Technologically-forward live entertainment acts are now using fans as part of their shows.

It’s required concert behavior, the lighter in the air. A way to signal appreciation, commission an encore, and create a communal scene that is larger than the sum of its parts. It’s also definitively old school, having come of age at rock shows in the ‘70s and ‘80s, and while the flickering flames retain nostalgic allure, the feeling they seek to engender has not been addressed with much innovative flair over the intervening decades. (And no, iPhone virtual lighter apps don’t count.)

That Glow

Justin Roddick and his team at Glow Motion Technologies are hoping to change that. With their patented LED wristbands, which can be programmed with a range of light patterns emitting any of 16 million colors, concertgoers are integrally involved in the show, serving as a key part of the set design. “It’s something else for the audience to both be a part of, and to look at,” explains Roddick. “And it’s a new part of the production industry; audience lighting is becoming the next big thing.”

The latest iteration of their wristbands debuted last week as country superstar Hunter Hayes’ Tattoo (Your Name) Tour kicked off in New York City. Glow Motion’s wristbands have been used before in live music events, and lights in the audience are nothing new (electronic music has a particularly strong track record), but “this tour is taking it to the next level,” says Roddick. “It’s the first tour that is truly using the technology to its fullest extent.”

Devices everywhere

The devices not only receive signals from a centralized control module, but they also can “talk to” each other, enabling a range of node-based effects. They operate at radio frequencies and thus don’t require a direct line of sight between transmitter and receiver. Other similar products in this space have traditionally used infrared wavelengths, which do, and it’s an important consideration for wrist-wear in a tightly packed crowd of thousands of people.

For his part, Hayes has firmly embraced the technology, and the early returns are promising. “When we got them going, it was breathtaking to watch from the stage,” he recalls. “I saw them all lift up and move around; people were really just playing around and having a good time with them.” Hayes pursued the wrist bands after sensing the potential of crowd-based lighting at a Coldplay concert. “With those wrist bands, it was mostly an on-and-off kind of thing,” he recalls from an Albany-bound tour bus. “I just kept thinking, there are a lot of advances to be made. There’s a lot you could do with it.”