Concertgoers have gone from passive to active as the performers they've come to see engage them with all kinds of technology.
And it's no surprise why. Recent numbers show 70% of audiences between the ages of 18 and 24 want the technology to enhance their experience.
What does this technology look like?
Pixmob makes wristbands and sends infrared signals to the people wearing them at concerts and events, including Taylor Swift's concert at Cincinnati's Paycor Stadium June 30 and July 1.
"Controllers project invisible infrared light to control the wristbands in the room," Pixmob's Pauline Rosen explains. "So, it doesn't matter where people are in the room, we're painting the room, if you will."
For example, at a Coldplay concert during the hit song "Yellow," the crowd turns yellow thanks to the wristbands.
Pixmob has been creating such lighting experiences for live events since 2010, including the Super Bowl. The wristbands are made from recycled plastic. For Coldplay, Pixmob designed the first compostable plant-based plastic wristband.
What goes into planning Taylor Swift's show?
There are so many technical elements in Taylor Swift's performance, with videos explaining it on YouTube.
In a series of diagrams Brandon Peltz reconstructs parts of the show, demonstrating lighting, placement and effects.
Abba's Voyage concert also is engaging fans.
It's fronted by younger versions of the band who talk to the audience. The AI-created "Abba-tars" are projected onto an advanced LED screen. Industrial Light and Magic's Ben Morris, who produces the show, told Ispos.com he doesn't think the presence of avatars will replace real gigs and concerts. Instead, Morris says this type of show will bleed into the metaverse.
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It's already a blend with the metaverse at some festivals. Bizbash.com reports at the 2022 Lollapalooza, Snap's AR compass Lens allowed festival-goers to find food, water and bathrooms on a 3D map.
NFT plays a role too
An increasing number of community-planned music and arts festivals are giving people more power in the planning process with a SuperNFT pass. At the current cost of one Ethereum crypto coin (about $1,800) you can suggest musical guests, art installations, culinary experiences and more. Only 946 of these Super passes have been minted.
Popularity is increasing for NFT concert tickets. The CEO of OpenSea, the largest NFT marketplace, answered this reporter's question about why you would want an NFT as a ticket.
OpenSea CEO @dfinzer was asked the Web3 use case question:
— Liron Shapira (@liron) July 22, 2022
"Why would I want an NFT as a concert ticket?"
He explains that NFTs make OpenSea like StubHub, but better, because the blockchain / DeFi enables you to take out a loan using your concert ticket as collateral. pic.twitter.com/Qtgn2dNxwL
What will the future of music festivals be? British futurist Ian Yeoman wrote a report on it. Among his predictions, technologies in 2050 will include cerebral networks where music fans can see, hear, smell and feel the whole event through artificial neurons.
