The Year In Agencies: Arrival Artists & ATC Live Join Forces As ROAM, Wasserman Music Levels Up

At the start of the year, Wasserman Music made headlines when Kevin Shivers, James Rubin and Cristina Baxter announced they would be joining the company with Shivers and Rubin as EVPs and Managing Executives and Baxter Senior Vice President, leaving WME.

Shivers’ roster includes some of the music industry’s biggest names, with Tyler, The Creator, landing at No. 13 on Pollstar’s Year End Worldwide Top Tours chart. Shivers also represents CA7RIEL & Paco Amoroso, Jazmine Sullivan, Kali Uchis, Pod Save America, Vince Staples and Wiz Khalifa.

“It was a hard decision to leave my previous job, but I was there for a very long time, and I realized that I needed to make a change and go somewhere I could truly grow beyond the point I’d reached, and where there was more room for me,” Shivers told Pollstar shortly after his move to Wasserman after having spent 17 years at WME. “I wanted more opportunity, and that presented itself through [Wasserman Chairman and CEO] Casey Wasserman and [Wasserman Music President] Lee Anderson, who understood and came with a clear path to make those things happen.”

Shivers recently appeared on the cover of Pollstar’s agency directory, where he reflected on his first year at Wasserman Music.

In the boutique agency world, September saw Arrival Artists and UK-based ATC Live joining forces to create ROAM. According to the company, they are now the largest global independent booking agency with 800 artists, more than 80 staff members, and six offices across the globe – including in London, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Paris and Glasgow.

The combined roster features clients including Amyl & The Sniffers, Andrew Bird, Big Thief, Black Pumas, Faye Webster, Fontaines D.C., Goose, Khruangbin, Japanese Breakfast, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, PJ Harvey, Royel Otis and more. The leadership consists of Arrival co-founders Ali Hedrick, Erik Selz, John Bongiorno, Karl Morse, Ethan Berlin and Matt Yasecko, as well as ATC Live founder Alex Bruford and partners Clemence Renaut, Colin Keenan, Ed Thompson, Olivia-jane Ransley, Sarah Joy, Skully Sullivan Kaplan and Will Church.

“We’ve proven our ability to take artists from clubs to festival headlines and arena touring, and to add value to established artists of all levels through diligent and strategic work,” Bruford, partner and agent at ROAM, announced at the time. “The creation of ROAM significantly enhances the choices artists have for worldwide representation.”

The two agencies began working together in 2020, growing from an A&R initiative into, now, a combined entity.

Yasecko, partner and COO, said at the time, “Artists don’t stand still, and neither do we. ROAM is about adapting, exploring new opportunities, and creating lasting cultural impact on our own terms and alongside the artists who inspire us.”

At IAG, noted heavy metal agent Nick Storch was promoted to head of global artist development. He represents and co-reps dozens of clients including Spiritbox, Sabaton and Frank Turner, Disturbed, Limp Bizkit and many others.

On the client side, in May, international superstar The Weeknd announced he’d be joining WME from CAA for representation in all areas. In November, Drake left Wasserman Music for CAA, and he’s now booked by Darryl Eaton.

Red-hot metalcore band Pierce The Veil also joined CAA this year, signing with Eaton, as well. The band was previously booked by longtime friend and co-founder of Sound Talent Group, Dave Shapiro. Shapiro, along with two coordinators for the agency, Kendall Fortner and Emma Huke, tragically passed earlier this year after his plane crashed in San Diego.