Peter Rudge exits management, plans touring doc
Peter Rudge is to co-produce a documentary about the beginnings of the live touring business after announcing he is stepping aside from artist management.
The veteran manager, who starred in ILMC 32’s Breakfast Meeting, plans to pursue other music-centric projects, including a film centred around legendary Premier Talent Agency founder Frank Barsalona. Premier was the first agency to work exclusively with rock artists, with clients including the Yardbirds, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, U2 and Van Halen.
Rudge hails Barsalona, who died in 2012 aged 74 and is the only agent inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as a “visionary” who “predicted rock’s potential beyond traditional record sales and into a new live space”.
“Industry leaders will explain how his legacy has impacted the live music industry of today for the better of the artists and the fans,” he tells IQ of the project. “It’s simply about how one man’s vision created railway tracks on which today’s live business still travels.”
Rudge began his 50-year career at Track Records working with Jimi Hendrix and Marc Bolan before going on to manage The Who with Bill Curbishley. He has since worked closely with and managed artists including the Rolling Stones, Madness, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Il Divo, Ball & Boe, Duran Duran and Roger Waters.
“After 55 years in the artist management trenches, I’ve decided to call time and devote my time to family, travel and other projects”
“After 55 years in the artist management trenches, I’ve decided to call time and devote my time to family, travel and other projects, as well as Wolves and the New York Giants, who both need my help far more than any artist does right now,” says Rudge, who has also represented the band James for over more than three decades.
“For the past 35 years James have been one of the anchors of my life and for that I am forever grateful,” he continues. “A shout out as well to my many partners over the years – particularly Colin Young, Simon Moran and John Giddings, whose friendship and expertise I have been able to lean on throughout my stewardship. To the members of James – Thanks guys, it’s been a privilege, because of you I never did have to get a job…”
Isle of Wight Festival chief Giddings was among those to pay tribute.
“Peter Rudge is one of the best managers I have ever known – he stands up for the artist in every situation and stands up to them if necessary. This is the true definition of management – managing and directing an artist’s career and protecting them from all of the pitfalls that come with fame,” says Giddings. “He has applied this for decades of success, from The Rolling Stones and The Who, right up to the #1 album and sell out arena tour for James this year.
“He helped create the modern day music industry, revolutionising the live arena in favour of the artist and we will miss a character of such strong ability and strength. He certainly taught me a thing or two (not least how to make a lunch last three hours!!) – thank you Peter.”
“Peter Rudge has guided our ship for over 35 years and is massively responsible for us thriving 42 years in this business”
SJM Concerts boss Moran adds: “It’s been a brilliant experience over the last 30 years working with Peter on James UK tours. The passion and enthusiasm for the group has never diminished, always planning forward for the next step. I’ve really appreciated the loyalty and being made to always feel a valued part of ‘Team James’. Peter’s great knowledge and intellect have been pivotal to the group’s continued success. I’ll very much look forward to keeping in touch with Peter as a good friend.”
James have been co-managed for the past two years by Tileyard Music MD Neil Hughes, who will continue to manage the band along with Charlotte Malecki at Tileyard.
“Peter Rudge has guided our ship for over 35 years and is massively responsible for us thriving 42 years in this business,” adds James frontman Tim Booth. “He’s a one off. Brilliant, passionate, the smartest man in the room, funny as fuck. He has worked with all the greats: The Stones, The Who ad infinitum. He gets the balance between business and protecting the band’s artistic integrity. He is our biggest fan and we are his. In short we love him, he’s family and our relationship doesn’t end here.”
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Lawsuit by former Coldplay manager seeks £10m+
Former Coldplay manager Dave Holmes is seeking more than £10 million (€11.7m) in allegedly unpaid commission in his lawsuit against the band, according to a new report.
It was reported last month that the four members of the group – Chris Martin, Jonny Buckland, Guy Berryman and Will Champion – are being sued by Holmes in the UK High Court for breach of contract.
Representatives for Holmes say the band are “refusing to honour [his] management contract and pay him what he is owed” – a claim that is “vigorously disputed” by Coldplay.
Holmes had worked with the British group since before their 2000 debut album Parachutes, but the parties quietly went their separate ways last year, with the quartet continuing to be managed by the team of Phil Harvey, Mandi Frost and Arlene Moon.
