In the 1990s managers were a very important part of the music industry. They used their connections to get their bands record deals and made sure the deals were for maximum money. You could trust around 70 percent of them to be honest and try real hard. They did this for 15% of the artists gross income.
The record industry colapsed in around 2002 due to free online downloading. Most of their revenue streams dried up and they quit signing bands that didn't already have a media foot print. High end publicists became more important than managers. Small cheap publicists hearts are usually in the right place, but they don't have the connections to get much more than blogs or small mainstream press mentions.
Managers have been left out on a limb without much to do. It's usually better to hire an entertainment attorney to do a one time negotiation for around $400 than to have a manager take 15 % for the rest of your career.
This has turned most of the "manager" entity into scrambling for other ways to make money. For example: asking for a monthly fee or suggesting pay to play gigs; both of those proposals are rip offs.
Bands be careful: over 60 % of managers operate that way these days.
There are still some who do it for the right reasons but they are the ones who have established bands, and to them we salute you.
There are still some who do it for the right reasons but they are the ones who have established bands, and to them we salute you.
#JimRose
#JimRoseCircus
