Taylor Swift took aim Scooter Braun and Scott Borchetta during her highly-anticipated Artist of the Decade performance amid their highly-publicized feud.
The 29-year-old hitmaker began her performance at the American Music Awards on Sunday wearing a white dress shirt with the titles of all her older albums on it including 1989 and Fearless.
She sang her female empowering hit – The Man – before shedding the top to symbolically hit back at the record executives for owning her old catalog of music.
Taking a stand: Taylor Swift began her performance at the American Music Awards on Sunday wearing a white dress shirt with the titles of all her older albums on it including 1989 and Fearless
Shaking it off: The 29-year-old hitmaker then unveiled her glittering gold look
The song plays with the perception of men and women in society as she previously explained to Vogue: ‘If I had made all the same choices, all the same mistakes, all the same accomplishments, how would it read?’
Taylor has been known to always have an eye for the details as she turned her back toward the crowd and camera to show ‘Fearless’ over her shoulders before ditching the garment to unveil her glittering gold look.
Her second to last song was megahit Shake It Off as she was joined by Halsey and Camila Cabello whom both have been very vocal on social media in support of Swift.
Tremendous trio: Her second to last song was megahit Shake It Off as she was joined by Camila Cabello (left) and Halsey whom both have been very vocal on social media in support of Swift
Halsey previously commented writing on her Instagram Story: ‘Not only are we looking at an awful business movie but this is just mean.
‘This is punishment. This is hoping to silence her from speaking about things by dangling this over her head.’
Halsey continued: ‘These people are protected because they inspire complicity with fear. Banking on the illusion that people will not stand up for her. That the world will say she is over reacting. You’re barking up the wrong tree. It is her grace and patience in these moments that make her the Artist of the Decade.’
The performance came after Swift was been cleared to perform any of her previous hits amid all the controversy.
A statement read: ‘The Big Machine Label Group and Dick Clark Productions announce that they have come to terms on a licensing agreement that approves their artists’ performances to stream post show and for re-broadcast on mutually approved platforms.
‘This includes the upcoming American Music Awards performances for Thomas Rhett and former Big Machine Records recording artist Taylor Swift.’
Big Machine Records’ Scott Borchetta first signed Swift as a teenager, but she has been trying to purchase back the masters of her first six albums, to no avail.
When Scooter Braun bought into Big Machine, she described him as ‘an incessant, manipulative bully.’
Scooter’s acquisition of the company also prompted Taylor to announce her plans to re-record her albums originally recorded under Big Machine this coming 2020.
Swift’s astronomical success throughout the decade certainly makes her worthy of the honor.
Her five albums released during this decade, between 2010 and 2019 – Speak Now (2010), Red (2012), 1989 (2014), Reputation (2017) and Lover (2019) – were all #1 on the Billboard charts.
Among her other accomplishments include three singles that hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles, plus three worldwide stadium tours and two Billboard Woman of the Year awards.
Earlier in the night she tied Michael Jackson for most wins at the annual award show when she beat out Ariana Grande and Billie Eilish as she earned the Favorite Album trophy for Lover at the star-studded event.
During her acceptance speech she said: ‘This is amazing! That was a really tough category, thank you to the fans! This album really felt like a new beginning and I really love my record label.’
Loving it: Earlier in the night, Taylor tied Michael Jackson for most wins at the annual award show when she beat out Ariana Grande and Billie Eilish as she earned the Favorite Album trophy for Lover at the star-studded event
As her very public feud with Braun and Borchetta has been headline-making news in recent weeks she seemingly shaded the two execs while putting over her new record company.
She said: ‘UMG and Republic Records, thank you for being so generous and letting me make the music I want. I love you guys!’
With the win Swift has won 24 AMAs and has tied Michael Jackson who held the record for most wins. Swift has five nominations this year and has won more awards at this show than anyone else during this decade.
