Roblox unveils Listening Parties for music artists

Roblox unveiled Listening Parties for music artists, and its first one will be hosted by Grammy-nominated artist Poppy.

With Roblox Listening Parties, artists premiere a new album in select top experiences on Roblox. This builds on Launch Parties, which offer customizable and immersive experiences to bring fans into an artist’s unique world. Now, with Listening Parties, labels can partner with developers to stream music in existing experiences across the metaverse.

Roblox said that Poppy will be the first artist to host a Listening Party on the platform with the debut of her new album, Flux, which will be released today. It’s all part of Roblox’s plan to create the metaverse, the universe of virtual worlds that are all interconnected, like in novels such as Snow Crash and Ready Player One. By expanding beyond games to musical experiences, Roblox will inch closer to its vision of the metaverse by getting people to spend more time inside its virtual world. (Roblox CTO Dan Sturman will be a speaker at our upcoming  GamesBeat Summit Next online event on November 9-10.)

Flux is the artist’s latest album, which comes on the heels of a Grammy performance in March. Poppy is the first solo female artist ever nominated for a Grammy in the Best Metal Performance category.

For this first-ever Listening Party, music will be integrated throughout popular experiences allowing fans to rock out to Flux as they decorate their dream home in Overlook Bay, dance to her songs in RoBeats, attend class in Robloxian High School, explore new worlds in Creatures of Sonaria, and raise dragons in Dragon Adventures.

Above: Roblox has new Listening Parties featuring Poppy.

Image Credit: Roblox

“Flux is coming out Friday the 24th and I’m so excited to reveal it to the world,” said Poppy, in a statement. “I feel very fortunate to make music in a time like this. Roblox is a platform with endless possibilities and seemed like a perfect place to launch my new album.”

The music will also be played in City Life, The Floor is Lava, Color Block Tower, and Fairytale Life Roleplay. Collectively, the featured experiences boast over three billion lifetime visits.

Above: Poppy’s new album will be playable in Roblox.

Image Credit: Roblox

Over the weekend, Poppy will also join fans in each immersive experience, competing and creating alongside them while answering questions about the album. Her play schedule can be found on her Roblox profile as well as on her Roblox group. Two exclusive free “verch” items will also be available in the Roblox catalog for fans to enjoy.

“It has been such a pleasure working with Poppy and Sumerian Records to launch our first ever Listening Party,” said Jon Vlassopulos, global head of music for Roblox, in a statement. “Music is such a natural part of the way we express ourselves, entertain ourselves, and find connections with other people, and we want to make music an integral part of the Roblox experience. With Poppy, we are able to deliver her new album Flux directly to listeners where they are in an authentic way.”