Protip: It's not a great idea to announce "X in virtual worlds is the future of Y" before checking to see if there are instances of Y successfully happening without X.
For instance: "Live performances in virtual worlds are the future of music concerts." It's part of that future, we can safely say, but as reader "Mint" reminds us, it's definitely not the only one:
There have been a number of live online shows done in a more traditional streaming method. BTS, Dua Lipa, Louis Tomlinson, Liam Payne, Niall Horan, and other Top 40 musicians have all done them. My guess for artists not doing Fortnite concerts would be because A) their core audiences aren't active there or an immersive experience in a virtual world wouldn't interest them and B) the costs of doing a traditional show are lower. Take BTS for example - they did a more traditional livestream concert and made approximately $19 million to $26 million in ticket sales alone. I wouldn't imagine that most of their fanbase is on Fortnite, and a more traditional format may enable the viewer to better see their dancing + choreography. I'm also not sure if fans are really looking for an immersive experience - at least from what I've seen amongst fanbases of artists that have offered virtual concerts, it's more about getting to see an artist perform songs live than to have any unique experience.
Yes: Top bands are making quite a lot of money just from selling tickets to oldschool video streams of live shows, without the added addition (and time, and money) of creating a whole Travis Scott-in-Fortnite-type virtual world experience on top of that. As Minty notes, fans of artists like BTS will probably prefer watching the live real world stage act that's core to the BTS experience. Where virtual worlds will probably shine most is by elevating shows put on by performers who don't have a lot of dancing and other choreography in their stage acts. (Off the top of my head: my neighbor* Billie Eilish has a great stage presence, but a virtual world performance which turns her dark and moody songs into interactive 3D animation would be amazing.)
Which isn't to say there's no place for amazing stage acts like BTS in virtual worlds -- as a matter of fact, they mocapped some of their dance moves for avatars to buy and use in Fortnite:
So maybe the more defensible thing to say is: Video streaming shows are the future of music concerts for artists with great stage acts, while virtual world performances are the future of music concerts for artists with minimal stage acts... while selling virtual world content is a big part in the future for both.
* She literally lives a mile or so from me in Los Angeles. Have your people call mine, Ms. Eilish!
It will certainly be interesting to see how many, and which artists will turn to virtual world concerts in 2021! I agree that it's more defensible to split the future of virtual world performances and virtual world content, especially when looking at the type of act in question. Virtual world content might also be a great way for artists to dip their toes into the water and see what the response in a virtual world is like before committing to a much more expensive and time-consuming concert.
Another possible factor to keep in mind could be benefit concerts. Louis Tomlinson (who had the 3rd highest selling video streaming concert of 2020) split his concert profits between 4 charities and his touring crew. He raised ~$3 million with ~160,000 tickets sold for a one-time concert much less elaborate than BTS or Dua Lipa (the 1st and 2nd highest selling video streaming concerts respectively). Metallica, Avril Lavigne, Post Malone, and David Guetta, among others, have all done them. I don't know what the revenue-sharing deal between Fortnite and the performing artist looks like, but unless the virtual world agreed to free/low-cost hosting, that could be another barrier to the adoption of virtual world performances. Doesn't make sense to invest so much money into a virtual world show when that money invested could have gone directly to the cause they're fundraising for.
It'll also be interesting to see what virtual world concerts/content looks like when in-person concerts will be possible again. They could be a great way to reach out to fans in locations where physical tours aren't stopping, but then again, they wouldn't be the only option available to artists. Interestingly enough, Billie Eilish has done a video streaming concert but not a virtual world one - yet! Totally agree that she'd be a perfect candidate for one.
Posted by: Mint | Monday, January 25, 2021 at 06:15 PM