Garth Brooks to headline Amazon’s first Black Friday concert
Amazon Music has announced its first-ever Black Friday Amazon Music Live concert, headlined by American country star Garth Brooks.
Brooks’s performance will be livestreamed from the grand opening of his new downtown Nashville bar, Friends in Low Places Bar & Honky-Tonk, giving fans around the world a front-row seat for one of his well-known ‘Dive Bar’ concerts.
The sold-out show has already earned over three million ticket requests from Brooks’ fans.
For those unable to attend, Prime Video and Twitch will air the 24 November concert from 19:00 ET. Viewers will have free access to Amazon Music Live, including viewers without an Amazon account or a Prime membership.
“Not only will the people see the Friends bar for the first time, but they will also hear new music live for the first time”
“We’ve already seen over three million entries to win a chance to attend, and thanks to our friends at Amazon, this episode will ensure that everybody who wants to see this show can,” said Brooks in a statement.
“Not only will the people see the Friends bar for the first time, but they will also hear new music live for the first time…and if you know us, we will be playing the old stuff, as well.”
Sponsored by Verizon, the AML Black Friday special will air after Black Friday Football—the first-ever NFL game played on Black Friday in history, streaming on Prime Video.
Previous episodes of Season Two of AML included Ed Sheeran, Feid, Lil Durk, Trippie Red, Machine Gun Kelly, Metro Boomin with Post Malone, Nav and Offset. Meanwhile, Peso Pluma became the first musical Mexicana artist to perform on AML.
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Primavera Sound to be livestreamed on Amazon
Amazon Music will exclusively livestream select performances from the Barcelona and Madrid editions of Primavera Sound 2023.
Fans from around the world will be able to enjoy a variety of performances, as well as interviews and behind-the-scenes content, live from Parc del Forum (Barcelona) from 1-3 June, and from Ciudad del Rock (Arganda del Rey – Madrid) from 8–10 June.
Blur, Halsey, New Order, Kendrick Lamar, Depeche Mode, Rosalía and Calvin Harris are set to headline the two 2023 editions.
This is the first weekend-long festival streaming event from Amazon Music in Europe, which also recently broadcast Dreamville festival from Raleigh, North Carolina, and will stream Stagecoach Festival live from Indio, California this weekend (28-30 April).
The free-to-watch livestream experience will be available on the Amazon Music channel on Twitch across both festivals starting from 7:30 pm CET each day.
This is the first weekend-long festival streaming event from Amazon Music in Europe
For the first weekend, live from Barcelona, viewers will have the opportunity to pick from two different channels covering a wide selection of artists from the festival, allowing those watching at home to tune in to a variety of performances across the weekend.
Commentary will be available in English, with Spanish subtitles, across both Twitch channels. All content broadcast from Primavera Sound will be free to watch across Twitch and Prime Video.
For the second weekend, live from Madrid, music fans will have the chance to tune in to more behind-the-scenes content, interviews and select performances on the Amazon Music channel on Twitch. The live show will be broadcast in Spanish, with English subtitles provided.
For those attending the festival in person, Amazon Music will also give music fans the chance to create their own Primavera Sound content. A specially-created experiential space will allow festivalgoers the opportunity to create bespoke content for their social media channels, and give them the chance to win prizes ranging from exclusive merchandise to instant VIP ticket upgrades.
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Amazon Music and LN extend +44 brand to live shows
Amazon Music is teaming with Live Nation to extend its Black music playlist brand +44 into live events.
JAE5 will headline the first concert under the banner, which is set to take place at Lafayette in London on 22 February 2023.
“It’s a natural evolution to extend the +44 brand with a series of live performances from the artists who are championed every single day on the service,” says Laura Lukanz, Amazon Music’s head of music industry, UK, Australia & New Zealand. “Having one of the most talented and prolific producers, JAE5, with a host of artists is the perfect line up for this event.”