The Daily Mail reports that Holmes and the band began working together on two-album cycles from 2014, with his most recent deal, covering 2019’s Everyday Life and 2021’s Music of the Spheres, their eighth and ninth LPs, respectively. The lawsuit claims that Coldplay later extended the deal to the end of 2025, covering a future 10th and 11th album.
Holmes claims that, following discussions with the band, he had started planning for the albums, as well as preparations for 2024/25 tours.
However, it is alleged that, shortly afterwards, Coldplay claimed the contract had not yet been agreed to and that his previous agreement had ended.
“Dave Holmes successfully managed Coldplay for more than 22 years, steering them to be one of the most successful bands in music history”
According to the lawsuit, the band were paid a £35m advance for their 10th LP and £30m for their 11th and 12th albums.
Holmes, who received a 10% commission on the net profits of the group’s records, tours and related activities for the past four LPs, says he was then informed by the band’s solicitor that they wanted to change his role to ‘head of touring’ and limit his commission to just concerts.
He alleges he was given two drafts of the new contract in August 2022, only for the band to later withdraw the offer and inform him through their solicitors that he was being dismissed.
Holmes alleges that the group are refusing to pay him for his contributions to the future album and tour preparations, and is demanding they pay the commissions as outlined in the contract. He is also calling on them to cover the “loss and damage equal to the profits”, plus everything he is entitled to from prior deals.
“Dave Holmes successfully managed Coldplay for more than 22 years, steering them to be one of the most successful bands in music history,” says Holmes’ lawyer Phil Sherrell. “Now, as the legal case shows, Coldplay is refusing to honour Dave’s management contract and pay him what he is owed.”
A spokesperson for Coldplay says that Holmes’ management contract expired at the end of 2022, “at which point they decided not to start a new one”. “The matter is now in the hands of Coldplay’s lawyers and the claims are being vigorously disputed,” adds the statement.
Coldplay, who have sold over 100 million albums worldwide, recently confirmed their Music of the Spheres World Tour will extend to 2024.
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Coldplay sued by former manager Dave Holmes
The four members of Coldplay are being sued by their former manager Dave Holmes over a contractual dispute, according to court documents filed in the UK.
Holmes had worked with the British group since before their 2000 debut album Parachutes, but the parties quietly went their separate ways last year, with the quartet continuing to be managed by the team of Phil Harvey, Mandi Frost and Arlene Moon.
A band representative declined to report further to Variety, which first reported the story, but a source tells the publication that the lawsuit refers to a contractual issue. The legal documents have not yet been made public.
Coldplay, who have sold over 100 million albums worldwide, recently confirmed their Music of the Spheres World Tour will extend to a third summer, with more than 7.5m tickets already sold. The dates for 2024 include the band’s first ever shows in Greece, Romania and Finland, as well as their first show in Rome since 2003 and first visit to Budapest since 2008.
“We started to plan this tour when we were on the last tour, in 2017”
The trek, which began in Costa Rica in March 2022, was a new entry at No.6 in Billboard‘s updated list of the all-time top 10 highest-grossing concert tours, having garnered $561.2m at last count. It has already comfortably outsold Coldplay’s previous A Head Full of Dreams tour of 2016/17, which was attended by 5.38m people.
“We started to plan this tour when we were on the last tour, in 2017,” Holmes said last year as part of IQ‘s Music of the Spheres tour report. “It seemed crazy at the time, but we were holding venues for 2022 and 2023, as some stadiums actually need to be booked that far in advance.”
Meanwhile, it was confirmed yesterday (16 August) that UK-based agent Josh Javor, who spent 18 years at X-ray Touring, working closely with the late co-founder Steve Strange on acts including Coldplay, is joining WME as partner and co-head of the London music department.
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Tony Smith: “Artists need the truth from their manager”
Legendary manager Tony Smith has granted a rare interview with IQ after wrapping Genesis’ The Last Domino? Tour.
The legendary English rock band returned to the road at the end of last year following a 13-year hiatus.
The reunion tour kicked off last September in the UK, making stops in the US and Europe before culminating with a three-night stand at London’s O2 in March.
As the name of the tour suggests, it may well be the last time Phil Collins, Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford – Genesis’ most commercially successful line-up – perform live under the pseudonym.
