About Us

Hireaband is a family-run UK entertainment agency, founded in Scotland in 1999 by musician-turned-agent Del Cotton, representing hundreds of bands, DJs, magicians and entertainers across the country from offices near Glasgow and in London.

Hireaband started life in our kitchen with an old computer, a phone and a note pad. I'm Del Cotton, and I've got the fancy title of Managing Director, although I still make the coffee and empty the bins (sometimes). Back in 1999 I spent weekends playing in my wedding band and weekdays looking after my toddler, Rachel — my customers occasionally got a long chat about the Teletubbies if she beat me to the phone, which isn't the impression you want to give as a large, dynamic entertainment agency. My wife, Lisa, was a senior social worker at the time, and she was the one thing every full-time musician needs: a breadwinner.

I set the business up because I was turning away bookings — my own diary was full, so I started passing on the phone numbers of other musicians I knew. Eventually it dawned on me I was doing the work of an unpaid agent, and that there was a business staring me in the face. Hireaband was born at 3am one Thursday morning when I sat bolt upright in bed, stumbled downstairs to my ancient computer, and checked whether the domain name "hireaband" was available. It was — I became the proud owner of www.hireaband.co.uk for about £9.95 including VAT.

My first roster was around half a dozen bands, all based in Ayrshire, all bands I'd played in or with myself. Because I only recommended bands I knew were good, my customers stayed happy, which meant more bookings, which meant the bands were happy too — or at least "less reluctant" to pay commission. As word spread, more bands came to me directly, and I'd go and see them play before taking them on.

From the start, I knew people could find bands themselves — through the local paper, the Yellow Pages, or word of mouth — so the agency had to earn its place. To this day, you'll never pay more to hire a band through us than you would booking them directly, alongside expert advice, proper paperwork, and the peace of mind that comes with booking through a reputable agent.

Years later, we've grown considerably. Together, our Scotland and London offices represent hundreds of acts from all over the UK, make thousands of bookings every year, and put millions of pounds into the pockets of UK musicians annually. We're proud of our reputation for fairness with the acts we work with and excellent service to the clients who book them.

Rachel is 28 now, and spent 8 years working at Hireaband before moving into marketing for another Scottish family business. Her sister Sophie, 23, is a talented musician in her own right, a graduate of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, and now brings that expertise to the business as our in-house marketing and social media lead. Lisa left social work behind and now leads our team of wedding and corporate entertainment experts. And if you call our Scotland office, there's still a chance you'll hear the ghostly bark of Paddy, our much-loved and sadly missed office dog, greeting the postman one more time.

We have the same attitude today as we did back then: local expertise wherever you are in the UK, delivered with the same friendly approach, the same quality control, and the same "can do" attitude — just with a nicer website, a lot more choice, and a few awards along the way.

Originally a sole trader, Hireaband incorporated as Hireaband Limited in June 2002, and we're proud members of The Agent's Association (Great Britain), which holds us to an ethical standard of trading. Del Cotton, our founder and Managing Director, oversees strategy and marketing across the group, drawing on decades in the entertainment industry and a well-known obsession with double-checking every detail. Lisa Cotton, Company Director, leads our in-house team of entertainment experts, who between them handle up to 1,500 live enquiries at any one time, making Hireaband one of the largest bookers of wedding, corporate and tribute entertainment in the UK. Sophie Cotton brings her musical background and social media expertise to the marketing side of the business. Gaye Young brings years of hospitality industry experience and a talent for making the whole operation sound classy on the phone. And Irving Walker, Director of Hireaband London, leads all of our business across England and Wales — and plays a mean saxophone in his spare time.

Our acts are sourced from across the UK, with a preference for local talent wherever possible. Contact your nearest office any time for a no-obligation chat about your entertainment needs, however big or small — we'd love to help.