New York City

Michael
Solomon

Entrepreneur  ·  Music Manager  ·  Tech Visionary  ·  Philanthropist

10x Management Brick Wall Management Musicians on Call
Explore His Work Game Changer Book
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About

A Life Bridging Music, Technology & Purpose

"I've always approached talent the same way — whether it's a guitarist or a great engineer. They need someone in their corner who believes in them as much as they believe in themselves."

Born and raised in Manhattan, Michael Solomon built his career at the intersection of three worlds: the music industry, the technology sector, and nonprofit philanthropy. His story is one of relentless entrepreneurship guided by an equally relentless moral compass.

His early career took him through the music business — a stint at Jon Landau Management touring with Bruce Springsteen, three years at Epic Records International, and a role at Sony Music International — before the entrepreneurial itch took hold at age 25.

What followed was a remarkable arc: co-founding six organizations across three decades, each one changing an industry or saving lives. Today he is recognized as a pioneering voice on the future of work, talent, and the healing power of music.

6
Organizations Co-Founded
25+
Years in Talent Management
1.2M+
Hospital Patients Reached by Musicians on Call
$25M+
Raised for Cancer Research

Career Timeline

  • Early Career
    Jon Landau Management — Toured with Bruce Springsteen. Then Epic Records International and Sony Music International.
  • 1995
    Co-founded Brick Wall Management with childhood friend Rishon Blumberg. Went on to manage John Mayer, Vanessa Carlton, and Citizen Cope.
  • 1999
    Co-founded Musicians on Call after organizing a tribute concert at Memorial Sloan Kettering, inspired by the loss of his late fiancée, Kristen Ann Carr.
  • 1999
    Co-founded the Kristen Ann Carr Fund, dedicated to finding a cure for sarcoma and improving the lives of all cancer patients.
  • 2001
    Co-founded 10x Management — the world's first tech talent agency — bringing music management principles to the technology industry.
  • 2014
    Received the President's Volunteer Service Award from President Obama for his work with Musicians on Call.
  • 2020
    Published Game Changer (HarperCollins) — a guide to thriving in the talent economy, co-authored with Rishon Blumberg.
  • 2025
    Appointed Chair of the National Board of Directors of Musicians on Call.

Ventures

Building from the Ground Up

Michael Solomon has co-founded six organizations that have collectively reshaped how talent is managed, how music heals, and how the world fights cancer.

Tech
Founded 2001  ·  New York, NY

10x Management

The world's first tech talent agency. Michael and Rishon Blumberg recognized that great engineers, designers, and CTOs are just like artists — they need representation to get the compensation, projects, and recognition they deserve.

  • Serves clients from Google and Salesforce to Fortune 500 firms
  • Represents heads of cybersecurity, VPs of engineering, CTOs, UX designers
  • Featured in The New Yorker, NYT, Harvard Business Review, Forbes, The Economist
10xmanagement.com
Tech / Negotiation
Co-Founder & Managing Partner  ·  New York, NY

10x Ascend

A boutique compensation negotiation service that helps high-value tech professionals maximize their employment packages. The power of an agent — applied to full-time roles.

  • Specializes in senior tech compensation negotiations
  • Extension of the 10x Management approach for full-time talent
10xascend.com
Music
Founded 1995  ·  New York, NY

Brick Wall Management

A music management powerhouse built with childhood friend Rishon Blumberg. For three decades, Brick Wall has guided some of the biggest names in music from breakthrough to platinum.

  • Managed John Mayer, Vanessa Carlton, Citizen Cope
  • Produced John Mayer's platinum film Any Given Thursday
  • 12+ Grammy nominations, 4 wins; 2 Emmy wins; 10M+ albums sold
brickwallmgmt.com
Nonprofit
Founded 1999  ·  Nationwide

Musicians on Call

Born from a tribute concert at Memorial Sloan Kettering in honor of Kristen Ann Carr, Musicians on Call delivers live and recorded music to hospital patients across the country. Michael was recently appointed Chair of its National Board of Directors.

  • 1,200,000+ performances delivered to patients in all 50 states
  • Nation's largest supplier of music to healthcare facilities
  • Volunteer award named The Michael Solomon Golden Ukulele in his honor
  • President's Volunteer Service Award (Obama, 2014)
musiciansoncall.org
Nonprofit
Co-Founded  ·  New York, NY

The Kristen Ann Carr Fund

Founded in memory of Kristen Ann Carr — Michael's late fiancée who passed at 21 from sarcoma — this fund has become a leading force in cancer research and patient care at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

  • $25M+ raised for sarcoma research
  • Multiple fellowship programs and research initiatives established
  • 20th Anniversary Gala raised $1.2 million in a single night
kristenanncarrfund.org
Nonprofit
Founding Board of Trustees

We Are All Music Foundation

Modeled after The Robinhood Foundation, WAAM awards grants to nonprofits using music in health & wellness, education, and underserved communities — a natural extension of Michael's lifelong mission.

  • Grants to health & wellness, education, and community nonprofits
  • Founded by music industry leaders and media executives
Founding Board of Trustees
Game Changer: How To Be 10x in the Talent Economy — Michael Solomon & Rishon Blumberg

Book

Game Changer

Published by HarperCollins in September 2020, Game Changer distills over two decades of talent management experience into a definitive guide for the modern economy. Co-authored with Rishon Blumberg.

The secrets to becoming a "10xer" in any industry — and how to attract, manage, and retain the talent that will carry your organization forward.

Drawing on lessons from music management, tech startups, and decades of negotiation, Solomon and Blumberg reveal what separates truly exceptional performers from the rest — and what organizations must do to find, keep, and empower them.

Buy on Amazon Speaking Engagements

Impact & Recognition

Measured in Lives Changed

From bringing music to hospital bedsides to funding life-saving cancer research, Michael Solomon's philanthropic legacy is as significant as his business one.

🎵
Musicians on Call
Since 1999

Co-founded after organizing a tribute concert for Kristen Ann Carr at Memorial Sloan Kettering, Musicians on Call now brings the healing power of music to patients in every corner of the country.

1.2M+
Patients reached
50
States with programs
❤️
Kristen Ann Carr Fund
In Memoriam

Founded to honor Kristen Ann Carr, who passed away at 21 from sarcoma while she and Michael were engaged. The fund has become a leading force in sarcoma research at Memorial Sloan Kettering.

$25M+
Raised for research
$1.2M
Raised at 20th Anniversary Gala

Awards & Recognition

  • 🏅
    President's Volunteer Service Award
    2014 · Presented by President Barack Obama
  • 🏆
    Musicians on Call Lifetime Achievement Award
    2019 · 20th Anniversary Celebration
  • 🎸
    Michael Solomon Volunteer Musician Golden Ukulele
    2020 · Award named in his honor in perpetuity
  • 🎙️
    Chair, National Board of Directors
    2025 · Musicians on Call
  • 📖
    Author, Game Changer (HarperCollins)
    2020 · Featured in NYT, Forbes, HBR, WSJ and more
  • 🎤
    Speaker: Kennedy Center, SXSW
    Expert on the Freelance Economy & Future of Work

In the Press

As Seen In

Connect

Let's Talk Talent,
Music & Purpose

Whether you're a company looking to hire exceptional tech talent, an artist or engineer seeking representation, or a philanthropist looking to make music matter — Michael Solomon's work touches many worlds.

10x Management LinkedIn Brick Wall Mgmt Musicians on Call Kristen Ann Carr Fund