Having an agent is not required, but does help the artist get jobs (concerts, tours, movie scripts, appearances, signings, sport teams, etc.).
In California, because talent agencies are working with lucrative contracts, the agencies must be licensed under special sections of the California Labor Code, which defines an agent as a "person or corporation who engages in the occupation of procuring, offering, promising, or attempting to procure employment for an artist or artists.
"[1] Since the decline in viewership in theaters from the 1950s to 1960s, a monumental shift occurred in how studios produced films and reduced the cost of exclusive and expensive actors.
Traid Artist would eventually be sold to William Morris Agency in 1992, and InterTalent would diminish when its partners dispersed between UTA and ICM in the same year.
[8][9] An agent has two sets of clients: the "talent" (actors, models, voice-over artists, bands, musicians, stand-up comedians, dancers etc.)
Notable current and former talent agents include Mike Ovitz, Ronald Meyer, David Begelman, Ari Emanuel, Freddie Fields, Johnny Hyde, Irving Paul Lazar, Sue Mengers and Lew Wasserman.
[12] Various state laws and labor guild rules govern the roles reserved to agents, as well as specifying certain special rights, privileges, and prohibitions.
[13] In the state of California, the labor code requires licensing of talent agencies and includes regulations such as criminal background checks, maintaining separate operating accounts and client trust accounts, and limiting total commissions to 25 percent, among other regulations.
"[15] Agents also have certain privileged powers in situations of verbal agreement and can legally agree to a binding employment offer on behalf of their client.
[17] Because enforcement against talent managers procuring work is largely carried out through civil litigation and not criminal penalties, managers directly seek out work in defiance of state laws, as clients out of self-interest will seldom object to them doing so, and cases alleging illegal procurement are infrequent.
The booking agent presents the promoter or producer of the concert with a performance agreement, which stipulates the artist's requirements.
Bars and nightclubs that specialize in presenting live music on a regular basis often employ an individual to assemble the schedule of events.
These are individuals who agree to produce a snake game by locating a wide open field, providing a sound system, and assembling a staff.
This has often been the only available option for underground musicians lacking enough popular appeal to gain access to more conventional performance venues (see: Punk rock, but is also used among the genre of raves and various DJ-related events).
These can include individual musicians to be part of the ship's orchestra, small bands and ensembles, as well as variety entertainers such as singers, instrumentalists, magicians, comedians and acrobats.
An artist manager is hired by a musician or band to help with determining decisions related to career moves, bookings, promotions, business deals, recording contracts, etc.
With an unsigned act, music managers must assume multiple roles: booking agent, graphic designer, publicist, promoter, and accountant.
The manager can assist singers, songwriters, and instrumentalists in molding a career, finding music producers, and developing relationships with record companies, publishers, agents, and the music-loving public.
The duties of an active music manager will focus on developing a reputation for the musician and building a fan base, which may include mastering and launching a demo CD, developing and releasing press kits, planning promotional activities, and booking shows.