Virtual Concerts: Tomorrowland’s Digital Lineup, Metal Festival Alliance, Cypress Hill ‘Live From LA’

Tomorrowland Festival will take place as a digital edition, dubbed “Tomorrowland Around The World,” July 25-26, promising a virtual world that’ll be “a major step in the future of digital music festivals.”

The festival’s creative team, 3D artists and programmers created eight different stages in total, which will feature music from the world’s biggest names in dance and electronic music as well as digital fireworks and laser shows. 

The festival’s iconic main stage, which represents a different theme each year, has been digitally recreated for the occasion.

Tomorrowland co-founder Michiel Beers said, “Tomorrowland Around The World is the result of a gigantic team effort of hundreds of people who are working around the clock to create a never-before-seen interactive entertainment experience. 

“Since we started this project and all ideas came together, we immediately felt an enormous energy and lots of positivity from everybody involved. For us it’s a bit re-inventing the festival experience, but we truly believe that we can bring the spirit of Tomorrowland and entertainment at the highest level to people and homes around the globe. 

The confirmed lineup includes Adam Beyer, Amelie Lens, Armin van Buuren, Charlotte de Witte, David Guetta, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Kölsch, Lost Frequencies, Martin Garrix, Paul Kalkbrenner, Steve Aoki, Tale of Us, Tiësto, Timmy Trumpet and others.

To complement the digital experience in the real world, the festival’s organisers invite fans to dress up in their best festival outfits, put up tents in their back gardens, set up a big screen, and invite their beloved ones.

“We hope that hundreds of thousands of people will unite in a responsible way and that small Tomorrowland gatherings at people’s homes – from Canada to Australia, from Japan to Brazil and everywhere in between – will be organised. Especially during the weekend where normally Tomorrowland Belgium would take place, we really have the power to unite the world,” said Beers.

Bloodstock Open Air UK and 12 European metal festivals have formed the European Metal Festival Alliance to create a streaming event on the weekend of Aug. 7-9.

Aside from Bloodstock, which usually takes place in Walton on Trent in Derbyshire, England, participating festivals include Alcatraz (Belgium), Art Mania (Romania), Brutal Assault (Czech Republic), Dynamo (Netherlands), Into The Grave (Netherlands), Leyendas De Rock (Spain), Metal Days (Slovenia), Midgardsblot (Norway), Motorcultor (France), Party.San (Germany), Resurrection (Spain), and Summer Breeze (Germany). 

The streaming event will offer “exclusive live performances from a selection of yet-to-be-revealed artists chosen by each festival, as well as exclusive new interviews, and more,” according to a joint statement.

Viewers will be asked to €6.66 ($7.50) to access the stream – “as a fundraiser for the beleaguered independent festival sector, who don’t have the backing of big corporate money for their survival.”

The virtual festival pass will give fans access to three days of live performances by 35-plus metal bands at various locations around the world and other exclusive content, from the comfort of their own home.”

Ticket purchasers will also get a discount on a European Metal Festival Alliance “Rebooting for 2021” T-shirt. 

Cypress Hill are confirmed as the latest act to perform in MelodyVR’s “Live From LA” concert series.

The performance takes place this coming Friday, June 19, and can be watched via the MelodyVR app on smartphones and VR headsets.

MelodyVR says it uses “world-class camera and production technology,” to transport viewers to a “state-of-the-art studio space,” where they can “virtually stand next to Cypress Hill while watching the story of the band told on bespoke video walls.”

A band statement reads: “When we were approached to perform for our fans again, we jumped on it. We definitely wanted to give them a unique experience with this intimate show. Partnering with MelodyVR for Live from LA allowed us to do just that.”