“I am excited to build +44 Live into a staple event in the music calendar”
Lukanz adds: “+44 is making artist to fan connections everywhere you look, whether that’s the +44 stage at Notting Hill Carnival, an intimate masterclass with Stormzy or a fan meet and greet and livestream with Central Cee. +44 Live with JAE5 & Friends will be a memorable night for any fan of Black music in the UK and I am excited to build +44 Live into a staple event in the music calendar.”
Recent +44 projects include collaborations with Stormzy on three-day pop-up This Is What I Mean House in London, with a second project, Stormzy: This Is What I Mean – Live From Queen Elizabeth Hall available to watch now on Prime Video.
“Bringing +44 to life is a massive moment for the culture and for the fans,” says Live Nation promoter Gurj Summan. “JAE5 is one of the most exciting artists in the scene and has gone from strength to strength. We know the fans are in for an incredible show with some special guests. Having +44 take the stage, continues to show the unrivalled experience of live music today.”
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Is live the new battleground for streaming giants?
Streaming giants such as Apple, Spotify and Amazon are ramping up their live music offerings with exclusive live stream series featuring some of the world’s biggest acts.
Apple Music Live yesterday (27 October) announced that Grammy Award-winning artist Megan Thee Stallion will be the latest act to feature in the inaugural, exclusive live performance series.
Her upcoming concert at The Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles will be available to Apple Music subscribers in over 165 countries on 21 December at 19:00 PST, and local fans can register for the chance to be in the room for the rapper’s set.
Megan Thee Stallion follows in the footsteps of artists including Harry Styles, Billie Eilish, Mary J. Blige, Lil Durk and Luke Coombs, all of whom have performed for Apple Music Live.
“No matter how much time and effort an artist may spend crafting music in the studio, it’s on the stage where they really get to show their work,” the company notes. “Apple Music Live is a new recurring series designed to do just that: give the biggest stars in music the biggest possible platform to flaunt how they connect with audiences and how their songs translate to live performance.”
Harry Styles, Billie Eilish, Mary J. Blige, Lil Durk and Luke Coombs have all performed for Apple Music Live
Prior to Apple Music Live, the streaming behemoth previously dabbled in live music with events including the discontinued iTunes Festival and Apple Music Festival.
Amazon Music has also announced details of a new livestream concert series, which will also feature Megan Thee Stallion.
Hosted by American rapper 2 Chainz, Amazon Music Live will be streamed live from LA, featuring “the biggest artists performing their latest hits live”.
It will air on Prime Video following Thursday Night Football in the US and premieres 27 October with Lil Baby, followed by Megan Thee Stallion (3 November) and Kane Brown (10 November), with further performers to be revealed in the coming weeks.
“With Amazon Music Live, we’ve created a new, can’t-miss series for fans to experience the most exciting new music together,” says Kirdis Postelle, global head of artist marketing of Amazon Music. “For artists, this show represents a massive new stage to share their music with fans after Thursday Night Football – the biggest game of the week, airing live on Prime Video.”
Amazon Music Live will be streamed live from LA, featuring “the biggest artists performing their latest hits live”
As well as hosting Amazon Music Live, 2 Chainz will interview each night’s performing artist during Thursday Night Football shoulder programming. Each concert will be available for fans to stream live around the world on Prime Video and will also be available to stream on-demand for a limited time.
Each week’s performance will be filmed in front of a live audience. Attendance to the show is by invitation only and will be facilitated through ticketing and event discovery platform Dice.
Amazon Music also recently livestreamed Kendrick Lamar’s sold-out 22 October show at the Accor Arena in Paris.
Fans were able to watch the livestream for free exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide, the Amazon Music channel on Twitch, and on the Amazon Music app.
Spotify previously stepped into the live music sphere when it launched a new livestreaming virtual concert series during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Spotify launched a new livestreaming virtual concert series during the Covid-19 pandemic
The Black Keys, Rag’n’Bone Man, Bleachers’ Jack Antonoff, Leon Bridges, and girl in red were among the artists that delivered what Spotify called “pre-recorded live shows” – which each ran for 40-75 minutes and cost US$15 to attend.
