<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>Following the tragic suicide of Avicii (Tim Bergling) in 2018, many in the popular media, and reportedly the musician’s own family, were seen to question the ethics of decisions taken by his manager (<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="j_ijmbr-2021-0001_ref_055">Williams, 2018</xref>; <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="j_ijmbr-2021-0001_ref_041">Ralston, 2018</xref>). By applying a moral intensity test (<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="j_ijmbr-2021-0001_ref_030">Jones, 1991</xref>) in the form of a scenario-based questionnaire to six music managers based in London (UK), this article interrogates how and why music managers make the moral and ethical choices they do. The findings suggest that music managers are aware of ethical challenges emanating from their work, but that the relatively informal, loosely regulated nature of the music workplace complicates the negotiation of ethical and moral tensions. However, music managers’ close awareness of the ‘social consensus’ and ‘proximity’ of moral intensity suggests that cultural (as opposed to regulatory) change can help guide and inform managerial decision-making.</p>
</abstract>

Following the tragic suicide of Avicii (Tim Bergling) in 2018, many in the popular media, and reportedly the musician’s own family, were seen to question the ethics of decisions taken by his manager (Williams, 2018; Ralston, 2018). By applying a moral intensity test (Jones, 1991) in the form of a scenario-based questionnaire to six music managers based in London (UK), this article interrogates how and why music managers make the moral and ethical choices they do. The findings suggest that music managers are aware of ethical challenges emanating from their work, but that the relatively informal, loosely regulated nature of the music workplace complicates the negotiation of ethical and moral tensions. However, music managers’ close awareness of the ‘social consensus’ and ‘proximity’ of moral intensity suggests that cultural (as opposed to regulatory) change can help guide and inform managerial decision-making.

Moral Music Management: Ethical Decision-Making After Avicii

University of Westminster & Goldsmiths, University of London

International Journal of Music Business Research

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

{"article-title":"Moral Music Management: Ethical Decision-Making After Avicii"}

Following the tragic suicide of Avicii (Tim Bergling) in 2018, many in the popular media, and reportedly the musician’s own family, were seen to question the...

Moral Music Management: Ethical Decision-Making After Avicii

Article Category: Research Article

Publié en ligne: 30 avr. 2021

Pages: 3 - 16

Reçu: 05 avr. 2020

Accepté: 07 sept. 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/ijmbr-2021-0001

Mots clés
moral, ethics, music management, mental health, music industries

© 2021 Gerardo Chaparro et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Moral Music Management: Ethical Decision-Making After Avicii

Article Category: Research Article

Publié en ligne: 30 avr. 2021

Pages: 3 - 16

Reçu: 05 avr. 2020

Accepté: 07 sept. 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/ijmbr-2021-0001

Mots clésmoral, ethics, music management, mental health, music industries

© 2021 Gerardo Chaparro et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Mots clés
moral, ethics, music management, mental health, music industries