What is a US music manager for international artists?

A US music manager for international artists is a manager based in the United States who runs the American side of a career for an artist based somewhere else. The manager works alongside the artist's home label and home management, and handles US television, US pop radio, collaborations with American artists, US label and distribution deals and tour planning, and picks and leads the booking agency and the PR team. The home label stays the home label; the US market is the manager's side.

Do artists from Southeast Asia need a US manager to break into America?

The US industry is built around separate roles: manager, booking agency, label, publicist. Television bookers, radio programmers, promoters and labels expect a US manager to call them and to make decisions. An artist from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines or Vietnam can release music in America without one, but a sustained US career has usually needed a US manager working next to the home team. That was the model used for the K-pop breakthroughs of BTS and Monsta X.

What is the order of a US campaign for an international artist?

The order Eshy Gazit used with BTS and with Monsta X was the same: US television first, then US pop radio, then collaborations with American artists, then arena shows. Television gives radio stations a reason to play the song, radio gives American artists a reason to collaborate, collaborations bring a new audience, and ticket demand opens the arenas.

When should an international artist look for a US manager?

When there is already real demand in America: US listeners, US fans, US social engagement, US shows that sell. The manager is the first person a US campaign needs, before a booking agency, because agencies sign on once there are shows to sell. The artist also has to be ready to spend real time in the US, on TV, at radio stations and on stage.

How do I choose a US music manager as an artist from Asia?

Look for a record you can check: artists the manager has taken across a border into the US market, with charts, TV appearances and press coverage that link to their sources. Ask who the manager works with on the agency and PR side, and how the manager works with a home label. A manager whose record is with Asian artists in America knows the TV bookers, the pop radio programmers and how to share the work with a label in Seoul, Tokyo, Manila or Jakarta.

US Music Manager · Korea

Can a K-pop artist get a US manager without a label? Yes. Here is how it works.

In short: yes. A US manager works for the artist, not for a label, so a label contract is not a condition for US management. A Korean or K-pop artist without a label can put music on US streaming services through a distributor and run the American campaign with label services while keeping the recordings. What a US manager checks first is real demand in America, not a contract.

Who a US manager works for

A manager runs the artist's whole career and is paid a commission on the artist's income, usually 15 to 20 percent in general industry practice (what managers take). A record label funds, releases and markets recordings. The two are separate jobs, and in America they are usually separate companies (manager, label, publisher: who does what).

Most K-pop artists are signed to a Korean agency that is also their label. For them the question is a different one: the agency stays, and a US manager or US operating partner runs the American side next to it. BTS stayed with Big Hit Entertainment while the US campaign ran with a US partner. An independent Korean artist with no agency and no label may need full US management instead (US management for international artists).

What changes without a label

Someone still has to do the label jobs. Without a label, the artist or the home team pays for recording and marketing and keeps the masters. The usual setup has three parts:

A distributor puts the music on US streaming services.
Label services run the label jobs around a release (release plan, marketing, PR, radio, playlists) for an artist who keeps the recordings (US label services for international artists).
The US manager designs the plan, picks and leads that team, and negotiates the deals.

A US label deal or joint venture is easier to get once the American numbers are moving, and the manager is the person who decides when that moment has come and leads the negotiation (manager, label or label services).

What a US manager checks first

Whether there is already demand for the artist in America. Not worldwide, America: US share of monthly listeners, the US cities where the artist streams most, US social engagement, US shows played and how they sold. A label contract does not replace that number, and the lack of one does not cancel it. The artist also has to be ready to spend real time in the US, on TV, at radio stations and on stage.

How to approach a US manager without a label

Send a short email: who you are and where you are from, one number that shows US demand, one link to your best song, and who your home team is, even if that team is only you and a distributor. Pick managers who have worked with artists from Korea before (how to pitch a US manager from abroad).

Never pay a monthly fee up front to someone who calls it management. A manager is paid from what the artist earns.

Eshy Gazit's record

Eshy Gazit is a US-based international music manager. He was the US managing partner for BTS from 2016 to 2018, the years of the group's US breakthrough (Music Week), and has managed Monsta X since 2018 and Wonho. Billboard named him an International Power Player in 2021 and 2022. He is a partner at Maverick Management and the founder of EG Management, Intertwine Records and the marketing agency LUSIVEX. The step-by-step record is in the K-pop US breakthrough timeline and the page on US management for international artists.

한국어: 미국 진출 매니저, 에이전시, 레이블의 차이 · 미국 진출 매니저 에시 가짓. More: the K-pop US breakthrough timeline · short answers. For the marketing side of a US release, LUSIVEX publishes a Korean guide to US music marketing and PR for K-pop.

Frequently asked questions

Can a K-pop artist get a US manager without a label?

Yes. A US manager works for the artist, not for a label, and is paid a commission on the artist's income. An independent Korean artist can put music on US streaming services through a distributor and run the American campaign with label services while keeping the recordings. What a US manager checks first is real demand in America, not a label contract.

Does an international artist need a US record label?

Not to start. A distributor can put the music on US streaming services, and label services can run the American campaign while the artist keeps their recordings. A US label deal or joint venture is easier to get once the American numbers are moving.

Does an international artist need a US manager or a US partner?

An artist already signed to a label at home usually needs a US operating partner who works alongside the home team rather than replacing it. An unsigned or independent international artist may need full US management. Eshy Gazit works both ways: as a US partner to international labels and as a manager to independent artists entering the American market.

What do US managers look for in an international artist?

Real demand in America already (US listeners, US fans, US social engagement), music that can work on US radio or streaming, a home label or team that will work alongside a US partner, and an artist willing to spend real time in the country.

Should I pay someone to be my manager?

No. A manager is paid a percentage of what the artist earns, usually 15 to 20 percent in general industry practice. Someone who asks for a monthly fee up front to manage you is selling a service, not management.

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