I’m not sure if you read the trades this past week, but I’ve accepted a position as the CMO of music livestreaming platform, Dreamstage. Considering how passionate I am about the cross-section of live music and online experiences, it’s a great fit.
My brother Alex will continue to lead Nue Agency as he always has. Nobody knows the company or the space better and I’m eager to see the new heights we can reach.
Music livestreaming is a thrilling new frontier. First and foremost, I believe a livestream should be more than just…a live stream. I’m not talking about production value — we all know what a Beyonce performance on Netflix looks like. I’m talking about experience value.
Just 18 months ago, the world’s biggest concert promoters suspended their tours as the pandemic swept the globe. The livestreaming industry caught momentum in the ensuing months as artists and their teams turned to “virtual concerts” to connect with fan bases and generate new kinds of revenue.
Livestream offerings have slowed slightly since the world began opening back up, but Dreamstage has a bigger picture vision beyond the trends. According to MCR’s 2021 Music Report, only 5% of the general US population has attended a virtual concert in the past year. That leaves massive room for growth in this sector.
As my readers know, I love a live show as much as anyone. That’s how I built my business. I was at a festival while drafting this! But the livestream space is a cultural development and needs to be treated as such. Livestreams do not compete with the live music business. They represent a newly unearthed world of fandom and music discovery. They are an enhancement to an artist’s live brand strategy. It’s a new business model with tremendous upside for artist and fan alike.
Here are five reasons I’m excited about the online experience space:
Intimacy & Interactivity – There’s something special about watching a show from the comfort of your own home; about watching with family and friends; about ordering in and getting cozy. To boot, the artist access is unlike anything we’ve experienced before. You can be inside the green room, backstage, or in the front row. Fans now shape the way artists and promoters think about live performance.
Creativity & Innovation – This is a new medium with massive world-building potential. Your dream show experience now goes beyond the traditional live music venue or festival. There are remarkable, untapped storytelling opportunities at the intersection of physical and digital.
Artist Marketing & Promotion – These experiences allow scale beyond the physical event. New marketing tactics and enhanced reach mean heightened awareness. When timed right, hard ticket livestreaming not only brings in additional revenue, it helps sell in-person tickets and amplify tentpole announcements such as new releases.
Community – Online communities are now synonymous with communities. Music lovers are finding new ways to find each other every day. It’s our job to make online shows the next frontier of connectivity. I predict people will begin streaming the shows they attend in order to access interactive features like chat and to build powerful new communities that blur the lines between online and IRL.
Monetization – Livestreaming flows beautifully into the exploding trends of interactive shopping, Web3, crypto, and the blockchain. Merch conversions are through the roof with livestream attendees and there’s so much room for brands to get involved. At scale, these new types of sales partnerships will have a huge impact on everyone’s revenue.
I joined Dreamstage because of their vision. We’re a diverse set of music lovers and tech enthusiasts with a deep history of artist marketing at labels, agencies, venues and brands. We’re finetuning our already best-in-class technology and have more announcements in the works. On top of that, we’re looking to build a kick ass sales team that understands how to bridge the gap between live music, technology, and brands.
Follow Dreamstage on socials for loads of news and show announcements.
Twitter: @dreamstagelive
Instagram: @dreamstagelive
LinkedIn: @dreamstage
My brother Alex will continue to lead Nue Agency as he always has. Nobody knows the company or the space better and I’m eager to see the new heights we can reach.
Music livestreaming is a thrilling new frontier. First and foremost, I believe a livestream should be more than just…a live stream. I’m not talking about production value — we all know what a Beyonce performance on Netflix looks like. I’m talking about experience value.
Just 18 months ago, the world’s biggest concert promoters suspended their tours as the pandemic swept the globe. The livestreaming industry caught momentum in the ensuing months as artists and their teams turned to “virtual concerts” to connect with fan bases and generate new kinds of revenue.
Livestream offerings have slowed slightly since the world began opening back up, but Dreamstage has a bigger picture vision beyond the trends. According to MCR’s 2021 Music Report, only 5% of the general US population has attended a virtual concert in the past year. That leaves massive room for growth in this sector.
As my readers know, I love a live show as much as anyone. That’s how I built my business. I was at a festival while drafting this! But the livestream space is a cultural development and needs to be treated as such. Livestreams do not compete with the live music business. They represent a newly unearthed world of fandom and music discovery. They are an enhancement to an artist’s live brand strategy. It’s a new business model with tremendous upside for artist and fan alike.
Here are five reasons I’m excited about the online experience space:
Intimacy & Interactivity – There’s something special about watching a show from the comfort of your own home; about watching with family and friends; about ordering in and getting cozy. To boot, the artist access is unlike anything we’ve experienced before. You can be inside the green room, backstage, or in the front row. Fans now shape the way artists and promoters think about live performance.
Creativity & Innovation – This is a new medium with massive world-building potential. Your dream show experience now goes beyond the traditional live music venue or festival. There are remarkable, untapped storytelling opportunities at the intersection of physical and digital.
Artist Marketing & Promotion – These experiences allow scale beyond the physical event. New marketing tactics and enhanced reach mean heightened awareness. When timed right, hard ticket livestreaming not only brings in additional revenue, it helps sell in-person tickets and amplify tentpole announcements such as new releases.
Community – Online communities are now synonymous with communities. Music lovers are finding new ways to find each other every day. It’s our job to make online shows the next frontier of connectivity. I predict people will begin streaming the shows they attend in order to access interactive features like chat and to build powerful new communities that blur the lines between online and IRL.
Monetization – Livestreaming flows beautifully into the exploding trends of interactive shopping, Web3, crypto, and the blockchain. Merch conversions are through the roof with livestream attendees and there’s so much room for brands to get involved. At scale, these new types of sales partnerships will have a huge impact on everyone’s revenue.
I joined Dreamstage because of their vision. We’re a diverse set of music lovers and tech enthusiasts with a deep history of artist marketing at labels, agencies, venues and brands. We’re finetuning our already best-in-class technology and have more announcements in the works. On top of that, we’re looking to build a kick ass sales team that understands how to bridge the gap between live music, technology, and brands.
Follow Dreamstage on socials for loads of news and show announcements.
Twitter: @dreamstagelive
Instagram: @dreamstagelive
LinkedIn: @dreamstage
Also published on Medium.