iWorld
Twitter and Rolling Stone India partners live Twitter music gigs called #RollingWith
MUMBAI: Twitter India and music monthly Rolling Stone India has teamed up to kickstart a new bi-monthly partnership. Called #RollingWith, this curated partnership will see Indian indie musicians and visiting global acts perform live at the Twitter India #BlueRoom, and the performance will be broadcasted live on Periscope via @RollingStoneIN to reach fans across the country and the world on Twitter. Prior to and during the performance, the artists will also engage with fans on Twitter via exclusive video Q&As and more.
Taking fan engagement from online to offline, a small set of fans, selected via Twitter, will also be invited to watch the gig live at the #BlueRoom.
These ‘music-and-conversation’ video sessions will give music fans a new way of enjoying live music – with a side of social media infused banter. The series will aim to discover new artists, and offer a space where musicians and fans meet, talk music, and enjoy a nonchalant listening session. To make it a more inclusive experience for fans, artists will crowdsources lyrics, take a Twitter poll of their favourite tracks, make new album announcements, new tour announcements, share gig travel stories, or chat with fans live on Periscope while performing.
The #RollingWith partnership kickstarted today with British pop sensation, The Vamps (@TheVampsband) that took place live on Twitter on Monday morning. The September and October line-up also includes artists such as Urdu rapper Naezy (@NaezytheBAa), Sandunes (@sandunesmusic), and Mumbai rapper Divine (@VivianDivine), Nucleya (@NUCLEYA) and Dualist Inquiry (@DualistInquiry).
“Twitter is your live connection to culture, and fans flock to Twitter to share and connect with their favourite artists and other fans. We are thrilled to bring new experiences for music fans exclusively on Twitter with #RollingWith in partnership with Rolling Stone India. Through this initiative, we will be hosting curated performances from Indian indie artists and visiting global acts both on Twitter and live at the #BlueRoom, and will also give fans an opportunity to engage with their favourite musicians in new and unique ways. #RollingWith will feature both known and emerging artists to support the growing local music industry,” says Twitter head of media Partnerships, Southeast Asia Pratiksha Rao,
Rolling Stone editor & publisher Radhakrishnan Nair, India says, “Rolling Stone India is committed to the cause of supporting artists as well as providing them with a platform to interact with their fans directly. We are happy to join hands with Twitter India for #RollingWith, which is a unique and exciting project in today’s social media-driven industry. We hope #RollingWith will go a long way in building and fostering an interactive community of musicians and fans.”
The gigs will go live on @RollingStoneIndia on Twitter and Periscope, and will reach audiences across the country and the world via Twitter. For regular updates on artist line-up, follow @TwitterIndia and @RollingStoneIN. Follow the conversation with #RollingWith.
The Vamps (@TheVampsband) at the first #RollingWith Twitter gig
iWorld
Anirudh Ravichander and Universal Music India join forces to take South India’s sound to the world
The composer behind 13 billion streams launches Albuquerque Records with UMI as its exclusive global partner
MUMBAI: Universal Music India has struck an exclusive partnership with Albuquerque Records, the freshly minted independent label of singer-composer Anirudh Ravichander, in a deal that bets big on South India’s booming pop and hip-hop scene going global.
The arrangement, announced on 17 March, will see Universal Music India handle future pop and hip-hop releases by Anirudh himself, as well as artists signed to the new label. A first release is already in the pipeline for April, featuring Anirudh.
The numbers behind the man are hard to ignore. Debuting in 2012 with the viral sensation “Why This Kolaveri Di”, Anirudh has since clocked over 13 billion audio streams across more than 770 tracks, cementing his position as the No.1 South Indian artist on Spotify by total streams. His fingerprints are all over some of the Tamil film industry’s biggest musical moments, from Hukum and Vaathi Coming to Arabic Kuthu and the A23 Theme.
But Albuquerque Records is a different beast. Built for the non-film space, it is designed to nurture independent talent and champion the next wave of Indian pop voices. “Universal Music India’s leadership in pop and hip-hop made them the natural partner,” said Anirudh. “I’m excited to take independent voices to audiences around the world.”
Universal Music India’s chairman and CEO Devraj Sanyal was equally effusive. “Anirudh represents the future of Indian music, bold, original, and with enormous potential,” he said. “Identifying transformative talent is our superpower, and this partnership reflects that belief.”
Sanujeet Bhujabal, managing director of Universal Music India, framed the deal as more than a distribution play. “Albuquerque Records represents Anirudh’s bold artistic vision in the world of pop and hip-hop,” he said. “True to his legacy of innovation, this partnership is set to establish yet another landmark creative space, this time for the emerging world of iPop and beyond.”
For Universal Music India, the deal deepens a long-running push into South India’s four key language markets: Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and Telugu. The label already has regional imprints, film partnerships with Maddock Films and Excel Entertainment, and a growing non-film roster. Landing Anirudh, arguably the south’s most bankable music brand, is a statement of intent. South Indian music has the streams. Now it is coming for the world.
