Guest bio
- Creative technologist who leads FanTracks Digital, building live, hybrid and visually rich music experiences.
- Helped create Gracenote and became the first Chief Technology Officer of Universal Music Group.
- Worked on QuickTime and on interactive albums with artists including David Bowie and Todd Rundgren.
Ty Roberts is a creative technologist whose work has shaped digital music, immersive entertainment and fan experiences. His career began in the earliest days of computer gaming and went on to include the development of QuickTime and interactive albums with artists including David Bowie and Todd Rundgren, as well as Bowie and Brian Eno's ambition for generative albums that could change with every listen. He helped create Gracenote, the metadata engine that transformed how music is discovered across streaming platforms, cars and connected devices, and became the first Chief Technology Officer of Universal Music Group. He now leads FanTracks Digital, which builds live, hybrid and visually rich music experiences for artists and their fans.
Show notes
Music is no longer confined to a recording, a screen or even a physical stage. It is becoming a living, visual and increasingly interactive experience. One that can travel across arenas, phones, homes, cars, livestreams, virtual worlds and, perhaps soon, the boundary between the living and the legendary.
Music is no longer simply something we hear; it is increasingly becoming a living, visual and increasingly interactive experience. One that can travel across arenas, phones, homes, cars, livestreams, virtual worlds and, perhaps soon, the boundary between the living and the legendary. In this special episode of Money Majlis with Suvo Sarkar, recorded in New Delhi, Suvo speaks with Ty Roberts, one of the most influential creative technologists behind the evolution of digital music, immersive entertainment and fan experiences.
Ty’s extraordinary journey spans the earliest days of computer gaming, the development of QuickTime, interactive albums with artists including David Bowie and Todd Rundgren, and the creation of Gracenote, the metadata engine that helped transform how music is discovered across streaming platforms, cars and connected devices. He later became the first Chief Technology Officer of Universal Music Group and now leads FanTracks Digital, building new possibilities for live, hybrid and visually rich music experiences.
The conversation begins with ABBA Voyage, the remarkable London production that blends avatars, live musicians, immersive visuals and emotional storytelling into a true time-machine experience. Ty explains why technology alone is never enough: authenticity rests on extraordinary attention to the smallest human details, from facial expression and body language to the precise movement of a guitarist’s hands.
Suvo and Ty then explore how AI could make sophisticated immersive experiences radically more accessible, allowing more artists to create compelling visual worlds without the vast budgets traditionally associated with motion capture and visual effects. They discuss the changing economics of live music, the unexpected commercial power of merchandise during livestreams, the importance of high-quality sound and the challenge of creating a richer, more connected fan journey.
The episode also takes us inside Ty’s collaborations with visionary artists. He recalls David Bowie and Brian Eno’s ambition to create generative albums that could change with every listen, and reflects on how technology is finally catching up with many ideas that once seemed impossibly futuristic.
At its heart, this is a conversation about creativity, reinvention and the human connection that must remain at the centre of every technological advance. From AI-powered visuals and avatar performances to data ownership, artist rights and the concert experience of 2035, Ty Roberts offers a thought-provoking glimpse into music’s next great transformation.
Comments
Loading comments…