On Sunday, news reports confirmed that talent manager and music industry figurehead Scooter Braun had purchased Big Machine Records, and with it, Taylor Swift's back catalog of music.
Naturally, some of his friends took to social media to congratulate him on the milestone achievement. However, when Braun's friend David Grutman apparently posted a screenshot of the news—which the entertainment executive then seemingly shared on his Instagram story—applauding him for "buying Taylor Swift," a host of the singer's fans took to social media to call out the dehumanizing language.
It has yet to be confirmed whether Braun participated in the objectification of Taylor Swift, a move her fans have said exemplifies her bullying accusations. However, several screenshots captured in the time that lapsed between him allegedly sharing Grutman's post and deleting it, indicate that it's likely he participated in the insults.
The various timestamps shown in the screenshots above demonstrate the likelihood that he cosigned Grutman's post.
Additionally, a video captured by one Instagram user further implicates Braun.
Swift described herself as “sad and grossed out” over Braun's acquisition of Big Machine, referring to the deal as her "worst case scenario." In a lengthy Tumblr post, the singer accused Braun of bullying her for years and included detailed accounts in which she felt attacked by the music executive.
“Some fun facts about today’s news: I learned about Scooter Braun’s purchase of my masters as it was announced to the world. All I could think about was the incessant, manipulative bullying I’ve received at his hands for years," she wrote. If you take Swift's word at face value, it wouldn't appear all that uncharacteristic of Braun to insult and mock the singer on Instagram after the deal went through.
Naturally, Swift allies had quite a bit to say about Braun vis-a-vis Grutman's language when claiming that the music figurehead had purchased Taylor Swift.
