- Florida Georgia Line has officially signed with The Core Entertainment for management, with co-CEOs Simon Tikhman and Kevin "Chief" Zaruk leading the representation.
- The signing follows FGL's surprise reunion performance at CMA Fest 2026 (June 4) at Nissan Stadium, where the duo declared, "We back, baby!"
- The Core Entertainment had already been managing Tyler Hubbard as a solo artist before officially adding the group.
- The deal marks a full-circle reunion: Zaruk originally managed FGL at Big Loud from 2011 to 2020 before the duo departed for Full Stop Management.
Florida Georgia Line (Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley) have signed with The Core Entertainment for management. Co-CEOs Simon Tikhman and Kevin “Chief” Zaruk will lead the duo’s representation.
The signing caps a full reunion arc. After nine years with Big Loud Management, where Zaruk himself helped build their career, FGL moved to Full Stop Management in 2020, before going on hiatus in 2022.
The duo re-emerged at Country Radio Seminar in March and made their comeback official at CMA Fest on June 4, performing “Round Here” and “Cruise” at Nissan Stadium. The Core Entertainment had already been managing Hubbard as a solo act before bringing the group on board.
In a similar vein, Heavy Hitter signed with Good Fight Management and Tyla Rodrigues linked up with Vincent Torrez Management.
The Core Entertainment roster includes Dan + Shay, Bailey Zimmerman, Nate Smith, Nickelback, Josh Ross, and Cameron Whitcomb.
Takeaways
Florida Georgia Line signing with The Core Entertainment puts them back in the hands of Kevin “Chief” Zaruk, the same manager who helped turn “Cruise” into the best-selling digital country single of all time. That history matters.
The Core has quietly become one of the most powerful management firms in Nashville, and adding FGL to a roster that already includes Dan + Shay and Bailey Zimmerman signals that the company is building a country music powerhouse.
For FGL, the CMA Fest moment was the spark, now the business infrastructure is in place to back it up.
With Zaruk once again at the helm, can Florida Georgia Line recapture the commercial dominance they had during their Big Loud era? Does this signing signal that new FGL music is officially on the way, and what sound should fans expect after four years apart? Could this reunion inspire other hiatus-era country duos to make their own comebacks?
