was "deeply sorry", which Taylor was moved by (see here: https://www.harpersbazaar.com/celebrity/latest/a20530731/katy-perry-taylor-swift-olive-branch/). In June 2019, Katy appeared in Taylor's music video for You Need to Calm Down where they appeared to have ended their feud once and for all. Then, in September 2020, after Katy gave birth to her daughter with Orlando Bloom, Taylor sent them a blanket she hand-sewed (see here: https://www.instagram.com/p/CFG0-c3hU04/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link). Finally, Katy attended the Eras Tour in Sydney, Australia on earlier this year and even posted a video of herself singing along to Bad Blood (see here: https://www.instagram.com/p/C3sR2ecrbmX/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link). That being said, I still don't know what that has to do with this and blaming Taylor for some of her fans' behaviour because she used guns and was fighting in a music video is ridiculous and like saying playing violent video games or watching violent movies with guns make people do violent things. Regarding the AMA performance, which was in November 2019, in spite of denying Taylor's claims that she wasn't allowed to perform her old songs (because they considered it the same as a re-rerecording which she wasn't allowed to legally do until November 2020), they issued a statement saying they had agreed to "allow" it a week before the show. I suspect they were "pressured" by the online response after Taylor made that post. And again, not a documentary but I highly recommend this video explaining copyright laws from a fairly unbiased view by an actual lawyer: https://youtu.be/M-A_RrOeoWw?si=RpZ1_IWSIjnFvYYH. Btw, I think the phrase you were looking for is "white lie" meaning a "half" lie or a "harmless" lie. Or it could be "lie by omission" which is pretty much the same thing.
Heida
2024-07-07 18:48:52 +0000 UTCAlso, have read the full call transcript—worth checking out, and listening to recording so you have full context. It’s clear Kanye was already not well at that time. (The TTPD song Cassandra references this I think). Taylor tried to be a good friend to him then, giving him a second chance after everything at the VMAs — which is why this whole saga hurt even more I imagine. I think of this during some of Rep—can’t wait for you to listen!
Andrea
2024-07-07 17:02:20 +0000 UTCYikes—I really hate how much this part leaned into the “playing a victim” narrative…something that was so tied to all of the awfulness Kim and Kanye caused for Taylor (who was ACTUALLY victimized by them — in a way/level that none of us will ever experience. I can’t even imagine!). It feels like language that is very risky and can lead to people not actually coming forward, or being gaslit, when they are truly victimized—for fear of being accused of “playing victim”. Makes me cringe every time I hear that phrase. Also—feuds from her early 20s hardly seem relevant. If I was that much in the public eye during those years, I’d hate to think what the narrative about me would be now. I wish there was more of an emphasis on how PARTS of the fan base can be problematic. I have seen so many examples of this fandom building good in the world. I would have Taylor’s back any day—because she’s proven time and time again to be such a good person—but. even as a devoted fan, I’d never resort to threats or violence against others. (And the other Swifties I’ve encountered are the same). Hate to have the whole fan base with so many positive interactions be grouped together with some who are extreme and frankly unwell to resort to such things. Thank you for working to dissect this and pointing out the holes in this part. There were times I was cheering for you both as you pointed out things that were irrelevant that they included, or noted the attempts at emotional manipulation.
Andrea
2024-07-07 16:57:26 +0000 UTCI will also say that the whole Katy Perry/Taylor Swift feud was very real. Taylor was upset with her (and she had a reason to be tbh) and Bad Blood is absolutely about her. And in return Swish Swish is about Taylor Swift. But they have made up now! But yeah, that woman’s criticism of the Bad Blood music video was very fair. I’m not even seeing it from a fandom point of view, but a “I’m going to war with a woman” mentality, that she usually hates perpetuating. I also think they all have weapons of some sort lol even if it’s not all guns
I Am Not Chamari
2024-07-07 16:43:32 +0000 UTCCouple of thoughts/questions I currently have: Re: the Kanye/Taylor phone call — I do think Kanye was being manipulative. But I’m not sure that he purposefully didn’t tell her the actual lyrics. Songs and lyrics change all the time to what the original demo is so I’m more likely to believe that he changed them after the phone call than that he withheld the lyrics from her initially, especially since he did mention the possibility of saying that he made her famous. Did she really outright reject that or did she more or less say that that was his experience and it didn’t matter how many copies of Fearless she sold? (Or did I misunderstand the recording?) Also, other folks are mentioning that people left scooter braun but isn’t that explicitly because Scooter is not a manager anymore? And that’s why people are no longer working with him since he’s leaving talent management? I remember that blogs started reporting on it like it was some salacious story, but it turns out dude was just not managing ANYONE, anymore basically?
