Live Nation Discovers Inherent Vice

Live Nation Entertainment (LNE) and VICE Media have announced a partnership that will develop a new live music platform. This will feature new video footage, editorial material, documentaries and “new live digital music experiences created collaboratively with artists” (whatever that means) alongside editorial content, ecommerce and ticketing.

VICE will provide the content and programming and each company will contribute marketing, sales and sponsorship mechanisms.

Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino said: “Together with Live Nation’s platform, we are positioned to become the voice of live music by developing an artist-centric, 24/7 global music destination that enables artists to bring their creative vision to life in a new and rich online and mobile music ecosystem”.

So, they are collaborating to stream stuff around live music it seems. The Gen still couldn’t quite fathom what this service will do through the dense fog of corporate doublespeak, so looked to VICE for a more matter of fact comment.

VICE founder and CEO Shane Smith added: “This partnership rethinks the live music experience, offering unprecedented access to the world’s biggest stars and emerging artists, and groundbreaking content that will be distributed across the holy trinity of mobile, online and TV. Today the content world is in upheaval, with new brands being created in real time and mainstream media seeing its audience migrate in record numbers”.

Smith continued: “It’s this de-stratification of the status quo that we find so exciting because that, combined with the lack of any real quality music programming out there, equals one hell of an opportunity. We think that this partnership will give VICE and Live Nation the unique ability to totally re-imagine music content on a global scale and if that doesn’t get your rocks off I don’t know what will”.

Ok, we get it now and it all makes perfect sense, that’s all you had to say, Mr. Smith– a de-stratification of the status quo that will totally get your rocks off.

In other Live Nation news, the live music behemoth also recently completed acquisition of the ‘operating assets’ from European resale marketplace, Seatwave through Ticketmaster, which is owned and operated by Live Nation. If you can’t beat em, buy em!