Microsoft Corp. today announced that Linkin Park is slated to be the first music promotional partner for the popular Microsoft(R) Xbox(TM) video game system. Kicking off the partnership with the band’s first Projekt: Revolution tour, the two entities aim to expand their rapidly growing fan bases in a promotional campaign designed to reach each other’s core audiences nationwide.
“We’re huge fans of Xbox,” said Linkin Park guitarist Brad Delson. “We’ve been playing it since before it came out, and we’re excited about the opportunity to include Xbox in the first Projekt: Revolution tour.”
The partnership follows the launch of Linkin Park’s new Web site dedicated to their multigenre tour, Projekt: Revolution. Xbox plans to extend substantial promotional support to the tour while Linkin Park generates awareness of Xbox with tour signage, logos on merchandise and autographed consoles for radio promotions. Both parties also plan to feature reciprocal Web site links on http://www.xbox.com/, http://www.linkinpark.com/ and http://www.projektrevolution.com/.
“Linkin Park is an amazing band and a great partner,” said John O’Rourke, director of sales and marketing for Xbox. “They’ve taken the music industry by storm, and we feel Xbox couldn’t tour with a cooler group.”
Both chart-topping Linkin Park and hot entertainment product Xbox carry momentum from 2001 into the new year. Microsoft sold 1.5 million Xbox units in North America between the Nov. 15, 2001, product launch and Dec. 31, 2001, executing one of the most successful launches in video game history. This unprecedented attention has fueled worldwide excitement for Xbox, which remains on track to launch in Japan on Feb. 22, and in Europe and Australia on March 14. Also pulling in record numbers, Linkin Park’s debut LP “Hybrid Theory” was the best-selling album of 2001, with 4.81 million copies sold in the United States, according to SoundScan year-end charts.
“This is the ideal, synergistic relationship between artist and brand,” said Eric Cohen, executive vice president of The Stronghold Group, the entertainment brand management firm that represents Linkin Park and the Projekt: Revolution property. “With Projekt: Revolution designed as an annual event, the relationship between Linkin Park and Xbox will help further establish and communicate the identities between artist and brand.”
The Linkin Park Projekt: Revolution tour will begin Jan. 29, in Colorado Springs, Colo. Currently scheduled to travel to 19 markets nationwide, the tour also will feature bands Adema, Cypress Hill and DJ-ZTRIP. Supplementary tour dates and locations are as follows: Jan. 30 in Wichita, Kan.; Feb. 1 in Chicago; Feb. 2 in Madison, Wis.; Feb. 4 in Detroit; Feb. 5 in Dayton, Ohio; Feb. 7 in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.; Feb. 8 in Uniondale, N.Y.; Feb. 9 in State College, Pa.; Feb. 11 in Lowell, Mass.; Feb. 12 in Fairfax, Va.; Feb. 13 in Philadelphia; Feb. 16 in Memphis, Tenn.; Feb. 17 in Dallas/Fort Worth; Feb. 18 in Oklahoma City; Feb. 20 in Phoenix; Feb. 22 in Long Beach, Calif.; Feb. 23 in San Diego; and Feb. 24 in Las Vegas.