Earlier in the night Billie Eilish, 17, earned the very first award at the AMAs in Los Angeles on Sunday night.
Tough competition: The 29-year-old hitmaker beat out Ariana Grande and Billie Eilish as she earned the Favorite Album trophy for Lover on Sunday
Happy: During her acceptance speech she said: ‘This is amazing! That was a really tough category, thank you to the fans! This album really felt like a new beginning and I really love my record label’
‘Thank you for being so generous’: As her very public feud with Scooter Braun and Scott Borchetta has been headline-making news in recent weeks she seemingly shaded the two execs while putting over her new record company
She was presented Favorite Artist – Alternative Rock by Chadwick Boseman as she was seemingly in disbelief upon receiving the honor.
Eilish seemingly had trouble finding the right words before saying: ‘I feel like I can’t say more to the fans and supporters because like you made this all happen man.’
She admitted that she was shaking before continuing: ‘Sorry to be in this category, to even be considered in this category is insane to me.
‘I grew up being in love with all of you, everybody in this row, everybody in that row, everybody in this room and the fact that you guys are all looking at me, that’s crazy!’
Staking her claim: Billie Eilish earned the very first award at the American Music Awards in the Favorite Artist – Alternative Rock category
Sweet: Eilish seemingly had trouble finding the right words before saying: ‘I feel like I can’t say more to the fans and supporters because like you made this all happen man’
‘I grew up being in love with all of you’: She admitted that she was shaking before continuing by talking about how much she admired all the artists in the room who came before her
Hamming it up: She sucked on a lollipop as she greeted some fans while exiting the stage
Double duty: The teenage superstar became the first artist to hit the stage twice to accept gongs as she later earned Favorite New Artist beating out stiff competition including Luke Combs , Lil Nas X, Lizzo and Ella Mai
Rocking it: Sje later put on a fiery performance of her hit song All Good Girls Go To Hell
Flames: Billie donned a baggy black top and shorts combination with red sequins emblazoned to resemble fire
Lit: She jumped up and down as she hit the high notes
The teenage superstar became the first artist to hit the stage twice to accept gongs as she later earned Favorite New Artist beating out stiff competition including Luke Combs, Lil Nas X, Lizzo and Ella Mai.
She later put on a fiery performance of her hit song All Good Girls Go To Hell.
Eilish is competing for six AMAs, including favorite female pop/rock artist and favorite pop/rock album. Her debut — When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? — is one of the top-selling albums of the year. It launched multiple Top 40 hits including Bad Guy, which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Halsey earned the second award of the night as she won Favorite Song – Pop/Rock for her single Without Me.
As she was snubbed out of a nomination when the Grammy Awards were announced earlier this year, she made a pointed statement about award shows while thanking the AMAs for being the biggest fan voted show.
Proud: Halsey earned the second award of the night as she won Favorite Song – Pop/Rock for her single Without Me
Lovely: The 25-year-old star stunned in a low-cut white maxi dress with a thigh high split
Top of the world: Carrie Underwood was the biggest winner in the country music genre as she earned Favorite Album – Country beating out Kane Brown and Dan + Shay
Double dipping: When the 36-year-old hitmaker hit the stage she was surprised by actress and presenter Cobie Smulders with a second award in the Favorite Female Artist – Country category
Can’t stop her shine: Carrie posed up with her two shiny trophies in the press room
The 25-year-old artist said: ‘I grew up watching shows like this, and I would sit at home, wide-eyed, and watch artists in these beautiful gowns and handsome suits stroll up and hold these awards. They were usually gold-plated and shiny and weighted, these metaphors, right?’
She went on to say that the trophies represented the ‘kind of validation for the soul-crushing and heartache-inducing work of bringing a song to life. I really believed that fairy tale. When I was a kid, I used to believe this award was the ultimate validation, and I would come up here and laugh and cry, and my fans at home would rejoice, but the truth us, I am older now and I’m also an artist.’
