The Live100: Coran Capshaw

In 1991 Grateful Dead fan Coran Capshaw gave the then-unheralded Dave Matthews Band a weekly residency at his Charlottesville nightclub, Trax. Matthews and his ragtag group would play anywhere for anyone, and they encouraged fans to tape their performances, virtues that immediately appealed to Capshaw. He soon signed on to manage his first, and still flagship, act.

“I trust [Coran] absolutely and I trust his intentions completely,” Matthews said recently, at a dinner honoring the notoriously press-averse Capshaw with the T.J. Martell Foundation Lifetime Music Industry Award. “He’s one of the very few people I can say that with complete confidence… I feel like every penny that I’ve paid him or made for him, which is quite a pile, he’s earned.”

Beginning with Matthews, Capshaw has built his company, Red Light Management, from a small, grassroots firm into the largest independent music-management company in the world, overseeing about 80 managers in multiple cities and more than 400 artists, a number of whom Capshaw still oversees day-to-day operations for from his Charlottesville headquarters.

Longtime client Chris Stapleton continued his near decade-long All-American Roadshow tour in the summer and fall of ’26, headlining festivals, arenas, amphitheaters and stadiums, grossing over $80m. Phish performed its second residency at Sphere and rolled into a 21-date summer run that included a five-night sold-out stand at Madison Square Garden. And DMB continued its multi-decade run as a dominant live act with a 35-date summer trek.

Entrepreneur Capshaw also plays a major role in the development of festivals—he was the primary initial investor in Bonnaroo—and venues nationwide and has extended his reach by becoming a concert promoter, label owner, merchandiser, real-estate developer and philanthropist.

Capshaw’s empire is far-flung. In Red Light’s Nashville office, manager Mary Hilliard Harrington runs point on such clients as Dierks Bentley, Elle King, The Black Keys and Band Loula, while Enzo DeVincenzo looks after Parker McCollum, Lee Brice, Lee Ann Womack and Catie Offerman. Madelyn Monchik manages Lainey Wilson, and Zach Sutton and Daniel Miller take care of Riley Green and Jordan Davis.

In Los Angeles, industry vet Bruce Eskowitz shepherds the careers of Lionel Richie, The Smashing Pumpkins, Miguel and Il Divo, while Bruce Flohr rolls with O.A.R., Switchfoot, Allen Stone, Bret Michaels and Nancy Wilson.

Former Columbia Records exec Will Botwin in New York oversees Nathaniel Rateliff as well as the Tom Petty Estate with Capshaw, while Seattle-based Jason Colton keeps a watchful eye on Phish, Khruangbin, The Decemberists and mandolin virtuoso Chris Thile and his groups Punch Brothers and Nickel Creek. And in London, James Sandon is responsible for Gang of Youths, Kaiser Chiefs, Interpol and Franz Ferdinand.

I trust Coran absolutely and I trust his intentions completely.”—Dave Matthews

Capshaw launched live-music promotion company Starr Hill Presents in 2002, which has equity in festivals including Outside Lands, South by Southwest and Pilgrimage. He partnered with Live Nation to open Allianz Amphitheater in Richmond, Virginia, which opened its doors in 2025.

Pollstar has named Capshaw its Manager of the Year a record six times.

At the T.J. Martell gala, Stapleton, Phish’s Trey Anastasio and Matthews all performed in Capshaw’s honor, helping to raise $3.2m for cancer research. Between gentle jibes, Matthews marveled at the bond between him and Capshaw. “Coran’s been my manager for 34 years,” he said. “That’s pretty rare.”