Tag: live music

Spotify’s First-Ever Standalone R&B Concert Is Coming to Dallas

September 8, 2026

RNB X Live in Dallas poster for the event on November 1st 2026.

Get ready, Texas: Today, Spotify and Live Nation announced RNB X Live in Dallas, a new one-day festival coming to town on November 1. Taking over The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory, the inaugural event will celebrate the breadth of contemporary R&B, bringing together established stars and emerging artists defining the genre’s next chapter. RNB X Live in Dallas is Spotify’s first-ever standalone R&B concert event and the biggest expression to date of RNB X, our R&B editorial playlist.

“R&B has always been a genre built on community, and a big part of our philosophy has been creating opportunities for artists to get closer to the fans who care about them most,” said Brandon Payano, R&B Lead, Artist Partnerships at Spotify. “Our partnership with Live Nation Urban has continued to grow around that shared belief, from our RNB X Live: The UK Sound shows last fall to their broader efforts to bring more R&B artists and fans together. RNB X Live in Dallas feels like an exciting and obvious next step, bringing artists and fans together for the kind of moments that show just how powerful R&B can be when experienced live.”

The lineup brings generations of the genre together in Dallas, home to a massive R&B fanbase. Erykah Badu returns home fresh off her first project in 11 years, while H.E.R. makes a rare return to the stage after several years away from headlining her own shows. Rising artists kwn, DESTIN CONRAD, and Jai’len Josey represent the next generation of R&B talent Spotify has supported through programs including Artists To Watch and Fresh Finds, while fellow Dallas native and Fresh Finds favorite rjtheweirdo opens the night, bookending the festival with hometown talent.

For years, Spotify’s RNB X playlist has served as a home for R&B discovery and fandom, connecting listeners to both rising talent and the artists they already love. RNB X Live in Dallas brings this experience to life, creating a dedicated space where fans can connect with the icons who defined the genre and the new voices shaping its future. The event builds on previous Spotify RNB X live experiences, like RNB X After Hours in Washington, D.C., and RNB X Live: The UK Sound in New York and San Francisco. 

“From First Nights to RNB X Live, we’ve been intentional about taking the work we do through RNB X on Spotify and extending it beyond the platform, creating real-life spaces for R&B artists and their fans to connect,” said Alaysia Sierra, Spotify’s Head of Editorial, R&B. “R&B’s influence spans genres and generations, shaping culture in ways that can’t be defined by one sound or one type of artist. We wanted this festival to reflect that expansiveness, from an icon like Erykah Badu, to a defining voice like H.E.R., to rising stars like kwn and Jai’Len. R&B has given so much to music and culture—it’s only right that we continue to invest in its potential, giving the artists of its past, present, and future the platform, resources, and space to keep pushing R&B forward.”

The RNB X celebration won’t end after the encore. Select performances will be captured for exclusive release on Spotify through Spotify Live, giving fans around the world a chance to experience moments from the festival.

Pre-sale tickets for RNB X Live will be available for Premium top fans on Tuesday, September 8 at 12 p.m. CT. General tickets go on sale Friday, September 11 at 12 p.m. CT.

You Know Every Song. We Saved You Two Tickets. Introducing Reserved.

May 21, 2026

Red tickets with the spotify bug and "Reserved" "Tickets saved for real fans"

Getting tickets to the shows you care about most can feel like a lot.

When your favorite artist announces a tour, you want a real chance to be in the room. For the biggest tours, demand far outpaces the number of tickets, and we want to help an artist’s most engaged fans on Spotify get that chance.

Introducing Reserved, a new experience for eligible Spotify Premium subscribers (ages 18+), starting in the U.S., with more markets to follow. With Reserved, Spotify will identify an artist’s most dedicated fans and hold two tour tickets for them. Eligible fans get a reserved window to purchase before the general sale.

You show up for the artist, Spotify shows up for you. You purchase through the artist’s ticketing partner, with no added fees from Spotify.

Built around real fan engagement

Spotify has long been where fans discover their next favorite artists, and where artists grow their audiences. Reserved builds on this by helping true fans get to the show. With Reserved, Spotify will be the only audio streaming service where your fandom is rewarded with two tour tickets reserved for fans like you, because real fandom deserves a real seat at the show.

We’ll identify real fans based on factors like streams, shares, and other Spotify activity, and will also monitor the activity of Premium users to ensure these are real human fans and not bots. If you’re one of an artist’s most dedicated fans, you’ll have the opportunity to purchase two tickets during a dedicated window, typically around a day.

There will be significantly more superfans than there are seats available on a tour, so not every fan will receive an offer. By inviting validated fans through Reserved, we will help ensure more tickets reach the most engaged listeners. Availability will vary by artist, tour, and location. Eligibility is based on your engagement with the artist on Spotify and where you’re located, so make sure your preferred location is enabled in the Live Events Feed and your notifications are turned on.

How it’ll work

 

Starting this summer, newly announced tours for select artists will be able to dedicate tickets to true fans through Reserved. From there, Reserved will expand to more tours of all sizes, including many of the most sought-after shows on the road.

