What Is Artist Management?

       

Source: Tim Allen       

      My studies in Music and Entertainment Business have all been geared towards the Jamaica Music Industry; this was done by choice as I saw the need to target this segment of the industry. One of the many points of pain is in artist management. As with any other product whether it is tangible or intangible an artist has to be treated as a product. He/she has to be marketed and packaged properly or else no one will be attracted to buy. There are myriads of misconceptions of what are the duties of an artist manager or artist management company. Let me make it clear ARTIST MANAGEMENT DERIVE THEIR MONEY FROM COMMISSION. THE INDUSTRY STANDARD IS ABOUT 15 to 20% OF THE ARTIST GROSS EARNINGS; an artist manager does not have to invest his/her money in an artist, unless he/she wants to.

       An artist manager is also known as a personal manager he/she is the buffer between the artist and other industry professionals. By extension, the management role is planning, organizing, directing and controlling. Planning for the artist long-term goals is vital to his/she success. “Organizing is assembling the necessary resources to carry out a plan and put those resources into a logical order.” (Allen, 2009) The artist manager has to assemble all the necessary resources to make his artist’s career a success. Artist managers have to be leaders and take charge in hiring the right support member for the artist team. The artist manager should be able to exploit the artist talent to his/her benefit.

Source: brandshank.com

       An artist manager is not a Publicist, Booking agent, Attorney or a Promoter. The duties of a Publicist are to expose the artist to the target market through, blogs, newspaper articles and social media. A Booking agent is the one who shops the artist to the talent buyer and negotiates the performance fees. An Attorney reviews contracts and, collaborated with the manager in making certain final decisions.  Ensuring the artist is signing the right agreements. The professionals making up the management team each have their area of focus.

       For all those who have it twisted I suggest finding a management company with trained managers to handle your business and, get Tim Allen’s book on artist management. Never have a verbal agreement with an artist manager; it is a recipe for disaster. Artist management is the bearing that drives this industry and the other industry professionals are the spokes that keep the wheel turning.

Is Jamaica’s Music Industry Behind the Rest of the World?

It seems that every aspect of the Jamaica Music Industry is behind the rest of the world. The artist management sector is highly antiquated, and copyright regulations are out of compliance.

       No one every said it was going to be easy. I have often asked this question, “Is artist management worth the risk involved” A friend of mine who is an artist says, “it depends on whom you are managing.” She could be right or does it depends on the qualification and experience of the manager in question. Many folks in this industry who claim to be managers have no formal training or experience. Artist management is by no means an easy task; there are many variables involved having a fully grounded manager.  I think every artist manager should have formal training and attend college. Doctors, lawyers, teachers and other such professional do this, why should be any different with an artist manager in the entertainment industry. I agree the system is no perfect and needs lots of reforming. Despite all this what is important is effective management and according to Robert Livingston, “there is no cookie-cutter formula for success.”

Source: Jamaica Observer

       According to the Jamaica Gleaner, “In early May, Jamaica was named as one of the rouge countries which will remain on a special 301 watch list because of its inadequate payment of public performance royalties” this   by the office of the United States Trade representative. Much more education programs are needed to prevent this problem from continuing. These programs should not just educate industry players, but the general public, who are also consumers. Jamaica Association of Composers and Publishers (JACAP) says they have done their best to educate industry players, but is that enough. Ignorance of the law cannot to be used as an excused for noncompliance. However, an effective ongoing education campaign will help to but everyone in compliance.