It’s inevitable: with the year’s major music festivals right around the corner, your social media feeds will be filled with flower crowns, sunburns and body paint. A recent Eventbrite study explored the value that social media plays at these events. Over the last 5-7 years, these group-oriented events are usually centered on live music; but entertainment, beer and wine and pop culture fests are growing rapidly in the U.S. Facebook shares are on average worth $4.15 in future ticket sales and Twitter shares are worth $2.18 in future ticket sales. What festival are you attending next?
Last week, Snap Inc. introduced a new update to the Our Story feature, which allows users to search through photos and videos that have posted to the public. Hand-curated by Snapchat, the new feature provides behind-the-scenes Snaps from major events all around the world — which means it will be available at Coachella, peeps! Even if you’re on the East Coast, you’ll feel like you are right up front for Radiohead (no earplugs required).
Virtual Reality (VR) continues its rise in popularity in 2017. TheWaveVR (released only in beta) is a social VR music platform that lets users attend “Wave shows,” where they can socialize with friends and watch musicians perform live on futuristic stages via most major VR head-mounted displays. “We’re hyper-focused on creating the newest and engaging social experiences for music content in VR,” said CEO and cofounder Adam Arrigo. Seems pretty legit to us — we are ready to catch a Wave Show.
Attending Coachella this weekend? There’s an app for that – actually, there are three. The Coachella Mobile App (available for both IOS and Android) is a complete guide to the festival, featuring set times, maps and vendor listings. Users can update their Coachooser schedule and receive notifications when their favorite acts are about to hit the stage. Nice, no more missed performances! Coachella is also offering a VR/AR app with 360° Virtual Reality video captured at Coachella 2016, letting you relive all the moments from the Yuma and Sahara Tents. Lastly, there’s an exclusive Snapchat filter at the event to add to your festival photos. It’s easier than ever to get connected with Coachella this year.