Photo: Peter Katsis | By Staff, Hits Daily Double.com | Peter Katsis, whom Vanity Fair once called “the best manager in the music business, period,” died on Thursday of complications from congestive heart failure. He was 69. His death was confirmed to HITS by his son Ian.
A native of Chicago, Katsis became a partner in The Firm in 1997, working with partner and CEO Jeff Kwatinetz to develop the careers of Backstreet Boys, Korn and Limp Bizkit, turning them into arena headliners. Katsis, Kwatinetz and Rich Frank founded Prospect Park Entertainment in 2008, spending the next six years managing Smashing Pumpkins, Jane’s Addiction and Ice Cube in addition to Korn and Backstreet Boys. Since 2015, Katsis continued to work with Smashing Pumpkins and Jane’s Addiction while guiding Morrissey, Bush and Liz Phair to comebacks.
Born Feb. 15, 1957, Katsis attended Northern Illinois University, where he served on the concert committee. After graduation, he began his music career in 1980 by managing Ministry, then a synth-rock outfit headed by Al Jourgensen. Katsis steered Ministry toward a deal with Arista, then became an A&R executive at Trax Records, pivotal to the rise of house music. He also worked as a booking agent for Chicago house artists, landing Marshall Jefferson and Adonis gigs at such fabled venues as New York’s Paradise Garage and London’s Ministry of Sound.
Katsis headed to Los Angeles in 1991, spending the next few years managing an eclectic roster of artists that included psychobilly rockers The Cramps, new wavers General Public and the mellow jazz duo Tuck and Patti.
After becoming a partner in The Firm, he worked closely with Kwatinetz, setting Korn and Limp Bizkit on the trajectory that led them from clubs to arenas. He likewise developed the touring strategies that brought Backstreet Boys from arenas to stadiums. In 1999, the group’s Into the Millennium tour sold out 735,000 tickets, setting a Ticketmaster record. The tour would earn Katsis a Pollstar award for Most Creative Stage Design.
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Read more here:
https://www.hitsdailydouble.com/news/obituaries/peter-katsis-powerhouse-manager-and-co-founder-of-the-firm-dies-at-69-2026-08-06?
OTHER NOTABLE MUSICIANS’ DEATHS
Scotty Brown: Myself & Project X would like to send our deepest condolences with the sudden passing of Jeremy Krause the owner of The Angry Clover, our hearts go out to Allie Krause and the entire family.
Steve Pavey: VERY sad news. When Revenant Band played at the Angry Clover, Jeremy was so supportive of us. I am so sad to hear this news because he was one of the nicest guys!
Warning Signs of Suicide – National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or if you want to discuss, call the old numbers at 800-273-TALK or 800-273-8255 for English and 888-628-9454 for Spanish. Learn the signs of someone who may be contemplating suicide.
Posting for my Veteran/singer/songwriter/musician friend Troy Hoss: Heavy on my heart so here goes: This is a very real problem … 22 Veterans a day surrender to their demons. #SuicideAwareness | Call Veteran’s Hotline: 988 #1 or 844-647-1354
From Care2 via Jock Bartley on Facebook: Trump shut down our LGBTQ+ suicide and mental health hotline, but CANADA opened a US toll-free number to theirs… so our citizens can get help anytime, at no cost: 1-877-330-6366
Kindness & empathy have no borders.
If you want to know more about any of the musicians we lost, find them at http://www.wikipedia.com
August 2026
12: Chen Ying-git, 72, Taiwanese singer; Iraj, 93, Iranian classical music singer.
11: Mikhail Gulko, 95, Ukrainian-born American chanson singer-songwriter; Guo Lanying, 96, Chinese operatic soprano (“My Motherland”); Sensational, 51, Guyanese-American rapper.
9: Gary Dwyer, British drummer (The Teardrop Explodes, The Colourfield), leukaemia.
8: Mike Milford, American singer (Scars of Tomorrow), cancer.
7: Bill Armstrong, 97, Australian music producer; Violet Hensley, 109, American luthier and fiddle player.
6: Ann Bogan, 85, American singer (The Marvelettes); Francesco Guccini, 86, Italian singer-songwriter (“Auschwitz”); Peter Katsis, 69, American music manager (Backstreet Boys, Korn, Jane’s Addiction), congestive heart failure; Tony Scott, 54, Surinamese-born Dutch rapper and musician, complications from multiple sclerosis.
5: Bruno Battisti D’Amario, 88, Italian classical guitarist and composer; Peter Lai, 76, Hong Kong lyricist and actor (Old Time Buddy, Come Home Love: Lo and Behold), complications from a stroke; Terry Buffalo Ware, 76, American guitarist and composer, lung cancer.
