Did Justin Bieber break up with his longtime manager Scooter Braun?
Last week, Puck reported something which was a little bit interesting and a little bit shady. Apparently, Justin Bieber has been on the outs with his longtime manager and self-styled Svengali for several months now. Bieber has had significant health issues over the past few years, and his health issues have led to an overhaul in his team. From Puck:
I heard this week that Justin Bieber has been poking around for a new agency or manager, which begged the question: What about Scooter Braun? Turns out that Bieber and the manager who built his empire (and his ridiculous public persona) on Bieber’s talents haven’t spoken in months, per multiple sources. It’s tough because Bieber signed a new management deal right before Braun sold his Ithaca Holdings to South Korean giant HYPE in 2021, and Bieber still has time left on that. So neither side is confirming a split, but I’m told they’re headed separate ways, and their lawyers are involved.
This is part of a larger house-cleaning that Justin and wife Hailey Bieber have undertaken amid his recent health issues and canceled tour: CAA was just fired as his agency, per three sources, longtime lawyer Aaron Rosenberg has been replaced with David Lande at the Ziffren firm, and Justin’s now working with business manager Lou Taylor, last seen starring as the villain in the Britney Spears conservatorship drama. Bieber, who’s still only 29, also has another new lawyer, Michael Rhodes, whose firm helped close a $200 million deal earlier this year to sell his music rights to the Blackstone-backed Hipgnosis Songs Capital to pay off mounting debts. CAA declined to comment. Neither Braun nor Lande got back to me about the situation.
Yeah, it was also my understanding that Braun was moving away from the task of daily management for dedicated clients and moving more towards bigger and better things. I honestly didn’t even know he was still involved (on a daily level) with Bieber’s career. Interestingly, Page Six had a report which piggybacked on Puck’s reporting:
Move over Bey-Z ... Justin and Hailey Bieber are coming for your throne as entertainment’s ultimate “power couple.” Sources told Page Six that Hailey has taken on a larger role in her pop star hubby’s business affairs — and whenever there’s a meeting, she’s in the room.
“Hailey has taken control and is heavily involved. She’s a part of meetings and she’s talking a lot for him,” a source told Page Six. “She’s the voice. They’re becoming this power couple. She’s a big part of everything he’s doing,” the insider added.
Hailey’s influence on her husband became even more apparent amid ongoing false rumors that he’d parted ways with his longtime, controversial music manager, Scooter Braun. After industry insiders alerted us to an alleged rift between the two, we were directed to a spokesperson for Hailey, 26, in addition to reps for Justin, 29, and Braun, 42. Hailey’s flack did not comment, but reps for Bieber and Braun confirmed they are still working together and, “he’s not looking for new management” amid the supposed rumors of strife.
One source, however, did acknowledge, “Of course, there are issues,” between Braun and Bieber, but they insisted, “They definitely did not split.”
Additionally, sources told us that Justin “has new music and a new single coming out, all under Scooter.” And we hear the duo recently re-signed a new deal together. Still, industry insiders believe where there’s smoke, there’s fire — and Justin’s roots as a child star only complicates things.
“Everything has been set up by Scooter since he was a kid. Justin is older, wiser and smarter, and has started asking questions,” one claimed.
Interesting. I believe Hailey has taken a larger role in Bieber’s career, plus she’s basically “managing” him at a private level. As in, she’s his wife and he’s basically put her in charge of his schedule and his personal life. Justin is drawn to caretaker figures, probably because he was a child star. Anyway, it sounds like Scooter and Justin are having issues but no one has been fired yet.
Photos courtesy of Getty, Backgrid.
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