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Bruce Allen's Advice To Young Managers

"When someone who’s been in the game a while takes time to talk to you, just listen."

Bruce Allen's Advice To Young Managers

By External Source

What’s the one piece of advice you would give to a young manager today?


"Listen.

"When someone who’s been in the game a while takes time to talk to you, just listen.

"Also, you gotta trust each other. I have never, never, never had an act under contract. When I left Martina McBride, there were no lawsuits, no nothing, I was gone. I’ve had acts, like Tom Cochrane, where I just couldn’t work with this person anymore. No contract is gonna hold that together. I don’t need to sign a contract with anyone.

"I don’t have side deals, I look after my people and I’ve never had any complaints. Listen, if I wasn’t able to do the job, I’m sure I’d be fired. But I don’t care what anybody says, my track record speaks for itself.

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"I’ve been here a long time, I’ve broken five acts, I don’t need to sign a contract, I shake your hand and that’s good enough for me."

Manager Bruce Allen in an interview published Jan. 15 by Music Business Worldwide

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Ed Sheeran performs onstage at iHeartRadio Z100's Jingle Ball 2025 Presented by Capital One held at Madison Square Garden on December 12, 2025 in New York, New York.
John Nacion/Billboard

Ed Sheeran performs onstage at iHeartRadio Z100's Jingle Ball 2025 Presented by Capital One held at Madison Square Garden on December 12, 2025 in New York, New York.

Music News

Ed Sheeran Addresses Controversy at First Show Since Openers, Backing Band Dropped Off Tour, Calls It ‘The Best Show of My Life’

Before his show in Philadelphia, Sheeran read a statement acknowledging the issue of Israel and Palestine, but still tried to keep things neutral.

Ed Sheeran needed to address the situation before he could start playing guitar. It wasn’t how he wanted to start his show, and he’s made it abundantly clear that the last thing he wants around him is controversy or, in his words, to be an “activist musician.”

But here he was, at the first show after his opener and friend Macklemore was kicked off the tour, following pressure by a group of venue owners led by Robert Kraft who took issue with Macklemore’s statement of support toward Palestine. That led to the rest of the tour’s openers and even Sheeran’s backing band for the tour dropping off the tour in solidarity with Macklemore — all of which became a huge news story and PR nightmare for the usually very un-controversial Sheeran. And though he had already made one highly scrutinized statement online while the news story was at its most potent, Sheeran felt the need to address the crowd at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field on Saturday night (Sept. 19) in person, before the show really started.

This article was first published by Billboard U.S.

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