NEWS

Why Don't We's Management Tussle in Lawsuits Alleging 'Nightmarish Behavior'

By Dave Brooks
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Why Don't We

Pamela Littky

Why Don’t We’s management team has split up and has now filed opposing lawsuits to keep the other out of the business -- and the band is taking sides.

Randy Phillips and his former longtime partner David Loeffler are suing each other over the boy band’s management and control of their companies Signature Entertainment and PDM III -- which have the exclusive right to “direct and control” both the band and the solo careers of its five members, as well as of the group’s music, its masters and all its revenue streams. And, according to a lawsuit Loeffler filed on Aug. 17, the five members of Why Don’t We -- Jack Avery (Age 19), Corbyn Besson (20), Zach Herron (17), Jonah Marais (20) and Daniel Seavey (19) -- are now refusing to sign a recording agreement with Atlantic Records or perform as a group until Phillips is reinstated as the group’s sole manager.

Phillips is a longtime veteran and former AEG Live CEO who has promoted tours for Bon Jovi, Justin Bieber, Kanye West, The Rolling Stones and Prince.

Loeffler is a longtime music manager, touring executive and film producer who directed Why Dont We’s 2019 film, Unbelievable.

Why Don’t We formed in September 2016, with the band's business set up as two manager-managed LLCs, Signature Entertainment and PDM III, with ownership stakes for all five group members. The LLCs would retain the rights to manage all aspects of the group and its individual members' careers and own their creative output, while categorizing the five members as salaried employees, according to the management agreement each member signed. The LLCs also fund and exclusively manage solo artist EBEN.

The next year, Phillips relinquished his role managing one of the LLCs, Signature Entertainment, in order to accept a job running LiveStyle, the company that emerged out of EDM promoter SFX's bankruptcy. Phillips returned to manage Why Don't We in 2020 and says Loeffler “abnegated his prior agreement to allow Plaintiff to reassume the role of manager [of Signature Entertainment],” according to a lawsuit filed against Loeffler on Thursday in Los Angeles Superior Court.

Phillips wants a judge to expel Loeffler from PDM III and hand control back to Phillips in a legal process known as disassociation, in which a judge orders the termination of a manager’s voting rights if the manager is found to have acted improperly or “willfully (and) persistently committed” a significant “material breach” of the entity’s financial interest.

In his complaint, Loeffler is suing all five Why Don’t We members for anticipatory breach of contract and suing Phillips for tortious interference with a business relationship over the band’s refusal to sign the Atlantic deal. He is seeking damages. “Signature has the exclusive right to ‘advise, counsel, direct, and assist’” each band member “in connection with all matters relating to their careers in all branches of the entertainment industry,” writes Loeffler’s attorney, Michael R Levin of Baker Law, in the complaint, which was filed in Orange County Circuit Court in Orlando, Florida. No hearing has yet been scheduled in that case.

Loeffler told Billboard in a statement that Phillips' suit is "without merit and in retaliation for the suit we filed against him." He added, "The allegations now being made by Mr. Phillips have no merit and will be debunked in court.”

Phillips' lawsuit also claims Loeffler abused members of Why Don’t We and “irreparably damaged” the management company he and Phillips had created to help foster the up-and-coming boy band’s career.

Hollywood attorney and litigator Howard King of Los Angeles-based law firm King, Holmes, Paterno & Soriano is representing Phillips and alleges in the complaint that while “Loeffler was living with [the band] at a rental property that had been secured for them to develop music” he engaged in “nightmarish behavior,” including “ daily verbal abuse, screaming at them at the top of his lungs, sometimes for 10-20 minutes,” and reportedly “forced the five members to share two small bedrooms, even though the house had a spare, unused bedroom that was upstairs.”

NEWS

Sade Will Not Attend Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction

By David James Young
November 11, 2026
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Sade will not be attending their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony this week.

The English group, made up of Sade Adu, Paul Denman, Stuart Matthewman, and Andrew Hale, are among this year's inductees into the prestigious institution. The ceremony is scheduled to take place at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles this Saturday.

However, a representative for Sade confirmed on Tuesday through the band's official website that none of the members would be attending the event.

"We're sorry that we won't be able to join everyone in person to celebrate alongside the other artists. However, our absence does not lessen how deeply this recognition means to us," they stated. "Being welcomed into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is a wonderful honour and a meaningful opportunity to express our gratitude, not just to everyone who voted for us, but to every person who has made our music part of their lives."

The representative also acknowledged their manager Roger Davies for his support and paid tribute to the late engineer and co-producer Mike Pela, who passed away in 2022.

"We owe so much to everyone who has supported us throughout this journey," they continued, before signing the message: "Sade, Stuart, Andrew, and Paul. Mike Pela, the fifth member of Sade... This recognition belongs to you just as much as it does to us, Mike. You will always be our soul mate."

Sade will be joining Oasis among the artists missing this year's ceremony. Liam Gallagher previously addressed his absence in a message on X, saying the journey was "too far" for him to make just "for the night".

The other musicians being recognised at this weekend's ceremony include Billy Idol, Phil Collins, Iron Maiden, Joy Division/New Order, the late Luther Vandross, and Wu-Tang Clan.