Regardless of her conflicted feelings she praised the award show for fan participation as she said: ‘I’m here right now and I am so thankful to the AMAs because they’re the world’s largest fan-voted awards show and I’m thankful to the fans. I’m thankful to the AMAs for giving those people a voice. I’m going to keep making music for them and for us. Sometimes you grow up and the stuff you believed in starts to lose its magic. But music never does, because real fans and real music keep that magic alive.’
Carrie Underwood was the biggest winner in the country music genre as she earned Favorite Album – Country beating out Kane Brown and Dan + Shay.
When the 36-year-old hitmaker hit the stage she was surprised by actress and presenter Cobie Smulders with a second award in the Favorite Female Artist – Country category.
Selena Gomez kicked off the show with an emotional performance of number one single Lose You To Love Me.
The 27-year-old songtress’ world premiere performance was televised in black and white as there were projected images of herself in the patterned background.
Dancers then came out and things popped into color as Selena slipped out of her black maxi dress into a sequined silver bodysuit as she performed Look At Her Now.
Stunning: Selena Gomez kicked off the show with an emotional performance of number one single Lose You To Love Me
Wow factor: She looked gorgeous in a black long-sleeved maxi dress
Seeing triple: There were projected images of herself in the patterned background
Start the show: Dancers then came out and things popped into color as Selena slipped out of her black maxi dress into a sequined silver bodysuit as she performed Look At Her Now
Colorful character: She looked absolutely fantastic
Cheering section: Selena had the support from Taylor and Halsey as they sang and danced along
Host Ciara then hit the stage in a shimmering gold romper as she she impressively danced and rapped with several backing dancers while performing a song about melanin and chocolate.
Chart toppers: Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello performed Seniorita together
Packing on the PDA: The two stars – who are a current couple – put on quite the steamy performance and even almost kissed
Get a room: The two kept very close during the very intimate performance
Good as hell: Lizzo performed Jerome for the first time on television
Simply stunning: She looked gorgeous in a flowy burgundy tulle maxi
Wonder in white: Legendary R&B singer Toni Braxton hit the stage to perform her 90s classic Unbreak My Heart
Racy: She donned a lacy white number featuring plenty of sheer paneling
Sunday serve us: Kesha performed a gospel-inspired number alongside Big Freedia
Shining star: Host Ciara then hit the stage in a shimmering gold romper while kicking off the show
Killing it: She impressively danced and rapped while performing a song about melanin and chocolate
Supporting cast: SHe was joined by several backing dancers
The two biggest breakthrough acts in music this year, Billie Eilish and Lizzo, will join Swift and Gomez on stage to perform at tonight’s event.
Pretty in pink: Constance Wu presented the Favorite Song – Pop/ Rock
Flower boy: Tyler, The Creator introduced Billie Eilish’s performance
Hero: Chadwick Boseman had the esteemed honor of being the first to present as he gave Billie Eilish the Favorite Artist – Alternative Rock gong
The man in black: Kane Brown looked handsome as he spoke on stage
Other performers at the event include Camila Cabello, nominated for collaboration of the year for Senorita with Shawn Mendes, and Dua Lipa, whose debut album is the most streamed album by a female artist in Spotify history.
The show will air live on ABC from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.
Lizzo, nominated for three AMAs, released her debut in 2013 but she achieved major success this year. Her two-year-old song Truth Hurts topped the Hot 100 chart for seven weeks and her three-year-old song Good As Hell just reached the Top 10 on the pop charts and is No 1 on the R&B charts. Lizzo released her major-label debut album, Cuz I Love You, earlier this year.