When it’s available, here’s what to expect:

    • If you’re eligible for tickets, you’ll receive an email and an in-app notification. To make sure you don’t miss your offer, turn on notifications for live concerts and events, keep your app updated, and enable location settings for Spotify.
    • Up to two concert tickets on the tour will be available for you to purchase during a dedicated timeframe (about a day). Complete your purchase on a ticketing partner’s platform during that window.
    • Reserved offers are based on the tour’s locations, so if a tour isn’t coming to your area, you may not receive an offer. If you do receive one, you can buy tickets for any show on the tour and you’ll choose your date, location, and seats at checkout. Ticket types, seating options, and availability will vary by show.

Our broader commitment to live music

Streaming and live music have always gone hand in hand. Touring is central to how artists build a career and connect with the fans who show up for them night after night. At its heart, Reserved is simple: tickets saved for real fans to purchase. We’re building this to give something back to the fans who support artists the most—and because when artists and fans win, Spotify does, too. When the listeners who show up for an artist on Spotify are the ones getting into their shows, fans stick around, artists grow, and live music gets stronger.

This is part of a broader investment Spotify is making in live music across artists at every stage of their careers. Spotify already helps fans find shows they’ll love. We work with more than 40 ticketing partners and offer features like Concerts Near You and Venue Search to make it easy to find shows and follow the venues fans love. We also put marketing behind artists’ tours, both on-platform and off, so more fans can find shows they want to attend. To date, this work has driven more than $1.5 billion in ticket sales for artists. Reserved builds on that foundation.

Explore all the news and announcements from Spotify’s 2026 Investor Day.

*Updated as of May 28, 2026

*Update as of August 17, 2026: Reserved is now also available for Premium users in Canada.

Fresh Finds Artists Jump From the Playlist to the Stage in New Spotify Stages Showcase

February 15, 2023

Since 2016, the Fresh Finds playlists have introduced music fans to some of the most promising independent artists, and now Spotify is bringing them to the stage.

On March 23, we’re coming to the Los Angeles Arts District for the inaugural Fresh Finds Live show. The showcase is hosted by Spotify Stages, a team dedicated to producing live event experiences for emerging artists found by Spotify. It will spotlight four talented acts who have been featured in our Fresh Finds playlists: genre-blending rapper TiaCorine, rising singer-songwriter Katherine Li, alt-pop’s budding Abby Sage, and progressive folk project Baerd. For fans wanting to attend the showcase, tickets go on sale February 17 at 9 a.m. PST here.

On the platform, Fresh Finds consists of 11 genre playlists and 18 local-market playlists, which have served as a launch pad to success for artists like GRAMMY-nominee Omar Apollo, Clairo, Steve Lacy, and more. With this event, we’re creating a new experience to connect artists with listeners.

“As more new artists make their first forays into live music following the pandemic, this show allows us to bring Fresh Finds into the live setting to assist in that discovery and growth process, with the goal of amplifying these talented artists to the right audiences to build lasting careers,” shared Jesse Jacobsen, U.S. Indies Lead for Artist & Label Partnerships at Spotify.

In addition to the concert, Spotify is inviting the artists to take part in a five-day residency program at Spotify Studios in LA. As part of this experience, they can use the state-of-the-art facilities to work on new music.

While the showcase may not be until March, you can get to know these artists now.

graphic image background with artist tiacorine featured as a

Born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Tia grew up exposed to a range of music thanks to her Japanese and African American father and her Shoshone Native American mother. When Tia released her first single, “Lotto,” she caught the attention of local radio stations, DJs, and clubs, and the internet. Last year, Tia released the album I Can’t Wait, which includes the single “FreakyT.” Now the artist is preparing to share her unique sound with more audiences.

“Performing live gives you the opportunity to connect with fans on a different level. The feeling you get from it is electric, and I wanna share that with my fans at every show,” explained Tia.

 

The 19-year-old singer-songwriter’s music features themes of love lost and relationships that never were, and Katherine has amassed a fan base of hopeless romantics who identify with her lyrics. Last year, she released her debut EP, Crush(ed). The Toronto native is also featured as the cover artist of Spotify’s Fresh Finds: Class of 2022 playlist. Next, she’s gearing up for a series of concerts across North America.

“I used to think that the unrequited love I talk about in my songs was something no one else dealt with, but after sharing them [my songs] with a community of people who turned out to be just like me, I realized I wasn’t the odd one out,” shared Katherine. “I hope that after my set, the audience feels the same comfort I felt in knowing there is a whole community of people that have experienced, and relate to, the same things as you.”

 

A tender soul with an observational eye, Abby Sage draws comparisons to Florence + The Machine and Clairo. Brought up in Toronto, music-obsessed Abby eventually moved to LA, where the singer-songwriter released her debut EP, Fears Of Yours & Mine, in 2021. After Abby relocated to London last year, her sound shifted, and listeners can hear the evolution in her latest EP, The Florist. 

“I always hope that people can take something away from my performances, whatever that may be. Of course, I hope people enjoy the show and leave feeling tingly and excited!” said Abby. “The visual components of my shows and my work overall are very important to me, so I hope people enjoy that as well.”

 

Baerd is a seven-piece progressive folk and Americana band spearheaded by Isaiah Beard. Incorporating jazz, Americana, classical, and R&B, Baerd’s indie-folk sound is influenced by Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Punch Brothers, and Radiohead. 

On performing live, Beard shared, “The spirit of music in its purest form is live. To share attention with others and exchange more than words or notes with strangers, friends, and fellow artists animates my being more than anything.”

 

Hear more songs from top emerging talent in our Fresh Finds flagship playlist.