Amazon Music and Twitch have partnered to announce the incorporation of Twitch’s live streaming functionality into the Amazon Music app, enabling fans to engage with artists in new ways and move seamlessly between live streams and recorded music.
Launching on iOS and Android, artists around the world can connect live with Amazon Music’s more than 55 million customers across all streaming tiers.
“The combination of live streaming, coupled with the on-demand playback of songs on Amazon Music is ground-breaking,” says Ryan Redington, Director, Amazon Music. “We’re providing artists with more tools to instantly engage with fans, and this new feature couldn’t arrive at a more crucial time in the industry.
By the first day of the offering, Redington confirmed that more than 1,000 artists had already connected their Amazon Music accounts to Twitch. “Together with Twitch,” he explains, “we’re making it possible for artists across all genres, at all moments of their careers, to harness the social power of live streaming to create more engagement with their recorded catalog.”
At a time when in-person events are limited, artists will be able to establish a real-time connection with their existing fans on Amazon Music.
“Twitch has always been about connecting amazingly talented creators live with fans everywhere,” adds Tracy Chan, Vice President, Head of Music at Twitch. “That’s why we’re excited to announce the next phase of our ongoing partnership with Amazon Music that unlocks an entirely new world of live music experiences and engagement by connecting Twitch live streams and Amazon’s catalog of recorded music. Especially now, in a time when traditional venues are closed and tours have been cancelled, musicians are looking for new ways to continue creating, connect with fans, and build community. Twitch has become the place to co-create shared live experiences, and it’s now accessible in-app for Amazon Music’s 55 million customers.”
Twitch has been working to connect creators and fans through live streaming experiences for some time while Amazon Music has worked extensively with Twitch and with artists and labels to help them use live streaming to connect more deeply with fans, including developing innovative ways to incorporate live streaming into release campaigns; creating a virtual stage for festivals and charitable fundraising events; and providing more intimate moments for artist Q&As. This year, Twitch and Amazon Music have also worked with artists across all genres to support and produce livestreams to raise millions of dollars for COVID-19 Relief efforts including Twitch StreamAid, Willie Nelson’s Luck Reunion, and more.
Fans will have a variety of ways to discover artist live streams within the Amazon Music app, including a push notification from artists they follow when they go live on Twitch; and through Amazon Music’s new “Live” browse page. Amazon Music has also made it simple for artists to link their Twitch channel with Amazon Music, using the newly-launched Amazon Music for Artists app. Artists can visit artists.amazonmusic.com/live for more information about the feature, step-by-step visuals outlining how to connect their Twitch channel, and more.
Fans can also check out artists spanning all different genres who are taking advantage of the feature and finding new ways to connect with audiences live on Amazon Music’s Twitch channel.