- 9lives has signed with global booking agency ROAM for live music and touring representation across Asia and Europe/UK, led by agent Lucy Atkinson.
- He continues with Independent Artist Group (IAG) for North American representation and stays with Higher Ground MGMT for music management.
- The deal follows a run of viral, internet-born hits, including "I LOVE YOU HOE" with Odetari (300M+ streams) and "Go (Xtayalive 2)" with Kanii (152M+ streams).
- The signing adds 9lives to ROAM's active 2026 run of global touring additions.
New Zealand-born, Auckland-based producer 9lives (Maxwell Jardine) has signed with global booking agency ROAM for live music and touring representation across Asia and Europe/UK, with agent Lucy Atkinson leading the deal.
9lives continues with Independent Artist Group (IAG) for representation in North America, and stays with Higher Ground MGMT for music management.
A pioneer of sigilkore (a blend of trap, hyperpop, cloud rap, and electronic music), 9lives built his catalog through internet-native collaborations.
His breakout “XTAYALIVE” with jnhygs passed 100 million streams, the sequel “Go (Xtayalive 2)” with Kanii topped 152 million, and “I LOVE YOU HOE” with Odetari has surpassed 300 million and earned RIAA Gold certification. He’s also worked with Trippie Redd, Rico Nasty, and Lancey Foux.
The signing lands amid an active run of ROAM 2026 additions. The agency signed archival folk artist Robert Lester Folsom for Europe/UK, added Scottish-American songwriter Nirosta Steel off the strength of his acclaimed My Skyscraper LP, and brought Melbourne punk act Public Figures into the same territory.
9lives’ deal extends that momentum into Asia, a market ROAM’s leadership has flagged as a growth priority.
Formed in September 2025 from the merger of Arrival Artists and ATC Live, ROAM represents more than 800 artists worldwide, including Fontaines D.C. and Amyl & The Sniffers, giving 9lives access to established international touring infrastructure as his streaming numbers keep climbing.
Takeaways
Splitting representation by territory (IAG for North America, ROAM for Asia and Europe/UK) signals a team building region-specific infrastructure rather than chasing one global deal, a pattern increasingly common among streaming-first artists.
9lives’ numbers make the case better than any press release: three tracks with a combined half-billion-plus streams, built almost entirely through internet-native collaboration rather than a traditional label rollout.
The deal plants ROAM’s flag further into Asia’s touring market at a moment when the agency has openly discussed the region as a growth priority.
Will 9lives’ streaming dominance translate into festival bookings across Asia and Europe in the next year? Does this signing signal ROAM building a dedicated roster of sigilkore and hyperpop-adjacent artists? Could Asia become a proving ground for other US/UK digital-native rap acts looking to expand internationally?
