2025 Impact NextGen Honoree: Ali Saunders

ALI SAUNDERS
Artist Manager
Full Stop Management

IGNITING HER PASSION FOR THE MUSIC BIZ:
“Believe Tour ”+ “Never Say Never” = Belieber

When Ali Saunders was 13 years old, she saw Justin Bieber’s “Believe Tour” stop at Madison Square Garden, her first concert after watching Bieber perform at the same NYC venue on the movie screen in his documentary “Never Say Never” two years earlier. Saunders, 26, credits those two experiences as the origin of her passion for the music business and touring.

She explains, “I knew I wanted to be similarly part of an artist’s development someday: to work alongside them as they pursued their dreams, help tell their story to the world, and hopefully move people, build community, or shift culture in the process.”

Fast forward to today and Saunders is living her dream as an artist manager, working with artists such as Tate McRae, the rising Canadian pop star who launched a 50-date global arena tour earlier this year and who Saunders praises for her “superhuman work ethic, undeniable talent and pure kindness.”

Recent highlights have included McRae’s performance at the FireAid benefit concert, her album release night at the Kia Forum, McRae returning to “Saturday Night Live” as a musical guest and appearing in a sketch, and helping launch the pop star’s world tour as McRae made the move to arenas.

“Watching Tate bring ‘Miss Possessive (Tour)’ to the O2 Arena in London this past May and June and absolutely captivate the entire room each time were major pinch-me moments,” Saunders says. “I’ll feel the same sense of awe when Tate is back in NYC at Madison Square Garden and in Los Angeles at The Forum for three nights each. Moreover, and perhaps most importantly, Tate made it a mission this year for her tour to align with philanthropies close to her heart. We subsequently launched tour partnerships with the Global Fund for Women and The Trevor Project – both initiatives I have been so grateful to be a part of.”

Saunders shouts out Jeffrey Azoff, Tommy Bruce and Tom Skoglund at Full Stop Management as mentors, who she first met as an intern when she was 20 years old while a junior in college.

“Now, as a manager to Tate alongside them, I continue to learn daily from them as they help guide Tate in navigating an extremely demanding schedule while still prioritizing her mental and physical health,” Saunders says. “From a professional development standpoint, I have also learned so much about confidence from Jeffrey, Tommy and Tom, and how important it is to show up in every room grounded in my own values with conviction in my own point of view.”