Scooter Braun is retiring from music management after 23 years. The mogul expressed his desire to spend more time with his sons, Levi and Jagger, and daughter, Hart. “It's a weird feeling. I guess I've always wanted this but I've always been really scared to answer the question, 'Who would I be without them?'” Braun wrote.
The time has come to bring Scooter Braun's 23-year management career to an end.
The 42-year-old music mogul, who has steered the careers of stars like Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato, and Dan + Shay, announced his retirement from management on June 17 but said he would remain CEO of entertainment company HYBE America.
Brown shared the news in a lengthy Instagram statement that began with a reminiscence of his first time managing artist Cato in Atlanta at age 19. “Along the way, I had so many experiences I never dreamed I'd have,” he wrote.
“I've been fortunate to live a Forrest Gump-like life, witnessing and participating in the journeys of some of the most extraordinary talents the world has ever seen. I always pinch myself and ask, 'How did I get to this point?' And so, after 23 years, this chapter as a music manager has come to a close,” Brown said.
Scooter Braun.
Bradford Rogne Photo
“It's a weird feeling. I think I've wanted this job for a long time, but I was really scared to answer the question, 'Who would I be without them?' I was only 19 when I started, so I've played the role of 24/7 artist manager for my entire adult life,” he continued. “And for 20 years, I loved it. It was everything to me.”
“But as my kids grew up and my personal life took a hit, I realized they were three superstars I didn't want to lose,” wrote the father of three, who also has sons Levi and Mick Jagger, and daughter Hart, with ex-wife Yael Cohen. (Braun filed for divorce from Cohen in July 2021 and the divorce was finalized in September 2022.)
Scooter Braun and Justin Bieber in Westwood, January 2020.
Kevin Mazur/Getty
“Sacrifices I was once willing to make can no longer be justified. The time has come to step into a new role,” wrote Brown, who served as CEO of HYBE America for three years alongside his international firm chairman and professional partner, Bang Si-hyuk.[He] “He has a vision that I truly believe in. But more than that, he has become a true friend who understands where I am at in life these days. And he is a father first, a CEO second, and no longer a manager.”
Brown explained that he had been thinking about stepping back from management for “the past two years,” but the idea started to become more realistic in the summer of 2023, when “one of my biggest clients and friends told me he wanted to spread his wings and go in a new direction.”
“We've been through a lot together in the last 10 years, but instead of being hurt, I took it as a sign,” he added.
Scooter Braun and Ariana Grande in Los Angeles in November 2013.
Chelsea Lauren/AMAs 2013/Getty
In announcing his retirement, Brown continued, “Life doesn't give you your plan, it gives you God's plan, and God has been leading me in this direction for a long time.”
“I have nothing but love for the people I've worked with over the years, and even as our working relationships change, I will always be there for them, counseling and supporting them, whether in person or from afar,” he said. “Every client I've had the privilege of working with has changed my life, and I know many of them are only just beginning to realize the success they deserve. I'm rooting for each and every one of them.”
Scooter Braun in Los Angeles, February 2023.
Christopher Polk/Billboard via Getty
After reflecting on his work with many artists, including Andrew Watt, Lil Dicky, Tori Kelly, J Balvin, Lovato, Zac Brown Band, Martin Garrix, David Guetta, Steve Angello, Carly Rae Jepsen, PSY, Quavo, Kanye West, YG, The Kid Laroi, Dan Shay, Asher Roth and Usher, Brown explained his decision to step away from management.
As Grande and Bieber reach new heights of success at the end of 2023, Braun reflected on working with both artists from the beginning of their careers and watching them “change the world and make history” since then.
“It says a lot about what's going on at my company and in my career,” said the CEO, who came under fire in 2019 when his company, Ithaca Holdings, became the owner of Taylor Swift's music catalog after purchasing it for $300 million from Scott Borchetta, who owned Big Machine Label Group from 2006 until Swift moved to Universal Music Group in 2018.
Scooter Braun and Kanye West.
Ben Rhodes/WireImage
Additionally, Brown made headlines last year when he became sole CEO of HYBE America, around the same time news surfaced that several of his clients had stopped working with him.
“We have smiled when we have been successful and always tried to take the high road when we have been attacked. But over the past three years, I have begun to feel that taking the high road has created confusion and ambiguity about who we are,” he wrote, noting that his colleagues Allison Kaye and Jennifer McDaniels would now take on administrative roles.
In addition to his work with HYBE (which includes artists such as NewJeans, TXT, LE SSERAFIM, Seventeen, ILLIT, The Scarlet Opera, and Ava Max), Big Machine Label Group, and WeVerse, Brown explained that he will “serve as a national board member for Make-A-Wish and support individuals and communities through his family's Brown Foundation.”
Scooter Braun and Ariana Grande in Phoenix, February 2017.
Kevin Mazur/Getty
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“Well, it's been 23 years and this chapter is closed. But as the great Berry Gordy once said to me, 'Young man, things never end the way you want them to, but that doesn't mean they never happened' and that wisdom has been proven right,” Brown said.
“I never imagined how this chapter would end. Heck, I never imagined it would happen. But it did. And I'm going to cherish every moment of it. I made my own plans, but in the end, God's plan suited me better,” he added. “Cheers!”