Sam Smith’s latest single comes with an AR experience available exclusively through Spotify.
Grammy Award-winning artist Sam Smith’s brand new album, “Love Goes” drops this Friday, but fans can listen to his newest single “Diamonds” on Spotify right now. To inject the album with a bit of interactivity, Smith has partnered with POWSTER, Universal Music Group, and Capitol Records UK for an 8th Wall-powered AR experience that can only be unlocked through Spotify.
This is a first for Spotify and could possibly open up other AR opportunities with artists as more and more users continue turning to the popular streaming service. But this could also have an impact on other forms of streaming entertainment services, such as podcasts and movies.
Developed by the award-winning creative studio POWSTER, a company behind interactive campaigns for films such as Wonder Woman, Joker, and Yesterday, worked closely with Sam Smith to create an AR experience to complimented Smith’s latest single.
Using 8th Wall’s web-based AR technology makes it simple for fans to connect with the experience.
To launch Smith’s “Diamonds” AR experience, you’re going to need two mobile devices, so you may have to ask a friend to help you out. You simply play the song on Spotify through one mobile device and scan the artwork using a different mobile device to unlock Sam’s holographic AR performance. SIt back, relax, and watch as 3D Sam breaks through the phone for a one-of-a-kind digital rave.
Creating the AR hologram meant using volumetric capture technology to record Smith’s moves. In a promotional video, Smith said, “It was a mad day, we were in this green room and I was dancing and sweating and having a fabulous time.”
This partnership pushes the envelope for interactive album artwork. It’s no longer a static visual experience. Instead, you get your own personal performance that lets you connect with the artist on a deeper level by interacting with the performer. By pressing on the screen of your phone, you can shower Smith with diamonds during the chorus of the song.
In an official press release, Ste Thompson, CEO and Creative Director of POWSTER, said, “This AR project is an artistic and innovative approach to enhance the Spotify experience by Sam Smith, who is a champion of featuring unique content tailored to any platform they engage in.” Thompson adds, “We’re excited to be working with Sam Smith helping him provide a virtual experience for his fans.”
For Spotify, this is a huge win for not only the company, but their subscribers as well. Nikos Antoniou, Senior Manager Artist and Label Partnerships at Spotify, knows how important it is to find innovative ways to collaborate with labels and artists, saying, “This adds a new dimension to the artists’ vision and combining an audio experience with a visual one to enhance listening further, allows fans to engage with music content on our platform in a brand new way.”
Giving an artist like Sam Smith a platform to extend his music into the metaverse, by allowing him to expand his artistry beyond a simple audio experience, will surely inspire other artists to explore this approach and even create their own AR experience.
The “Diamonds” experience is available on Android and iOS devices with the Spotify App and, in addition to English, will be available in Japanese and Spanish. You can also access the experience at diamonds.samsmithworld.com.
Image Credit: Spotify
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