Kid Cudi Debuts Interactive Live Music App Encore To The Public
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Encore, the interactive live performance app co-founded by Kid Cudi alongside CEO Jonathan Gray and President Ian Edelman, has debuted live for artists and fans to enjoy. The launch follows a $9M raise led by Battery Ventures, with other investments from 468 Capital, Parade Ventures, Nomad Ventures, Moving Capital, Kayak Ventures, and Gaingels. By using Encore, music fans will have the ability to pay tunes via a system called “claps” for live performances and other virtual events.
The app has the potential to be helpful for both artists and fans looking for alternative ways to enjoy live shows without the complications of large crowds or travel. Musicians are able to speak directly to their core audience, customize the app experience, be introduced to new listeners, and, most importantly, produce custom augmented reality and live performances from a mobile device without a stage or venue. In turn, music lovers are able to support their favorite singers and rappers directly.
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“My number one priority has always been inspiring others and providing them the space to tell their own stories in an authentic and meaningful way,” expressed Kid Cudi in a press statement. “We created Encore as a space for artists to share their art, build community, while also being able to pay their rent.”
As the industry continues to evolve and imagine a world amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, many happenings have shifted to online settings and this is where Encore comes into play. Although the idea was developed before the breakout of COVID-19, the company began developing the app and allowing selected artists to test out the service through.
“I met Ian and Encore was a company that I was helping and it wasn’t really a company. It was Ian. This is in 2019. So it’s Pre-Covid, and I loved his idea,” Gray explained to VIBE ahead of the official launch. “I helped them kind of put together decks, and try to raise some money, and then COVID came. I told him right when COVID started, you have to do this business now.”
DeMicia Inman/VIBE
While in private beta, hundreds of artists tested the app and engaged in live shows with fans old and new. Musicians including The Cool Kids, Too $hort, KenTheMan, and Guapdad 4000 have created and performed Encore shows to tens of thousands of listeners, who have collectively “clapped” almost a million times.
“The chat was cool. Everybody’s talking, claps are going. I like interacting and having that real-time engagement with people, man. It’s just pretty fun, performing new music and stuff… I think this should be more normalized,” said Sir Michael Rocks of The Cool Kids to VIBE after their live-streamed performance on February 4, 2022.
He continued with a cosign from his bandmate Chuck Inglish, “Tonight was cool. I like the setup, I like the live interaction. I like the improv of it where it’s like, we ain’t have to rehearse nothing. You just go in there and interact and talk to people and have a real-time experience here. I think that that’s important, and I think that people are going to want more of that in the future.
DeMicia Inman/VIBE
Watching The Cool Kids perform, VIBE was able to see how the app works in real-time and watch as admirers of the rap group paid with claps on Encore and requested their favorite songs from past and present releases. The rap group was also able to speak directly to fans before the performance, sharing details on their upcoming album Before Shit Got Weird, due on March 3. Chuck Inglish and Sir Michael Rocks were also able to video chat with top supporters directly through the app after their set was finished.
Although The Cool Kids showcase and other beta shows have been produced from the Encore offices in Los Angeles, the app has the ability for users to have the same set-up from home, without using a green-screen or advanced studio technology.
“The thing that makes me so excited about the opportunity is that there is just a fundamental disconnect in the size of the music industry and its impact on culture and society. And I think there are a lot of different reasons for it. But the thing that we see as the most important solution is to start to create intermediate outcomes for artists,” said Gray.
He continued, “It’s the live custom AR and so with nothing but your iPhone, you can create really cool, elevated custom personal video content in and around your music. So whether that means [you] want to be able to just perform something in an elevated environment that accentuates the creativity of the song, or want to create a music video…you don’t need anything else. It is incredibly democratizing.”
To use the Encore Studio App as an artist and perform live in AR, visit the App Store on your iPhone or iPad and download Encore Studio: Live Music AR. To watch live AR performances and support musicians on the app, visit the App Store or Play Store and download Encore: Interactive Live Music.
