The Cure’s Robert Smith and Jordan Rakei are set to be honoured at the 2026 Artist & Manager Awards.
The awards ceremony, organised by Featured Artists Coalition (FAC) and Music Managers Forum (MMF), celebrates the unique relationship between artists and managers and is set to take place at London’s Bloomsbury Big Top on November 18.
Already, Portishead, Jamie Cullum & Rockstar Management, and Raw Power Management have been confirmed as receiving awards on the night, and today (Friday October 23) it is confirmed that The Cure’s Robert Smith will be the recipient of the coveted Fan Champion Award.
The trophy celebrates artists who are using their platforms to look after their audience and drive positive change across the music industry. For Smith, the recognition comes in light of him speaking out about unfair ticketing practices around the time of The Cure’s ‘Lost World Tour’.
In 2023, he made headlines when he criticised Ticketmaster, saying he was “sickened” when he saw that added fees totalled higher than the face value of the tickets themselves. After cancelling over 7,000 tickets on secondary resale sites, Smith was later able to convince the company to issue small reimbursements to verified ticket buyers to compensate for “unduly high” fees.
The following year, he went on to share his thoughts on dynamic ticket pricing, saying he believes it’s a “scam” and “driven by greed”. More recently, Smith backed the advocacy of the FanFair Alliance campaign, and joined calls to the UK Government to deliver their promise to ban ticket touting and introduce a cap on ticket resale prices.
Also set to be celebrated at the 2026 awards is Jordan Rakei, who will receive The Artists’ Voice Award. This comes in recognition of his advocacy and openness about the realities of building a career in music.
The artist has shared the difficulties that came with navigating label relationships, financial pressures and the demands of sustaining a creative life while being an artist, and used his platform to try and help emerging artists facing the same struggles.
“Both these awards recognise artists who have generously used their platforms for a greater good,” said FAC CEO David Martin. “Robert’s plainspeaking approach has been a welcome antidote to the controversies that continue to swirl around ticketing and live music – not only successfully standing up for The Cure’s fanbase, but actively changing business practices in the process.”
He continued: “In a year where the financial and commercial pressures on artists have multiplied, I am also delighted we can shine a light on Jordan’s candour and honesty. Whether through his social channels or online masterclasses, that drive to provoke discussion and share knowledge has been genuinely empowering, alongside a genuinely collaborative approach to music-making.”
Also being celebrated on the night is The Quietus, which is receiving the 2026 Entrepreneur Award after becoming the world’s first employee-owned music management business. It manages an average of 250 live shows a year across this roster, plus multiple new album
releases, catalogue re-releases, documentaries, books and more.
Those nominated for the 2026 Manager Of The Year award include Connor Hunnisett, Jigsaw Music Group (Ren), Emily Braham, Yo & Co Management (Olivia Dean), Owain Davies, OD Management (Sam Fender, Ben Howard) and Phoebe Abu-Gold, Up Close Management (Pinkpantheress).
The winner will be announced at the event, and more winners in other categories will be shared at a later date.
In other news about The Cure, the band recently went out on a tour across the UK and Europe, where Simon Gallup’s son Eden filled in for the longtime bassist after he was taken ill shortly before the first of their three shows. Performances this summer included slots at Open’er in Poland and the Isle Of Wight Festival, as well as huge outdoor shows in Manchester and Edinburgh.
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