The tour would mark the end of a 50-year chapter for Smith who has managed the band since 1973 and played a crucial role in Genesis becoming one of the world’s best-selling artists.
Though Smith tells IQ that interviews are his “least favourite part of the job” (gulp), Genesis agent John Giddings managed to twist his arm for a rare conversation.
Here, Smith shares his philosophy on successful managers, reveals the motivation behind his extraordinary career, and sets the record straight on his age…
IQ: On a personal level, how are you feeling about this being Genesis’ last-ever tour?
TS: I’m not sure how I feel, actually. I mean, life’s gonna carry on afterwards. There’s still the Genesis catalogue and everything else to still deal with, but it might change. Who knows? Never say never but that was probably the last show. Probably.
The three-night stand at London’s O2 was postponed four times. Did those delays contribute to the anticipation in the arena?
The audience has obviously been waiting a long time so there was a lot of anticipation. But it’s interesting actually – I’ve noticed that in some places the first-night audience are the hardcore fans and they’re a bit in awe, so sometimes you don’t get the same reaction as you do on the second night. But [the opening night at the O2] was really good. The audience stood up all the way through.
“I think the role of a manager is to be the one person the band can hear the truth from”
How successful has The Last Domino? Tour been?
It has been very successful. Reviews have been great, the tour completely sold out – it has been a really good turn. In terms of numbers, it’s probably not as big as the tour in 2007, which was all stadiums. We wanted to keep this one to arenas. Given Phil’s lack of mobility, I don’t think a stadium show would work that well for him.
Even with Phil seated and not playing the drums, he’s still quite the showman…
He’s still got that entertainment spark. The voice is still there and he’s still got the sense of humour and stuff like that. It’s just a drag that he can’t move very much. I think it’s more difficult to sing properly when you’re seated but he seems to have overcome that.
Phil’s son Nic filled in on drums. How was it bringing him into the fold?
He’s fantastic. He played on Phil’s last solo tour which was in 2018/2019. He was only 16 and was good then but now he’s beefed up and is really strong. Phil has said to me on different occasions that Nick is doing things he didn’t do. Also, he’s a very nice guy! When a kid grows up in that environment, they could go either way but he’s really grounded.
“A manager is a bit of a father figure, in a way”
You’re 83 –
I’m not 83! Wikipedia is wrong. I’m 77 – I was born in 1945. It’s really annoying because you get someone to go in and change the Wikipedia and then someone changes it back! I’m glad you’ve straightened that out. Although, it’s always impressive when people think you’re 83 and still on tour.
Apologies! You’re 77 and probably the longest-standing manager in the business. What’s your motivation?
Well, first of all, I love the music and I love being in this business. I like the logistics of it all – putting things together, planning things out and having some kind of agenda. When you see all that fall into place, it’s very satisfying.
And I enjoy being a leader – it’s great when you’ve got a big team. I think we’ve got 100 people on the road and it’s good to be able to put a great team together that works really well – that’s very satisfying.
I like all the elements of management. There’s a little bit of creativity. You get involved with the setlists, the artwork, the marketing and the albums. Ultimately, the band will make those choices but they bounce off everyone. Plus, I like the challenge of managing a band and being able to follow it all through.
“How we ever did tours without mobile phones and computers, I cannot remember”
In the 50 odd years since you’ve been doing this job, how much has the role of a manager changed?
I think the role of a manager is to be the one person the band can hear the truth from – that hasn’t changed. I think the role of a ‘proper’ manager is to help guide the artist and help them to make choices, provide encouragement and discouragement at the right times. A manager is a bit of a father figure, in a way.
What has changed is the technology and everything that goes with that. How tickets are sold, how music is delivered. How we ever did tours without mobile phones and computers, I cannot remember. It all worked but it was probably a bit slower.
The other thing that has changed – as far as touring is concerned – is that the budgets and the finances are much larger than they used to be because there are bigger venues now. When I was a promoter in the late 60s/early 70s, the biggest venue was Wembley Empire Pool for 8,000 people. Most of the venues were for 2,000 and 3,000 people at the most. It was a very different kind of business. As a promoter, I did a Led Zeppelin tour which went on for two months around England and it was all town halls and theatres – those were the venues.
