At today’s VR On The Lot event at Paramount Studios in Hollywood, Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am took the stage to open the show with a few remarks. He concluded his speech by announcing that he is “working with my team to create a VR experience for the Black Eyed Peas and it is not us performing in front of a 360 camera.”
The popular musicians words are a shot at the glut of 360 video experiences that many musicians and other creatives have begun to employ in an effort to get in on the immersive revolution early. will.i.am does not consider these types of experiences to be worthy of VR’s potential. According to him:
“In this world of VR creators create worlds. I can’t wait until it is just the norm. Like ‘yo check out my world.’
Becuase what I don’t want musicians to do is be like ‘check out my VR’ and I just slap the camera and do the same thing I would do in real life instead of creating experiences that are just as enriched as real life.”
Syntax aside, this is a valid point for the VR community as it stands today. There does seem to be a growing “set it and forget it” attitude surrounding 360 content wherein filmmakers are content to simply translate raw footage of an event or performance without much creative improvement.
will.i.am’s vision for VR tech is one where the form factors of the devices we use are more informed by fashion and utility than they are by technological limitations. He wants the industry to “Think the likes of Gucci and Louis Vitton…there’s no reason we shouldn’t have awesome jackets with the computation in the back to keep the head light where the face isn’t getting hot.”
Finally, will.i.am stated that he “can’t wait for the day when, similar to clubs, there are physical places where you go to to have enriched VR experiences. I can’t wait for the day where more musicians want to work with developers and world builders.”
