Scam alert: Fraudsters pose as Arctic Monkeys agent

Scam artists have been posing as 13 Artists founder and agent Charlie Myatt, soliciting bookings for a non-existent 2025 tour with Arctic Monkeys.

13 Artists told IQ that a “deluge” of fraudulent emails have been reported to them in the last few days, which follow a similar pattern to that of the Radiohead scams in 2022.

The scam emails, titled ‘CONFIDENTIAL – Arctic Monkeys – Midnight Mirage World Tour 2025’,  have been sent from the bogus address [email protected] and ask that recipients reply to another bogus address, [email protected].

All legitimate email addresses for 13 Artists staff are from @13artists.com.

The fraudsters have also made a fake website (www.13-artists.net) almost identical to the Brighton-based agency’s actual one (13artists.com).

Both the fabricated website and the scam email contain phone numbers (+44 20 3290 3795 and +44 79 0719 2974) that do not belong to 13 Artists.

Such scams are not uncommon in the touring business, with fraudsters posing as the representatives of major artists including Justin Timberlake, Justin Bieber, Radiohead, Adele, Ariana Grande, System of a Down, Beyoncé, Mark Knopfler and Eminem in the past, emailing concert promoters and asking for deposits in exchange for non-existent live dates.

Elsewhere, the leader of a multi-million dollar fraud scheme in the US involving bogus music concerts was jailed for almost five years earlier this year.

The UK’s Entertainment Agents’ Association previously issued a checklist, urging promoters to adopt the following steps if unsure of an agent’s identity:

1. Check the email address is correct – in particular the email domain – and if in any doubt call the agency to confirm it. Do not use the telephone number on the email
2. Check the artist’s website for any conflicting touring plans
3. Make sure you have full contact details of the agent with which you are working and speak to them on the phone at least once
4. Before sending a deposit, call the agency to confirm the booking and check their account details
5. Check with promoters in other markets to verify the artist is touring in that region at that time
6. If an offer is accepted and seems too good to be true, it probably is

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