The Black Keys‘ Patrick Carney and Dan Auerbach have talked for the first time about canceling a major arena tour last year and splitting from manager and music industry mogul Irving Azoff.
“I mean, we fired their ass. Shit happens,” Carney said in a Rolling Stone cover story that published Thursday about parting ways with Azoff, a former Live Nation chairman, and Steve Moir.
Asked to explain how the management relationship soured and the split came about, Carney added: “I don’t even want to mention that guy’s name. I want to look at this from a bigger perspective. The essential thing that we learned here was how many management companies are directly connected to a company that runs every single aspect of promotion in this country.”
The Department of Justice last year sued Live Nation, which also owns and runs Ticketmaster, for antitrust violations, alleging that the conglomerate used its position as the nation’s largest concert promoter, ticket seller and venue owner to undermine competition.
Speaking to Rolling Stone, Carney argued the music management business is too tied to concert ticketing and promotion to allow any independence for bands. “Essentially as artists — and this is the thing that we care the most about — it’s almost impossible to talk about this. … You’re dealing with management companies that co-own festivals with this other company. You’re at the [whims] of these people who have other interests,” he said.
The Black Keys got into business with Azoff and Moir in 2021 after splitting from longtime manager John Peets. With another tour coming up, Carney looked beyond the recent management turmoil and said: “The most important thing for us right now is to just put on good shows that the fans enjoy.”
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