EVERYONE'S A MANAGER NOW
Trying to figure out what happened between today’s music business degrees and yesterday’s industry wisdom
The music industry has always been defined by reinvention — but never has the divide between generations felt so sharp. On one side are the old-school professionals who learned the business through years of trial, error, and late-night negotiations in backstage green rooms. On the other, a generation of newly minted graduates and online-course enthusiasts, fluent in digital tools, data dashboards, and tech overall. One side earned their stripes in clubs and tour vans — the other in Zoom webinars and TikTok.
The problem isn’t that one is right and the other is wrong — it’s that they’re speaking completely different languages, built on completely different assumptions about what “success” means and how to get there. Nowhere is this generational dissonance more obvious than in the world of music business education and the shifting role of managers, booking agents, and PRs. As the methods of teaching change, so do the expectations of artists — and the very definition of what it means to “manage” a music career is breaking apart.
EVOLUTION OF MUSIC BUSINESS EDUCATION
For generations, the music business was mastered in the field — through mentorships, unpaid internships, on-the-road projects, and label apprenticeships. By the 1970s, roughly 60% of the US graduates had interned at come company, a number that shrinked to 17% by 1992 as internships became more of a checkbox than a launchpad. These early experiences not only transferred theoretical knowledge but built instinct, resilience, and networked know-how — qualities no classroom could replicate.
Institutions like Berklee College of Music, which began offering formal Music Business programs in the late 1980s and extended that into their highly successful Berklee Online branch launched in 2001. Today, Berklee Online offers over 250 courses, bachelor’s and master’s degrees, and educates roughly 18,000 students yearly — amounting to over 75,000 alumni across 164 countries. While the brand carries prestige, it also reflects a shift. A December 2024 NY Post opinion argues that music grads, while adept in theory, often enter the labor market “unprepared for real industry work,” noting that 75 % of new jobs still require a degree, yet those same graduates lack the street skills and networks essential in music.
Music-program graduates begin their search for employment with a shiny new degree, only to find that the music industry doesn’t inherently require a formal college education for success.
Simultaneously, a boom in online music business education has transformed learning into a scalable, lucrative product. The global online music education market, estimated at $3.8 billion in 2024, is projected to soar — anywhere between $13-60 billion by 2032-2034. Surveys suggest that up to 67 % of music professionals view upskilling as essential.
This surge masks deeper issues. Massive enrolment numbers and MOOC-like scalability — Berklee Online alone reported 3.1 million MOOC enrollments last year — can lead to a disconnect between academic learning and the hard-won craft of industry practice. What’s even worse — dozens of course creators with just 3–5 years in industry are selling “authority” without proven impact, flooding the market with empty promises.
The consequences are tangible. Surveys from the UK’s Higher Education Authority show average music-graduate revenues 15 months after graduation hover between £19,000–£26,500, marginally increasing to £22,000–£23,500 after five years — hardly the trajectory for those expecting fast-track management careers. In the US, early-career music business grads report median salaries around $39,700 initially, rising to $51,700 within five years — not exactly a windfall for all those tuition dollars.
In short, while diplomas became more widespread, practical readiness has not kept pace. The shift from field-based training toward degree-driven workloads risks producing graduates confident in theory but lacking craft, instinct, and network — the very currency of the modern music industry. That gap isn’t abstract — it pops up daily in underperforming managers, PRs, and booking agents who can talk the talk but struggle to walk the walk.
IMPACT ON MANAGERIAL ROLES — OVERWORKED, UNDERPAID, AND UNDERVALUED
The role of music managers has ballooned beyond traditional scope — yet compensation and structure have failed to catch up. According to a 2024 survey by the UK’s Music Managers Forum (MMF) of 176 members, 60% of managers earn less than a full-time wage, and a staggering 56% make under £10,000 annually, while 21% earn nothing at all. Even more telling: only 26% contribute to a pension, and there's a 50% drop in apprenticeship opportunities since 2019. As a result, we have managers who are working harder than ever, but many can’t build sustainable livelihoods or a career pipeline.
What’s driving burnout isn’t lack of effort — it’s the eerie weight of responsibilities. The MMF reports that 85% of managers handle label and release strategies, 76% manage social media, 65% oversee PR, 57% coordinate tours, 48% manage finances, and 23% tackle legal issues. These roles were once delegated across departments but today, they're piled up under lean management teams. Many managers have become quasi-label heads: booking, marketing, analytics, sponsorships — you name it.
In theory, this expanded workload should translate to higher earnings — or at least equitable remuneration. But the reality is a relic of the past: the standard 20% commission model still reigns. As MMF Vice-Chair Kwame Kwaten remarked, this model doesn’t feel “sustainable”.
“For all the opportunities and responsibilities opened up through digital innovation, it’s clear that the majority of managers are still paid on commission-based business models.
“I’m not convinced that’s sustainable, and think we need a wider industry discussion around how managers are compensated in order to ensure artist and songwriter businesses can thrive in the future. Many of us have already started cutting deals that reflect our current environment.”
Meanwhile, some managers attempt to adapt: introducing retainers, fixed fees, joint ventures, or extended sunset clauses. But such flexible contracts are exceptions, not the norm — it’s a temporary solution for the broken system.
The data reveals the stakes. Live music — traditionally the bread and butter of both artist and manager — has become fragmented. A report notes that live events, publishing advances, royalties, and streaming make up managers’ revenue hierarchy. Yet despite their core support in these sectors, most managers lack ownership stakes in these income streams, forcing them to reinvest profits and cashflow into their own pockets — 74% have dipped into personal savings to fund artist development.
The problem isn’t just compensation — it’s sustainability. With under half of UK managers making a middle-class living, the industry risks decrease of mid-level professionals. MMF warns that rising demands without fair remuneration could lead to a talent exodus . Meanwhile, the decline in internships — down 50% since 2019 — severely limits the next generation’s exposure to the complex realities of management.
In the end, the issue isn’t just education — it’s erasure. The long-game wisdom of previous generations is being replaced by fast-track systems that reward confidence over competence, and visibility over value. Music business education, while more accessible than ever, often skips the part where you earn your way into the room, and instead teaches students to act like they already belong there. That’s why now we can see a growing number of undertrained professionals and over-confident intermediaries who look good on paper, but struggle in practice — and who’ve reshaped the power balance in artist careers as a result.
The generational gap is real, and it’s affecting everything — from how artists are managed, to how managers are paid, to what kinds of careers are even possible in this version of the industry. And if we don’t reintroduce respect for experience, mentorship, and practical training — we’re not just losing knowledge, we’re losing the culture that held the business together in the first place.