Veteran artist manager and agent Jim Halsey received high honors at the 44^th Annual IEBA Conference.  The 4-day event was held in downtown Nashville from September 27-30, 2014.  Jim Halsey and The Doobie Brothers along with Bob and Peggy Kaltenbach of Klein’s Entertainment were inducted into IEBA’s Hall of Fame.  The Grammy-winning Oak Ridge Boys paid tribute to Halsey, their long-time and beloved manager, by serving as presenters during the event held in the CMA Theater at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Halsey's career spans over 60 years as artist manager, agent and impresario, discovering and guiding the careers of such illustrious personalities as Roy Clark, The Oak Ridge Boys, Waylon Jennings, The Judds, Reba McEntire, Minnie Pearl, Clint Black, Tammy Wynette, Mel Tillis, Merle Haggard, Dwight Yoakam, The Judds, Lee Greenwood, Hank Thompson and many others.  He founded The Jim Halsey Company talent agency in 1951.  It was acquired by the William Morris Agency in 1990, but Halsey remains active and influential in the industry.  As an author and educator, he launched The Jim Halsey Institute of Music and Entertainment Business, an undergraduate music business program at Independence Community College in Independence, Kansas.

IEBA (International Entertainment Buyers Association) is the leading trade organization for live entertainment industry professionals.  The IEBA Honors and Awards Ceremony was among the highlights of this year’s conference.

Jim Halsey and The Oak Ridge Boys at the 2014 IEBA Honors and Awards Ceremony

(Left to right: Joe Bonsall, Duane Allen, Jim Halsey in center, William Lee Golden & Richard Sterban)