Spotify brings music-themed islands to Roblox

Spotify has launched its own digital space on Roblox, called Spotify Island, allowing players to make music, play games, and interact with virtual artists, the company announced in a press release. Although it’s called Spotify Island, it’s more like a virtual archipelago — players can hop between other interactive music-themed islands that change throughout the year.

Spotify calls its digital island an “audio oasis,” which features distinct Spotify branding, from the vibrant green color of the landscape to the heart-shaped “Like” icons scattered around the island that players can collect and exchange for virtual merchandise. The more hearts users collect, the higher they climb on the game’s leaderboard.

In addition to hidden Easter eggs around the island, one of which changes a player’s surrounding environment from light to dark, Spotify Island also gives players access to beat-making stations by Soundtrap, a Spotify-owned digital audio workstation that enables users to collaborate remotely.

Spotify says it will fill out its digital space with themed mini-quests, virtual meet-and-greets, and other exclusive content, such as paid merchandise made by artists. The platform tells The Verge that the entire portion of revenue from artists’ merchandise will go to the artists directly. It also plans on collaborating with artists “to create more opportunities like this in the months ahead.” Spotify is kicking off its Roblox launch with its first music-themed island, K-Park, which is supposed to celebrate all things K-pop and will feature interactive experiences with K-pop artists Sunmi and Stray Kids.

Spotify’s Roblox entry is a first for any music streaming service and is part of a larger bid for companies to establish a presence in what it considers the “metaverse,” a concept that hasn’t really been defined beyond consisting of a series of virtual online spaces.