How To Become An Artist Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is an artist manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted Expert

Dr. Rachel Skaggs PhD

Building Construction Supervisor Do you have an eye for musical talent? If you think you do, then you might want to become an artist manager. Artist managers, also called talent managers, serve as business managers and professional representatives for musicians or bands. As such, they handle a range of tasks for the musicians they represent, including negotiating deals, directing marketing and advertising activities, booking venues, arranging lodging, and nurturing the artist's creativity.

To be a good artist manager, you'll need to understand the music industry. You'll also need to have excellent communication and interpersonal skills, public relations skills, marketing and advertising skills, negotiation skills, and leadership skills. A manager works hard to promote their clients' music and get them featured on music websites and publications that can help increase their popularity.

If you're looking to get into this career, you don't necessarily need academic training. However, due to the nature of this job, college courses in business and marketing can be helpful. It's also important to be good at building extensive industry experience and networks.

What general advice would you give to an Artist Manager?

Dr. Rachel Skaggs PhD

Assistant Professor, Ohio State University - Marion Campus

In the entertainment industries, there are few barriers to entry, be proactive to build community with others in the field, focus on occupational community for job opportunities and collaborations.

ScoreArtist ManagerUS Average

Salary

5.5

Avg. Salary $70,960

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

8.3

Growth Rate 5%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.4

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.26%

Asian 8.19%

Black or African American 7.79%

Hispanic or Latino 14.85%

Unknown 4.71%

White 64.20%

Gender

female 44.24%

male 55.76%

Age - 45

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 45

Stress Level

8.3

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

9.4

Complexity Level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

4.5

Work Life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an artist manager

Explore artist manager education requirements

Most common artist manager degrees

Bachelor's

71.5 %

Associate

12.3 %

High School Diploma

7.7 %

Start to develop specific artist manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Booking	23.37%
YouTube	10.78%
Brand Development	6.27%
Artist Relations	5.12%
Press Releases	4.88%

Complete relevant artist manager training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New artist managers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an artist manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real artist manager resumes.

Research artist manager duties and responsibilities

Lead a team of artists to create a series of space adventure games for the PC.
Discover the band searching for new talent on YouTube.
Obtain editorial and advertising jobs for top NYC and international stylists by serving as the primary liaison between clients and artists.
Increase booking opportunities for artist by building relationships with key industry professionals.

Prepare your artist manager resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your artist manager resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an artist manager resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Artist Manager Resume templates

Build a professional Artist Manager resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Artist Manager resume.

Apply for artist manager jobs

Now it's time to start searching for an artist manager job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do artist managers rate their job?