In 2011 the planets aligned and stars collided when Jay-Z and Kanye West decided to record and release Watch The Throne, the album completely Jay and ‘Ye. And really, when you have them both on every track, who else do you need? The album broke iTunes one week sales record by selling over 290,000 copies on the first day.
When the concert tour dates were posted fans went nuts. What a rare occasion to see two powerhouses on stage on the same night at the same time! Jay-Z with numerous accolades: a career spanning more than fifteen years, fifteen albums, and several American Music, Grammy and BET awards. Kanye West with multiple hits, American Music, Grammy, BET and MTV awards, unparalleled fashion sense and a notorious ego. More than twenty-five of the tour’s dates sold out.
For those blessed with tickets to one of their twenty-six tour dates, the set up was mind-blowing. Intergalactic light shows, a full band, two of the greatest performers of all time performing together, separately, and together again –definitely a night to remember. If you’re like me there have been several times when your favorite song comes and goes and you wish they would just play it one more time. Jay-Z and Kanye delivered that wish by repeating N****s in Paris not just once more, but up to ten times in a row.
Financially, 2011 was a hard year. The economy seems to be on an upswing, but most likely a one hundred dollar (or more depending on the seat and the city) concert ticket wasn’t in the budget for most. Many accepted the fact that they would miss out on a show of a lifetime.
Enter the marketing geniuses VOYR, who realized the obvious fact that we now live in a world of instant shared experiences. Uploading pictures, music, and thoughts about a live experience to our networks does not bring down the value of the event as some feared. On the contrary, these actions actually increase the anticipation and multiply the buzz. Take a look at a few statistics released by VOYR following the Watch The Throne Tour to see what I mean:
- Over 76 million total online impressions15 million directly connected to VOYR’s client, Jeep, 5 million from celebrity tweets
- 5 essay contest winners were invited to follow the tour from Vegas to Los Angeles and share their experiences using their social network outlets. This contest resulted in 1.3 million impressions for Jeep in just six days
Marketers now know that rewarding attendees for sharing only extends their reach.
Concert promotion has evolved. Audiences are broader than the bodies in arena seats. Nothing beats seeing a show live and in person – feeling the emotions of the crowd, breathing the same air as your favorite artist, the chance of catching them backstage for an autograph – but when you can’t be there, know that there are plenty of ways to be a part of the tour right in your own home.