“You can’t look after more than one major act properly”
Do you get as much satisfaction out of the smaller shows as you do out of the big ones?
Yeah, absolutely. When Mike + The Mechanics [Mike Rutherford’s band] go out on tour we’re playing 2,000-seat theatres. And the same with Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets, which I look after, as well. It’s just as satisfying. In fact, in some ways, it’s more satisfying.
Back in the 80s, you said all the most successful managers very rarely look after more than one major act. Do you stand by this philosophy?
I still think that’s true. A good relationship with a major actor should be an intimate relationship and you can’t have that with too many artists. I’m lucky insofar as Genesis has always been great and there have been lots of solo spin-offs. The only other thing is, when Steve O’Rourke [manager of Pink Floyd] died, Nick Mason [the band’s drummer] asked me to look after his interest in Pink Floyd. But [Steve] and I were always mates because of motor racing so that was easy to manage.
In the main I still believe that the management relationship is special. You can’t look after more than one major act properly. I look after every element of Genesis, including things like personal finances, so it’s more of a holistic approach. Whereas I think there are managers out there that have got 234 acts but they’re more like agents than they are managers.
“A good relationship with a major actor should be an intimate relationship and you can’t have that with too many artists”
What’s your take on modern management?
I don’t know about younger managers and what goes on. I’m not involved in that kind of business anymore but I suspect it’s very different. I think a lot of managers these days tend to be more employees almost. They don’t direct, they don’t manage in the same way. They’ll take instructions from their artists. If you ask a question about something they’ll always say, “I’ll get back to you”. In most cases, I instinctively know what the band are going to be okay with.
I think a lot of that [bureaucracy] is due to when lawyers started getting involved with management contracts and insisting on minimum earnings for the artist. If the manager had to get in X amount, that compromises the manager’s decision straight away because he’s going to go for his money or think short term and won’t think about the career. I’ve never had a management contract and that has worked for the last 49 years. I don’t believe in contracts; it’s either going to work or it’s not going to work and that’s the end of the story. The only thing I have is a piece of paper in a file somewhere that says what happens if we part ways.
“Aside from interviews, dealing with bureaucracy is my least favourite part of the job”
What’s your least favourite part of the job?
Interviews. I do very few. Aside from that, dealing with bureaucracy is the main thing. I don’t mind the shitty bits of the job, like when you’ve got to give people bad news – it’s part of the job and it’s what’s expected of me really. The rest of it is fun, apart from dealing with John Giddings…
Tell us your best John Giddings anecdote.
John and I go back a long time. It has been a very good partnership. There was one tour that John was booking and he called me up all worried about the mileage between one city and another. I just turned to him and said [indignantly]: “John, do you drive the trucks?” That quote comes back to haunt me all the time.
“John Giddings and I go back a long time. It has been a very good partnership”
What are some of your highlights from the 50-year journey with Genesis?
We played Rome in 2007 with half a million people in the audience – that was pretty spectacular. Knebworth is a highlight. Also, we sold out four shows at Wembley Stadium back in the 80s. At the time, that was a record – which I think has subsequently been beaten by Ed Sheeran. The first time went to America in 1973 and played the Roxy in LA at Christmas was a highlight – that was the West Coast’s first experience of Genesis.
With Genesis retiring from the road, which other projects will you spend time on?
I’ve got lots of other interests, aside from Genesis, so I’ll be just as busy. There are a couple of other Genesis projects in the background at the moment – we’re looking into orchestral stuff and things like that. I don’t know what Phil’s gonna do – the same with Mike – but there are always things to do. I start on the road with Nick Mason in two weeks’ time and that’s running through the summer. I’m also one of the producers of Bat Out of Hell the musical and I’m one of the four managers of Pink Floyd ‘industries’ so that’s a full-time job on its own.
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5B Artist Management makes new hires
International music management company 5B Artists and Media, home to hard rock/metal acts including Slipknot, Megadeth, Stone Sour, Lamb of God, Behemoth and Trivium, has hired artist manager James Vitalo.
Vitalo, who brings acts such as Turnstile, Knocked Loose, Gatecreeper, Terror and Harms Way, joins 5B after five years at New Jersey-based Good Fight Entertainment.