I Am Not Chamari
2024-07-07 16:40:05 +0000 UTCCheck out Steven universe on Max
Rafael Navarro
2024-07-07 12:28:56 +0000 UTCYa'll are awesome for posting content like this and talking about it critically. As a devout Taylor fan since 2010, I appreciate your new eyes on this. There's a lot in the comments and beyond to keep exploring if you're interested. I'm sorry some mean YT comments have been so shitty, they don't represent us here on patreon lol
Steph
2024-07-07 12:15:41 +0000 UTCOh I totally agree with you about the documentary. I really think it just shows the agenda this whole thing had (aka anti-TS, pro-SB). It’s really gross to see people trying to use Taylor’s name and her personal trauma and struggle to turn a profit and get clicks/views, ESPECIALLY when they simultaneously are pushing twisted narratives and falsehoods in her name.
Even a Frozen Heart Can Melt
2024-07-07 08:34:50 +0000 UTCExactly! They all left him resulting in him “choosing” to step down as a manager, not that he had many people left to manage.
Annie Willow
2024-07-07 04:00:41 +0000 UTCIts so weird that they paint Scooter as having "Ethics" but then also make the argument that "its just business"... Its so contridictory at times... he only has ethics when it works for him...
Jackie Lehman
2024-07-07 03:06:06 +0000 UTCThe full recording of Kanye and Taylor is on youtube, and its even worse than this doc (even part 1) goes into. Its actually very sad too cause if you watch the whole thing you can hear Kanye is not well... and he also admits to having money troubles. This whole thing felt like he wanted to use Taylor to make his money back. Then... he did the music video... its was awful.
Jackie Lehman
2024-07-07 03:01:44 +0000 UTCyes! i meant to come back to my comment later and forgot. I don’t think they are wrong, I completely understand why Audrey would watch this and kind of have the takeaway that a contract is a contract. But this document did an awful job of portraying the real issues. The contract was never the issue
Autumn Atencio
2024-07-07 01:43:18 +0000 UTCI may be wrong but I interpreted the reaction here as them mostly agreeing with you regarding bias and key pieces of info being left out. It’s just really a shame that journalistic integrity is so lacking that now anyone can watch and judge TS without the full truth being represented. I think there are many people who will fall trap to the clear bias, which is really unfortunate, especially given how horrible SB is as a person and manager.
Even a Frozen Heart Can Melt
2024-07-07 01:40:39 +0000 UTCSorry for commenting again- i’m about an hour and a half through, I keep having to stop listening as I’m at work. The first Kanye thing happened very early on in Taylor’s career, she was winning a VMA for her 2nd album (Fearless). Scooter had bullied her, with his clients, for over a decade before her masters were sold. So yes, her dislike for Scooter started very early and wasn’t just the past 5 years. The 2016 phone call with Kanye and Kim has been released in the whole and can be found on youtube/online. The whole conversation lasts well over 15-20 minutes; with him never letting her know the true lyrics. This leads to another reason why Taylor dislikes Scooter; as he was in charge of the Kanye “documentary this phone call was being recorded for” and then it was never put out in full despite Scooter knowing everyone was lying about the context of the call. The Artist of the Decade speech was about a LOT more than just her masters being sold and they cut a TON of context out for that one clip. The speech was actually turned into a commercial for empowering young girls. The whole speech is incredible and I would suggest listening to it (if you haven’t already) because she was very generous with the other artists in the room and payed homage to all of them- unlike what the interviewee said. I’m also not sure why Ariana’s concert was included as it has nothing to do with the topic at hand.
Erika
2024-07-06 22:57:59 +0000 UTCThe NDA that was mentioned was that Taylor wouldn't be allowed to say anything about Scooter ever again, but that was just so she could actually negotiate for her masters back--not if a deal went through, JUST to be able to try to buy them back.
Melody P
2024-07-06 22:35:08 +0000 UTCOnly 30 mins in- but the contract was never an issue for Taylor. Taylor’s contract that she signed at 15 was a 13 year; 6 album contract. She happily agreed, and completed her first contract without any complaint. Taylor went in for contract re-negotiations after Reputation Stadium Tour; tried to out right buy her masters and was denied. Borchetta pitched her the “deal” of earning her masters back one album cycle at a time, but would skirt around the topic of her out right buying them. Borchetta also tried to get her to sign a 15 year contract if she wanted to stay at Big Machine, knowing he was already in talks with Scooter about selling Big Machine to him- essentially making Taylor sign a contract to work for Scooter for 15 years. Taylor wasn’t aware of that though, but luckily saw that the 15 year contract was a horrible deal and left Big Machine all together- opting to go and sign with Universal where she would own her masters from that point on but would lease them to Universal for the duration of the time she’s signed with them so they could earn back the money they put into her album roll outs. Also important to note that Taylor was getting death threats during this time as well; her team just handled it quietly as they are used to her getting these threats.
