Artist Management from an Entertainment Venue's Prospective

Hi gang,

Chris French here from Modern Midwest Entertainment. I've recently began thinking about artist management. I've begun to think about it, not only because I'm taking a class in it, but because I'm also going to have to start dealing with managers on a consistent basis. You see, I am currently involved in a project, along with several other folks, to buy a small entertainment venue. I have realized, recently, that there is a LOT more to artist management than just standing around and saying, "I'm with the band." I've been looking at this from the manager's prospective, but now, since I'm going to be the booking agent for my venue, I have to look at it from the venue's prospective.

Knowing that an artist manager basically handles every aspect of that artist, from music, to promotions, to negotiation of shows, and so on, I have come to realize that I have to think in terms of my own venue's attributes and expectations when booking in an act. Most managers, when accepting a booking, will invariably include a rider on the contract with the demands of the artist themselves. One thing I have to make sure, when I book a show, is that I can fulfill the contract riders. If I can't reasonably fulfill the rider of the contract, then I can't feasibly book the show.

A lot of what goes into booking an act at the venue level is going to be negotiation. The manager and I will hash things out as to what we need in terms of both the venue and the artist. Most artist managers handle pretty much all aspects of the negotiation themselves, but there are exceptions. For example, Bill Silva Entertainment (the company that manages Christina Perri of Jar of Hearts fame), has a director of ticketing/artist relations that is in charge of the concert promotion, as opposed to the manager themselves.

According to the Bill Silva Entertainment website, Reba Alexander serves in this capacity. Her job description is as follows:


As Director of Ticketing for Bill Silva Presents and Andy & Bill Concerts, Reba oversees all aspects of ticketing from show build to settlement, acting as a promoter liaison to the venue for artist representatives which include managers, agents, touring personnel, additional promoters, marketing, record labels, fan clubs, subscription programs, etc. She also manages relationships for the company with Ticketmaster, local box offices, production, operations, security and parking and additionally handles all incoming industry and VIP requests.

For Bill Silva Management, Reba communicates ticket requirements to local promoters and venues for our touring clients from the artist/management perspective.


As the venue owner, and booker, I would be dealing with Ms Alexander if I were to want to have Christina Perri or any other BSE managed artists at my venue. I am still considering managing artists myself, so, in those instances it would not take much to get artists into the venue. It's a lot easier negotiating with yourself than anyone else (though folks might think you've gone wacko).


Well gang, I hope I've shed a little light on things today! Keep your chin up and keep guarding with that left!


SEE YA!