5B Artists and Media has offices in Los Angeles, Brooklyn (New York) and Birmingham (UK), and also comprises a record label, a film and music festival production arm, a booking agency and a digital marketing agency.
“I’m incredibly excited to begin working with James and the amazing artists he represents,” 5B founder and CEO Cory Brennan says. “His energy, positivity and sheer determination is second to none and aligns perfectly with that of 5B. We welcome his invaluable perspective, and look forward to developing and uncovering the next generation of important artists alongside him.”
“I couldn’t ask for a better opportunity than to work with 5B”
Vitalo adds: “I couldn’t ask for a better opportunity than to work with 5B. The team has an incredible reputation for being hardworking and forward-thinking, while also maintaining a level of ethics that can sometimes be lost in the music industry.
“Everything they work on, from festivals like Knotfest to initiatives like Rock Against Racism, highlights the range of capabilities and thoughtfulness of the company. 5B has always been at the forefront of pushing the underground to the highest level and I’m excited for myself and the bands I manage to be part of what’s to come.”
In other 5B news, the company has promoted senior artist manager Brad Fuhrman to vice-president and Stephen Reeder from director of digital to senior director of digital.
“When you’ve got people like Brad and Stephen on the team, you count yourself lucky,” comments 5B president Bob Johnsen. “We at 5B take pride in what we do and how we do it, and no matter what comes at us these two keep innovating and helping to make us all smarter.”
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Various Artists Management ups Rebecca Dixon
London-based Various Artists Management, whose roster includes Ashnikko, Tom Grennan, Supergrass, Loyle Carner and La Roux, has promoted Rebecca Dixon to head of marketing and promotions.
Dixon has been with Various Artists, which also has offices in Hong Kong and Los Angeles, for five years, helping oversee the careers of Charli XCX and the Libertines, among others.
Reporting directly to group CEO David Bianchi, in her new role Dixon will oversee the company’s global marketing and promotions activities and will work between the company’s London and LA offices once travel restrictions are lifted. Her appointment is effective immediately.
“I’m looking forward to working with our amazing roster of artists and managers in this new role”
“Rebecca joined us straight from university and it has been a huge pleasure to watch her grow into this role over the last five years,” comments Bianchi. “Rebecca’s energy , passion and creativity will add real value and expertise to our roster of artists globally.”
“I’m really excited to take on the position of head of marketing and promotions for Various Artists Management,” says Dixon. “Having been at the company for five years, I’m looking forward to working with our amazing roster of artists and managers in this new role.”
She adds: “[W]e have an array of exceptional talent and we will continue to build worlds and brands for those artists and their fans while innovating across all genres and platforms.”
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Sydney-based Chugg Music opens new Asia office
Sydney-based Chugg Music, the artist services branch of Michael Chugg’s promotions company Chugg Entertainment, is opening a new office in Asia, spearheaded by Michael “Mick” De Lanty.
Australian expat De Lanty is a seasoned music industry executive based in Bangkok and has worked across the board, with roles in A&R, artist management, marketing, sales, publishing, promotions and brand development.
De Lanty spent 15 years with Sony Music Australia and he has also worked with independent labels in Asia and Australia, as well as in the UK.
The veteran will expand on the success of Chugg Music artists Sheppard, Lime Cordialeand Mia Rodriguez in the Asian region.
“Having been involved in many projects since the late 80s I am excited to actually be planting the Chugg Music flag in Asia,” says Michael Chugg.
“Andrew [Stone, co-founder of Chugg Music] and I are thrilled to announce that my long-time friend and colleague, Michael De Lanty, is running the operations from his Bangkok base. After five months testing the waters we have no doubt that this will be a great step forward for both Australian and Asian music.”
“Having been involved in many projects since the late 80s I am excited to actually be planting my flag in Asia”
Michael De Lanty says: “I am delighted to be working with Chugg, Andrew and their team, in launching Chugg Music Asia and very excited for the opportunity to help develop the careers in Asia of the formidable roster of artists that they have assembled, including Sheppard, Lime Cordiale, Mia Rodriguez, Casey Barnes, to name but a few.
It is an exciting period for music in Asia and no better time to introduce these incredible artists to Asian music lovers.”
