Artist Manager James Vitalo Joins 5B Artists + Media, Bringing Turnstile, Knocked Loose, Gatecreeper

5B
Mariah Harkey – 5B
Cory Brennan and James Vitalo

Artist manager James Vitalo has joined 5B Artists + Media bringing a client of heavy music artists including Turnstile, Knocked Loose, Gatecreeper and Harms Way to the company known as home to Slipknot, Megadeth, Lamb of God, Flogging Molly, Trivium, and more.

Vitalo, who comes to 5B after five years at Good Fight Entertainment, says in the announcement: “I couldn’t ask for a better opportunity than to work with 5B. The team has an incredible reputation for being hardworking and forward-thinking, while also maintaining a level of ethics that can sometimes be lost in the music industry. Everything they work on from festivals like Knotfest to initiatives like Rock Against Racism highlights the range of capabilities and thoughtfulness of the company. 5B has always been at the forefront of pushing the underground to the highest level and I’m excited for myself and the bands I manage to be part of what’s to come.”
5B Founder and President Cory Brennan adds: “I’m incredibly excited to begin working with James and the amazing artists he represents. His energy, positivity and sheer determination is second to none and aligns perfectly with that of 5B. We welcome his invaluable perspective and look forward to developing and uncovering the next generation of important artists alongside him.” 
5B has also announced the promotions of Senior Artist Manager Brad Fuhrman to Vice President and Stephen Reeder from Director of Digital to Senior Director of Digital. 
5B President Bob Johnsen adds, “When you’ve got people like Brad and Stephen on the team, you count yourself lucky. We at 5B take pride in what we do and how we do it, and no matter what comes at us, these two keep innovating and helping to make us all smarter.”
5B has remained active during the pandemic, with high-profile PPV streams from clients including Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor, Trivium (which sold 12,000 tickets) and, most recently, Flogging Molly (which sold 15,000 tickets during its St. Patrick’s Day event live from Dublin. 
Along with the company’s music roster, which includes major touring artists, 5B comprises a record label, film and music festival production arm, talent agency and digital marketing agency, with its own festival events and cruises including Knotfest, Megaruise and the Hermosa Beach Summer Series. 
Despite being home to a roster of popular, culturally significant and financially successful artists and a conscious effort to support heavy music and culture specifically, there’s a notable chip on the shoulders of the metal community from top to bottom, including at 5B.  
“One of our hardest jobs as metal managers is marketing what we do beyond the core audience,” 5B’s Justin Arcangel said in a Pollstar cover story from August 2020. “We run into roadblocks all the time. The major mass media, the magazines or blogs, even brands looking for sponsorship, don’t come to metal because they’re not run by metal fans.  We all know what Coachella or Pitchfork festival does because it’s broadcast everywhere, but if you tell someone the numbers from one of the Danny Wimmer Festivals, that there were 100,000 people there, they don’t understand that. But that’s happening globally.”
“It makes sense, metal was created as outsider music, it is outsider music, but sometimes it’s nice to be included in some of that stuff. It’s a bigger story for us to tell as managers and break down those walls.”