Case Study: Promoter – Alejandro Gonzalez 

Music promoters play a central role in delivering a successful event to the masses. They plan the event and talent, market/promote, and assist in sales of “single shows, tours, festivals, and special events” (Berklee, 2025). Within the industry, many people combine the job of a promoter with other titles, such as venue manager and booking manager. As explained by Amy Thomson, book author and former manager of some of the most prominent electronic artists, explains in her book that promoters are “a dying and undervalued breed and put on the shows we all rely on to earn money” (Thomson, 2020). This position is one of great risk as it implies investing in an act that may or may not put on a successful show (usually offering an artist a flat fee instead of a percentage of sales). It’s also important to mention that while some promoters may work as independents, selling tickets and producing a show based on the artist’s preferred style of venue, there are many people who work as venue promoters. They work to put on the most successful live event for both the artist and the venue manager, profiting solely from their work at that specific venue. Issy Balmforth, for example, has worked as both an independent promoter for labels such as Futuresound, Come Play With Me, and EMI North. They now have a position at Howard Assembly Room, where they work as House & Events Manager, doing the role of a venue promoter and bringing new artists to work within the space and perform.  

Alejandro Gonzalez, CEO of Kandavu Production in Lima, Peru, offered some insight into the job, one he did when he was first starting in his career (Appendix 1). He originally started in small venues within Peru, slowly growing his own production company, where he worked as a promoter and manager. After 30 years in the industry, he has worked with international artists including The Rolling Stones, TINI, and Roger Waters. When being what qualities he looks for in promoters, Gonzalez emphasized that “being able to stay calm and organized under pressure is crucial” (Gonzalez, 2025). The position requires quick problem-solving, from sudden event changes to budgeting an event as accurately as possible, meaning there is much responsibility to be held with this position. He gave the example of how promotion is necessary to push for smaller audiences and that “knowing your audience and artist is crucial to create the best type of marketing and gain the most sales possible” (Gonzalez, 2025). An example he gave was of The Rolling Stones making a concert in Peru. With such an internationally known name, there doesn’t need to be much promotion; people will be able to find out about the show through social media and news sites in a matter of days. That is where the priority is, because budgeting, fulfilling the needs of the artists when it comes to venue capacity, ticket sales, and production costs. 

Gonzalez also prefaced how the best work you can deliver as a promoter is when you are ready to handle. He explained that while pushing to create sales can be great, some artists are not yet ready to sell out stadiums. If too large of an investment is made on a gig, for example, renting out a venue of 500 people, when in reality the artist or group has just recently gained popularity, there is a risk of losing money in the venture. “It’s a good idea to try and go at the speed of your expertise” was his general answer, adding on that if you fail at promoting an event, then it’s not only a risk financially but also can put a burden on your reputation, making it harder to get work later on in life. Gonzalez finally added a piece of advice for those who start as promoters and want to grow in the industry, saying, “You may think you are just a gear in the machine, but if you don’t understand how every part of the machine works you won’t get far” (Gonzalez, 2025). He added on to explain how he, as CEO of his company, has to work with eight different ventures and labels within his own company. If he didn’t pay attention to every detail in his job, then everyone else would be lost, and that goes around to everyone else as well. If, as a promoter, you don’t get into the details of who is working and what they are doing, then this organizational task is just a plan with no action because “absolutely nothing is done without a team” (Thomson, 2020). 

Case Study: Tour Manager – Mariana Gomes 

The tour manager is the lead of transportation, organization, and contact when it comes to the artists’ travel to gigs and venues. In the touring aspect, “their role is to ensure that everything runs smoothly before, during, and after the show” (GRAMMY GO, 2024). It is a job that requires high levels of organizational skills and problem-solving, as on tour, many things may happen unexpectedly. Additionally, they secure the “booking of crew and run the online crew calendar” (Thomson, 2020), making them a crucial part in not only the artists’ scheduling but also the entire team. Tour managers focus on the sometimes forgotten details that are needed for the tour (passports, work permits, transportation, flight/drive information, hotels, catering, etc.), and many of them are imperative to even making a tour happen. DC Parmet, for example, explains that the opportunity rose randomly and “his work ethic, enthusiasm, and knack for balance sheets, swung open the door of a great career working with Michael Jackson, Tina Turner, and Elton John” (Kansy, C. & Kansy, M, 2021). Tour Managers can also work independently with artists through contacts and networking, or can be assigned to artists through labels and management.  