Chugg Music Asia will aim to build strong platforms across the 12 major territories, which includes the world’s second-largest music market, Japan.
Chugg Entertainment was founded in 2000 by music industry pioneer Michael Chugg and has toured hundreds of major international acts including Dolly Parton, Coldplay, Radiohead, Elton John, Pearl Jam, Robbie Williams, Florence + The Machine throughout Australia, New Zealand and Asia.
Subsequently, Chugg Music was launched in 2012 with the help of Andrew Stone, offering management, label and publishing services.
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YMU hires new artist manager Truce
International artist management firm YMU Group has appointed Truce Susan to the position of senior manager.
Based in London, Susan – known as Truce – will report to Iain Watt, managing director of YMU’s UK music division, and work closely with senior manager Sophie Bloggs, whose team he joins.
Truce started his career DJing and organising music events across London, before joining music broadcast platform the Boiler Room in 2010, where he became global creative director. He then launched the label Bone Soda, helping artists such as slowthai, Octavian, Bakar, Ama Lou, Sheck Wes and BenjiFlow find international audiences.
He will continue to run Bone Soda independently but brings two of his existing management clients, Bekah CC and Airhead, to YMU Group.
Founded in 1984, YMU Group (formerly James Grant Group) has offices in Los Angeles, London, Washington, New York and Manchester. Its music roster also includes the likes of James Arthur, Years & Years, Blink-182, Clean Bandit, Take That, Steve Aoki, Mika and Danny Howard.
“Truce is a natural music entrepreneur”
“Truce is a natural music entrepreneur who has enjoyed success across a number of different sectors,” says Watt.
“He understands both the creative and commercial aspects of artist management and is a great addition to our team. He is bringing two great artists, Bekah CC and Airhead, with him and the aim is to help him build an amazing roster of credible artists who we can help have long-term, successful careers.”
Truce adds: “I’m excited to join Iain, Sophie and the rest of the YMU team. Having known Iain for a few years, it feels like the perfect story for how I see my management career developing.
“YMU is a leading entertainment management company and has successfully brought on and supported a number of inspiring artists globally. I’m hoping I can mix it up a little and look forward to combining experiences, knowledge and ideas to support our clients.”
His appointment follows the hiring of First Access’s Sarita Borge as senior manager in February.
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Germany’s Goodlive launches Nitelive Artists agency
Goodlive Artists, the booking and touring division of Berlin’s Goodlive (Lollapalooza Berlin, Melt Festival), has grown with the launch of a new agency, Nitelive Artists, focusing on dance/electronic and pop music.
Headed up by managing partner Flo Hauss, Nitelive Artists will focus on tour booking and artist management, as well as consulting for festivals and clubs. Hauss brings a roster that includes German hip-hop pioneers Die Fantastischen Vier, Fritz Kalkbrenner, Boys Noize and Digitalism.
Hauss – who will also continue working as the German promoter for the Black Eyed Peas and David Guetta – will work with alongside fellow booking agents Tobias Klose and Torsten Rettert.
Hauss, who was most recently managing director of Four Artists, comments: “I look forward to bringing my many years of national and international touring and booking experience to Goodlive, and I am very happy to have found a new home with my team after these challenging months.
“I am very happy to have found a new home with my team”
“I am particularly proud that my entire roster has decided to join me on this new path; loyalty and trust are not exactly commonplace in our business. We’ve got some very promising synergies with the structures at Goodlive Artists, not to mention a self-confident market position that suits my ambitious personal goals very well.”
Stefan Lehmkuhl, managing partner of Goodlive, adds: “Flo Hauss has terrific musical competence, [and] I am quite sure that he will be a valuable asset for touring and also give terrific new impetus to the Goodlive festival business.
“We very much look forward to working with and his team.”
Goodlive Artists’ other agencies are Melt! Booking (international rap, R&B, pop and alternative music), Der Bomber der Herzen (German rap and indie-pop) and Full Force Concerts (hard rock and heavy metal).
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Managers peg October as earliest return for live
The latest IQ Focus session saw a line-up of international artist managers discuss the timeline for reopening, potential changes to artists’ contracts post-Covid-19 and monetisation of live streams.
