Black Keys Find New Management After Public Split With Irving Azoff

The Black Keys have signed a new management deal with Red Light Management, a source close to the situation confirms to Rolling Stone. 

The move comes two weeks after the band parted ways with their previous managers Irving Azoff and Steve Moir of Full Stop Management after canceling their arena tour amid reports of low ticket sales.

Red Light is one of the largest management companies in the industry. Founded by Coran Capshaw, Red Light’s biggest clients include Dave Matthews Band, the Strokes and Chris Stapleton, among others. (Capshaw and a rep for the group did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Through a rep, Azoff declined to comment.) 

The Black Keys signed with Azoff in 2021 after splitting with their longtime manager John Peets at Q Prime management. Azoff has been one of the most powerful figures in the music industry for decades and currently manages the Eagles, U2 and John Mayer, among many others. 

Black Keys drummer Patrick Carney told Billboard that after leaving Q Prime, they were deciding between Azoff or Capshaw, going with the former because of “his focus on touring and selling our tickets and stuff.”

Earlier this week, Carney appeared to throw shade at Azoff by writing on X, formerly Twitter, “We got fucked. I’ll let you all know how so it doesn’t happen to you. Stay tuned.” Early Friday morning, he escalated his war with Azoff. Carney retweeted a 2018 Azoff tweet in which Azoff shared an article about YouTube asking artists to sign non-disparagement clauses and added, “Free legal advice to artists from Irving.  It’s not disparagement if it’s true.” Carney, for his part, quipped back, “Thank you! This advice is very important for all musicians. So great you provided this for us all. It’s hard to speak up to the industry at times. So great to know you are always looking out for the artist. :)” (As of Friday evening, Carney deleted both tweets.)

Last month, the band abruptly canceled their planned tour of arenas and amphitheaters and released a statement saying they’d “decided to make some changes” to offer an “exciting, intimate experience for both fans and the band.” About a week later, the group announced a split with Full Stop Management. A rep for Azoff confirmed the decision, describing it as an “amicable parting.”

This is a developing story