Gary Gersh Exits AEG Presents Global Touring; Rich Schaefer Steps Into Role

Gary Gersh, who has served as president of AEG Presents Global Touring since its inception in 2018, is leaving the company to “pursue new opportunities,” according to a memo distributed to staff by AEG Presents CEO Jay Marciano this morning. He will be replaced by Rich Schaefer, who has been the senior vice president of Global Touring since joining the company in 2018.

“Gary played a vital role in the development and growth of Global Touring; his energy, passion and initiative helped nurture an embryonic idea into a powerhouse team that has made a substantial impact on both our business specifically and the industry as a whole,” Marciano wrote in his memo.

Concurrently, Gersh wrote his own memo to AEG Presents staff: “I have made the very difficult choice to step away from my position here at AEG Presents. This was not a decision I came to lightly, as working alongside everyone at this company these past eight years has been a career highlight for me, but I’m excited about the prospects ahead and look forward to us crossing paths again in the future …”

Of Schaefer, Marciano writes: “He brings a thorough understanding of our business to the job and is looking forward to hitting the ground running and executing at the highest level on behalf of both Global Touring and AEG Presents.” Schaefer will remain based in New York.

Gersh joined AEG Presents in 2015, but his career dates back nearly 40 years, having signed Nirvana, Sonic Youth, Pat Metheny and Robbie Robertson, among others, to David Geffen’s DGC label. He previously headed management firm The Artist Organization, which at the time represented artists including Portugal. The Man, John Legend and Lenny Kravitz.

During the 1990s, Gersh also headed Capitol Records, then part of EMI, where he signed such acts as David Bowie, the Stray Cats and John Waite. Gersh also produced Waite’s Missing You album.

He also founded G.A.S. Entertainment with Foo Fighters manager John Silva.

During his tenure at AEG Presents, Gersh played a crucial role expanding the promoter’s global touring footprint, which most recently included tours by Ed Sheeran, Elton John and Billie Eilish. He’s also had a role in building international tours for non-English language stars as Rammstein, Blackpink, and Karol G.