THR: After leaving William Morris for Evolution, you brought with you a relationship with the Backstreet Boys. Where did that start?

Podwall: Through going down to Orlando to meet with Lou Pearlman about a possible job. Ultimately, I went to work for William Morris in LA, but I met the Backstreet Boys then and my relationship with them started to develop. This was before their big break, and when I was working at William Morris, I maintained that relationship, even though I wasn’t working with them directly… It’s what brought me to David Zedeck, who wanted me because of my relationship with one of the biggest groups in the world. My stipulation was that I come in as an agent, so there was a mutual benefit to us doing this. I went there and had an incredible run working with Dream, 112, D12, Kelis, 3LW, Phantom Planet and Backstreet Boys.

THR: And you first met Matthew through your boy band ties?

Podwall: Matt was with the group LMNT, which was signed to Atlantic records and Evolution represented them. We became friends even after he left the group to do Hairspray. I went to opening night of Hairspray and closing night of Hairspray. It’s a friendship that’s now spanned a decade.

THR: When Matt was offered Glee, what was your role?

Podwall: Matt and I always dreamed of making a record together, we’ve been talking about it for years. And like American Idol is giving people a platform today, because record companies aren’t spending money to break artists, so was Glee. Matt got Glee for the pilot, he called me up, we went to lunch the next day. He said, “I booked this pilot, this might be an opportunity for us to make a record. We should do this.” It all started then. I wasn’t managing him at this time, but obviously right after that I was. It was an incredible experience.

THR: Why didn’t Matt sign with Sony, the label group that releases music from Glee?

Podwall: That was a situation where we negotiated between two labels. [Columbia/Epic chairman] Rob Stringer is brilliant and it had nothing to with him or the Glee connection. Ultimately, we felt that Mercury’s David Massey, as an A&R guy, could help us create the type of album that we wanted. It was about who’s going to help find Matt’s voice. That’s what lead us to that decision.

THR: How would you quantify success for Matt as a music artist?

Podwall: I don’t know if you can. I think our goal the entire time was to put together a powerful record that was true to Matt — something that everyone could draw from. I think it’s got to be about the product. We’re incredibly proud of this album. Beyond the three duets with Sting, Elton John and Gwyneth Paltrow, the collaborations with Kris Allen from American Idol and JC Chasez are great. So success for us would be for the record to find a home in peoples’ iPods and for them to take a moment to really listen to it and find something to connect to.

THR: We’re going into what looks like another weaker than usual summer concert season, why the downturn?

Podwall: There are a few reasons. The concert business has shrunk, though there are plenty of artists doing quite well, like Taylor Swift and Katy Perry, I also think the economy has slowed. A family of four that wants to take their kids to a concert, not only do you have to pay for tickets, but a tremendous ticket master fee on top of that, parking, concessions… it becomes very expensive. And when you’re making a decision between food on the table and clothing for your kids and a concert, you’re going to have to make tough choices.

THR: What is your management philosophy?

Podwall: For me, it’s about personal management. People that I look up — like the David Geffens and the Randy Phillips’s — these are incredible managers. There was nothing they didn’t do for their clients. They were always there for them and on every level. I think with the consolidation of music, TV and film, some managers are collecting more and more clients which doesn’t allow for you to give that type of service. Then it becomes more about numbers and I don’t want to do that.