There’s no way you haven’t heard about this by now. I would have had it up for you all ASAP, but as you might have heard, we ran into a bit of a hacker issue. But now all is well and I want to take a minute to sound off on this hologram.

Picture perfect, I paint a perfect picture

To begin with, this was amazing. It just was. Regardless of your positive/negative take on it, you can’t deny it’s crazy what technology can do. I had heard about the hologram a bit ago, as news of it hit the blogosphere, but I never expected it to actually be this real. 

I have to assume that Coachella 2012 will be remembered as groundbreaking for this performance. Years from now, people won’t even remember that Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, 50 Cent, Wiz Khalifa, and Warren G all graced the stage for one show (side note: the fact that Wiz is in that list still amazes me). The lasting impression will undoubtedly be Tupac, sporting his wheat Timbs, hollering back and forth with Dre and Snoop like we never even lost him. Ironically, it won’t be the hologram that fades to nothing, but everything else.

Now the way I see it, the hologram will be remembered for one of two reasons. The first possibility being that Pac’s performance 2012 will be the start of a new trend: holographic acts. The internet has already gotten a grasp on this, bringing up the possibility of acts ranging from Biggie to Big L. But why stop at hip-hop? When would the world be ready to see Stevie Ray Vaughan play one of his classic riffs one more time? How about Elvis swinging his hips like its still ’58? Kurt Cobain remind us who was responsible for the creation of a genre? The possibilities are endless. Yet whether this will turn into a new fad or a complete bust is near impossible to say right now.

This leads me to my next point: the other possible way Tupac at Coachella will be remembered is if it goes down as a one of a kind event. At $100,000 – $400,000 per hologram made (according to the hologram creator’s interview with MTV), holograms of every deceased artist aren’t going to start pouring out soon. Will these costs prove to be too high to make this a trend in live shows? If so, this performance would truly be remembered as a one of a kind performance.

However, how much does it cost to actually use the hologram after it’s already been created? Aside from the price of the equipment used to actually project the image, there would essentially be no additional costs. Would it be a possibility that one company could buy a hologram for $100k (which we can presumably safely estimate at this mark seeing as technology prices drastically decrease as demand increases, thereby increasing production) and then book it for performances at other shows, therefore actually making money off of it? It’s an idea, an idea that would contribute to holograms showing up at a performance near you.

What do you think? Were you blown away by the Tupac performance like I was? Did you dislike it? What’s your ethical standpoint on dead artists “performing” (and people potentially profiting off of this)? Would you pay extra to see a hologram join your favorite artist live? Would you see a show made up of solely holograms?

There are so many questions this performance has posed, I’ve merely skimmed the surface to save you from my ramblings, but I would love to hear what you think, so as always, hit me on twitter at the link below, leave a comment on this post or hit us up on our Facebook page; don’t be shy.

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