I have been brainstorming about how virtual reality (VR) could be used in the music industry in the next century. I’m super excited about VR and think it’s going to be absolutely huge in my lifetime (I’m 20). I love that technology just keeps getting more and more realistic and immersive. We live in one of the most exciting times in history, and the possibilities that these new technologies are opening up are only just beginning to be understood.
The idea of a standard music video is already becoming outdated. As VR is gaining traction people are realizing that more possibilities await, and are experimenting with VR music videos, for example Mac DeMarco’s ‘This Old Dog’. Viewing a scene from one angle, through one lens, and hearing sounds from just left and right is not very immersive, engaging, or fun. Why would we want to watch a scene unfold before us when we could actually be there, interacting with it? I imagine a future where artists could create not just a music video, but an entire 3-dimensional audiovisual fantasy environment, able to be interacted with in real time.
Viewers could wear a VR helmet that provides crystal clear audio and visuals in every direction and enter a virtual environment, like being in a videogame. Using this helmet one could be transported to any space imaginable, real or imagined, and be able to walk around and interact with the space how they see fit with the use of gestures or a controller.
If it was a Rihanna song, viewers could be transported to a megayacht party, essentially seeing a live performance of an animated yet realistic Rihanna in VR. Viewers could experience this event in any way they desired. Viewers could also engage with the animated partygoers who represent real-life people. Say while exploring during the course of the song, you strike up a conversation with a realistic avatar of the producer, who can tell you trivia about the song as artificial intelligence will be able to pull this information from a database and relay it to you.
This will be an incredible tool to pull back the veil on artists and feel like we are actually getting to be with them. Another application is to allow friends to exchange ‘friend codes’ and thus see and interact with each other in these spaces. To celebrate the release of the song or the song going platinum, for example, Rihanna could ‘log in’ to her avatar for a certain amount of time and actually control it and sing through it, rather than the rest of the time when it’s controlled by AI. Essentially, a virtual concert, inexpensive if not free, where there are no limitations, it’s completely safe, and accessible to anyone.
I am not interested in this technology only as an occasional stand-in for live concerts as described above, but also in how it can be used in highly artistic and surreal ways, making use of the limitless possibilities of a digital creation. I’m also hugely anticipating an explosion of 3-dimensional sound, which will not only drastically amplify the realism of these spaces, but also the emotional impact that music can have. Companies like Dysonics are working on this. I’d absolutely love to be one of the first artists to make a 3-D album.
If there was a virtual environment for my song Under the Sun, viewers would find themselves in the center of a giant golden palace in the clouds. They could look in any direction and explore the location, just like if they were there in real life. The music would not just be coming from left and right – each sound would have its own source. For example, the tampura would be oozing underneath you, the hihats would be the beat of dragonfly wings above your head, the cymbals a revolving metallic sculpture. As you moved around the space, the sounds would change in amplitude accordingly, growing increasingly clear or distant. If you heard an interesting synth slithering around to your left, you might feel inspired to go investigate it.
So you turn, walk down the hallway, and find it’s growing louder, and the rest of the song is becoming more distant. You open the door and find the source of the synth, a fantasy creature, a serpent spinning circles in the air. As the synth exits the song so does the animation exit the space, through the open window. So it might be like kind of a game to find and explore the sounds. Perhaps that synth is only present for 10 seconds, and you have to make your way through several sections of the palace to get to it. So it’s like this secret that only some people might know about. And if for example you share a dance with the animation and befriend it, it will stay with you, and thus the synth will remain for the rest of the song. So you’ve effectively altered the song itself by uncovering secrets and interacting with the world it corresponds with.
The technology needed to make this realistic and seamless isn’t here yet, but I believe it will be soon. If smells and physical sensations become possible too, this will only amplify the realism and enjoyment. The way that the viewers and community experience these worlds is what will make them really popular. Like videogames, they could be filled with secrets, challenges, Easter eggs, etc., providing boundless entertainment. I imagine there could be online communities centered around discussing and discovering the spaces. With this technology fans of a song or artist are able to interact with each other in ways much more valuable than a simple video comment section.
Like how YouTube, Vimeo, etc currently oversee the creation and distribution of video, in the future there may be organizations that help artists create these spaces, with different organizations having different reputations and owning collections of these spaces, like record labels own the rights to music. Perhaps access to some of all of the spaces will require a purchase or membership. Due to how much time and detail will have to be put into these projects, it’s likely that in many cases these spaces will encompass a whole music album or discography rather than a single song. In this way, these spaces will not only serve as a way to experience music, but as a hub for artists, an actual location created to fit the artist’s aesthetic, a headquarters for everything to do with them – information about them, their music, a VR store where you can try on their merchandise with your avatar.
Essentially a website, but completely reimagined. As a marketing and branding strategy this is a million times more powerful than what most artists are using today, simple webpages where all they control is a profile photo and a brief description. Artists would own the rights to these virtual spaces and be able to facilitate them and use them in marketing strategies and promotion.
Artists could hold contests or drawings and give the winners codes that would allow them to access new areas of the digital space. Or codes could be distributed to deserving individuals which function as ‘VIP passes’, giving them access to a digital event where they can all see each other and interact. And the promotions might work in the reverse as well. Perhaps by being one of the first people to discover a code or complete a task in the space, they earn free merchandise or show tickets. Artists would be able to control every element of their virtual environment.
Though this technology is not possible yet, I believe it will be in my lifetime and that it will bring immeasurable entertainment and enjoyment. A true revolution of how art and music are experienced. As a young music artist I’m in the unique position of hopefully being able to be a pioneer of this technology (well, if my career actually ever goes anywhere). And though there are definitely concerns to be raised especially if you are a fan of live music and tradition, I think this is very exciting stuff with a lot of great possibilities. Thanks for listening to me babble.
Anyways, my debut EP just released this month and if you’d like, you can hear it here, Spotify/Azutanah: https://open.spotify.com/artist/29pqACbP43R2nQzvybVbTg
Source: Reddit