High Road Touring
High Road Touring is a privately held indie music booking agency representing hundreds of alternative and indie artists for live performances worldwide. Founded in 2001 by Frank Riley, it earns commissions on bookings from offices in Sausalito, Austin, and Brooklyn.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2001
- HeadquartersSausalito, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What High Road Touring does
High Road Touring is a privately held, independent booking agency that represents hundreds of indie and alternative music artists for live performances. Founded in 2001 by Frank Riley and headquartered in Sausalito, California, the firm operates additional offices in Austin, Texas, and Brooklyn, New York, supporting artist representation across North America, South America, Australia, and Asia. Its single core product is artist booking and talent management, delivered through dedicated agents who book venues, festivals, and concert halls on behalf of represented musicians such as Phoebe Bridgers, Wilco, Mitski, Interpol, Yo La Tengo, Brittany Howard, and Joan Baez.
The agency's revenue model is transaction-based: it earns commissions on each live performance it books for its roster, with no publicly disclosed pricing schedule. Go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven, with each artist assigned a named agent (e.g., frank@, dina@, zachary@, kevin@, matt@, sam@, al@, morgan@) handling direct negotiations with promoters and venues. The underlying technology stack is described as a "Music touring and live event booking platform" with no proprietary features, no API surface, and no mobile applications; the value proposition is anchored in agent relationships and industry reputation rather than software differentiation.
High Road Touring is structured as High Road Touring, LLC, a California LLC with no disclosed parent company, no institutional investors, and no funding rounds. The firm is founder-led, with Frank Riley recognized on Pollstar's 2026 Impact 50 list. It maintains a formal presence across Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter, and has positioned itself within the indie booking community via Riley's leadership role in forming the National Independent Talent Organization during the pandemic. No AI/ML capabilities, patents, certifications, regulatory actions, or M&A activity are disclosed.
High Road Touring firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- High Road Touring
- Legal name
- High Road Touring, LLC
- Website
- https://highroadtouring.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2001
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- High Road Touring is a privately held indie music booking agency representing hundreds of alternative and indie artists for live performances worldwide. Founded in 2001 by Frank Riley, it earns commissions on bookings from offices in Sausalito, Austin, and Brooklyn.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
High Road Touring industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Music Booking Agency
- NAICS
- Musical Groups and Artists (71113)
- SIC
- Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Talent Booking Agencies (Live Performance) (MPAIAGAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Tour & Artist Management Services (HSACAHAN), Artist Booking, Talent Buying & Agency Services (MPAGAAAF), Tour & Road Management (MPAIAGAC)
Keywords
Where High Road Touring is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Sausalito
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
High Road Touring business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Booking Commissions: High Road Touring generates revenue through commissions from booking live music performances for their represented artists at venues, festivals, and concert halls across the globe.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
High Road Touring product offering
Product offeringCore offering
High Road Touring operates as an independent booking agency that represents indie and alternative music artists and books them for live performances at venues, festivals, and concert halls across North America and international territories. The agency provides artist booking and tour coordination services through a roster of dedicated agents who manage artist careers and secure live performance engagements. Revenue is generated through commissions on booked performances.
Product overview
High Road Touring operates as a single, unified talent booking agency dedicated to the growth and development of successful live music careers. Founded in 2001 by Frank Riley, the agency provides artist booking and talent management services, representing a diverse roster of touring musicians and coordinating live performances across North America, South America, Australia, and Asia. The company has three office locations in Sausalito, CA, Austin, TX, and Brooklyn, NY.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Artist Booking & Talent Representation Booking and talent representation services for live music performances, representing a roster of hundreds of indie and alternative touring musicians and coordinating shows across venues, festivals, and concert halls in North America and internationally.
Companies that use High Road Touring
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
High Road Touring technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
High Road Touring partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- National Independent Talent OrganizationcoreFrank Riley was instrumental in the formation of the National Independent Talent Organization during the pandemic, indicating a leadership role in the independent music talent community.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights4 records
High Road Touring competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Monterey International: Independent booking agency representing a roster of established indie, alternative, and roots artists. Directly comparable as a mid-sized indie-focused booking firm with a similar artist-development ethos and Pollstar-recognized principals.
- Madison House: Boutique booking agency representing artists in the indie, jam, and Americana spaces. Comparable as a similarly-sized indie-focused booking firm with a development-oriented approach and multi-region U.S. presence.
- Little Big Agency: Boutique booking agency representing independent artists across genres. Comparable as a small, relationship-driven booking firm with a development-focused approach serving the indie music segment.
- Ground Control Touring: Independent talent booking agency founded by a former Windish agent, representing a roster of indie and alternative artists. Comparable as a boutique booking firm of similar scale focused on artist development in the indie segment.
- Artist Group International (AGI): Independent booking agency with a roster spanning rock, alternative, and indie artists. Comparable as a similarly-sized boutique firm focused on live music booking and artist development in the indie/alternative space.
Broad incumbents
- United Talent Agency (UTA): Global talent and entertainment company representing artists, athletes, and content creators. Competes for booking representation in the indie/alternative segment as part of a much larger, diversified agency portfolio.
- Creative Artists Agency (CAA): One of the largest diversified talent agencies globally, with a significant music touring division. Competes with High Road Touring for established and breakout indie/alternative artists who cross over into mainstream commercial success.
- Paradigm Talent Agency: Major full-service talent agency with a substantial indie and alternative touring department (which absorbed The Windish Agency). Overlaps with High Road Touring on indie/alternative booking but offers a much broader portfolio across film, TV, publishing, and brand partnerships.
- William Morris Endeavor (WME): Global entertainment agency representing talent across music, film, sports, and events. Represents the largest competitive threat for breakout indie artists and competes in the live music booking space that is High Road Touring's core business.
Others
- National Independent Talent Organization (NITO): Industry trade organization co-founded by High Road's Frank Riley during the pandemic to represent independent talent agencies. Comparable as an ecosystem participant rather than a competitor — its strength or weakness directly affects the bargaining position of High Road Touring and its independent agency peers.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
High Road Touring social profiles
Digital presenceHigh Road Touring financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
High Road Touring leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
High Road Touring funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
High Road Touring M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about High Road Touring
What does High Road Touring do?
High Road Touring operates as an independent booking agency that represents indie and alternative music artists and books them for live performances at venues, festivals, and concert halls across North America and international territories. The agency provides artist booking and tour coordination services through a roster of dedicated agents who manage artist careers and secure live performance engagements. Revenue is generated through commissions on booked performances.
Is High Road Touring a public or private company?
High Road Touring is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was High Road Touring founded?
High Road Touring was founded in 2001. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is High Road Touring based?
High Road Touring is headquartered in Sausalito, United States, in the North America region.
How does High Road Touring make money?
One revenue line is on record: booking Commissions.
Who are High Road Touring's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Monterey International, Madison House, Little Big Agency, Ground Control Touring and Artist Group International (AGI). Broad incumbents are United Talent Agency (UTA), Creative Artists Agency (CAA), Paradigm Talent Agency and William Morris Endeavor (WME). National Independent Talent Organization (NITO) is listed as an others.
Does High Road Touring have an API?
No public API is recorded for High Road Touring.
What industry is High Road Touring in?
High Road Touring's product category is Music Booking Agency. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAIAGAB, Talent Booking Agencies (Live Performance), with a secondary code of HSACAHAN, Tour & Artist Management Services. Its NAICS code is 71113 and its SIC code is 7900.