Tremendous trio: Taylor was flanked by Billy Porter and Halsey
Dynamic duo: Swift and Halsey looked gorgeous as they were seated next to each other
Just us: The two looked in great spirits as they supported fellow artist Selena Gomez during her performance
Lovely: The A-lister looked in good spirits
Old friends: Swift proved she hasn’t forgotten about her country roots as she posed with Kelsea Ballerini
Rising stars: Billie and Dua Lipa posed for a cute snap together
Country roots: Lil Nas X cuddled up with Shania Twain
A Timeline: Taylor Swift’s feud with Scooter Braun and Scott Borchetta
Taylor Swift signed to Big Machine Records in 2006, which has released all but one of her albums.
In 2018, Swift signed with Universal Music Group, but Big Machine Records still retains the exclusive rights to her entire back catalogue of master recordings.
Timeline of a feud: Taylor Swift, seen here this summer, is in dispute with Scooter Braun and Scott Borchetta over her back catalogue
Here’s how the public feud began:
June 30, 2019: Braun’s $300million deal is announced
The Wall Street Journal reported that Scooter Braun reached a deal of more than $300million to purchase Big Machine Records and with it, all of Swift’s old music.
On the same day, Swift shared a blog post saying that for years she pleaded for a chance to own her work but was only given an opportunity to sign back up to Big Machine Records and ‘earn’ one album back at a time, ‘one for every new one I turned in’.
She claimed in the post that she ‘walked away because I knew once I signed that contract, Scott Borchetta would sell the label, thereby selling me and my future’.
Long working relationship: Taylor Swift signed to Big Machine Records in 2006, which has released all but one of her albums; she is seen with Scott Borchetta in 2013
July 1, 2019: Scott Borchetta releases statement on the sale
Borchetta, the man who sold Swift’s catalog to Braun, says the singer has been misleading about the situation, claiming she had the chance to purchase her work and knew well ahead of time of the deal.
In an open letter on the label’s website, Borchetta, 56, who founded Big Machine Label Group, claimed the songstress had a shot earlier at buying the work, which fell through when she inked a pact with Universal Music Group.
On the same day, celebrities voiced their views. Halsey and Cara Delevingne rushed to support Swift as Justin Bieber, Demi Lovato and Braun’s wife, Yael Cohen, voiced their support for him.
July 2, 2019: Braun faces backlash for bragging about purchase
Braun faced furious backlash over his now-deleted Instagram post that bragged about him ‘buying Taylor Swift’ as he claimed he tried to have a mature conversation with her about the purchase of her catalog of past albums.
When the news first broke – and before Swift responded angrily – Braun was re-posting messages of congratulations from friends and colleagues on his Instagram story.
One of the messages that Braun re-posted and later deleted from his Instagram story congratulated him on ‘buying’ the 29-year singer.
Controversial sale: Scott Borchetta and Scooter Braun in June 2019
July 3, 2019: Swift’s lawyers deny she knew about $300m sale
Her lawyer denied claims that Swift had an opportunity to buy her masters before it was eventually sold to Braun.
Borchetta had previously claimed that Swift knew about the sale.
The lawyer refuted claims that the Shake It Off singer was informed months in advance that Big Machine was up for sale.
August 21, 2019: Swift confirms she’s re-recording songbook
The singer announced her plans to re-record her songbook to regain control of her master recordings.
August 23, 2019: Swift celebrates release of first album not owned by Braun
Swift told Good Morning American that her Lover album is so special because ‘it’s the first one that I will own’.
On the same day, Swift slammed Braun in a separate interview, saying: ‘And the person who bought my art, he’s never made any art in his life, so he doesn’t know what it’s like.
‘He could never understand that personal connection. When you make something and then someone buys it out from under you…’ she said, referring to Braun.
August 25, 2019: Swift blasts Borchetta for selling her music
Swift told CBS Sunday that she only found out about the secret $300million deal when it was news online.
‘I found out when it was online, like, when it hit the news,’ she said.
‘I knew he [Scott Borchetta] would sell my music, I knew he would do that,’ she began.
‘I couldn’t believe who he sold it to, because, we’ve had endless conversations about Scooter Braun and he has 300 million reasons to conveniently forget those conversations.’
