I’m Out of Love With the
Business of Music
An open letter from an artist manager on leaving the industry behind
In July 1992, with $20 in the bank and a gut load of energy, passion, determination, sheer bloody-mindedness, naiveté, and a whole lot of heart, I started my first music business. Twenty-three years later, I’m choosing to let it all go. I’ve fallen out of love with the business of music.
I’ve chosen to take an extended long-service leave from a lengthy, self-employed tenure as an artist manager.
What an extraordinary privilege it’s been to work with, champion, and observe at work and play some of the most beautiful, creative, and hilarious human beings you could ever hope to meet in one lifetime. But I’ve also found myself in a ball of tears on the floor more than once, living on too little sleep, burning the candle at both ends and in the middle simultaneously. In an increasingly difficult environment, the long tail of the “great digital crash” is now biting deeply, and I can no longer sustain the energy and resources required without a personal toll.
I always believed in a holistic approach to the artist-manager relationship and have given so much time, energy, and resources to others. However, it’s time for me to stop, listen to my heart, and focus elsewhere; to steer a course to 50 with the energy to give back to this world in a positive way. I am choosing to liberate myself — slow down and walk toward a whole stack of glorious time with friends and family, find peace, explore my creativity, travel the world and have space to think.
I am proud of the accolades and impact of the music created by the artists I have worked alongside. Thank you, I have loved you all: The Medics, Thelma Plum, Liam Gerner, The Painted Ladies, Kate Miller-Heidke, Transport, george, Misinterprotato, stringmansassy, Se7en and those thousands of kilometers in the van with Miles From Nowhere.
I am grateful for the knowledge I have garnered across the years in a highly complex industry — one that has undergone seismic changes in technology and suffers from its own confusion, anxiety, and at times panic. I pinch myself that I started with nothing but a seven-digit land line and a dot matrix printer!
Thank you to all of the broader music community with whom I have worked, caroused, moaned, celebrated, traveled, and danced.
To the hard working session musicians, production crews, and tour managers, thank you. You were my communication and morale bridge-builders, across all the miles traveled, the hurry-up-and-wait times, the sold-out and at times bizarre live shows — even when the accommodation and rider were shit. All the artists have stood on your shoulders, supported to be as great as they can for that hour or so, night after night.
To all the the agents, label folks, publishers, publicists, promoters, venue bookers, and event producers that have believed in my artists, thank you. I have planned, strategised, negotiated, thought deeply, and argued with many of you. Together we have worked out the best path for every artist, song, release, and tour. We have not accepted just “whatever;” we have worked until we discovered not always the most obvious or easiest path, but what felt right as a solid next step … then the next and the next, always for the long-term benefit of the artist and not the short-term gain of others. I have learned so much from each of you.
I salute every other music manager I know and those who I don’t — past, present and future. The strength, resilience, and intrinsic motivation that is required, no one else in the business can ever really fully understand. Thank you to all my peers over the years — without your inspiration, encouragement, and solidarity I could never have achieved what I have done.
Finally, respect and thank you to the elders, mentors, sounding boards, entrepreneurs, and personal and business advisers over the years. Your combined experience, perspective, wisdom, and knowledge of what really matters made me a better manager and person.
I am in love with music more than ever, and I have zero regrets — except perhaps that fifth tequila shot at a BIGSOUND afterparty. Actually no, not even that.
I was told early on, “The hands you shake on your way up are the ones you shake on the way down.” I can proudly say I took this to heart and don’t think there are too many bridges burned or people I would not like to sit down with and talk about life, the universe, and everything music.
I am off to sit under a palm tree with my gold watch.
Thank you all, goodnight.
I was invited to share some of my reflections, thoughts, and advice on artist management not too long ago with Music Industry Inside Out. As I reached the decision to take extended leave, I watched my video contributions and thought, “Hey, there is some really great advice there!” I would encourage anyone taking the baton and entering the music business to subscribe and learn from not only me, but so many generous, clever and insightful people.
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