Spotify hopes to reel in young hip-hop fans looking for new virtual methods to connect with their favorite artists.
On Wednesday, Spotify revealed a new space-themed digital world on Roblox: “Planet Hip-Hop.”
The new musical metaverse project exists as part of Spotify Island, which debuted in May as the first piece of virtual real estate in the Roblox virtual world to be created by a streaming service. Spotify plans to use Planet Hip-Hop as a means to provide younger fans fresh ways to connect with their favorite artists. Players are invited to walk atop buildings and float around as they explore all of the elements of Spotify’s new metaverse environment.
“We wanted to create a space inspired by the newest era of hip-hop, exploring how the current generation of artists and fans are redefining what the genre looks like and sounds like,” Steven Conaway, Senior Art Director at Spotify, said during a demo of Planet Hip-Hop.
Spotify leaned into futuristic motifs to bring the project to life, resulting in a brightly lit cityscape that sits atop an upturned pyramid. Red rings surround the virtual world as an ode to the grooves in vinyl records.
In Planet Hip-Hop, fans can collect exclusive virtual merch, customize cars in the “Speed Shop,” dance on a floating dance floor, create hip-hop beats powered by Soundtrap, and more. The platform will eventually feature music from up-and-coming rapper Doechii, with plans to continue highlighting more young artists moving forward. Fans will be able to explore Doechii’s swamp-like kingdom that pays homage to her hometown of Tampa, Florida.
Planet Hip-Hop is the perfect follow-up to Spotify’s K-Pop-centric K-Park, and the news arrives as the streaming service is expanding in other new areas; they recently launched an audiobook platform featuring roughly 300,000 titles.
Looking ahead, Spotify has plans to continue rolling out new features for Doechii’s swamp, avatar merch, quests, and collaborations with different artists. Stay tuned.
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