September 16, 2019: Braun insists he had no ‘malicious intent’ when buying Taylor Swift’s back catalogue masters
Braun insisted he had no ‘malicious intent’ when he bought Big Machine Records.
‘I don’t do anything with malicious intent,’ the 38-year-old power broker told Tony Gonzalez’s Wide Open podcast.
‘I try to do things above board. I try to do the right thing. Not everyone’s gonna be happy with everything that you do, and I think in the long-term, I’ve learned this over time, the truth always comes out, and I’m confident in that.’
November 14, 2019: Swift says she’s banned from singing on TV
Swift claimed that Big Machine Records founder, Borchetta, and music executive Braun have effectively told her ‘shut up or you’ll be punished’.
She claimed they told her that she wouldn’t be able to perform a planned medley of her greatest hits at the American Music Awards next Sunday where she is due to receive Artist of the Decade.
They have also allegedly denied permission to use her old songs on a Netflix documentary that has been two years in the making.
November 15, 2019: Big Machine Records releases statement denying her claims
Swift’s former record company hit back at the singer for making ‘false’ claims that the label banned her from singing her own songs on television.
In a statement, Big Machine Label Group alleged that Swift owes ‘millions of dollars’ to their label and that her social media posts are threatening the safety of their employees.
November 22, 2019: Scooter Braun makes public appeal to end feud after his family received death threats
Braun shared a public letter on Instagram which read in part: ‘Since your public statement last week there have been numerous death threats directed at my family.’
He also said: ‘I assume this was not your intention but it is important that you understand that your words carry a tremendous amount of weight and that your message can be interpreted by some in different ways.’
He made it clear he wants to ‘rectify the situation’ and is ‘open to ALL possibilities.’
Scooter ended his letter with another plea for a resolution – but admitted ‘many’ had told him it was unlikely he and Taylor would meet face-to-face as she’s more interested in creating her own ‘narrative’.
Scooter ended the post with a screenshot of a threatening message he’d received towards his himself, his wife Yael Cohen and their three young children.
Taylor Swift’s face off with Scooter Braun and Scott Borchetta
Earlier this month Taylor Swift went public via a tweet alleging music execs Scooter Braun and Scott Borchetta had been blocking her from performing her hits at the American Music Awards unless she agreed not to rerecord her back catalog, which they own.
In a post captioned, ‘Don’t know what else to do’, Swift said: ‘I’ve been planning to perform a medley of my hits throughout the decade on the [AMAs]. Scott Borchetta and Scooter Braun have now said that I’m not allowed to perform my old songs on television because they claim that would be re-recording my music before I’m allowed to next year.
Public feud: Taylor Swift, seen in April, has publicly berated Scooter Braun and Scott Borchetta for their handling of her music sell off
‘Additionally – and this isn’t the way I had planned on telling you this news – Netflix has created a documentary about my life for the past few years. Scott and Scooter have declined the use of my older music or performance footage for this project, even though there is no mention of either of them or Big Machine Records anywhere in the film.’
Celebrities started showing public support for Swift after she made the revelation on Thursday.
As #IStandWithTaylor began trending, Braun and Borchetta faced death threats from the 29-year-old’s fans after Swift attempted to force them to rethink their decision.
Former colleagues: Swift worked with Borchetta for most of her career
Then the next day, Swift’s original label, Big Machine Label Group, hit back at the singer for making ‘false’ claims that the label banned her from singing her own songs on television.
In a statement, Big Machine Label Group alleged that Swift owes ‘millions of dollars’ to their label and that her social media posts are threatening the safety of their employees.
On November 22, Scooter Braun made a public appeal to end the feud after his family received death threats.
He claimed he was ‘shocked and disheartened’ by Taylor’s previous comments slamming his acquisition of her master recordings and suggested the Blank Space singer had no interest in resolving the tension between them, but he is willing to do anything to do so and is open to ‘ALL possibilities’.