More recently, Spotify soft-launched a new website to sell tickets directly to its users, instead of redirecting customers to partner ticketing platforms.
The streaming provider premiered its tickets.spotify.com on 10 August, enabling those with a Spotify account to purchase event tickets via debit or credit card.
Apple, Amazon and Spotify join several other digital giants that have hosted live concert performances, such as YouTube which has been livestreaming Coachella performances for years and Hulu which has been enlisted to stream Lollapalooza and Bonnaroo music festivals in 2022 and 2023.
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Amazon Music to livestream Kendrick Lamar show
Amazon Music and Prime Video is to livestream Kendrick Lamar’s sold-out 22 October show at the Accor Arena in Paris.
Fans will be able to watch the livestream for free exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide, the Amazon Music channel on Twitch, and on the Amazon Music app. The concert marks the 10-year anniversary of the release of Lamar’s good kid, m.A.A.d city LP.
Lamar’s performance, which will provide a special look at Lamar’s 65-date The Big Steppers world tour, will be available to view on-demand on Prime Video following the event, which will also feature sets from PGLang’s Tanna Leone and Baby Keem.
Produced by Live Nation and presented by Rotation, Amazon Music’s hip-hop and R&B brand, Lamar’s tour is currently making stops in Europe, UK and Australia before wrapping up at New Zealand at Auckland’s Spark Arena on 16-17 December.
“We are thrilled to be working with Kendrick Lamar, one of the most influential and groundbreaking artists of my generation, and PGLang to collaborate across Amazon for this epic entertainment event,” says Alaina Bartels, Amazon Studios’ head of talent synergy & specials. “We continue to be the home for talent and creating special opportunities for our global customers to experience their awe-inspiring creativity.”
“For artists, this show represents a massive new stage to share their music with fans”
Amazon Music has also announced details of new livestream concert series Amazon Music Live.
Hosted by American rapper 2 Chainz, the series will be streamed live from Los Angeles, featuring “the biggest artists performing their latest hits live”.
It will air on Prime Video following Thursday Night Football in the US and premieres 27 October with Lil Baby, followed by Megan Thee Stallion (3 November) and Kane Brown (10 November), with further performers to be revealed in the coming weeks.
“With Amazon Music Live, we’ve created a new, can’t-miss series for fans to experience the most exciting new music together,” says Kirdis Postelle, global head of artist marketing of Amazon Music. “For artists, this show represents a massive new stage to share their music with fans after Thursday Night Football – the biggest game of the week, airing live on Prime Video.”
As well as hosting Amazon Music Live, 2 Chainz will interview each night’s performing artist during Thursday Night Football shoulder programming. Each concert will be available for fans to stream live around the world on Prime Video and will also be available to stream on-demand for a limited time.
“Every Thursday night, I’m bringing the biggest and the brightest stars in music to the Amazon Music Live stage in Los Angeles,” said 2 Chainz. “We have the people that are influencing the culture and have carved their own unique path in music, like Lil Baby, Megan Thee Stallion and Kane Brown. Amazon Music Live is the only place to be for the official Thursday turn up!”
Each week’s performance will be filmed in front of a live audience. Attendance to the show is by invitation only and will be facilitated through ticketing and event discovery platform Dice.
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Ed Sheeran announces global livestreamed concert
Ed Sheeran is partnering with Amazon Music for a global livestreamed concert from London’s Alexandra Palace (cap. 10, 400).
The singer-songwriter will showcase his new album ‘=’ during The Equals Live Experience, which will be broadcast worldwide via Amazon Music on 5 December at 20:00 GMT.
Five fans – including one guest each – are being offered the chance to attend the 90-minute “stunning visual performance” in person.
