Executive Profile: Robert Gibbs Making Agency History At UTA Atlanta

When J. Cole needs to launch a 17-city tour with two weeks’ notice, Robert Gibbs helps make it into a viable run. The partner and co-head of United Talent Agency’s Atlanta office leads a powerful music roster that includes Chris Brown, Summer Walker, Ludacris and JID among others, including longtime client and hip-hop superstar J. Cole, whose Dreamville festival in 2025 has given way to a new, as-yet-unannounced event to take place at Dorothea Dix Park in Cole’s hometown market of Raleigh, North Carolina.

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Meanwhile, Chris Brown’s “Breezy Bowl XX Tour” was No. 7 on Pollstar’s 2025 Year End Top Touring Artists chart, grossing just under $300 million on 2.05 million tickets on 52 dates worldwide, with blockbuster shows like a $7 million gross at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans and three sold-out nights at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C, which moved 121,192 tickets.

In 2020, Gibbs became the first Black executive to head the music department at a major talent agency when he was promoted at ICM Partners, which was later acquired by CAA. Ringing in his third year at UTA in a city he says “drives culture,” Gibbs is now focused on scaling large-scale live events, creating unforgettable fan experiences and positioning his artists to win in music and beyond.

Pollstar: What excites you about where the live entertainment market is headed, and what concerns you?
Robert Gibbs: Live in 2026 is driven by the in-person fan experience—the thing you can’t get from streaming. You’re seeing more stadium shows than ever. Arena business continues to grow. A few years ago, we may have been concerned about ticket prices, but people are going to pay for experiences they’re excited about. What keeps me up at night? Ask any agent: As artists grow, their production grows. [I think about] how we craft the right deals to make sure the artist is making money when they want to deliver a certain kind of vision.

What’s a recent example of something innovative one of your clients has done to create exciting experiences for fans?
Artists are doing pop-ups or listening sessions in unique places. JID partnered with J. Cole on “Dollar and a Dream” [to promote] his God Does Like Ugly album. He went to London, Atlanta, Chicago. He charged $1 [for entry] and performed a few songs. It was a cool way to pay homage to J. Cole’s concept.

What did that original 2011 idea—charging $1 for concert tickets—tell you about J. Cole’s approach to cultivating his fan base and live shows?
J. Cole is very involved with decisions around live performances. He cares about ticket prices because he was once one of those fans; he never lost touch with that side. [Cole] invested in himself. Playing a thousand-cap room and it’s one dollar per ticket? You’re losing money. But he understood, “I need to invest in my fans the way they’ve invested in me.” Even in the early years, any fan who went will tell you it’s lived in their mind forever.

Apart from the monster grosses and massive ticket sales, what made Chris Brown’s massive international 2025 tour one to remember?
He is one of the greatest performers. I credit “Breezy Bowl” to Chris and his management; it was their vision. They really wanted to create a cool package. We were fortunate enough to have [UTA signees] Summer Walker and Jhené Aiko on that. It was a must-see event. He put together 20 years of hits and created a magical moment for the fans.

Why are secondary and tertiary markets becoming a bigger part of the touring conversation?
There are real fan bases there. Not all fans can travel to Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, or [the closest] major market. When we’re going into these markets, we’re conscious of ticket prices, knowing fans can’t spend what L.A. and New York can. Not every artist wants to play five shows per week. If the artist is willing to go into those markets, we’re always encouraging them to while making sure they understand what the market will bear financially. When you’re playing multiple nights in arenas or stadiums, it makes it tougher to make the numbers work without charging a crazy amount of money. Some artists are willing to take a deep cut.

What qualities do you look for when deciding which artists to represent?
It’s really just finding artists who want to be great and care about artist development. They may have a No. 1 record, but if we find they don’t have a vision to get to the next level, a lot of times we’ll pass. We want artists who can be multihyphenates. Ludacris does it all: film, television, music, he owns businesses. We want to be a partner; we don’t just want to book shows. The agents thinking along those lines will fall behind.

You became the first Black department head of a major talent agency in 2020. Have you seen the industry become more diverse since then?
It’s been a slow process, and the statistics will show that. But it’ll get better as more people are educated on this job. There’s still a lot of work to do. That was one of the reasons [UTA] came [to Atlanta]. We wanted to make sure we’re reaching back into the community. Students from HBCUs, Georgia Tech, and Georgia State are coming to these offices to hear us talk about what we do. That’s a responsibility of mine and other colleagues in power who look like me—we have to reach back and educate. Some people think, “You get an opportunity, it’s sink or swim.” We don’t take that approach. We’re not going to let you sink. I hope that continues to get better and evolve.

Article written by John Kennedy