EPISODE · Feb 18, 2026 · 1H 9M
Doja Cat's Managers Have It Down
from The New Music Business with Ari Herstand
This week on the New Music Business, Ari sits down with powerhouse managers Gordan Dillard and Josh Kaplan, the team behind global superstar Doja Cat. Together, they break down how they helped build one of the most influential, multi-hyphenate artists of the decade. Gordan and Josh share early viral moments of Doja Cat's diversified empire spanning music, brand partnerships, and new business ventures.Other topics discussed here include: how features really work, how producers differ from beatmakers, what modern record deals look like at the highest level, and why short-form content has completely reshaped the career-building playbook. Gordan and Josh offer candid, unfiltered advice for emerging artists and managers on finding the right partnership, building a fanbase from scratch, and creating leverage in today’s industry.https://www.instagram.com/dojacat/https://www.agood-day.com/04:16 – Why Good Day Management only represents one artist07:19 – Diversifying Doja Cat’s revenue beyond music10:18 – How Gordon & Josh first joined Doja’s team15:40 – The “Juicy” era and early visual strategy17:31 – Doja Cat’s rise during the pandemic20:42 – Long-form videos vs short-form content today24:54 – Balancing artists’ vision with budget and label support29:10 – How label deals and funding have evolved36:28 – How features actually get made (creatively & financially)44:25 – Beatmakers vs producers: what’s the difference?48:37 – Why songs sometimes have 7 writers & 6 producers58:54 – Advice for emerging artists & managers todayEdited and mixed by Peter SchruppMusic by Brassroots DistrictProduced by the team at Ari’s TakeOrder the THIRD EDITION of How to Make It in the New Music Business: https://book.aristake.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
What this episode covers
This week on the New Music Business, Ari sits down with powerhouse managers Gordan Dillard and Josh Kaplan, the team behind global superstar Doja Cat. Together, they break down how they helped build one of the most influential, multi-hyphenate artists of the decade. Gordan and Josh share early viral moments of Doja Cat's diversified empire spanning music, brand partnerships, and new business ventures.Other topics discussed here include: how features really work, how producers differ from beatmakers, what modern record deals look like at the highest level, and why short-form content has completely reshaped the career-building playbook. Gordan and Josh offer candid, unfiltered advice for emerging artists and managers on finding the right partnership, building a fanbase from scratch, and creating leverage in today’s industry.https://www.instagram.com/dojacat/https://www.agood-day.com/04:16 – Why Good Day Management only represents one artist07:19 – Diversifying Doja Cat’s revenue beyond music10:18 – How Gordon & Josh first joined Doja’s team15:40 – The “Juicy” era and early visual strategy17:31 – Doja Cat’s rise during the pandemic20:42 – Long-form videos vs short-form content today24:54 – Balancing artists’ vision with budget and label support29:10 – How label deals and funding have evolved36:28 – How features actually get made (creatively & financially)44:25 – Beatmakers vs producers: what’s the difference?48:37 – Why songs sometimes have 7 writers & 6 producers58:54 – Advice for emerging artists & managers todayEdited and mixed by Peter SchruppMusic by Brassroots DistrictProduced by the team at Ari’s TakeOrder the THIRD EDITION of How to Make It in the New Music Business: https://book.aristake.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Doja Cat's Managers Have It Down
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