When asked what could have possibly prepared John Reese to do a job he estimates less than 100 people in the world do full-time for any significant length of service, he says it has nothing to do with his music background - because he has no music background.

Reese ran an Arizona security company that provided support at rock shows. That led to arranging and maintaining security on the road for touring bands and, eventually, an offer to be tour manager and later on, personal manager of Guns N’ Roses, then the biggest rock band in the world. He says his years on the road with the band provided him with everything he ever needed to know about the music business.

The groupies, the drugs, the egos, the psychosis and, with as big and dysfunctional a band as Guns N’ Roses, the near riots and real riots - these all contributed to Reese learning fast.

The quicksilver implosion of Guns N’ Roses taught Reese to diversify his band portfolio. “Any band, no matter how big, can go bust - there are just too many drugs, girls and egos out there - and so one must always be looking for the next big thing, “working the fields,” and “maintaining your farm system.”

“Ninety-five percent of the bands you work with will never make any real money,” he says. “But that’s the business.”

Of course, since that is the business, and since burgeoning technology seems to be threatening every facet of it, he has diversified his business. He not only represents bands, but also promotes tours – He is the co founder of the Taste of Chaos tour as well as the Get a Life tour. The Taste of Chaos tour has become a worldwide phenomenon and is the only worldwide festival tour playing over 80 Arenas in 22 Countries. Reese started a mobile phone service, a TV production company and, with his wife Elenie, created LiL Punk Clothing, which makes tanks, apparel and T-shirts for babies and toddlers.

His current roster of management clients includes platinum artists The Used, Story of the Year, Head Automatica and is the USA rep for The Cure among many others.  He was instrumental in the signing and success of Limp Bizkit, Slipknot, My Chemical Romance and many others.

“You can’t just have one thing you depend on these days,” he says. “You have to be able to go a few different directions. Because it can all disappear that quick; I’ve seen it. And when it happens, you’re either going to be able to adapt or be destroyed. I love failure,” he says. “Without failure there is no success. You got to get your ass knocked around. It’s all part of the roller coaster and I love the roller coaster.”