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YouTube will stream Lollapalooza live starting August 1st
It's going to be particularly easy to watch Lollapalooza concerts online this year. YouTube is livestreaming the 2019 music festival between August 1st and August 4th, both through Lollapalooza's channel as well as through YouTube Music. You'll see "curated" performances from the likes of Janelle Monae and Twenty One Pilots, but there will also be three streams to follow the action from multiple stages. It won't be the same as being there, but that might not be a bad thing if you're less than fond of sweaty crowds or making a pilgrimage to Chicago.
Lyft wants to be your ride to and from concerts
Lyft is hitting the music festival circuit this summer. The ridesharing company announced today a partnership with entertainment giant AEG to be the exclusive rideshare, bike and scooter partner a number of major music events. Lyft will be on hand at 16 venues and available in eight major markets where music festivals are behind held.
YouTube and AXS sell concert tickets through music videos
YouTube might make it decidedly easier to see your favorite band. The internet giant has forged a deal that offers fast access to concert tickets from AXS, expanding on earlier deals with Ticketmaster and Eventbrite. Watch official music videos from the right artists and you'll see both listings for their US tour dates as well as an option to snap up tickets (both fresh and resales) in short order.
'Assassin's Creed Symphony' concerts will also feature holograms
This summer, Ubisoft and MGP Live will debut the Assassin's Creed Symphony -- a concert series bringing the game's soundtrack to stage. As the saga of Assassin's Creed plays out on screen, a live orchestra and choir will perform the score. The just-released trailer, which you can watch below, promises an "immersive experience," complete with holograms of your favorite characters.
Wearing headphones at a concert isn’t as weird as I thought it would be
One of the worst concerts I've ever attended in my life -- in terms of pure sound quality -- was at Barclays Center. I get that arena shows are never going to be known for their top-notch acoustics, but the concrete cavern that the Brooklyn Nets call home is particularly bad. It's why I chose it as the venue to see Elton John and test out Peex Live, a service that promises to deliver an ideal music experience no matter how bad your seats (or sound engineer) are. There's a catch though: You have to wear headphones at a concert. That's about the most unintuitive thing I've ever heard of.
'Fortnite' will host a Marshmello concert this weekend
With Super Bowl LIII only days away, Epic Games is ensuring that Fortnite players will be able to partake in some of the festivities. As reported by The Verge, the game's creators have booked EDM artist and producer Marshmello to perform an in-game concert the game, which will be hosted directly on the football field in Pleasant Park.
Taylor Swift concert used facial recognition tech to identify stalkers
You're probably used to the presence of facial recognition cameras at airports and other transport hubs, but what about at concerts? That's the step Taylor Swift's team took at her May 18th show at the Rose Bowl, in a bid to identify her stalkers. According to Rolling Stone, the camera was hidden inside a display kiosk at the event, and sent images of anyone who stopped to look at the display to a "command post" in Nashville, where they were cross-referenced with other photos of the star's known stalkers.
Ava DuVernay is making a Prince documentary for Netflix
Oscar-nominated filmmaker Ava DuVernay will produce a multi-part Prince documentary with Netflix, Deadline reports. The project is being done with the full cooperation of the Prince estate, which has granted the producers access to interviews, archival footage, photos and other materials. "Prince was a genius and a joy and a jolt to the senses," DuVernay told Deadline. "The only way I know how to make this film is with love. And with great care. I'm honored to do so and grateful for the opportunity entrusted to me by the estate."
YouTube and Eventbrite sell concert tickets through music videos
YouTube is making it easier to translate raw enthusiasm for a band into seeing them play live. The streaming giant has struck up a deal with Eventbrite that will show tour listings right below videos from Official Artist Channels. Tap a "tickets" button on a listing and you'll go directly to Eventbrite to purchase a spot at the show. The experience will be familiar if you've ever used YouTube's Ticketmaster tie-in, but this promises to expand the number of artists -- YouTube covers about 70 percent of American ticketing.
Amy Winehouse's hologram will tour with a live band in 2019
Amy Winehouse will return to the stage in 2019 as the latest in a long line of deceased performers resurrected as holograms. The digital ghost of Winehouse (who died in 2011) will perform her hits such a "Rehab" and "Valerie" while backed by a live band. The tour is a product of a partnership between LA-based BASE Hologram and the Amy Winehouse Foundation, which raises money for the prevention of alcohol and drug abuse.
