Swifties Think That Taylor Swift's Latest Surprise Songs Are A Diss To Scooter Braun

Taylor Swift wearing a pink set, holding both her arms up and out to the side looking kind of sassy.
(Image credit: Disney+)

Taylor Swift picked quite the night to perform two songs that feature some iconic takedown lyrics. Both “I Forgot That You Existed” from Lover and “This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things” from Reputation are savage tracks that call out those who have wronged the pop star. So, you can imagine the weight they carried when Swift sang them together as surprise songs. Now, Swifties have also realized that she chose to mash these two tracks up on a significant day that alludes to the idea that she may have been dissing Scooter Braun through this performance.

As Swifties continue to speculate about Taylor Swift’s upcoming projects, they’re also paying close attention to the choices she makes on the Eras Tour. We know that she plants Easter eggs all over her work, so it’s not farfetched to think that she’s sending a message through this surprise song combo. Plus, she sang these two tracks that call out the people who have done her dirty in Cardiff on Scooter Braun’s birthday.

Coincidence? The fans think not, as @pieceofurheart posted:

Lots of fans caught on to this coincidence, and they think the performance could have been intentional. Swift and Barun have seemingly been in a feud for years. When Braun purchased Big Machine Records, the singer’s former label, in 2019, he got the majority ownership of her master recordings. This has led to the “The Man” singer re-recording her first six albums, and she’s made it pretty clear through her music and performances just how fed up she is with this deal.

As I mentioned, fans were quick to note how connected the song selection could be to Scooter Braun, as @take0utcoffees wrote:

taylor has one random tuesday show on june 18th which happens to be scooter braun’s birthday … thinking thoughts

Along with this happening on his birthday, there are some other coincidences surrounding this performance that also add more to the ongoing theory that Swift was dissing Braun through this mashup.

For one, in the fall of 2023, he reportedly parted ways with Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato and other longtime clients. Then a few days before the singer’s performance in Cardiff, the music mogul announced on Instagram that he was retiring from music management.

Also, a documentary titled Taylor Swift vs. Scooter Braun: Bad Blood will premiere on the 2024 TV schedule on June 21 for those with a Max subscription.

Basically, there are just a lot of things that line up and point to Swift possibly calling out Braun. While it’s not confirmed in the slightest, there’s no question that this is a lot of interesting coincidences. Plus, when you watch the performance (which you can see above), hearing all the lyrics together really re-emphasizes her feelings about being wronged, and one of the biggest wrongs that happened to her was because of the former music manager.

We’ll likely never get official confirmation about this mashup and who it was about. However, these Swifties have made a compelling argument that it could have been a diss at Braun. The singer does love her dates and Easter eggs, so it really could go either way.

Riley Utley
Weekend Editor

Riley Utley is the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. She has written for national publications as well as daily and alt-weekly newspapers in Spokane, Washington, Syracuse, New York and Charleston, South Carolina. She graduated with her master’s degree in arts journalism and communications from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University. Since joining the CB team she has covered numerous TV shows and movies -- including her personal favorite shows Ted Lasso and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. She also has followed and consistently written about everything from Taylor Swift to Fire Country, and she's enjoyed every second of it.