Australian telco Optus is partnering with Facebook to stream an upcoming Crowded House rehearsal session at the band’s private studio via Facebook Live.
Optus will make the live footage available to Australians via Facebook Live from the Optus Facebook page. Viewers of the stream will be able to catch a sneak peek into the band’s imminent Sydney performances, which are set to occur nearly 20 years on from the band’s Farewell to the World 1996 tour.
Crowded House frontman Neill Finn said, “On the cusp of our special Encore performances on the steps of the Sydney Opera House, we’re excited to have an opportunity to play and engage with our friends and supporters around the world live streaming for an hour from the heart of rehearsals, unscripted and intimate as hell. Thanks to the good folk at Optus we get to make this a joyous occasion that can be shared by one and all.”
The Facebook Live stream, happening on Wednesday 16 November at 5:30pm AEDT, will include the band’s rehearsal as well as a fan-led Q&A. Fans wanting to submit questions can do so via Optus social accounts in the lead up to and during the stream.
“This is our first foray into branded Facebook Live content for music and we couldn’t be more thrilled to be doing so with such a universally beloved band like Crowded House,” said Megan Forster, Director of Innovation & Value Added Products at Optus. “We live in a world that is increasingly connected by technology, with social media at the fore of this. Using innovations like Facebook Live is crucial to ensuring that we continue to deliver on customer expectations.”
Jason Juma-Ross, Head of Telecommunications, Technology & Entertainment at Facebook Australia said, “Twenty years ago Crowded House said ‘Farewell to the World’, at a time when Facebook didn’t exist, telecommunications was a different experience, and mobile music was not ubiquitous. Today we have the privilege of working with Optus to connect fans with their favourite band, live, before Crowded House again takes the stage at the Sydney Opera House. It’s what Facebook Live is all about – sharing experiences and perspectives in real time, with the people who matter.”
For Optus customers on eligible post-paid and prepaid mobile plans that just can’t wait, the full Crowded House back catalogue can be streamed “data free” through any of Optus’ music streaming partners including Google Music, iHeartRadio, Pandora and Spotify.
Following the Facebook Live stream, the video will be available on demand for seven days via the Optus Facebook page.
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