Welcome to The Manager’s Playbook, my personal newsletter where I share insights, tips, and strategies for artist managers on how to navigate through the music business.

Ruiz’s Letter:

One Day They’ll Call You “Lucky”

Dear Reader,

I’ve been a successful manager of talent for over 12 years. That’s actually crazy to think about. I’ve been fortunate…but I’ve also had “good luck”. There’s truth in that you know.. There’s also truth to the whole “luck is when opportunity meets preparedness” thing as well. The ultimate truth is that nothing really prepares you for the ride one embarks on in this music business. Lessons are learned along the way. Lessons a formal education could never teach you. Yes, it be easier if it didn’t have to be learned “on the job” through experience but that’s just the way it goes for most artist/artist managers. Hopefully, with “The Manager’s Playbook” I can help move the needle for you so it doesn’t always have to be this way.

A Playbook to Guide You..

"The Manager's Playbook" is meant to help aspiring artist managers such as yourself learn how to skillfully and tactfully navigate the industry. It is meant to go beyond your regular newsletter and serve as a guide for folks who are trying to build a legacy where art meets commerce. Each edition shares stories from real experiences, extracts learnings from the industry, explores the manager-artist relationship, and provides tips to bring lasting value to your work. Consider this my pay-it-forward, so that "experience" isn't your only teacher.

I also hope there can be value to the established managers/executives who who understand and emphasize the value of collaborative information.

“Community over everything”

In keeping with collaboration, I’m fortunate to have a team working on this newsletter with me. You'll receive not only my perspective but also insights from other managers in the “Strategy” section. “On Repeat” is coming from folks in the industry, A&R’s (Artist & Repertoire) or friends who have an affinity for music. “What You Could be Paying Attention to” are features or articles that I find interesting or are actively being discussed amongst my peers. “What we’re Watching” are coming from the team at large.

Like my brother Gavin Sheppard always says “Community Over Everything”. I hope you find value in this one. 

Final Notes..

Growing this newsletter is certainly a focus. I want this knowledge to reach a wide net of people at different stages of their journey as music managers.

Share it with your friends/colleagues who can benefit from the insights. Give your thoughts, advice, and stories in our feedback section. It's located at the end of each newsletter. My goal is to build a community focused on achieving success in the music industry and we could definitely use your help.

-Ruiz

STRATEGY

How to Get Your Artist in the Right Rooms

It’s not about turning into a robot at every industry event, mindlessly collecting contact cards or IG handles. It's about choosing people and events that align with you and your artist's unique value.

Make real connections with the people who authentically understand & like your artist. Dive into panel discussions, hit up workshops, and crash those exclusive events where the decision-makers hang. Those IRL events still matter. More than ever. It's in these spots that genuine convos happen, setting the stage for collaborations, mentorships, and opportunities that break through the surface-level stuff. Remember, it’s not only about networking up but networking laterally. Meaning, connecting with folks who are on the same level of their career as yourself. This will give you two desired outcomes. 1) A genuine community 2) Higher probability of getting noticed by fans, a record label (if this is your desired route) or A-list artist. The more you build a solid team and foundation, the better chance you have to garner success.

Lastly, be enthusiastic about pushing your artist. The market needs to see that you’re championing them. You need to be obsessed about getting yourself and your artist in front of people whether in real life or on socials. This is selfless work, and it’s a job that only rewards the relentless.

WHAT YOU COULD BE PAYING ATTENTION TO..

JID’s “Surround Sound” Sleeper Hit

JID's latest album, 'The Forever Story,' got a lot of love last year, hitting No. 12 on the Billboard 200. Off of the strength of the rollout, the lead single 'Surround Sound' peaked at No. 90 on the Hot 100, but things took a turn thanks to TikTok.

This is a great example of how powerful TikTok trends can be:

The “Ceiling Challenge” - a trend where creators tape their phones to the ceiling to get a really unique shot for their content, went viral. As a result, the song's on-demand streams shot up by 48.3% in just a week, with the sound generating over 3.9 million TikTok views from November 10-16. It's crazy how these trends can really change the game now.

Shoutout Berry Hefner of Since The 80s. He’s got a hockey stick of a record charting on his hands 📈

As artist managers we always need to be ahead of the game. The way we stay ahead is by staying informed with the newest marketing tactics. Here’s a breakdown from Josiah Lebante, the creator of the trend, explaining how he started the trend. Josiah credits Karl Shakur for the idea.

Pay Close Attention to Every Move Tyla & Her Team Makes From Now On..

If you haven’t come across Tyla’s trajectory, you need to be on it. This is an opportunity for you to witness in real-time how an artist who is poised for fame is broken. Pay attention to every move she and her manager Brandon V. Hixon make. Watch with an inquisitive mind. Lots can be learned in real time.

 5 Time 5 Time 5 Time 5 Time 5 Time

Bad Bunny is Billboard's Top Latin Artist for a record fifth consecutive year. No other artist has achieved this feat since the category began in 2011. Benito's star power is unmatched.

In addition, earlier this year, Noah Asaad who manages Bunny (and Karol G) also took home Billboard’s Executive of The Year. Watch the short clip where Noah discusses what makes his partnership with Bad Bunny so impactful.

INDUSTRY NEWS

TikTok’s Music Impact Report

Tiktok published/commissioned their first ever Music Impact Report prepared by Luminate. Key findings below:

For the full report click here.

For All The Dogs Scary Hour Edition Goes #1

• 9 of the Top 10 slots is dominated by UMG (Universal Music Group) label or distribution. Republic locks down 7 of those efforts. Scary indeed.

BMI Sells to New Mountain Capital

BMI, the largest global performance rights organization and former not-for-profit, is getting acquired by New Mountain Capital. The sale amount is undisclosed but estimates are landing between 1.2-1.7 billion. MBW reacts with 3 observations:

Spotify Confirms Details of How its Royalty Model Will Change in 2024

This article is a must read. Anything that Spotify does has a huge effect on every part of the industry and creation process. Here are some excerpts..

• Spotify is introducing a minimum threshold for streams before any track starts generating royalties on the service.

• Starting early next year, “tracks must have reached at least 1,000 streams in the previous 12 months in order to generate recorded royalties”.

• Beginning in 2024, Spotify will start charging labels and distributors per track when “flagrant artificial streaming” is detected on their content.

• Spotify plans to increase the minimum track length of functional noise recordings [ex. white noise] to two minutes, in order to be eligible to generate royalties.

ON REPEAT..🔥

STREAM:
Spotify | Apple Music

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING

Sleeping On Gems

A favourite IG handle over here. Recently cracked the milli club. Congrats

Ultimate Human Podcast with Gary Brecka

Still in its infancy but growing rapidly, Gary started a new podcast with real star power and their journey in the health and wellness space. Watch a recent episode with Steve Aoki and his biohacking journey to optimize his life.

CHECK THIS OUT..

What is a PRO?

We touched on BMI earlier in the newsletter. As an artist manager you need to know what they do, how they operate, and how to interact with them for the sake of your career and your artists’ career. This is must know info..

Bio

I’m Mauricio Ruiz, the Founder/CEO of 8 Til Faint, a talent management agency whose past and current clients include Grammy nominated, Juno Award winning multi-instrumentalist and singer songwriter Jessie Reyez, Marley Bleu and more. I am also the Co-Founder of Mad Ruk Entertainment, a content agency with over 3 billion long form video streams worldwide. Clients past and current include Eminem, Celine Dion, The Weeknd, Nike, NBA and more.

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