Following a sold-out Manager Summit based on the theme of audience and community building, Atlas Artists’ Duncan Ellis was welcomed to the MMF board at the organisation’s AGM.
Replacing Ellie Giles, who departs after nine years and the conclusion of her third and final term as a director, Ellis founded Atlas Artists in 2014, working with British artists including Celeste and Rachel Chinouriri.
Encompassing A&R, recording and artist development, Atlas entered into a joint venture with Warner Music’s Parlophone Records in 2021.
As well as paying tribute to Ellie Giles and her dedication and contribution to the MMF, chief executive Annabella Coldrick interviewed Ellis about his experiences in management and talent development and what he plans to contribute to the MMF Board.
“I am absolutely delighted to welcome Duncan to the MMF board,” said Annabella Coldrick. “As well as representing some incredible talent, Atlas Artists’ is reflective of the kind of innovative, multi-faceted management companies that are pushing boundaries in the UK. I also want to pay tribute to Ellie Giles, who has served the MMF with incredible commitment and generosity over the past nine years. Ellie will always be a valued member of our community, and someone I know will be at the heart of our MMF activities in the months and years ahead.”
Kerry Harvey Piper (Red Grape Music), Ray Black (Craft Management), Sumit Bothra (SB3 Management) and Vicky Dowdall (VDM Music) were all re-elected as board directors.
Marking her 10 years as chief executive, Annabella Coldrick highlighted ongoing recognition of the role and responsibilities of music managers as the MMF’s biggest achievement since 2016.
I am even more inspired by the innovation and entrepreneurship in the UK’s management community than I was in 2016
Annabella Coldrick
She outlined the organisation’s ongoing commitment to professional development, including the world’s first industry-recognised certification for managers and the new MMF Hyperdrive programme developed in partnership with YouTube Music and Arts Council England.
She also reflected on the MMF’s campaigning and advocacy work, citing the recent Official Charts Company announcement of a new Homegrown Chart, the UK Artist Touring fund and ongoing progress against online ticket touting as evidence of the organisation’s successes.
“When I first started in this role, we had a thriving membership of 400 managers,” said Coldrick. “Those numbers have now more than tripled, reflecting not only the elevated importance of managers and their £714 million contribution to the wider industry, but also fantastic work by the MMF team, board, custodians and members to build a community from all backgrounds and from all around the UK. As an organisation, we have a real responsibility to serve those members and help them grow their businesses.”
She added: “Similar to their dedication to building teams around their clients, I hope the MMF is regarded as a respected player around the board rooms of LIVE and UK Music. All of us passionately want this country’s music talent to thrive, and to capitalise on the extraordinary opportunities afforded by technological change and new ways of doing business. I am even more inspired by the innovation and entrepreneurship in the UK’s management community than I was in 2016.”
Hosted before the AGM at 10 Union Street, the MMF’s Manager Summit attracted more than 120 guests from across the industry for panels, talks and presentations on the topic of audience building and artist development in an era of algorithms.
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