Virtual events are becoming commonplace now, with many artists hosting them as a way to generate revenue and connect with fans.
To aid with discovery of these virtual events, Spotify is now displaying them in listings on artist and discovery pages across the app.
The whole world has had to adapt from the impacts of COVID-19, and that's equally true of artists and bands. Many have been faced with canceled or postponed live performances, which is often one of their largest sources of income.
To mitigate this, artists have staged virtual performances to provide the magic of live music direct to fan's homes.
As announced on For the Record, Spotify will now list these virtual events on the desktop and mobile app, much like how it already does for traditional live shows.
Any event listed on Songkick will automatically sync to Spotify, along with a select number of Ticketmaster events. This includes shows happening on any external platform, like Twitch, Instagram, and YouTube---as long as an event is created on Songkick, it will display on Spotify.
You will be able to find virtual event listings in several places.
The Concerts hub lists all upcoming virtual events, with some highlighted as recommended based on your listening patterns. This can be found within the Browse section on desktop and Search on mobile.
You will also see virtual events on artist's profiles, within the Concerts (desktop) and On Tour (mobile) sections. It may also be displayed as the artist's highlight at the top of their page.
Finally, Spotify will occasionally email you with personalized virtual event recommendations to ensure you never miss out.
Although virtual performances have risen in popularity due to many people being stuck at home, they could be here to stay.
Companies like Google are certainly banking on it, since it recently launched a platform designed specifically for creators to host paid online events.
