The Wild West

Welp. Just when you think you’ve seen every combination in the music business, a new right uppercut hits you square in the face.

Here I am, minding my own business as always last week, when a trusted partner of mine tells me he’s got a great opportunity for us— so of course, I’m all ears.

He gets us on a Zoom with an artist and his manager, and both of them are eager to work with us on a tour. So we get to work.

And we pull in enough offers for a whole tour in less than a week. Everyone is stoked, especially the promoters, who haven’t been able to figure out a way to book this artist.

Fast forward to this week. I get a call— the caller ID lists a major agency. And the agent on the other line was someone who I’ve only been on email with before, when he represented an artist who was booked to open on one of my tours. He tells me “You know I’m the agent, right?” So I respond, “No, I had no idea”.

Then he went on to tell me I wasn’t really talking to the right manager, and that when this artist spoke with the “real” manager, he informed him he had no interest in working with us on a tour.

Now, we’re used to people misrepresenting their positions and their ability to make decisions in our industry… Managers, agents, etc. often try to get in where they fit in, or at least use an opportunity as a launching pad to try to ingratiate themselves into an artist’s team.

And I’m not hating. In fact, we’ve all done some of of this “show and prove” work, where we’ve brought value to someone to show our capabilities.

But this situation was different. Why? Because we spoke to the artist directly. We looked him in the eyes. He told us he wanted us to book him a tour. We even spoke about some other opportunities for him. And he didn’t once mention another manager or a booking agent.

Remember, I’m used to a lot of grey areas in the music business. There are many artists who are non-exclusive, meaning a number of agents may book them. Some have managers that even handle much of their booking, even though they’re precluded from doing so in some states.

But I’ve never had an artist misrepresent themself. And then again, maybe he didn’t. Maybe he left his old manager, and his new manager is assembling a new team. I don’t even know what to think anymore.

This is how the music business is; and flexibility and the ability to problem solve on the go are two of the biggest attributes needed to succeed. You can read all of the Donald Passman-type books you want. There’s a huge difference between study and practice, and the people you encounter will be the main variable.

And when you’re faced with a problem like I just was, your future will be decided by your response. Will you flip out on a manager for wasting your time or argue with an agent over your position or territory? Or will you cut your losses and move on like a champ?

If that agent it correct (and I’m almost certain he is), then I’m ready to move onto other opportunities. And, in fact, I will pass on his contact to all of the promoters who sent me offers, because I work to succeed, not to block anyone else’s success. The only penalty I may have to deal with is a small mark against my credibility.

There’s just one tidbit I didn’t mention in this story— According to the artist’s agent, his real manager is an exec at the label he’s signed to. I’m sure you know where I’m going with this…

And I don’t know the deal between this artist and label, so I can’t speak specifically about this situation, but I do advise everyone in our industry to understand the risk of having one person fill multiple rolls in your life, especially when the two positions typically negotiate against each other.

To simplify, an artist manager is supposed to fight for the best deal for his or her artist, and only the artist. The label employee’s job is to do what’s best for the label. I’m sure you can identify the conflict of interest here. The same can be said about using an attorney that was referred by the label you’re negotiating against.

So just be careful. Use your best judgement. And trust your gut. But always be aware of everyone’s primary interests, and where you lie within their priority hierarchy.

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Til next week.