This case study is focused on a UK-based tour manager who just recently began working as a tour manager, seeing the starting stages of someone who has built her way up the industry. Mariana Gomes is a tour manager of Portuguese origin, based in London, who works for BKM Artists. BKM is “a management company representing artists including Declan J Donovan (Sony and Universal Publishing), Tim Gallagher (Sony), and also an independent record label with a number of signings such as Pedro Santos and South Arcade (Big Creative Education, 2023). Gomes explains (Appendix 2) that in her experience, she started off small with working in venues and applying for positions that correlated with touring experience, such as crew work and merchandise sales. “While all of that got me some experience, the main thing I would recommend is networking and finding people that will help you when they really don’t need to” (Gomes, 2025) is the main piece of advice she gave. Explained that as a tour manager, she was able to meet people slowly and network her way to the position she now has. Additionally, when asked about the workload, she explained the concept of “working outside normal hours”. While many jobs in the industry pay an average number of hours, touring can have some unexpected changes and complications. In her recent experience, she had an artist, Pedro Santos, who had transportation issues on the road when a wheel completely tore while traveling from Brussels to Amsterdam. “I got on the phone with a towing company at 4 am, fixed the problem within a few hours, and they got to the gig in time – had to also rearrange catering as they were not gonna get there as planned originally” (Gomes, 2025), she explained when asked how the problem was fixed. When tour managers find issues, they have to fix them to ensure no one else is affected by something unpredictable. 

Additionally, she explained that the costs and finances of the tour were something she had to arrange. This includes costs of hotels, catering, transportation, and even paying session musicians and staff. The logistics of everything were the main thing she emphasized, trying to find people who could quickly pick up a set without the need to pay them for rehearsals, as many independent artists have a strict budget they follow. She focuses on keeping the tour simple for the artist, but “things can sometimes add up to cost more than expected, it’s about budgeting for unexpected circumstances and things you would think of – thinking outside the box” (Gomes, 2025). Overall, the job of a tour manager revolves around the detailed organization of multiple aspects of an artist’s tour. Quick problem-solving and precise budgeting are necessary to account for sudden changes and unexpected issues that may arise within the tour. 

Hypothetical Gig 

I have planned a hypothetical event as a way to apply this learning to what would be a real show budget (Appendix 3) and settlement sheet 

This event will take place in Northern Guitars. It will consist of a Latin Artist night, featuring about 3 Latin musicians from Leeds Conservatoire, who will play 45-minute sets, with “Ivania Del Solar” as headliner. The Gig will take place on a Sunday night, when their venue is available for hire, reducing overall costs. As this will be an intimate gig for small new artists, the capacity of 60 people seems to work well overall.  

As a promoter, my job will consist of advertising the gig to people in Leeds and arranging ticket costs. Because of the local nature of this gig, I will not be acting as tour manager. 

The venue, as stated before, is free for hire, but assistance will be needed for setting up (sound and tech). Because of this, I have separated £30 for the crew. In the show budget, it is written as £60 because of the pay that will also be given to the photographer hired for the gig. Northern Guitars has much of the needed gear for the gig, but artists will be able to bring their own microphones and cables; if not, they can request them at Leeds Conservatoire free of charge. A payment of £10 has been budgeted for PRS as this is a small-scale venue and the performance will include both covers and original music. For promotional content, there will be an overall cost of £52, divided as shown below: 

ADS AND PROMOTIONAL COSTS 

Ads Local £30.00  

Stickers £17.12  

Posters £5.00 

These costs include targeted Instagram ads, which will cost £2 per day and will be advertised for 15 days before the event. These will be shared with people within Leeds and members of the Latin community. Stickers will be made to promote the event, with a total of 100 stickers being made for £17.12. Finally, posters can be printed at the Leeds Conservatoire library for £0.2 each. This means 25 posters can be hung around the university, where the promotion will mainly take place, and at least five can be placed near Northern Guitars. £30 of miscellaneous costs were added to account for food or any last-minute changes that may need to be made (issues with travel mainly). 

