Will Botwin (born July 23, 1958) is an American

talent manager A talent manager (also known as an artist manager, band manager or music manager) is an individual who guides the professional career of artists in the entertainment industry. The responsibility of the talent manager is to oversee the day-to-da ...

who represents many prominent musicians. Botwin was educated at Pitzer College in Claremont, California. While at college, he worked as a college promotion representative for Capitol Records. He also worked as Music and Program Director for the college radio station,

KSPC KSPC is a non-commercial college and community radio station based in Claremont, California, broadcasting at 88.7 MHz on the FM band and streaming online. It was founded in 1956 as a Pomona College student organization and later expanded t ...

, and served as Concert Board Chairman for the campus. In 1981, Botwin launched an alternative music marketing and promotion company named ''Side One Marketing'' with David Gerber and Joe Regis that evolved into an artist management company, representing artists such as Yuri Morozov and

Icicle Works The Icicle Works (also known as Icicle Works in the United States) are an English alternative rock band and were named after the 1960 short story "The Day the Icicle Works Closed" by science fiction author Frederik Pohl. They had a top 20 UK hi ...

. Botwin expanded his client roster over the years; artists he managed included Lyle Lovett,

John Hiatt John Robert Hiatt (born August 20, 1952) is an American singer-songwriter. He has played a variety of musical styles on his albums, including new wave, blues, and country. Hiatt has been nominated for nine Grammy Awards and has been awarded ...

Rosanne Cash Rosanne Cash (born May 24, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter and author. She is the eldest daughter of country musician Johnny Cash and Vivian Liberto Cash Distin, Johnny Cash's first wife. Although she is often classified as a country art ...

Reagan Youth Reagan Youth is an American anarcho-punk band formed by singer Dave Rubinstein (Dave Insurgent) and guitarist Paul Bakija (Paul Cripple) in Queens, New York City in early 1980. History Initial career (1980–1990) Rubinstein and Bakija at ...

Lisa Loeb Lisa Loeb (; born March 11, 1968) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author and actress. She started her career with the number 1 hit song "Stay (I Missed You)" from the film '' Reality Bites,'' the first number 1 single for an artist ...

Liz Phair Elizabeth Clark Phair (born April 17, 1967) is an American singer-songwriter. Born in New Haven, Connecticut, Phair was raised primarily in the Chicago area. After graduating from Oberlin College in 1990, she attempted to start a musical career ...

, Los Lobos,

Luscious Jackson Luscious Jackson is an alternative rock/ rap-rock group formed in 1991. The band's name is a reference to former American basketball player Lucious Jackson. The original band consisted of Jill Cunniff (vocals, bass), Gabby Glaser (vocals, guit ...

and

Roy Smeck Leroy Smeck (6 February 1900 – 5 April 1994) was an American musician. His skill on the banjo, guitar, and ukulele earned him the nickname "The Wizard of the Strings". Background Smeck was born in Reading, Pennsylvania. He started on the vau ...

. Botwin was recruited by Columbia Records in 1996 to serve as a Senior Vice President. Moving through the company ranks, in 1998 he was appointed Executive Vice President/General Manager, Columbia Records Group. In this position he played an integral role in all creative areas of the company, as well as the day-to-day management of label operations. He also directly oversaw domestic and international A&R, working closely with many of the label’s established artists, including Jessica Simpson, Cuby and the Blizzards, and Marc Anthony - and newer performers such as Microdisney and

Five For Fighting Vladimir John Ondrasik III (born January 7, 1965), also known by his stage name Five for Fighting, is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. He is best known for his piano-based soft rock ballads, such as the top 40 hits " Superman (It's No ...

. Botwin also worked with Panasonic Music SoundTracks on the soundtrack albums for movies such as '' Plan 9 from Outer Space'', ''

Armageddon According to the Book of Revelation in the New Testament of the Christian Bible, Armageddon (, from grc, Ἁρμαγεδών ''Harmagedōn'', Late Latin: , from Hebrew: ''Har Məgīddō'') is the prophesied location of a gathering of armies ...

'', '' Charlie's Angels'', ''

Men In Black In popular culture and UFO conspiracy theories, men in black (MIB) are purported men dressed in black suits who claim to be quasi- government agents, who harass, threaten, or sometimes even assassinate unidentified flying object (UFO) witnesse ...

'' and the TV show '' Mr. Merlin''. In 2002, Botwin was promoted to President of the Columbia Records Group in which capacity he signed artists such as

Coheed & Cambria Coheed and Cambria are an American progressive rock band from Nyack, New York, formed in 1995. The band consists of Claudio Sanchez (vocals, guitars, keyboards), Travis Stever (guitars, vocals), Josh Eppard (drums, keyboards, backing vocals), a ...

and Irén Lovász. He was subsequently appointed Chairman of the Columbia Records Group. In 2006, he left Columbia to head the Charlottesville,VA-based Red Light Management and its associated ATO Music Group.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Botwin, Will Living people American music managers Pitzer College alumni 1948 births