manager for a label and dj
my friend is convinced that im right for the job… and although im very enthusiastic about it, i highly doubt my abilities. i am young, inexperienced and have no connections but it seems like we clicked on a personal level. anyway he is coming across the pond in the next month to talk about it but i wanted to ask for some comments and suggestions. what goes into being a manager? … research/promotions/getting gigs? any relatable anecdotes? thanks.
Well there is a big misconception as to what a manager of a dj/producer is to be doing. Lots of people think that your manager is there to get you gigs, but that is not the case. Actually in California, I believe it is against the law for a manager to act as an agent, its called double dipping. I know this because my manager is based in California and she can’t get my gigs for me.
Anyways, a manager basically oversees the day to day business affairs of an artist. Managers are there to advise and counsel talent about professional matters and personal decisions which may affect our career. In my case my manager also handles my PR as well as my day to day managerial duties. I speak to my manager at least every 2 days, but she is there to answe my call basically when ever need be. She is also there to find the best booking agent for me, as I have had to really buckle down to find one who is good for me… My manager also helps with my day to day tasks with my label, again mostly guidance and decision making.
If you wanna learn more about my manager, here is her site: http://saracooperpr.com
I honestly don’t know a first thing about managing/booking, but I doubt that clicking well on a personal level is enough of a qualification to be a manager. I would probably expect hours of mindless spamming on myspace and boards and soliciting promoters. Also good luck getting any business done without any previous experience.
It’s not my intention to sound like a dick, but it’s just one of those things and jobs where the common sense thing to do is hope for the best and prepare for the worst.
Agreed with Lance. A manager can, however, promote you and connect you with gatekeepers and keyholders who in turn can get you work. Alot of managers do not actively solicit gigs however as that is more of an agents job. Think of it this way, an agent is essentially a sales person who sells you as a product whereas a managers job is to make sure the project is both of quality and profitable. If profitable means raising your visibility and exposure, then their job is also promotion. In converse, the agent will almost never promote the artist outside of a quarterly or yearly press kit.
Also, it is very important to keep your artists healthy as their inability to work will greatly affect the rep of the firm and the artist themself, so keep that in mind as alot of people in this industry mis-use and abuse everything under the sun. I’m not against it, but if one of my artists can’t function because of their use, I have no problem talking to them on that level.
Just curious Lance , at what point of your career did you decided that you needed a Manager? Where you approached by your manager or you looked for her? Is it too expensive?
Cheers
Its done on a percentage basis of certain things… and I was originally approached by her to be my PR agent, she handles Carl Cox’s PR here in the states, so I knew her from that. As a PR agent i paid her a monthly flat fee, which is how al PR agents work. She then took me on as a manager about 1 year later.
Please don’t take this the wrong way as I’m sure that you have maybe already looked at this but is this person for real? Sounds very strange that you, buy your own admission, are not that experienced or possibly not that skilled why is this person coming all the way across the pond to talk?
I don’t mean to worry you or play this down, as this may be just one of those amazing stories where it all works out, but hey, if I didn’t I would hate myself.
Have you looked at anything that this guy has done? Can he back his story up? How long have you known him? Where did you meet him?
+1 with Lance…and,
On a day to day level, a manager is a risk mitigator, contract aware negotiator, semi-legal counsel and all round business aware and switched on advocate of the artists skills, with a personal interest (real or maintained for the artists ego maintenance requirements) in their success.
If you’re going to be one, and you don’t have the skills, then be careful, because the folks you’re going to deal with, while representing your artist - and your new employer - are going to likely be somewhat more skilled, and harder core than you are.
That said, 
, It may be that this person you have “clicked” with, has identified something in your character that they think is a good fit, both with them, and with their artist(s).
Most of the time, life is all about people, relationships and people skills. The “soft” skills will get you much further in life and business (and management) than any degree, diploma or other “officially recognized certification to practice”. A gentle touch in dealing with a difficult situation is remembered much longer than a kick in the head IMO.
If the person flying across the pond to meet you is prepared to take you under their, or an “available” wing, so you can skill up under a “mentor” while your back is covered from the risk side, then it’s a good learning and career building opportunity - if it’s what you want to do, that is.
If there’s no backup, it smells funny, or this person is just cruising for an “opportunity” I’d set Karlos on them.
Any professional management company will have a staff development program, ask about what they’re going to do for you, and where they see you being in two and five years from now. Watch to see if they (he, she) blinks.
That’s enough from me, hope it’s useful, and good luck. 
I could be wrong here… maybe I read her original post wrong, but I think the guy coming from overseas is her friend… am I right?
I’m running a special promotion right now, for a low flat fee of $3,000 a month, I will offer 24/7 pessimism via my cell phone. You can call me anytime for a dose of “don’t do it, sounds like hes trying to screw you over”
Any takers?
you say you pay her a flat monthly fee
now lemme ask you this.
is this fee always constantly the same?
carl cox pays you monthly as well, now what about if carl cox doesn’t spin for 2 months in the states, does she still gets paid for those two months?
when dj’s spin at a club, how do they receive their money? how would carl cox receive his money? does it go thru his manager or something?
ty
3,000 a month lol. wow. thats something that maybe a manager of dj’s like mark knights, tom novy would be making and maybe like 6k or more if your the manager of richie hawtin. but for some dude name mmauve llol. do u manage any big dj’s. i mean how many people pay you 3,000 a month. what type of service do you bring to them. do they make enough at these parties to pay you the 3,00 a month?
i’m not bashing you or anything. i’m asking you, coming a little hard on you, because i wan’t to be aware of what i could one day expect if i’m looking for a manager. so if you give me an answer that answers all of those questions above then you would be giving me experience and also cautions or warnings of rips off or any such. which i’d be grateful for
I don’t pay a monthly fee, she gets a percentage of certain things, when she was handling PR only I was paying a fee. I don’t know the deal she has with Carl Cox, PR is always handled differently on a per client basis.
