Rockin’ The Boat: A Year After Merger, IAG Keeps Flexing Its Muscle

From the beginning, Independent Artist Group looked formidable.

Created from a merger of Artist Group International and Agency for the Performing Arts in June 2023, IAG’s roster was, from inception, a power-packed lineup with stadium and arena-size artists such as Billy Joel, Metallica, 50 Cent and Mary J. Blige. 

Jarred Arfa, IAG’s Executive Vice-President, Head of Global Music, said the first year of the marriage has been fruitful. “We have seen a one-third increase in revenues since the merger and believe we will continue to see that type of growth moving forward,” he says.

AGI brought in a rock-heavy list full of reliable stadium and arena fillers: including Billy Joel, Metallica, Def Leppard, Rod Stewart, Mötley Crüe, Pantera, Norah Jones, Neil Young, The Strokes, Limp Bizkit, Smashing Pumpkins, Ghost, Elvis Costello, Cage The Elephant and Five Finger Death Punch.

APA came with a hearty dose of hip-hop, R&B and jazz: 50 Cent, Mary J. Blige, 2 Chainz, NE-YO, Robert Glasper, Kamasi Washington, Key Glock, $not, blackbear, Keyshia Cole, BigXthaPlug, Tyga, En Vogue, Cypress Hill and Bryce Vine; along with comedians Martin Lawrence, Mike Epps, Josh Johnson, Sara Millican, Ms. Pat, Eddie Izzard, Andrew Dice Clay and Ronny Chieng.

Like AGI before it, IAG operates under the umbrella of Ron Burkle’s Yucaipa Ent. LLC, which is a part of Yucaipa Companies, the billionaire’s private equity firm founded in 1986. Yucapia acquired a majority stake in AGI in 2011 and is now a partner in IAG. 

That relationship creates natural partnerships for IAG with Yucaipa’s other entertainment investment in Danny Wimmer Presents and the SoHo House.

The tentpole successes in Year One came from both former AGI and APA artists, Arfa said, including the conclusion of Billy Joel’s residency at Madison Square Garden which sold-out 104 monthly shows and sold more than 1.9 million tickets over its decade-long run, while his stadium shows with Sting, Stevie Nicks and Rod Stewart have seen numerous eight-figure grosses. 

Coming from APA, 50 Cent grossed more than $100 million on his “The Final Lap Tour.”

“We had many stadium and arena tours that were extremely successful such as Billy Joel, Metallica, Def Leppard, 50 Cent and Rod Stewart,” Arfa said. “We also have seen tremendous growth with some of our artists becoming arena/amphitheater headliners with acts such as Ghost, Sleep Token, Cage the Elephant, Falling In Reverse and Five Finger Death Punch. 

“We are also excited about the huge resurgence of artists such as Limp Bizkit, Pantera, The Smashing Pumpkins, NE-YO and Keyshia Cole. In addition, some of our crossover work with the other departments has yielded amazing results such as the Billy Joel CBS special for his 100th MSG residency show and the Ghost concert film from their [Kia] Forum shows.”

The TV special and the Ghost film were projects spearheaded by IAG’s EVP, Head of Content Development Kyle Loftus, who crafted the deal with CBS that resulted in three primetime airings, drawing more than 25 million viewers for Joel’s special. Ghost’s “Rite Here Rite Now” film was the highest-grossing hard rock cinema event in North America and a great indicator that rock is still a draw on stage and screen.

“We think the rock genre will continue to thrive and be huge. There will be multiple arena and stadium tours in the genre as well as successful festivals like the DWP festivals. It doesn’t appear to be as sexy or get the mainstream attention that some other genres get, yet the marketplace for the rock genre is staggering,” Arfa said. “There are so many different ways to attract fans these days and there is a loyalty in the rock community and many of these bands are some of the best entertainers and musicians that exist in the world. There is a new generation of rock stars replacing the Aerosmith and Kisses of the world even though they don’t get the mainstream attention.”

The expanded urban roster is also set to have another big year.

“BigXthaPlug and Key Glock are rising stars, and NE-YO had success overseas this year with two headlining O2s, two Birminghams, two Manchester Arenas and two Glasgows, as well as an upcoming sold-out arena run in Australia. Keyshia’s tour of North America was a huge success,” he said. “We are extremely excited about the upcoming Mary J. Blige arena tour in Q1 in North America featuring IAG clients Neyo and Mario. We think it will be massive. We were also very integrated with Mary’s Strength of a Woman festival, which came to New York for the first time this year and was a massive success.”

When the merger was announced, Dennis Arfa, founder and CEO of AGI, who became Chairman of IAG’s Music Division, and Jim Osborne, President of APA, who was named CEO of IAG, issued statements indicating IAG wanted to be a force that could shoulder its way into the upper echelon of agencies alongside UTA, CAA, WME and Wasserman Music, an ambition buoyed not just by the enviable music roster but by new forays into comedy and TV and film that APA’s client list allowed.

In addition to Arfas pater and filius and Osborne, those high aspirations are abetted by a murderer’s row of top agents including Marsha Vlassic, Adam Kornfeld, Peter Pappalardo, Mike Arfin, Nick Storch, Keith Nesbit, Josh Rittenhouse and Kyle Carter.

With that level of talent and only 20 music agents, IAG is punching way above its weight. There’s plenty of reason to believe Year One at IAG could portend the agency’s future as part of a new Big Five.