MUSIC

Simulcast to all worlds

22nd Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

by Surfdaddy Orca

Surfdaddy Orca is Editor-in-Chief
of The Seventh Sun and an avid
SL surfer. He did the initial site map
for the Diegoland sim and
enjoys building and scripting.

AOL POINTE—On Monday, March 12, 2007, America Online (AOL) streamed the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, ceremony commercial free on Spinner.com. AOL also simultaneously streamed the ceremony into Second Life, and then streamed the virtual world event back onto the Internet.

The actual induction ceremony was held at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City. At the same time, visitors to the physical Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum in Cleveland were able to witness a simulcast of the entire length of the four-hour ceremony, including unedited performances and all of the comments that were cut from the television broadcast.


Thus, thanks to the sponsorship of AOL, this first-ever comprehensive simulcast took place at multiple levels:

  • Live at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York
  • Telecast on national TV
  • Video telecast at the Museum in Cleveland
  • Webcast stream to Spinner.com
  • Video stream to Second Life (SL)
  • Second Life stream to Spinner.com

When an artist such as Aretha Franklin appeared live in New York, she appeared simultaneously in Cleveland, on the TV, and on the Web. SL residents could watch her either at the Spinner.com website or on the large
video screen at the AOL Point Amphitheater.

The activities at the amphitheater were filmed using machinimation and streamed back to the Spinner.com site.

Prior to the live ceremony, AOL hosted a party for Second Life residents at the AOL sim that included visits to outdoor spaces dedicated to each inductee, regions of the island featuring photos and on-demand videos of inductees, “Starlane” avatar-created stars with name and hand print, and a music trivia game. Some residents (this reporter included) went skateboarding at AOL Pointe’s amazing skateboard park during the pre-induction festivities.

When the induction ceremony finally started, the AOL sim was completely full. Late avatar stragglers had trouble teleporting to the event while others started to dance.

As the evening wore on, SL residents could chat, IM, and watch the video stream while dancing to the performances of the inductees. As reported on Spinner.com, this year’s inductees included:

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five
The first hip-hop act to enter the Hall, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five weren’t always so revered. “Early on, I was ridiculed,” says Flash. “People would ask, ‘Why is he repeating that part over and over again?’ “

R.E.M.
These jangling Georgians rose from quintessential college rockers to become the biggest band on the planet. But, as singer Michael Stipe tells us, they celebrated their Hall news campus-style: “We raised a few pints.”

The Ronettes
This stylish girl group brought a winning combination of innocence and sass to 1960s rock ‘n’ roll, anchored by the sultry vocals of Ronnie Spector. As she tells us, “We gave guys orgasms in a few continents.”

Patti Smith
Patti Smith’s unconventional hybrid of rock and poetry influenced a generation of musicians beyond her CBGB roots. “Politically, I don’t censor anything,” she says. “I will always say what I think.”

Van Halen
No band epitomized rock ‘n’ roll excess—big riffs, big attitude, big hair—as perfectly as Van Halen. “We’re kind of the odd band out,” former singer Sammy Hagar says. “You’ve got art, and you’ve got a bunch of nuts!”

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