Erika
2024-07-06 21:37:03 +0000 UTCAlmost all of Scooter big artists cut ties with him and walked away- many have also said that he wasn’t as he’s portrayed to the public. I was also really shocked they mentioned the big artists and then refused to report on the fact they all left him.
Erika
2024-07-06 21:25:50 +0000 UTCIt’s a shame that the second half of this documentary leans into so many falsehoods and misogynistic tropes about Taylor Swift. For example, the idea of her playing the victim, and writing about breakups etc. I also think there were a couple people they chose to speak in this side that were interesting choices. They seemed to just really dislike Taylor Swift, but didn’t seem to have any real connection to, or knowledge of, the situation. Was the only purpose to try to make the audience dislike her through different narratives? That’s weird, if so. However, I guess it demonstrates that there really isn’t another “angle” here unless you blatantly lie or shift focus to the Swifties. It also shows who was involved in this and the motives for the documentary as a whole. I find it upsetting that well meaning, but uninformed people could watch this and have no idea they are being lied to about Scooter and the details of this deal or her involvement/interactions with Scooter/Scott/Kanye. I think you two could tell it was off and that there were A LOT of things being left out or misconstrued in this part of the documentary. It’s sad that’s what they resorted to. I also think it’s disturbing to use the Manchester concert bombing as a vehicle to gaining sympathy for Scooter. It just feels wrong to use such a tragedy in that way. I also think it is very telling that they found people Taylor Swift has worked with to defend her, but then couldn’t find anyone Scooter has actively worked with in a business setting to say something nice about him… I think that says a lot, especially when combined with the fact that so many of those who defended him in the past have left. I think he flew too close to the sun and now he has to deal with the consequences of what happens when you “don’t keep your side of the street clean.”
Even a Frozen Heart Can Melt
2024-07-06 20:20:25 +0000 UTCGreat reaction! I was very nervous about this one but you were both very objective and I’m glad you saw through the emotional manipulation they were doing. I find it very ironic that they were commenting about Taylor “spinning a narrative” in her favor while they were doing the same thing. I had a feeling that the points against Taylor were going to be mostly about her fandom which honestly, is low hanging fruit. Because as you both said toxic fans is part of fandom in general and is not exclusive to Taylor Swift. When it comes to whether or not Taylor should say something to her fans, I’m kind of torn. I think there are people that just live to troll online that they don’t care. So while it would be nice for Taylor to say something, I don’t think it would make a difference. And sometimes could make things worse. For example, last year when “speak now Taylor’s version” was coming out she gave a speech at the eras tour (which she knew would be put online and reported on) telling her fans not to bully the people these songs were about (John Mayer). Once the speech went online and was covered by the news, it actually had the opposite effect. And people started going to John’s instagram to mock and bully him because of it. So honestly when it comes to someone as big as taylor, sometimes I think it’s better if she doesn’t say anything.
Elizabeth
2024-07-06 20:00:54 +0000 UTCI don’t think it should be standard that the record company owns the master recording and that why it was important that this came out. I understand that they invest money into the artist and promotion of the music to make it popular but I think a percentage of the profits is enough. I could understand partial ownership but full 100% ownership and control of someone’s work shouldn’t be the standard in my opinion.
Elizabeth
2024-07-06 19:47:38 +0000 UTCThe point was the contract ended. It was in negotiations for a new contract that was at issue. Taylor wanted to own her original masters & future ones. She tried to buy them, but the deal was a poison pill. She walked away from Big Machine knowing that her life's work would be sold, but it was how it was done...to Scooter with no real advance notice to Taylor, despite what Scooter & Borchetta claim.
Melody P
2024-07-06 19:37:11 +0000 UTCEhhh not the best take. I love you both but the reason you don’t see it as bias is because they left out a few major details. By leaving those out they already made it bias. 1. Taylor TRIED to buy her masters and he would not allow it. They touched on this but almost like it was a rumor when she’s said straight up she tried to buy it. 2. They mention the illegally recorded voicemail from Kim and say it was rumored to be edited but it was unfounded. in 2020 the full recording actually was leaked and showed Taylor was telling the truth. But Taylor tells it best in “Cassandra” - “when it’s burn the bitch they’re shrieking, when the truth comes out it’s quiet”
Autumn Atencio
2024-07-06 19:07:46 +0000 UTCshamrock is NOT owned by Disney. My god, this documentary is upsetting. It is a private equity firm owned by the estate of Roy E Disney. A family. Not the company. Scooter’s offer with the NDA was just to show up at the table. Not afterwards. She could not enter into negotiations until she signed the NDA. Her lawyers advised her it was not a good deal. Not Scooter now flipping it to play the victim?
