Spotify to hold ticketed virtual concert series

Spotify is set to host a series of ticketed virtual concerts in May and June featuring The Black Keys, Leon Bridges and girl in red.

The first of five prerecorded livestreams will take place on 27 May, with a shows taking place every Thursday until 24 June.

Tickets are priced at $15/£15 and will be available to anyone, even those without a paid-for Spotify subscription. However, viewers will need to sign up for a free Spotify account if they don’t already have one.

The virtual concerts have a running time of between 40 and 75 minutes and the full line-up will include The Black Keys, Rag’n’Bone Man, Bleachers’ Jack Antonoff, Leon Bridges and girl in red.

The shows can only be accessed at a specific time and will only be available through the desktop browser and not the Spotify mobile app. Each concert will air at four different times to accommodate fans in different time zones. 

“I’m excited to collaborate with Spotify on this intimate concert experience that will feature songs from across my catalog, including a few tunes from my new album, Gold-Diggers Sound,” said Leon Bridges. “I’ve truly missed seeing my fans around the world this year, and we are working hard to bring the concert experience to your home, thanks to Spotify.” 

The performances will be broadcast in partnership with producer Driift, the company which experienced some unfortunate technical glitches during the recent Glastonbury ‘Live at Worthy Farm’ livestream. 

“Our ultimate goal, as always, is to help artists and fans connect to one another and share their art,” said Spotify in a statement. “These five shows strengthen that commitment and create a unique performance opportunity that creators and listeners are sure to love.”