There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to designing your ideal creative career!
At Ears 4 Hats, we believe that the artist’s intuition is the most powerful force in determining the path to success. Making music is personal, and thus requires a personal touch!
Ears 4 Hats is boutique artist management company founded in June 2020. We offer creative growth consultation, social media marketing and administrative support for independent musicians and busy creatives who want to keep their focus in the place where it matters most… making music.
In addition to empowering musicians to grow their career and showcase the best versions of themselves through all-inclusive behind-the-scenes band support, we also offer services a la carte! This includes one-off branding and social media consultation for creatives looking for personalized guidance, as well as graphic and poster design. We also work as a freelance website designer specializing in professional portfolio-style pages for musicians, actors and small businesses.
Ears 4 Hats presents… books and promotes indie shows, with a particular focus on the Los Angeles market. We love discovering new bands and creating performance opportunities for artists on-the-rise.
“Okay, neat. But who will I actually be working with?”
Meet Morgan!
(switches to third person bio-mode real quick, here have a photo)
Morgan Peters (she/her) is the founder, CEO and general gal-in-charge at Ears 4 Hats. As an experienced artist manager and “professional problem solver” with a background in live events, Morgan specializes in nurturing the creative careers of independent musical artists, fostering systems of accountability and making way for professional growth and new opportunities.
Raised in a creative household, Morgan brings to the table a lifelong passion for all things artistic. A performer and visual artist herself, Morgan earned a BFA in Musical Theatre from University of Colorado Boulder. Equal parts savvy admin and supportive cheerleader, she aims to lead with honesty, curiosity, and imagination.
She is based in Los Angeles, CA, where she has currently surrounded herself with half-empty coffee mugs, colored LED bulbs and posters of Dolly Parton.”
FAQ’s
“Ears for what?”
Ears 4 Hats! Our company namesake can be found in the lyrics of the theme song to Josie and the Pussycats. It goes a little something like this:
”Josie and the Pussycats
Long tails, and ears for hats!”
Both the 1970’s Hanna Barbera cartoons (based on the Archie comics) and the 2001 satirical film were a huge influence on the bold, femme, cat person aesthetic and ethical framework of our founder, Morgan — following your own heart and prioritizing the people who stand by us even when things get tough.
“What services do you offer?
At Ears 4 Hats, our bread and butter is supporting the musical career endeavors of our diverse roster of artists. You can learn more about those artists here!
In addition to management, Ears 4 Hats offers a la carte creative consultation and website and graphic design services for artists and small businesses in need of an empathetic ear and a personal touch. Interested? Schedule a free consultation!
Lastly, Ears 4 Hats Presents… is the arm of our business that books and promotes indie shows, primarily focused on the Los Angeles, CA market. Want to submit your band for an upcoming show? Shoot us an email to introduce yourself at ears4hatsmgmt@gmail.com, and include a bio/socials/stream links/live videos. Hopefully we can add you to an upcoming line-up!
“ How much does it cost to work with you? Hourly rates? 💸💰⁉”
A very good question. Ears 4 Hats specializes in supporting indie DIY artists, which also means we are intimately aware of how prohibitively expensive breaking into the music industry (or any other creative field) can be. There are also piles of predatory companies out there looking to scam small artists out of their money through unfilled promises and hidden costs (boo).
So here’s a little transparency for you:
Our management rates generally follow the industry standard of a 15-20% cut, which incentivizes us both to work hard to create opportunities and push your career forward. That being said, we are also open to exploring other monthly retainer based options for artists not quite ready to make the leap to percentage-based contracts. We also always start with a trial period to make sure we’re a good fit for each other before embarking on lengthier contracts.
Our hourly rate for a la carte creative consultations, as well as website design, graphic and poster design is $50 an hour. We absolutely offer payment plans.
Bottom line, there is no one-size-fits-all for this kind of thing, and an hourly rate can only tell you so much when we’re talking art. The best way to figure out if working together is in your budget is to (you guessed it) schedule a free consultation!
“ Why do we need a manager? What can you do for our band that we can’t do for ourselves?”
It’s really good that you’re asking that, because the decision of whether to bring a manager onto your team is extremely personal and entirely depends on the skills, personalities and day-to-day lives of the members of your band!
The truth is, if you’re in early-career unsigned DIY band, having a manager may not be the best fit for you!
But if you’re feeling exhausted by the administrative work, frustrated by not being booked for gigs, confused how touring works, unsure of how to market yourself, trapped by the feeling of “having to do it all by yourself” when what you really WANT to spend your time doing is actually playing music… it may be a sign that your career would benefit from a manager.
It’s not that you can’t do all these things. You’re a creative! You’re capable. But you only have so many hours in a day, and so much energy to expend. We’re here to support you along the way.
“ My band is looking for a manager! Are you accepting submissions? What genres do you represent?”
Neat! To be honest, our roster is a little full-up at the moment, but we are still currently accepting submissions for 1-2 more artists to join the Ears 4 Hats management roster. We are especially interested in representing talent local to Los Angeles, CA, who draw consistently at live gigs and are willing to put the work in on taking their career to the next step.
We are open-minded when it comes to genre! Current and past E4H artists have identified as some combination of Indie Rock, Geek Rock, Folk-Pop, Singer-Songwriter, Americana, Avant-Garde, Alt-Country and Soul or sometimes another unique blend altogether! You know genre… it’s a fickle beast, and often more limiting than helpful as a descriptive tool.
You worry about making the music that you feel called to make, we’ll worry about finding the category that fits when we pitch you for opportunities! :)
“Wait, I’m still confused. Is it Ears 4 Hats? Or Ears for Hats? What’s with the number?”
Look we all make mistakes shopping for domains at 3AM, man, haha.
*sigh* Ears 4 Hats is the ultra-cool stylized version that our 11-year-old selves would have gone with, and Ears for Hats, LLC is what the stressed small business owner backpedaled to when preparing the legal documents. We’re still actively working to find that balance in our branding!
If you’re worried your email didn’t reach us at ears4hatsmgmt@gmail.com or instagram DM at @ears4hatsmgmt, you can use this form instead!
“I’m more of a dog-person. Is that gonna be a problem if we collaborate?”
Of course not! Doggos are very good bois too. 💜
