Amazon Music on Primavera Sound and livestreaming in a post-pandemic world

When Barcelona’s Primavera Sound returned in 2022 following an enforced two-year break for the COVID pandemic, it coincided with Amazon Music launching its new livestream of the lauded event.

At this year’s Primavera – read the full Rolling Stone UK review of the weekend here – the service returned for a third livestream, sharing full sets from Pulp, The National, Ethel Cain, PJ Harvey, Disclosure and more alongside artist interviews across five channels on Prime Video and Twitch.

READ MORE: Primavera Sound 2024 review: Lana Del Rey, Lankum and lightning hit Barcelona

The launch of Amazon’s Primavera livestream arrived at an interesting point for the medium in live music. During the pandemic, many festivals including Glastonbury held their own livestreamed events in lieu of in-person gatherings, with artists also creating their own bespoke live shows in a pay-per-view format online.

At this year’s Primavera, Rolling Stone UK talked to Amazon Music’s chief in Spain, Claire Imoucha, and Director of Global Content & Artist Marketing, Kirdis Postelle, about the evolution of the livestream and how it can thrive in an industry that is now able to welcome in-person events again.

“Primavera is one of the biggest festivals in Europe and in the world,” Imoucha said. “If you want to choose a partner, you begin from the top.” Also key to the partnership is Spain’s links with Latin America, and an opportunity for greater exposure for emerging Spanish artists with fans abroad who have been unable to see them live yet.

“For artists in Spain that are beginning to have a following in Latin America, it’s a huge opportunity to be on the livestream,” Imoucha added. “You could have a fan sitting on their couch in Mexico City watching an artist that may come there and tour in two or three years. They have the opportunity to already see them. It’s a different approach and a greater discovery platform.”

Amazon Music streamed from six stages at Primavera 2024 and Head of Production & Creative in Europe, Mish Mayer, discussed the service’s bespoke streams for each artist. “We want to work with the artists and look at their shows and make sure we cover them in the way that they want them to be received by their fans.”

Key to Amazon’s aim with the livestream is not trying to compete with the idea of seeing a gig or festival in the flesh, but offering the next best thing for those without the funds or ability to attend themselves.

“Nothing’s like in real life, but they still get to participate,” Postelle said. “But if we can deliver this experience for everyone, that’s what we want. We started doing livestreams in the pandemic with one Twitch channel. Artists were still putting out music so we found a way to partner [up] and started with little one-off shows. It grew from there, and we were all a little nervous that once IRL came back, people would stop livestreaming, but that was not what we actually saw. Our strategy continued to grow, and Primavera was one of the first festivals that we actually worked on.”

Of the overall impact of livestreaming on the industry, Postelle said: “It’s a way for artists to be more global, and for fans anywhere to be able to see them and experience it. You can’t be there, but you’re gonna get really close.”