Justin Bieber's ex-manager breaks silence on Swag after settling financial feud

Scooter Braun has broken his silence on Justin Bieber’s new album Swag, calling it the singer’s “most authentically Justin” release yet.

Weeks after the pair reached a settlement in their long-standing financial dispute, Braun took to Instagram and wrote: “Been having a beautiful start to the weekend and been getting a lot of texts about how I feel about Justin's new album… so I will just leave this here. This is without a doubt, the most authentically Justin Bieber album to date. It's beautiful, raw, and truly him. And that matters.”

The former mega-manager, who discovered Bieber on YouTube in 2008 and guided his rise for 15 years, stepped away from artist management in 2024. His public praise marks a rare, amicable moment following a messy split between the two in 2023 and a financial feud that simmered until this year.

According to reports, Braun’s company HYBE America had helped cover $26 million of the $40 million Bieber owed AEG after the abrupt cancellation of his Justice World Tour in 2022. Bieber allegedly defaulted on his repayment agreement, leading Braun to claim he was owed millions in unpaid commissions.

Though they no longer work together, Braun’s message ends with a note of admiration for Bieber’s growth and a dad-mode sign-off: “Now off to take my kids to see Superman.”

Swag marks Bieber’s first album since parting ways with Braun and is being hailed as his most personal and creatively unfiltered work yet.

Braun, for his part, acknowledged Bieber’s evolution: “Along every journey, there comes a time when an artist fully steps into their own… and that’s what he’s done here.” He also revealed his favourite track is Daisies, praising Bieber’s vocal tone as “the best in the world.”