Starbuck1234!
2024-07-06 17:57:53 +0000 UTCI find it interesting that they left out the fact that basically everyone including Justin Bieber and Demi Lovato, who they mentioned in the doc, has now cut ties with Scooter as of last year if I'm not mistaken. Interesting that they highlighted those names but didn't give an update. Unless I missed it🤷🏾♀️
Nadia
2024-07-06 17:43:37 +0000 UTCAny commentator, interviewee in this documentary that is standing up for Kanye West really has some problems. Sorry, but yes she was a victim at that point. And they bring up the phone call, the tape? He doesn’t say the line, and Kim Kardashian edited the tape that she released to the public. Taylor point blank tells him that she was afraid that he would call her a b****, and was so happy that he didn’t. But, that’s exactly what Kanye ended up doing. Why is Bitterdike talking about it, he doesn’t want her so badly to approve. OMG. There is a 20 minute phone call that was leaked to YouTube. At the end of the video, he literally says to the guy in the room “did we get it all, nothing can be missing”. He set her up. Bitterdike lost all respect by sticking up for Kanye. Yes, Taylor hates Scooter because he stood by Kanye (which began in 2009, so a decade). It is now known to everyone that Kim and Kanye edited a tape to make Taylor look like she was lying, when it was the other way around. And Kanye most definitely weaponized his fan base. And thoughts go out to those that lost lives at the bombing, but it has nothing to do with this imo. Only serving to make him look sympathetic. Keep in mind, Ariana, Justin, and Demi left Scooter. Death threats are never ok, but they keep showing some to Scooter, but did they show any thrown towards Taylor because I’m pretty sure she gets 1000X more death threats than he does on a daily basis. EVERY ARTIST has a chance to re-record their music, she didn’t invent the concept. Artists have been doing that for decades. So….she has been successful at it so let’s now be mad at her for it? Frank Sinatra did it, released an album of ALL re-recorded songs AND won AOTY for it. No one cared. No one complained. Here they are saying she undermined the contract? That’s a reach.
Starbuck1234!
2024-07-06 17:39:57 +0000 UTCthere was nothing wrong with the contract. She has never complained about the contract. The fans never complained about the contract. It’s unclear why there is even a commentary about how she was the one who signed the contract. There was never anything wrong with the contract and she has never at any time said that there was. It was a standard contract that 95% of all artists got, there a was nothing wrong with the contract or different from another artist. Taylor is saying that Scott refusing to sell her her masters was disloyal to her, that money was more important to him (300 million) than the relationship she thought they had. She wasn’t complaining about the contract, but Scott’s unwillingness to sell her the work. The offer was produce one album, get one of your old albums. Give one to get one. They are forgetting a key point here. At that point, she made up 80% of Big Machine revenue. So, Big Machine needed either her to resign with them or they had to retain her masters. Those two things were the only thing of value to the label. Scott wanted to sell the label. The label was worthless without her or her masters, so he refused to sell them to her so he could sell the label. She knew he would sell the label. She is upset who he sold it to. She hates Scootr because he was Kanye’s manager and played a role in the bullying of her for a decade beside Kanye. You are completely right that Scooter wasn’t ready for the backlash from her fan base, now I do not agree with ever threatening anyone or anything like that. Scooter was not ready for the fight. And her making herself out to be a victim, well she was though. He did this on purpose, she was not given the opportunity to buy her masters before Scott sold them, and taunted her online. Also keep in mind that Big Machine wasn’t her first deal. She signed her first deal at 14 with RCA in a Development Deal, the youngest artist ever to be given such a deal (same as Lady Gaga), and then she signed with Sony as a songwriter. THEN, at age 15 she signed with Big Machine as their ONLY artist. Her dad invested in the company when she was 16 and nearing the completion of her first album. These facts are well known. Scooter used his clients, like Justin. He as a manager. But insisted on being listed as a co-writer on their work. Taylor’s past feuds is insignificant especially since really there was Katy Perry, which was resolved 5 years ago. And, how many of us got through our 20’s without having a falling out with a friend. At least they reconciled. this entire section of this movie is really irrelevant. And, Katy made a song about Taylor as well. why is this part of the documentary, and they left out Katy’s music video about Taylor. Why is the bad blood music video, which won a Grammy, is part of this movie. it’s considered one of the best music videos ever made. This documentary even implied she had beef with Nicki Minaj, which lasted a millisecond. It NEVER was a sustained problem and they both TO THIS DAY praise each other, stand up for each other, take pictures and videos together. A misunderstanding at age 25 that lasted less than a day between 2 friends seems like why is this even an issue on this documentary?
Starbuck1234!
2024-07-06 16:20:35 +0000 UTC
