Ariana Grande will continue working with ex manager Scooter Braun – months after she left his management.
The Thank U Next hitmaker, 31, shockingly parted ways with Braun, 42, after more than a decade in December 2023 – as the manager lost clients including Carly Rae Jepsen and Demi Lovato.
Grande signed a new management deal with Good World Management’s Brandon Creed – but will continue working with Braun’s entertainment platform HYBE.
The star and HYBE shared a statement stating they ‘look forward to continuing their long-standing business partnership and pursuing creative opportunities in Weverse and REM Beauty.’
Braun still notably manages Justin Bieber and is also the CEO of HYBE America.
Ariana Grande will continue working with ex manager Scooter Braun – months after she left his management
The Thank U Next hitmaker, 31, shockingly parted ways with Braun, 42, after more than a decade in December 2023 – as the manager lost clients including Carly Rae Jepsen and Demi Lovato
Justin Bieber, one of Scooter’s biggest acts, was also reported to have left him in August, but reps for the Sorry singer denied that he had left Braun last year and noted that the had signed another four-year contract in 2022, though an ongoing contract didn’t stop Ariana from moving on.
Earlier in December, it was reported that Grande had signed with Creed’s newly-launched Good World Management, months after she allegedly parted ways with Braun, marking a decade since he helped catapult her to fame with her debut album, Yours Truly.
But insiders close to the situation told DailyMail.com that despite wanting to part ways with Braun, she is still very much tied to the record executive, at least legally.
‘Although Ariana has indeed found new music management, she has not dropped or cut ties with Scooter because she is tied in contractually,’ they said. ‘She continues to be contractually bound to Scooter as there are several long term contracts still in place.’
The current arrangement forces Grande to continue to pay Braun as if he were actively managing her career, even though she has no interest in having him steer the ship anymore.
‘If Ariana were to release a new album tomorrow, she would still be obligated to pay Scooter in addition to Brandon. Nothing has changed there,’ the insider said.
However, it seems that Grande is doing the best she can not to collaborate with Braun, with a second source insisting: ‘She is not working with Scooter.’
In fact, the second insider said that there are currently ‘legal proceedings pending’ over the contract ending, revealing: ‘There are legal proceedings pending over what, if anything, each party is entitled to as a result of the contract ending.’
The star and HYBE shared a statement stating they ‘look forward to continuing their long-standing business partnership and pursuing creative opportunities in Weverse and REM Beauty’ – pictured together
Still, the pop star is continuing to work.
Grande’s departure from Braun was first reported by TMZ in August – the same month Lovato and Braun ended their contract as part of an ‘amicable’ agreement.
At the time, a separate source told DailyMail.com this was untrue, claiming that ‘people are spreading rumors based on what they know, but they are off’ in their speculation.
Just hours after the news was revealed, Braun poked fun at his professional predicament on Twitter.
‘Breaking news… I’m no longer managing myself,’ he wrote.
Following Levato’s departure, reports then surfaced that Bieber – who he discovered on YouTube in 2008 – was also leaving the music manager.
Billboard dismissed the reports, confirming that Bieber had signed a seven-year contract with Braun in 2020.
Braun is also involved in Grande’s R.E.M. Beauty through his HYBE America corporation.
In 2021, Braun sold Ithaca Holdings – the parent company to his SB Projects talent management company – to Korean K-Pop entertainment giant HYBE for $1.06 billion.
In August, Braun assumed the role of CEO of HYBE America – forcing him to step back from his former role as a talent manager.
In addition to music, Braun’s company HYBE America is a major investor in Grande’s R.E.M. Beauty and makeup line which she is seen promoting here
Several months prior, in May, R.E.M. Beauty announced in a press release that the brand had secured funding from major investors including Sandridge Capital, Live Nation, Universal Music Group, and Braun’s HYBE America.
Braun’s sale of Ithaca Holdings – which, in addition to Braun’s former talent management company SB Projects, also owned Big Machine Label Group – which owned the rights to Taylor Swift’s first six albums.
She is currently in the process of re-recording them all under the moniker ‘Taylor’s version.’
