Backbone Management received the ninth Finnish Music Export Award at the Music x Media Industry Awards 2025. Head of Management Antti Eriksson says he learned from the best and has had the privilege to work with the best.

The artist roster of Backbone Management reads almost like a who’s who of Finnish rock and metal music: Ville Valo, Blind Channel, The Rasmus, Stam1na, and Swallow the Sun just to name a few. The jury’s reasoning for the Finnish Music Export Award 2025 defined the company as one of the leading management companies for globally successful rock artists.

“Of course, it feels good to get recognition for all the hard work, but I always say that if we didn’t have great artists, all the work would be pointless. In the end, the credit for the award belongs to the artists”, says Head of Management Antti Eriksson from Backbone Management.

If we didn’t have great artists, all the work would be pointless – Antti Eriksson

With a solid Finnish roster, Backbone Management recently opened an office in London, UK, and signed three British bands: Bones UK, SikTH, and Vexed.

“Expansion was a goal for us for a long time, and we considered different options. The UK is, of course, a huge market, and for us as a Finnish company, it felt like a logical step forward.”

Eriksson gives credit to Music Finland for supporting the success of Backbone Management.

"Finnish rock and metal have had a lot of global interest for decades. However, there is still a need for support, and Music Finland plays a key role in this. Music Finland has supported Backbone Management's successful exports for many years.”

Carrying Seppo Vesterinen's torch

Eriksson founded Backbone Management in 2014 together with CEO Panu Piippo. His career began as an A&R assistant at PolyGram Records and later Universal Records.

In the mid-00s, Eriksson was a part of Dynasty Recordings, working with bands like Kwan and The Rasmus in different roles. He became friends with Seppo Vesterinen, the late grand old man of Finnish music management, best known for his work with HIM, The Rasmus, and Hanoi Rocks.

Since the beginning, we set high goals and wanted to work for them consistently – Antti Eriksson

“Seppo became a mentor for me, and I still carry his teachings and principles with me to this day”, Eriksson says.

The idea behind Backbone Management was to focus on building long-term artist careers.

“Since the beginning, we set high goals and wanted to work for them consistently. We make plans with artists for a period of three or four years, for example. Of course, things change, plans change, and unexpected things happen, but then we simply re-assess rather than give up”, Eriksson explains.

Fulfilling the vision of the artist

Never mind how strong the management is, everything comes down to the vision of the artist. Eriksson seeks to find artists with a clear vision and the ability to give 110% into fulfilling it.

“If the artist is not willing to give 110%, I don’t think it’s worth even trying. And we, as managers, must fall in love with the vision of the artist. If we try to push our own ideas instead, things become superficial.”

We, as managers, must fall in love with the vision of the artist – Antti Eriksson

Backbone Management has always had a strong emphasis on music export and building international careers. It’s no wonder the company focuses on rock and metal, as the best-known Finnish music export success stories come from these genres.

“It’s probably due to working with Seppo and just the history and culture in Finland.”

It doesn’t hurt that the rock and metal bands are usually willing to build careers spanning over decades.

Hard rock equals hard work

In the future, Backbone Management will continue the hard work with the recent expansion. Apart from more traveling and late-night meetings, Eriksson expects to be able to make the company grow sustainably.

“With COVID, we already realized that we had a strong basis. Of course, we lost money when everything was shut down, but we also saw that we could handle it.”

Backbone Management currently employs seven people. Panu Piippo is the CEO and handles the economic side, and Eriksson focuses on the management side. The staff includes UK director and partner Adam Sagir, managers Henkka Seppälä and Katja Vauhkonen, management coordinator Taina Franzen, and management assistant Saara Salminen.

“With the expansion, the same principles still apply to everything we do.”