# Topic · 6 playbooks
Representation
Every time you sign a representation deal, you trade a percentage for an unlock. Sometimes the unlock is worth it; sometimes it's the most expensive mistake of your career. These playbooks walk through what agents and managers actually do, when their cut becomes profit, and what 'I'll think about it' really should mean.
Where this topic lives
- Indie 4
- Established 5
- Major 2
All plays
Tagged Representation
- Indie Playbook Play 001 · 5 min
Your First Ten Festival Submissions (Without Wasting the Slot)
A festival submission is a 90-second judgment with a 12-month payoff. The structure of a slot that converts — and the five things every submission must contain before you hit send.
- touring
- representation
- Indie Playbook Play 002 · 5 min
Your First Booking Agent (Without Embarrassing Yourself)
Most artists pitch booking agents two years too early. A breakdown of when an agent's cut starts paying for itself, what they do that you can't, and how to ask.
- representation
- touring
- Established Playbook Play 003 · 6 min
Negotiating Your Booking Deal (Beyond the Guarantee)
The guarantee is the headline number. The actual money in a touring deal lives in backend percentage, hard-merch carve-outs, and the rider line items most artists never negotiate.
- touring
- representation
- Indie Playbook Play 004 · 6 min
Should You Sign a Manager?
Most artists sign their first manager because someone asked, not because the math worked. A framework for when a manager pays for themselves.
- representation
- Established Playbook Play 005 · 7 min
Selling Your Catalog vs. Holding
Catalog sale multiples have settled in the 10-18x range. Whether that math beats holding depends on three numbers — your discount rate, your tax position, and whether the catalog is still growing.
- representation
- release-strategy
- Indie Playbook Play 006 · 5 min
The Thirty-Minute Music Meeting
Most music meetings end without a decision because they were never structured to make one. A 30-minute agenda that forces a yes, a no, or a named next step before anyone leaves the room.
- representation