SAN MATEO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Roblox, a global online platform bringing millions of people together through play, announced today a partnership with Columbia Records and record-breaking artist Lil Nas X to launch the first-ever, exclusive virtual concert on the Roblox platform. Lil Nas X will perform his upcoming new single “HOLIDAY” live for the first time, along with some of his most popular hits, in this innovative and fully immersive concert experience for Roblox users worldwide to enjoy. Roblox will open the first of three free concert showings at 1 pm PST on Saturday, November 14th.
“We’re throwing the biggest virtual concert of 2020, and I hope everybody in the world can come check it out,” said Lil Nas X. “I feel very lucky to be the first artist to ever do this on Roblox. We had so much fun putting this together for my fans, and I can’t wait for everyone to see it!”
The concert will feature a set of stages, all inspired by Lil Nas X’s songs and music videos, that are using the latest shadowing, lighting, and physically based rendering (PBR) facial recognition technologies available on the Roblox platform. The entire experience is designed to give Roblox users and Lil Nas X fans a unique way to discover and enjoy music together with their friends and connect with their favorite artist like never before.
In addition to the concert experience, Roblox and Columbia Records will also be showing a Q&A with the artist that will be streamed inside the concert venue starting with the preshow at 4 pm PST on Friday, November 13th.
"We're thrilled to partner with Columbia Records to bring Lil Nas X fans and the Roblox community together in an entirely new way,” said Jon Vlassopulos, Global Head of Music at Roblox. “This concert with Lil Nas X will transport players and their friends into the Metaverse, and bring to life the future of what immersive, social experiences can look like."
“Columbia Records is always driven to find new and innovative ways for our storied artists to share their creative vision,” said Ryan Ruden, SVP, Experiential Marketing and Business Development for Columbia Records. “This partnership is an exciting opportunity to share Lil Nas X’s new music with over 150 million kids and teens globally through this first-ever high-fidelity concert experience on Roblox.”
New Roblox users will need to create an account to access the concert venue. The venue features mini games and other activities that users can explore between now and the first preshow event on Friday, November 13. There will also be a virtual store offering an exclusive merch capsule with a variety of accessories, emotes, and fashion-forward Lil Nas X avatar bundles that emulate the thematic style of each song performed during the concert experience. Existing Roblox users can enter the concert venue today.
PRESHOW: Q&A SESSION + EXCLUSIVE BEHIND THE SCENES + SCAVENGER HUNT
Friday, November 13, 2020 @ 4:00 pm PST
CONCERT SHOWTIMES
Main Show - Saturday, November 14, 2020 @ 1:00 pm PST
Asia Show - Saturday, November 14, 2020 @ 10:00 pm PST
Europe Show - Sunday, November 15, 2020 @ 9:00 am PST
About Roblox
Roblox’s mission is to bring the world together through play. Every month, more than 150 million people around the world have fun with friends as they explore millions of immersive digital experiences. All of these experiences are built by the Roblox community, made up of over two million creators. We believe in building a safe, civil, and diverse community—one that inspires and fosters creativity and positive relationships between people around the world. For more information, please visit corp.roblox.com.
About Columbia Records
One of the most respected and successful record labels in the world, Columbia Records is home to established superstars and exciting new talent. Columbia Records is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment.
About Lil Nas X
Lil Nas X is a Grammy award-winning rapper, singer and songwriter from Atlanta, Georgia. He rose to fame in 2019 when his genre-shattering hit song “Old Town Road” featuring Billy Ray Cyrus went viral and became the longest running #1 single in Billboard Hot 100 history. Dubbed “an internationally recognized phenomenon” by Billboard, Lil Nas X and the Diamond-certified song have been recognized with various major awards from several areas of the music industry, including two Grammys. He has been featured on the cover of TIME magazine (among many others), was named one of TIME’s 25 most influential people on the Internet, one of Billboard’s 21 Under 21, and was also included on Forbes’ 2020 30 under 30 list. After releasing his highly-successful EP 7 in 2019, which features 5x Platinum single “Panini” and Platinum song “Rodeo,” Lil Nas X is currently at work on his debut album.
