A group of music agents at Wasserman are demanding that founder and CEO Casey Wasserman step down from the company after his connection to Jeffrey Epstein and racy emails with convicted sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell surfaced last week.
Additionally, Grammy-winning superstar Chappell Roan, who is represented by the agency, is expected to leave Wasserman imminently over the matter, a knowledgeable individual told TheWrap. Billie Eilish left the agency a year ago over revelations of the CEO’s alleged extramarital affairs.
According to two individuals who spoke to TheWrap, the music agents include Duffy McSwiggin, SVP of Music at Wasserman, several others.
McSwiggin represents mega-artists Brandi Carlile, Joni Mitchell, OK Go and Lake Street Dive.
The agents have presented Wasserman with an ultimatum to sell them the music business and leave or they will leave the agency, according to the individuals. Wasserman, originally a sports-focused agency, acquired the music business from Paradigm in 2021.
A spokesperson for Wasserman had no comment when reached by TheWrap. McSwiggin could not be reached for comment. A spokesperson for Roan did not get back to TheWrap before publication.
Wasserman has been under fire for the past week after his appearance in the latest release of Epstein emails, including a set of racy emails with Maxwell, who was found guilty of child sex trafficking in 2021 and is now incarcerated. In one 2003 email, he wrote her: “I think of you all the time. So, what do I have to do to see you in a tight leather outfit?” Wasserman was married at the time.
Wasserman admitted in a statement last week that he flew on Epstein’s private jet as part of a 2002 humanitarian trip with a Clinton Foundation delegation. He apologized, saying he was “terribly sorry for having any association with either of them.”
There is no indication from the public excerpts that Wasserman was involved in Epstein’s or Maxwell’s criminal activities. Asked about this on Fox 11, Los Angeles district attorney Nathan Hochman said: “I see no evidence whatsoever that Mr. Wasserman has committed any type of criminal violation.”
However, pressure against Wasserman has been mounting. Two LA Council members demanded that Wasserman resign from the chairmanship of the LA28, the city’s Olympic committee. Mayor Karen Bass declined to endorse it when asked last week.
Also last week, the frontwoman for the band Best Coast, Bethany Cosentino, called on Wasserman to step down over his emails. It is unknown if other Wasserman clients have pressured their agents over the revelations.
The numerous mention of Wasserman in the Epstein emails have been embarrassing, and come a year after another set of scandalous reports tied to his sexual affairs. In January of last year, TheWrap reported that Patricia Feau, his former secretary and chief of staff, who was later appointed to a high-paying job as vice president at the LA28 Olympic organizing committee, resigned from LA28 amid allegations of an affair and the implication of a payoff with the position. She denied any affair at the time.
Additionally, in 2024 multiple media reports described Wasserman as having had numerous alleged affairs with women who worked for him or were close to his professional circle while he was married to his then-wife, Laura Ziffren Wasserman, from whom he divorced in 2021. The reports referenced alleged relationships with Feau, a flight attendant on his private jet (now his partner) and other women.
Correction: A previous version of this story stated that Brandi Carlile is represented by Wasserman. She left the agency in 2024 for CAA. TheWrap regrets the error.
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