Michael Lippman, Who Guided Careers of George Michael, David Bowie and Rob Thomas, Dies at 79
The fierce artist advocate helped define music management across five decades.
12/30/2025
The fierce artist advocate helped define music management across five decades.
Michael Lippman (left) and son Nick photographed June 29 at Vista Grande Ranch in Santa Ynez, Calif. Austin Hargrave
Michael Lippman, a formidable artist manager, label executive, and lawyer whose fierce advocacy and sharp deal-making helped shape modern pop stardom, died on Dec. 29. He was 79. The cause of death has not been disclosed.
Lippman began his professional life far from the spotlight, working in the legal world under celebrity attorney Marvin Mitchelson. That experience opened the door to the entertainment business, leading him to a position in the soundtracks department at Columbia Pictures.
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His breakthrough in the music business came through his work as David Bowie’s lawyer during his rise to stardom in the 1970s. Lippman worked closely with Bowie during The Man Who Fell to Earth, Aladdin Sane and other classic albums, supported his genre and culture-crossing Soul Train appearance, and was present during the run-up to Bowie’s first No. 1 on the Hot 100, “Fame.” He famously represented Bowie during the icon’s contentious uncoupling with longtime manager Tony Defries, then took over as manager before himself being let go a year later.
In a 1978 Crawdaddy profile by Timothy White, Lippman recalled Bowie as being “under a lot of pressure” by the end of their partnership, which unraveled just before Christmas 1975 after four years together. “Our falling out came as a complete surprise,” Lippman said. Lippman spoke candidly about Bowie’s fears of losing himself in his own personas, from Ziggy Stardust to the Thin White Duke. “There was a point when he felt that Ziggy had taken over for David Bowie; and the Thin White Duke, he was afraid that he was taking over as well,” Lippman told White, who later helmed Billboard. He also recalled Bowie’s private struggles, including concerns about hereditary mental illness. “David spoke to me about insanity many times,” Lippman said. “He didn’t want it to take over his life.”
By the mid-1970s, he had shifted gears, becoming vice president of West Coast operations for Arista Records under , where he built a foundation in artist development and executive leadership that would define the rest of his career. During his tenure at Arista, Lippman was a visible presence at industry gatherings, including ’s Talent Forum in 1978. There, he pushed for a sort-of “de-industryification” of opening nights on concert tours — advocating for fewer clusters of nonplussed VIPs and more genuine fans in the audience. “The policy has to be changed,” he argued at the time, “so acts can get the energy from the crowd that they need to do their best.”