Tickets are priced at £10, with 45 sold online and 10 at the door. 5 tickets have been held for the photographer, sound engineer, and possible journalists in case contacted. The estimate is that all tickets should be able to be sold as 3 artists will be playing, and the headliner can guarantee 28 ticket sales from friends and family alone. The headliner is able to play alone, accompanying herself with a guitar. Because of this, the supports should perform in a similar manner (can have 1 additional person on stage if necessary). Andy Suarez and Donahi Soriano are both artists who follow this idea and play with the use of a piano accompanying them. An electric keyboard can be used instead. The artist split will be even with all three musicians, as this is a Latin Artist gig, showcasing 3 talents within Leeds. They will be paid £75 each and 70% of net profits (takings after overall costs).  

This brings net balance to £172.88 where artists will receive £75 each as a flat fee and 70% of the net balance, which would be £121.02 divided between the three acts (£40.34 each). This gives the promoter £51.86. While normally this would be unfair or unbalanced in payment, I would also be one of the acts making me, as headliner, gain a total of £167.21 

Appendices 

Appendix 1

Appendix 2  

Appendix 3

Appendix 4

Bibliography 

Berklee College of Music (2025) Concert Promoter. Available at: https://www.berklee.edu/careers/roles/concert-promoter (Accessed: 10 December 2025). 

Big Creative Education (2023) ‘Ben Karter Music Ltd – Management Company and Record Label Assistant’, Big Creative Education Apprenticeship Vacancies. Available at: https://bigcreative.education/apprenticeships/vacancies/ben-karter-music-ltd-management-company-and-record-label-assistant/ (Accessed: 10 December 2025). 

Buzzsprout (2021) Episode #37 with DC Parmet, Radio Check – Life In The Concert Touring Industry [Podcast], 6 June. Available at: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1249040/episodes/8654170-episode-37-with-dc-parmet (Accessed: 10 December 2025). 

Exploration (2024) What is a Promoter? Available at: https://exploration.io/what-is-a-promoter/ (Accessed: 10 December 2025). 

GRAMMY GO (2024) Becoming a Tour Manager: Responsibilities, Skills, and Salary. Available at: https://go.grammy.com/music-careers/tour-manager/ (Accessed: 10 December 2025). 

Gomes, M. (2025) Mariana Gomes [LinkedIn profile]. Available at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marianadecastrog/ (Accessed: 10 December 2025). 

instantprint (no date) Custom Size & Shape Stickers on a Sheet. Available at: https://www.instantprint.co.uk/stickers-and-labels/custom-size?paper-size=&paper-type=78gsm-gloss-white-shelf-adhesive&additional-finishing=sheets&cut=cad-cut-square-corners&turnaround=3-4-working-days&quantity=100 (Accessed: 10 December 2025). 

Launchpad (2025) ‘Issy Balmforth’, Launchpad Future Leaders 2024. Available at: https://www.launchpad-music.com/futureleaders24/issy (Accessed: 10 December 2025). 

Opera North (2025) Who’s who. Available at: https://www.operanorth.co.uk/about-us/about-opera-north/whos-who/ (Accessed: 10 December 2025). 

Thomson, A. (2020) Artist Management & Marketing: A Beginner’s Guide. Available at: https://myobschool.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Artist-Management-Marketing.pdf (Accessed: 10 December 2025). 

Walsh, M. (2007) Tour:Smart and Break the Band. Chicago: Chicago Review Press.