Five fans are being offered the chance to attend the 90-minute “stunning visual performance” in person
Those tuning in from home can do so through the Amazon Music app, the Amazon Music channel on Twitch, and Prime Video.
News of the live stream comes after Sheeran delivered a virtual performance from within the Pokémon Go app yesterday (22 November). A video of the show is available to view for eight days, until next Tuesday (30 November).
Sheeran’s other 2021 livestreamed concerts include fundraising event We for India and the record-breaking TikTok live stream which garnered more than 5.5 million unique viewers.
While Alexandra Palace previously hosted livestreamed events such as Nick Cave’s Idiot Prayer and the Melody VR-produced Wireless Connect.
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700+ artists boycott Amazon over ICE ties
Just over a week after Amazon Web Services (AWS) revealed the full line-up for its Intersect music festival, over 700 musicians have pledged to boycott any Amazon-affiliated event or partnership due to the e-commerce giant’s links with the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Artists including Deerhoof, Speedy Ortiz, Downtown Boys, Priests and Guy Picciotto have signed the ‘No Music for ICE’ open letter, published by digital rights advocacy group Fight for the Future. The group is also behind a recent campaign urging festivals to ban facial recognition technology.
The letter states that the signatories are “outraged” that Amazon “continues to provide the technical backbone for ICE’s human rights abuses”.
The artists pledge to boycott “Amazon-sponsored events” and “exclusive partnerships” until the company terminates existing contracts with ICE, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR); stops supplying cloud services and tools to organisations that “power the US government’s deportation machine”; and ends facial recognition projects and any others that “encourage racial profiling”.
“We the undersigned artists are outraged that Amazon continues to provide the technical backbone for ICE’s human rights abuses”
The boycott comes after DJ the Black Madonna pulled out of her appearance at Intersect, claiming that Amazon Web Services’ affiliation with the event was not made apparent.
“If you were shocked I’d play for Amazon, well that makes two of us,” tweeted the DJ. “Please be patient while I burn some bridges.”
Artists still confirmed to play AWS’ Intersect festival, which is taking place from 6 to 7 December in Las Vegas, include Kacey Musgraves, Foo Fighters, Anderson.Paak, Beck, Brandi Carlile, Jamie XX and HER. Weekend passes are available for US$169.
Amazon has attempted to tap into the live scene in recent years, with its streaming arm, Amazon Music, hosting Taylor Swift-headlined Prime Day concert in July. Other, albeit short-lived, forays into the live industry by the web giant include event ticketing operation Amazon Tickets and concert series Prime Live Events.
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Amazon announces full line-up for new Intersect festival
Amazon Web Services (AWS) has revealed the full artist line-up for Intersect, its music and technology festival debuting in Las Vegas next month.
Acts including Jpegmafia, Toro y Moi, the Black Madonna, Japanese Breakfast and Kelsey Lu join the likes of Foo Fighters, Kacey Musgraves, Anderson Paak and the Free Nationals, Beck, Brandi Carlile, Leon Bridges, HER and Jamie XX at the event, which will take place on 6 and 7 November at the 85,000-capacity Las Vegas Festival Grounds.
The festival – which follows the Taylor Swift-headlined Prime Day concert as the web giant’s first new live entertainment project since the abrupt shutdown of Amazon Tickets and Prime Live Events early last year – also includes a reported million square feet (93,000m²) of games and activities, including a video arcade, a ‘post-apocalyptic’ dodgeball stadium and a huge ball pit with 200,000 balls, as well as installations and exhibitions by acclaimed visual artists and a drone light show celebrating women in tech.
“We’ve built a pretty amazing and unusual live music experience at our annual AWS conference that attendees have loved”
Ariel Kelman, vice-president of worldwide marketing for AWS, comments: “Music has been an uncanny unifier of people over the years. We’ve built a pretty amazing and unusual live music experience at our annual AWS conference that attendees have loved, and with Intersect, we’re excited to extend this unique event into a two-day, public music festival.
