The New Bosses 2025:
James Blackall | The O2

James has quickly risen through the ranks to become Deputy Production Manager thanks to his operational excellence, technical expertise, and relentless commitment to delivering best-in-class experiences.

By IQ | 12 August 2025

James joined The O2 in 2023 as Production Supervisor when he was just 18yrs old. He has quickly risen through the ranks to become Deputy Production Manager thanks to his operational excellence,…

technical expertise, and relentless commitment to delivering a best-in-class experience for the hundreds of artists and performers who come to the venue each year. 

In the past 12 months alone, James has earned key certifications including BS7909, IOSH Managing Safely, and become an AutoCAD Certified Professional—while simultaneously leading…

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THE NEW BOSSES 2025:

Ollie Scully

Wasserman Music

Ollie Scully started as an accounts assistant in 2017, completely oblivious to the possibility of a career in the music industry - accounts in itself was already a career change having trained as a pastry chef.

Max Rosenfeld

Independent Artist Group

In just a few years, Max Rosenfeld has gone from assistant to agent, with a focus on international bookings.

Malin Kimmich

FKP Scorpio

Malin entered the professional world of music at the age of 18, gaining hands-on experience across various areas of event production, from large-scale festivals and clubs to more intimate live music environment

Sandra Schweizer

Gadget

Sandra started working for Natascha Leach and André Béchir in 2018. Everything she know about being a concert promoter and working in the live music business, Sandra learned from them

Robbert Vanderzande

Pukkelpop Fsetival

Robbert is one of the bookers of Pukkelpop, a major Belgian festival held every summer in Hasselt, which celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2025.

Michael Montante

WME

Michael Montante is a music agent at WME, focusing on Asia Pacific as a territory. He works with a team that services both domestic and international artists on the WME Global Talent Roster.

Burak Çekiç

Epifoni Events

After graduation, Burak started his career as a tour manager, and worked in the marketing department of Jolly Joker venue chain, before moving to Charmenko

David Ifere

CAA

David Ifere is a London-based business affairs executive in the music touring department at Creative Artists Agency, where he works across a wide variety of contracts.

Eleanor Weinel

AEG Presents

Eleanor is currently part of the Global Touring International team at AEG Presents, where she works as a tours manager. She joined AEG in 2021 and has risen through the ranks.

Weronika Tomkowska

Charm Music Poland

Weronika leads Charm Music’s Polish office, where she's been working since 2022. She is beginning to expand into artist representation through Charmworks and aims to build her own roster in the near future.

Agnes Steen Eckersberg

All Things Live

Starting out at festivals, Agnes volunteered wherever possible. She worked as a producer and booker for by:Larm, and this year will be her ninth year working with arena rigging for Øya Festival.

Gabby Palmer

SUPER

Gabby Palmer is the Creative Director at SUPER. With a passion for art direction, graphic design, and immersive event management, Gabby excels at crafting moments that leave a lasting impact on fans.

Can Büyükcinar

Wizard Live

From an early age, Can displayed a strong sense of independence, setting his sights on a career in the entertainment industry long before most of his peers had any plans.

María Torres

Mother Artists

María began managing artists while studying at BIMM in 2016, and is passionate about championing women and non-binary professionals.

Ellen McEleney

DF Concerts

Since her start as a student intern seven years ago, Ellen has steadily progressed through the ranks at DF Concerts & Events to become the company’s first home-grown female promoter.

Kara Harris

Live Nation

Kara Harris is a promoter at Live Nation, where they've spent the past three and a half years curating a roster that reflects the richness, versatility, and innovation of today’s music landscape.

Louis Schlaghecke

Frontier Touring

Starting out in Music Central at WME Sydney, Louis Schlaghecke caught the eye of Mushroom Group founder, the late Michael Gudinski, who hired him at Frontier Touring.

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