Veteran Booking Agent Wayne Forte Is Auctioning Off a Private Meeting to Raise Money for Charity

Veteran booking agent Wayne Forte with Entourage Talent and Paladin Artists is auctioning off a private meeting to raise money for the National Independent Talent Organization (NITO).

Forte is a widely respected talent agent whose clients include Duane Betts, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Joe Satriani and more. The native New Yorker has been booking artist in the music business since his days at North Carolina State University and has worked with legendary acts including Duran Duran, The Jam, Joe Jackson, Killing Joke, The Vapors, Depeche Mode, Adam and the Ants, Peter Gabriel, Genesis, King Crimson and Billy Idol.

It was through working at International Creative Management (ICM) that Forte met and began working with David Bowie. He later moved to the William Morris Agency, where he signed The Clash and brought the U.K. band to the U.S. for its 1978 Give ‘Em Enough Rope Tour. While at William Morris, he also helped sign Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Iggy Pop and The Cure, among other artists, and was eventually named the head of the agency’s East Coast music department.

Forte struck out on his own in 1981, joining fellow William Morris agent Michael Farrell to launch International Talent Group. Through that agency, the duo booked and co-produced Bowie’s 1983 Serious Moonlight tour and expanded into the arena and stadium touring world, eventually signing artists like The Psychedelic Furs, Sade, Radiohead and more. In 1993, he launched Entourage Talent Associates and, in 2021, entered into a strategic partnership with booking agents Steve Martin and Andy Somer to form Paladin Artists. Forte is also a founding member of NITO, which lobbies for state and federal legislation on behalf of independent live music organizations, artists and music fans.

The auction for a meeting with Forte has been organized by Charity Buzz. Click here to learn more and submit a bid.