Paul McCartney will play a YouTube concert on September 7th
Paul McCartney is no stranger to embracing technology, and you're about to get further proof of it. The iconic musician is performing an "intimate" YouTube concert on September 7th at 8PM Eastern as part of a YouTube Original production. It's a plug for his new album Egypt Station, as you might have guessed, but he'll also play tunes from his Beatles and Wings days.
Google search now provides more details on local events
Google is quickly turning its event info from a nice-to-have extra into a major feature. If you're searching from your phone, you'll now find key details for events without having to jump to websites or apps. If it's a concert, for example, you'll find out where and when it's taking place, directions and other details. You can either jump to a ticket service if you're sold on the idea or save an event for later. And if you're not sure what to look for, you'll get some help there as well.
Spotify uses your listening history to find festival tickets
It isn't always easy to choose which music festivals to attend. You might not be aware that your dream festival exists, and the ones you do know may only have one or two artists you'd actually like to see. Spotify might just fix this. It's partnering with Festicket on a Festival Finder that uses your listening habits to help you score tickets (plus accommodations and travel) to events around the world that truly reflect your tastes. Stream a lot of trance? You may get suggestions for Creamfields in the UK and Transmission in Prague.
London’s best orchestra is putting on a PlayStation concert
PlayStation, Classic FM and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra are teaming up to bring new meaning to the term "gaming culture". This May, PlayStation in Concert comes to London's Royal Albert Hall, bringing to life music used in games from Original PlayStation, PS2, PS3 and PS4, performed by the 80-strong Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and City of London Choir. Expect the sweeping soundscapes of The Last of Us, The Last Guardian, Everybody's Gone to the Rapture and LittleBigPlanet, among others. And there will be a "spectacular" light show, too.
Kendrick Lamar bans all cameras during his latest tour (update: no)
You've likely heard of big-name musicians banning smartphones at concerts, but Kendrick Lamar is taking things one step further. The superstar isn't allowing any cameras during the European stint of his latest tour, including pro photographers. Yes, you won't even have the opportunity to share official shots, let alone record the show with your phone. Lamar had allowed some pros during his North American gigs, but that's apparently as far as he was willing to go.
Jack White is the latest musician to ban phones at shows
We hope you weren't planning to document your next Jack White gig as it happens. White is following the lead of Alicia Keys, Dave Chappelle and other performers by banning the use of phones during his next US tour, which starts in April. When you get to the venue, you'll have to put your phone and other camera-equipped devices in a Yondr pouch that stays locked until the end of the show. You can unlock your phone if there's a call you need to make, but you'll have to go to a designated zone in the concourse or lobby first.
Apple Music's next exclusives come from Noel Gallagher and Sam Smith
Apple isn't slowing down on exclusives any time soon. It's releasing Apple Music-only concert films from two British superstars, Noel Gallagher and Sam Smith. Gallagher's Who Built the Moon Live recaptures an early November gig at London's York Hall, where he played both cuts from his new album as well as the near-obligatory Oasis hits. Smith's The Thrill of It All Live, meanwhile, relives an "intimate" London gig that delved into both his own catalog as well as guest spots on tracks from the likes of Disclosure.
‘Flying Lotus in 3D’ is a jam session between music and holograms
Backstage at the concert venue Brooklyn Steel in New York, the artist Flying Lotus was discussing his persistent desire to create experiences so new that they were inconceivable to an audience before the show. "I want people to be able to just be like, 'Wow, that exists? Wow, this is happening? This is possible?'" said the producer and musician, whose name is Steven Ellison. "I want people to remember magical feelings, like being enchanted and being mesmerized and just having a new experience. That is what I'm always chasing after." In following this idea, the jazz, hip hop and electronic music artist has made a conceptual album about death, performed at a Hollywood cemetery and made a film about -- literally -- shit. His latest experiment, however, is in 3D: a 28-stop tour where audiences put on glasses to see an abstract technological spectacle surround them as he plays.
Apple Music’s Major Lazer documentary is streaming now
A new music documentary begins streaming today on Apple Music. Give Me Future chronicles Major Lazer's 2016 concert in Havana, Cuba -- the first to be put on by major American artists since the US restored diplomatic ties to the country in 2015. The group, made up of Diplo, Walshy Fire and Jillionaire, performed for 400,000 people in the country's capital, the planning for which and the performance were documented by director Austin Peters.
YouTube adds concert listings to music videos
Google announced a new YouTube feature today that will make it super easy to find and purchase concert tickets. Starting today, official music videos posted on YouTube will show upcoming concert dates for that artist and each show will have a link to where you can purchase tickets. The feature is in partnership with Ticketmaster though, so tickets sold by other companies won't be linked.
