Artist Management

Artist management is one of the most misunderstood areas in the music industry. At CSP Music Group, we hear from artists every day asking for a manager—often before they’ve built the foundation that makes management possible. In the video above, our CEO Dr. Christopher Starr explains the truth about artist management, why it’s often requested too soon, and what steps artists must take before a manager can truly be effective.

Professional artist management doesn’t start when a song is finished—it starts when a business is already in motion. A manager’s role is to oversee and organize existing momentum, not to create it. Real management includes contract negotiations, coordinating tour logistics, managing brand partnerships, overseeing revenue streams, and handling high-level business strategy. It’s a position of stewardship over a growing career—not a shortcut to stardom.

Most independent artists simply aren’t there yet. If you don’t have consistent music releases, a clear brand, growing audience engagement, income from music, press coverage, and a business structure in place, there’s very little for a manager to manage. And that’s okay—because that’s where we come in.

At CSP Music Group, we specialize in helping artists build the kind of infrastructure that leads to long-term success. Our team works alongside you to develop your artistry, establish your brand identity, create professional assets, build your digital presence, craft a smart release strategy, and lay the foundation for real industry traction. Once that foundation is built, you’ll have something worth managing—and we’ll be there to guide you into that next phase with confidence and clarity.

If you’re serious about turning your music into a career, start with our artist submission form. This helps us understand where you are in your journey so we can provide a personalized roadmap forward. Every major career begins with the right structure. Let’s build yours the right way.

What You Should Have in Place Before Seeking Artist Management

Management is for organizing and scaling momentum—not creating it from scratch. Before seeking a manager, an artist should already have the following areas developed or in progress:

Before You Ask for Management, Consider This

At CSP Music Group, we’re committed to helping serious artists build sustainable careers—but we do that by being honest, not by telling people what they want to hear.

If you're still convinced you need a manager—even if you haven’t met the standards listed above—you may be mistaking urgency for readiness.

The reality is this: No manager, including us, is going to invest time and resources into managing an artist who hasn’t done the work to become manageable.

If you haven’t built your brand, developed your product, grown an audience, or generated any momentum on your own, there’s nothing for a manager to manage—only problems to solve. That’s not management. That’s development, and that’s a different phase of the journey.

We’ve worked with artists across every level of the industry, and we’ve seen how damaging it can be when someone skips steps out of impatience. It wastes time, money, and opportunities.

So if you haven’t built the business, it’s not time for management.

It’s time to get to work. Once you've developed a solid foundation—something proven, profitable, and positioned for growth—that’s when management becomes a real conversation.

Until then, we can help you build what’s missing. But we won’t pretend you’re ready when you’re not.