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If Fortnite the Future of Live Music, Why is Fortnite Staging So Few Shows — and They’re Much Less Immersive Than Before?

Fortnite! It's the future of live music, as many say (I even said so here!). It sure seemed that way when artists like Travis Scott and Marshmellow brought in millions to experience "only in a virtual world"-type shows — not to mention lots of revenue for themselves.

But thing is, Travis Scott's show as a literal giant in Fortnite was last April. And since then, live shows have been few and far between. This one above, with J Balvin, is the most recent that I can find — and it's from last October. Maybe I'm missing others, but I can't find any announced on Fortnite's official blog. Also concerning: Recent live concerts aren't anywhere as amazing and immersive as the Travis Scott event; instead, they mainly seem to be non-interactive video streams. (Another example, with BTS "in" Fortnite, below.)

What's the deal? I've reached out to a contact with Epic for their take. If I had to speculate, I'd say there's a few possible factors at work:

Again with the streaming video!

  • COVID quarantine? That must contribute to some delay, especially since doing a volumetric capture of an artist is literally a hands-on project. Then again, Travis Scott's show happened during the first lockdown. And if Cardi B can create a whole hit video with a large cast during the quarantine, what's holding back other artists from doing shows in Fortnite?
  • Dwindling audience? Travis Scott's show attracted many millions, but perhaps the novelty has worn off for Fortniters, and now a smaller attendance can't support the budget to pull this off?
  • Epic vs. Apple concerns? Perhaps many of the big labels are worried that allowing their artists to perform in Fortnite may embroil them in Epic's ongoing battle with Apple, which also happens to be the world's top music platform.

Just some educated guesses that I wouldn't put much stock in just yet. Hopefully Epic will soon announce a series of highly immersive live shows and prove me wrong, because I still hope "Virtual worlds are the future of live music" is still a plausible statement.

Fortnite Live Concert J Blavin

Hat tip: Philip Rosedale,.

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2 responses to “If Fortnite the Future of Live Music, Why is Fortnite Staging So Few Shows — and They’re Much Less Immersive Than Before?”

  1. ZB Avatar
    ZB

    Not sure if you’ve heard this but it’s all over the metal music world that the heavy metal band Nightwish has announced they are hosting a virtual concert on their own platform in March. Should be pretty spectacular 😀
    https://nightwish.com/news/an-evening-with-nightwish-in-a-virtual-world-announced

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  2. Mint Avatar
    Mint

    There have been a number of live online shows done in a more traditional streaming method. BTS, Dua Lipa, Louis Tomlinson, Liam Payne, Niall Horan, and other Top 40 musicians have all done them.
    My guess for artists not doing Fortnite concerts would be because A) their core audiences aren’t active there or an immersive experience in a virtual world wouldn’t interest them and B) the costs of doing a traditional show are lower. Take BTS for example – they did a more traditional livestream concert and made approximately $19 million to $26 million in ticket sales alone. I wouldn’t imagine that most of their fanbase is on Fortnite, and a more traditional format may enable the viewer to better see their dancing + choreography.
    I’m also not sure if fans are really looking for an immersive experience – at least from what I’ve seen amongst fanbases of artists that have offered virtual concerts, it’s more about getting to see an artist perform songs live than to have any unique experience.
    They don’t need

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