“Festivalgoers can look forward to a mix of musical performances from legendary acts like the Foo Fighters and Kacey Musgraves, and unique musical talents from the likes of Brandi Carlile, Kelsey Lu, and Jpegmafia, coupled with immersive digital installations and some of the interactive games and technology elements our AWS re:Invent and re:Play attendees know and love.”
Two-day tickets are priced from US$169 and available from intersectfest.com.
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Streaming companies up live presence with new concerts
Apple and Amazon, whose Apple Music and Amazon Music platforms are respectively the second and third most popular music streaming services worldwide, have announced plans for new live events this summer.
Ecommerce giant Amazon will expand this year’s Prime Day – a Black Friday-like discount day for members of its Prime loyalty programme – with a new entertainment component: a Prime Day concert headlined by Taylor Swift.
Available to view from 9pm EST (1am GMT) next Wednesday (11 July) on Amazon’s Prime Video service, the concert’s all-female line-up also includes Dua Lipa, SZA and Becky, as well as actor Jane Lynch, who will host the event.
“We can’t wait to celebrate Prime Day with an extraordinary night of unforgettable performances, for members around the globe,” says Steve Boom, VP of Amazon Music. “Prime Day brings members the best of both entertainment and shopping. To celebrate, we’ve curated a line-up across multiple genres with performances from artists our customers love.
“We’re looking forward to celebrating Prime Day with this can’t-miss, one-of-a-kind event.”
Amazon previous organised a series of shows in the UK, dubbed Prime Live Events, though these were wound up in early 2018 following the shutdown of its Amazon Tickets business.
“We’re looking forward to celebrating Prime Day with this can’t-miss, one-of-a-kind event”
Apple, meanwhile, is taking Apple Music’s Up Next programme and playlist, which focuses on emerging artists, to retail stores across Europe and the US under the banner Up Next Live.
Up Next artists, including Bad Bunny, Daniel Caesar, Khalid, Ashley McBryde, King Princess, Lewis Capaldi and Jessie Reyez, will each play an intimate show in Apple shops in Italy, France, London and the US, starting with Latin star Bad Bunny at Apple Piazza Liberty in Milan on 9 July.
Apple operated its own music festival, Apple Music Festival (formerly the iTunes Festival), in London from 2007 until its cancellation in 2017, and has also sponsored select tours.
Commenting on his involvement with the Up Next initiative, Puerto Rican-born Bad Bunny says: “The impact [of being part of Up Next] can be seen in everything, in numbers, in plays, in shows. There are a lot of fans that, when I go out in the street in the US, people who do not speak Spanish, I think they will not know me and they stop me, they ask me for pictures and they sing my songs…
“It helped me very much to make myself known in a market different from mine, not only the US, but in places where Spanish is not spoken or where perhaps Latin music does not dominate, exposing my music and giving people the opportunity to get to know what I do.”
Streaming market leader Spotify has also taken its playlists on the road, including the Latin-led ¡Viva Latino! Live, grime-focused Who We Be Live and US hip hop-orientated RapCaviar Live.
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See Tickets offering three-month Amazon Music sub
See Tickets has partnered with Amazon to offer See customers a free subscription to Amazon Music Unlimited.
Until 2 November, purchasing a ticket using Amazon Pay will entitle the buyer to a three-month subscription to Amazon’s music streaming service, which the company says has a library of 50m songs.
After completing payment with Amazon Pay – a digital payments platform competing with the likes of Apple Pay and Google Play – a code for Amazon Music Unlimited will appear on the bottom of the ticket confirmation email.
According to MIDiA Research, Amazon Music Unlimited – usually £9.99/$9.99 a month – has a global streaming marketshare of 12%, behind Spotify (36%) and Apple Music (19%) but ahead of China’s Tencent Music (8%), Deezer (3%) and Google Play Music (3%).
Amazon was briefly a competitor to See Tickets in the UK market, before its fledgling Amazon Tickets business was wound up in February.
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