THIS METAVERSE MUSIC FESTIVAL WILL FEATURE LIVE PERFORMANCES, GIVEAWAYS, AND MORE

A little over a month ago, Roblox introduced the concept of listening parties, describing the events as “a new way to release music.” Now, the popular gaming platform has signed an official partnership agreement with Insomniac’s Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC), which will be “the first music festival to be held on Roblox,” according to the announcement.

Roblox Corporation (NYSE: RBLX) and EDC, which is scheduled to return to Las Vegas this weekend, have only recently announced their groundbreaking partnership. The partnership between Roblox and the Insomniac-owned music festival has resulted in the creation of a “persistent world” called World Party (which officially opened today), where fans will be able to “watch and enjoy sets on the virtual stages.”

Players will be able to “join the festival in the metaverse” between Saturday, October 23rd, and Monday, October 25th, as part of an EDC “pre-show” that will begin on Roblox this Friday, October 22nd. The experience associated with this virtual edition of the approximately 500,000-attendee EDM event – which was canceled in 2020 and delayed until 2021 – will be enhanced by the ability to choose from “any of the over 50 performances throughout the weekend.” In contrast, approximately 200 artists have been booked for the in-person component of EDC Las Vegas 2021.

Besides that, Roblox has created digital EDC “areas like cosmicMEADOW, circuitGROUNDS, Camp EDC, Pixel Forest, and more,” and “artists themselves will also be able to jump into the metaverse through server hopping and meet and greets.”  Finally, the seemingly all-encompassing offering “will include mini-games that allow fans to race through the vast world, collect cuddly animals, dance battle against friends, and build their own home in Camp EDC,” and guests will be able to “win real and virtual merchandise.” according to the press release.

The founder and CEO of Insomniac (which owns a substantial portion of Live Nation) appeared to emphasize in a statement that the virtual counterpart of EDC Las Vegas will reach a wide range of new fans as he discussed the agreement with the press. Registrants for EDC must be at least 18 years old, and Roblox stated in a regulatory filing ahead of its IPO that “54 percent of our users were under the age of 13” during the nine months ending on September 30th, 2020 (the last day of the conference).

Among other things, Rotella stated that “this experience raises the bar for the creativity and inspiration that drives EDC and all other festivals and events to new heights.” “Bringing our vision to life digitally and allowing anyone of any age to experience the wonder and magic of EDC, no matter where they are, is our goal. We like to say at EDC that “Everyone is Welcome Here.”

And in a statement of his own, Roblox Vice President and Global Head of Music Jon Vlassopulos – whose company settled a lawsuit filed by the National Music Publishers’ Association late last month – made it clear that the company is working on similar projects.

“We are excited to offer more amazing permanent music worlds like this one in the coming months as we continue to help the music industry engage with our global audience in new and unprecedented ways,” said Tribalist founder and CEO Vlassopulos. “We are excited to offer more amazing permanent music worlds like this one in the coming months,” he added.

During the month of September, Roblox collaborated with Warner Music Group, which was a participant in the platform’s more than $500 million initial public offering (IPO). The result was a concert featuring Twenty One Pilots. Additionally, Travis Scott reportedly earned $20 million from his Fortnite show in 2020, with the majority of the money coming from digital-merchandise sales, according to reports.