Mercury rising

Create your own virtual record label

What?: Virtual world Habbo is letting its residents create a virtual record label in conjunction with Mercury Music Group. It will give them tips on setting up and running a label as well as how to sign and promote artists. A shortlist in the Trax Factor competition will go to a Habbo user vote and the ultimate winner will be picked by representatives from Mercury Music Group, music-sourcing agency Record-Play and lead singer George Craig from new act One Night Only. Who will be first to spend £200,000 on ‘fruit and flowers’ for their artists like EMI used to allegedly?

“Social media already has established links to the music industry, yet where this campaign differs is that users get a sense of what is involved in the day-to-day activities of a record company trying to establish a new artist, “ said Vicky Harnetty at Mercury.

So what?: You too can now experience the feeling of sending a new girlband back to their cold northern town (and mundane cashier jobs) after they fail to make the top 10 on their first release. Habbo is the largest virtual world amongst teenagers, and this campaign has plenty of appeal (even if it is only a disguised ad for new band One Night Only). It could quite easily morph into a genuine Sims-like console based game; although it would be more effective if you could control known artists.

“Definitely a cute idea, and good fun to play; but I’m not convinced it’s built out of any genuine consumer demand. I for one am keeping an eye out for virtual artists’ hissy-fits and excessive digital riders.”
Dom Hodge, Strategist, FRUKT

www.habbo.co.uk