All artists need management! When starting out as an artiste, your manager will wear many hats. A manager has to be a cheerleader, psychiatrist, advisor, guide, problem solver, and what can be affectionately referred to as babysitter.

A good manager will guide you protect you from bad business deals, and shady people as if his or her life depends on it.

It is important to note that having a bad manager is worse than having no manager at all.

The more successful you get, the bigger your team gets. Eventually your team will consist of a manager, an agent, a lawyer, concert promoters, your Artist Development Representative, Road manager, a Business manager and others but you must start from somewhere.

Here are ten reasons why you need an artist manager.

1. Career Guidance - It's often extremely difficult for artists to step back from the day-to-day activities and see the big picture. A knowledgeable manager can see how everything in the big picture fits together, and can help the artist navigate through the often-confusing maze of activities that seem unrelated yet are all part of a massive puzzle.

The manager provides career guidance and helps to set the overall game plan for the artist and the artists' team to follow. For example in the case of Olamide, after Tony Payne disengaged him from her outfit and seems to be having his career going south after the monster hit, “Eni Duro”, he contracted a manager (name withheld) who was able to help guide his budding career and within a year or more, Olamide was beckoning a force in the industry and now dining with “the kings”

2. Cheerleading - Even though fans are the main cheerleaders for an artist, someone has to communicate the same enthusiasm to the music business community. An artist manager will trumpet the artists' message to record labels, booking agents, promoters, media personnel, club bookers, independent retail accounts, etc., in order to keep them all engaged and enthusiastic.

A vivid example here is the case of Wizkid after being a studio rat since he was 11, was introduced to Banky W’s co-led EME Records by a female manager some years back and aside the Record Label taking up the mantle of grooming Wizkid, the manager was able to “Cheerlead” Wizkid to the record label and corporate/general public

3. Prestige - According to most record industry professionals, there is something to be said about an artist that has a manager. The logic is that if an artist is good enough to attract management, there must be something of value present. In fact, most major labels (not the mushroom “record labels” that dominate the entertainment scene in Nigeria) refuse to sign an artist unless they have solid team (manager, booking agent, attorney and publicist) in place.

An artist without management is just too much drama! Labels would rather deal with someone who knows how the music business works and can make decisions on a non-emotional basis. Imagine everyone who want to have D’banj as a performing artiste for their event calling him directly to book him, of course they could even ‘price’ his performance fee to N10,000 whereas if you call his manager, you could end up paying as high as N8 million (depend on the client)


4. Buffer - A manager can act as an effective screening buffer between the artist and people that want to do business with the artist. This buffer tends to attract legitimate industry players while at the same time scaring away scam artists. There are no scarier words to a scam artist than "please talk to my manager". Example here could be as the same way explained in No. 3 - Prestige


5. Time management - There simply is not enough time in the day to do everything that needs to be done in order to further the career of an artist. In between writing songs, conducting interviews, designing artwork for CD's and merchandise, managing a mailing list, filling out copyright paperwork, rehearsing with the band, hiring and firing producers, updating artistes websites and social media profiles, getting pictures taken, shooting and editing DVD's and YouTube videos, s researching, repairing and purchasing equipment, liaising with media outfits etc., there isn't time to also craft a master game plan, solicit potential sponsorship partners, reach out to industry gatekeepers, attend industry networking events, harass labels for tour support, and so on.

Some tasks can be delegated to the project while others can be handled by the manager who still coordinate them and then regularly update the artiste whose career depends on everything. Few artistes in Nigeria such as D-banj, P-square can afford to have strong management team of Business Manager, PR Manager, Tour manager and so on in their management team but they all started from somewhere!


6. Accountability - Part of a manager's job is to hold people accountable. What happens when the financial tour support that was promised by the label fails to materialize? Or the check from the booking agent bounces? Or the Radio station and TV stations are not playing the artiste song? Or the licensee fails to sign and return the contract but is using the artist's songs anyway? Somebody has to keep people honest, and that is most appropriately the manager's job.

The Manager stays on peoples neck to ensure that everyone is responsible and accountable to the artist.


7. Good Cop/Bad Cop - Need to fire the bass player or team member not performing optimally but don't want to create an enemy? Let the manager play bad cop and do the firing. Need to re-negotiate your contract and request more of a promotion budget? Let the manager play good cop and keep a positive spin on the proceedings. There are plenty of occasions when the artist and manager can trade off playing good cop/ bad cop.


8. Sounding board - A manager, even though basically an "honorary member of the band", is frequently on the outside looking in. Managers usually see things differently than the artist, and can often provide different perspectives, insights and solutions to problems the artist is encountering.

Running ideas by a knowledgeable manager prior to making decisions often allows for good ideas to become better and bad ideas to be removed altogether from the to-do list.

9. Professional Music Production: An artist manager ensures that you get the best deal in terms od music production. If you want that record deal, you need to bring yourself to a certain marketable level before approaching record labels. That means making an investment of time and money. You need professional music production, exciting pictures and a serious internet presence! Bring your music directly to the people and build up your fans! If you're successful enough on your own, record labels will start approaching you, and then you can dictate the terms and your manager ensures that success.

10. Contacts – If you are a newbie in the music industry, a good manager would furnish you with contacts of agents and promoters, who would help advance your career. No one can exist in a vacuum, that is why you need as many contacts as possible and it is your manager’s duty to ensure you have enough contacts.


Do You Need a Manager

All artists need good management! It’s hard getting a successful music manager to listen to your demo package, let alone manage your career, but don’t give up The Ultra Music Group is here.

If you are a dedicated artist with a demo package and agree to pay our necessary processing fee we will take a listen to your demo package if one of our team member hears something of interest we will contact you. Remember we do accept unsolicited material!

Email Ultramangers@gmail.com or call 09035872310


Source: http://www.tutubranch.com/2015/06/10-reasons-why-you-need-artist-manager.html

ML

Hey, who are you man? I thought your post was very insightful and I would love to chat with you some more. Obviously, I have an up and coming venture that brought me to your post and I would like to talk to you about it. Please hit me back!

I love this post, I am an highlife artist I need a manager urgently

www.royalmanmusic@gmail.com

Since 2015?

Hope the OP is still alive.