Inside Music Co-Management Agreements for Toronto Artists

Music careers do not grow in a straight line. With touring, festivals and release campaigns across Toronto and the rest of Canada, artists may find that one personal manager is not enough to cover everything happening at once. Co-management is one way to share the workload, bring in new skills and still keep your career moving in a clear direction.

In this article, we outline what co-management actually is, how it fits into your team, the key clauses to watch for, and where legal support often becomes helpful. Our goal is to help you understand the structure so you can ask better questions before you sign anything.

Why Toronto Artists Are Turning to Co-Management

When touring and festival offers occur at the same time as release plans, social media campaigns and sync pitches, the demands on a single personal manager are intense. Co-management lets two managers share responsibilities and bring different strengths to your project.

Co-management generally means you engage two or more managers at the same time, under a shared structure. That is different from:

A traditional exclusive management agreement, where one manager or company controls your management rights
A booking agency agreement, where an agent only books shows and tours, often in a defined territory

Co-managers deal with many other contracts, including:

Agency agreements
Live performance contracts and riders
Music publishing and recording agreements that managers help negotiate
Master and sync licenses

The more of these documents you sign, the more important it becomes to keep the relationships clear and consistent.

How Co-Management Fits Into Your Music Team

A modern music team is like a small company. Each person plays a specific role and their agreements should match that role.

Typically:

A personal manager oversees your overall career strategy and daily business
A co-manager may focus on a particular area, such as road management, including touring, content, endorsements, sync and master use placements
A booking agent handles live performance offers and tour routing under an agency or booking agreement

Co-management often makes sense when:

You are expanding into new territories inside or outside Canada
You are building both your recording and live careers at the same time
You need a manager with special skills, such as touring, sync licensing, social media, or brand partnerships

These management relationships usually deal with other relevant contracts to an artist’s careers, such as:

Producer agreements and recording agreements with labels or independent partners
Music publishing contracts, including single song, exclusive term, or co-publishing agreements
Live performance agreements for tours, festivals, and one-off shows

All of these deals interact. For example, a co-manager focused on sync may be closely involved in composer agreements, synchronization licences, and master use licences, while the other manager stays focused on tour deals and endorsements.

Core Clauses in Music Co-Management Agreements

Co-management agreements are still management agreements at their core. They usually cover the same main topics, but with extra detail about how power and income are shared between managers.

Key business terms often include:

Scope of authority, what each manager can do on your behalf
Duration and options to renew
Territory, for example, worldwide or specific countries
Services, such as handling contracts and riders, merchandising agreements, endorsements releases, and collaboration agreements

Compensation and commission are central points. Co-management agreements will usually set out:

What income is commissionable, such as recording agreements, distribution deals, synchronization licences, live performance agreements, merchandising, endorsements and administration of your music catalogue
How commission is split between the co-managers
How pre-existing deals are treated, for example, existing masters or publishing contracts

Power-sharing and conflict clauses help prevent issues later. These may cover:

How decisions are made between co-managers and when your artist’s direct approval is needed
Tie-break or deadlock mechanisms if the managers disagree
Who has control over branding and trademarks, including your stage name and logo
Who oversees music publishing deals, master use licences and other long-term agreements
How the co-management agreement fits with any existing personal service agreements or earlier management agreements

Clear wording can make the difference between a healthy partnership and ongoing tension.

Protecting Your Rights, Royalties, and Catalogue

Your management team often has a big role in building and protecting your intellectual property. A careful co-management agreement should limit who can commit your rights and on what terms.

On the publishing side, the agreement can clarify:

Who is allowed to negotiate and sign composer agreements
How publisher single song contracts, co-publishing agreements and sub-publishing agreements are approved
How administration of your music catalogue is handled and by whom

On the recording side, co-management can affect ownership and control of your masters and recordings.

Common arrangements include:

Development deals and record production agreements
Master purchase and sale agreements and domestic or foreign licensing of record masters
Producer and remixer agreements, including credit, royalty splits, and approval rights

Royalties and accounting are another key area.

Co-management contracts can address:

How often royalty and income reporting is reviewed and by whom
The process for reviewing accounting and royalty statements from labels, publishers, and other partners
Use of indemnities, guarantees, confidentiality agreements and non-disclosure agreements to protect your income and your business reputation

These protections can be especially important when your earnings start to rely more on publishing and catalogue income over time.

Avoiding Common Co-Management Pitfalls in Toronto

From the perspective of a music agreement lawyer, we often see the problems that can occur in co-management situations. These problems are usually easier to prevent than to address later.

Typical issues include:

Overlapping commissions on the same income streams
Conflicting strategies between co-managers, for example, touring vs recording priorities
Vague exit provisions about what happens when one co-manager leaves or is terminated
Hidden control over trademarks, domain names, or social media accounts

Another issue is failing to update older agreements when a co-manager joins the team.

Often, artists need amending agreements or addenda to bring:

Previous management agreements in line with the new co-management structure
Live performance contracts into line with the new commission set-up
Existing agreements into line with updated branding or new rights holders

Emerging artists in Toronto have extra issues to address, such as:

Contracts with minors and how guardians or parents are involved
Musical group partnership agreements that sort out ownership among band members
Personal service agreements that may be tied to an individual manager
Ensuring proper copyright and trademark registrations as the artist profile grows during busy months

Sorting out key issues early often affords the whole management team more room to grow together.

When to Call a Music Agreements Lawyer in Toronto

Co-management touches many parts of an artist’s business at once.

Any time you are:

Linking co-management to recording and music publishing agreements
Tying in live performance agreements or touring structures
Connecting management terms to music publishing contracts, merchandising, or endorsement deals

It is advisable to obtain independent legal advice before you sign.

Music law lawyers at a specialized entertainment law firm can:

Review or draft co-management agreements so they fit with your existing contracts
Negotiate and draft commission structures and clarify scopes of authority for each manager
Align management and co-management terms with other entertainment businesses
Support mediations or other dispute resolution efforts, if managers or artists fall into conflict

At Sanderson Entertainment Law in Toronto, we focus on music, film, television, visual arts, and literary works. Our role is to help artists, managers and industry professionals understand the agreements in front of them, protect rights/catalogues and build structures that can support a long-term creative career.

Protect Your Music Career With Clear, Confident Agreements

If you are negotiating a record deal, collaboration, or licensing arrangement, we can help you understand the fine print before you sign. Experienced with music agreements,, Sanderson Entertainment Law focuses on practical, plain-language advice so you know exactly where you stand. We can advise regarding your options, identify risks and help you secure terms that reflect your creative and financial goals. To schedule a consultation or ask a question, contact us.

This post is written for Canadian artists and is based on Canadian law. It is general information only and is not legal advice for your specific situation.

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