As far as gigs go, you are confusing the job of a manager with that of an agent… But I will tell you how how I get paid when gigging. I receive a 50% deposit, plus transportation costs and hotel upfront, that is paid directly to me, then I am paid the other 50% before I go on, that could be either a week before I go on or 2 minutes before. Now when I have an agent those payments are all made to that agent, and the agent keeps their cut and pays me my amount, but again this sort of thing is different from agent to agent and from artist to artist.
now hold on i find this interesting, lemme confirm a few things here.
PR means pay roll, i can assume, correct
so your manager doesn’t find you the gigs, its the agent who does it.
so the only thing your manager does is handle the PR. now whats involved in the PR? i mean are you receiving a check or something? i mean like what part does PR play in your career. is it important to have some1 to do your PR. can you do it yourself? any benefits by having someone doing it? do you really need to do the PR?
i actually wanna continue talking about the agent but first i wanna clear the whole PR thing first before i jump to the next topic. this stuff is good food for my brain so i know how it works and how i can set down the rules just the same or similar to the way you have it.
thank you in advance
Im pretty sure PR stands for Public Relations correct me if im wrong 
I guess I should have let you know what PR is, I just assumed you knew…
PR = Public Relations ie. Getting me in magazines, radio interviews, album reviews, stuff like that…
For my description of what teh manager does please see my first post in this thread so I don’t need to write it all out again. Its not an easy job, and neither is the job of a booking agent, but the 2 jobs are very different, yet often confused…
yo lance i’m sorry but you’ve dropped “carl cox” so many times its worn out.. in a related topic a long time forever ago i was going to model but after shopping agents and managers i found out you basically buy your way into the scene, now hearing about dj management in the same tone, i have to give a sad laugh.. now not all labels are like that, ThreeOneG and NineTeen 95 for instance, lables dedicated to support artests, ideas and creation.
I can drop plenty of other names if i wanted to. I owe a lot to Carl, and if you knew him on a personal level you would understand why I think he is a great person… put all the DJing and stuff aside, for me Coxy is someone I look up to and a mentor for me. His values and the way he carries himself is something that I admire. You seem to be angry at me for some reason, dunno why. Anyways, my manager & PR also handles Sander Van Doorn, Dubfire, Dresden, Matt Darey, Serge Devant, and others…
As far as buying my way into this, that is laughable. I have spent much of my life in this scene and paid my dues with the work I did. I work hard to keep Teggno alive and well also. I pay artists 60% of their sales, and the other 40% goes into the label not my pocket. I feel very strongly on this because when I first got into production myself and my production partner at the time were taken advantage of and we had thousands of dollars stollen from us. I didn’t start doing this like 2 years ago, I have been producing under other names/monikers when vinyl pressing was a common practice and mp3’s were not. Paying someone for PR is the only way you get PR. When I first started out I was featured in magazines etc, and that was stuff that was just handed to me… A PR person takes your album, or a release and puts it in the hands of the people who do the reviews etc. I guess its hard for you to understand as you are not in the position to understand it.
I don’t really need to defend myself to you, but I do feel the need to defend my label more. Teggno has helped quite a few new artists break into the scene with its something I am very proud of.
Finally a word of advise to you: I learned quite early on to not be overly infatuated and obsesed with other people’s accomplishments and how happy they are about them. It actually is better to embrace people’s accomplishments and work with them, or try and maybe learn from their experiences and gain some of their knowledge.. you can take this advice and apply it to your everyday life, not just with the music industry. Try not to be angry and be so quick to try and discredit someone or put them down. Also try and keep the hater comments to yourself, it helps make you look a little better in the eye of the public.
All the best brother
Sorry for not getting back to you earlier, I’ve been negotiating a contract (how appropriate…)
From her post, clearly Lola says he’s a friend. My comments aren’t meant to be making out that this person is not a friend. if I’ve given that impression to her (and you) then my apologies.
I still think they are valid though, and perhaps more so, given that it’s a friend. Doing business with friends is either great or a disaster IMO. If the friendship is really valuable, sometimes the best thing is not to form any business relationships. They devil is always in the details, and best intentions aside, if Lola is unsure about her abilities to meet the expectations not only of her friend, but the people she will be managing and interacting with in that role, then she needs to consider the issues I’ve raised (back-up, mentoring etc).
I’m not raining on her parade, just trying to provide - from hard learned lessons - some insight into the bigger picture surrounding the role in general.
I hope it’s useful and appropriate, and best of luck.
I get what your saying.. I was figuring he was coming over cause he was her friend and visiting not about a job offer… I thought he was just suggesting a career path or something… not sure though…