The session, presented in partnership with the Music Managers Forum (MMF) and hosted by MMF chair Paul Craig, featured Kaiya Milan (Off Balance Group/The Sorority House & Co.), Marc Thomas (Red Light Management/Go Artist Management), Meg Symsyk (eOne Management/MMF Canada) and Per Kviman (Versity Music/MMF Sweden/EMMA).
Thomas compared the constant cancelling and rescheduling of shows in recent weeks to “rearranging deckchairs on the Titanic”, adding that he has been “targeting markets” such as Australia and certain parts of the US, which are likely “to get back to live more quickly”.
Thomas said he has accepted two offers for artists to play in the US in October – the earliest dates he’s looking at – including at “a leading festival”. A caveat in the contract allows the team to reassess 28 days out, in case there is a second spike.
Artists will also need to weigh up whether to take the hit of losing a couple of weeks in quarantine in order to do four weeks of solid touring in countries such as Australia, he said, highlighting the obstacles of a post-coronavirus world.
“I’m not optimistic that these things are going to run smoothly”
“I’m not optimistic that these things are going to run smoothly,” said Milan, referring to events scheduled for the autumn. Managers have been receiving offers with clauses allowing the promoter to cancel at any point, she said, which works out ok for “more established artists” but is a big risk for lesser known acts.
“I’m in a space where I know anything can happen.”
Versity Music manager Kviman agreed that things remain too uncertain for now, saying he is not putting new tours out until September 2021 as “people aren’t ready to buy tickets at this point”. Tours that had already sold lots of tickets prior to the Covid-19 crisis are being rescheduled for May 2021.
Craig asked whether any new opportunities had come out of the crisis for managers and artists, with panellists agreeing that livestreaming had presented a variety of options, if not always significant from a financial point of view.
Symsyk said live streams had, in general, worked more effectively for electronic or hip-hop acts. Bands have tended to face more technical difficulties and have often not been satisfied with the quality of streams. “[For bands, livestreaming] has worked ok for charity events, but hasn’t been worth it from a financial point of view”, she said.
Thomas, who works predominantly with electronic acts, said he has “leant into livestreaming a lot”. One act sold $15,000 in merchandise while playing in a virtual edition of Insomniac’s Electric Daisy Carnival festival.
“You can’t ask fans to pay for a ticket as a live stream doesn’t replace the experience of going to a festival, but you can sell off the back of it”
“You can’t ask fans to pay for a ticket as a live stream doesn’t replace the experience of going to a festival,” he said, “but you can sell off the back of it.”
Milan said there was more opportunity for grassroots artists to make money from paid live streams as audiences want to support them. “Livestreaming is the way people can see to help out and get something in return at the moment”, she said, which “works for a certain level of artist”.
Although the grassroots sector is one of the hardest hit by the coronavirus shutdown, Symsyk noted that the current situation is giving “a window of opportunity to focus on local talent” in Canada.
Turning to when live does return, Thomas stressed the need for “everyone to have a bit more give”.
“The reality is, in this situation, everyone needs to win, and I don’t win by getting the agent to squeeze the promoter so hard he has to pay me half the fee if the show cancels […] and he loses a load of money.
“We need everyone in this system for the system to function.”
Thomas said he accepted, to a certain extent, Live Nation’s recently expressed intention to adjust artists guarantees down for shows in the future.
“We need everyone in this system for the system to function”
“Promoters are the most exposed out of everybody and they’re not going to put these big guarantees out anymore,” he said, “it’s going to go on the backend.” This kind of “give and take” will be essential from all sides when rebuilding the business.
From a practical point of view, we can expect to see social distancing and other measures in place for a while as “not doing anything is not an option, however unpalatable the measures may be”, said Craig.
Outdoor shows seem to be a much better option than indoor shows, and a lot more scalable too in terms of keeping to distancing rules, said Thomas. Targeting the right age range is also important, as “kids think they’re invincible”.
For Milan, the deciding factor is whether people felt ready to go back into social situations as, “if they are, they will do whatever they have to” to get back to gigs or festivals, no matter how inconvenient the measures are.
Craig agreed, pointing out that we have all become accustomed to things that would have seemed unthinkable six months ago.
“If people want to go to a show, they will do whatever is necessary to go.”
IQ Focus & The MMF: Managing the Crisis is available to watch back on YouTube or Facebook now.
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