Owen Husney: artist, manager, promoter

Why modern record companies invite mediocrity 

Owen Husney is an artist manager from Minneapolis. He was the first manager Prince hired, and was responsible for getting him a precedent-setting contract with Warner Brothers that gave Prince nearly complete creative control. In an interview at the website Artist House Music, he talked about his experience with Prince and the state of artist development in the industry.

“The biggest problem today is the lack of development of artists,” he says. He blames the state of the industry and the lack of people at the label willing to go to bat for their artists, stick their necks out, and get the artist the support they need. One of the reasons he gives is the lack of development and support within the record companies. He says that A&R people are not being developed. If they sign an act that fails, they are fired.

The distinction between manager and talent agent

California law recognizes one, but not the other

Being a manager is a tricky business, especially in California. Personal managers are not legally regulated or licensed, but talent agencies are. The distinction is an important one, because only talent agencies are allowed to go out and book shows for an artist. According to copyright attorney Ivan Hoffman (left), who has been practicing law in California for 38 years, managers who seek “employment or engagements” for their clients have actually had their contracts declared null and void, losing them all of their earned royalties.