{"id":486115,"date":"2019-05-20T15:50:16","date_gmt":"2019-05-20T21:50:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/?p=837840"},"modified":"2019-05-20T15:50:16","modified_gmt":"2019-05-20T21:50:16","slug":"whitney-houston-hologram-exec-talks-cinematic-plans-for-2020-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kqzr\/music-news\/whitney-houston-hologram-exec-talks-cinematic-plans-for-2020-show\/","title":{"rendered":"Whitney Houston Hologram Exec Talks \u2018Cinematic\u2019 Plans for 2020 Show"},"content":{"rendered":"
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After years of safeguarding the legacy of Whitney Houston<\/a>, the late singer\u2019s estate \u2013 led by her sister-in-law Pat Houston \u2013 announced big plans for the singer<\/a> on Monday, thanks to a publishing deal that could spawn an album of unreleased music, a Broadway musical and, for the second time, a hologram<\/a> dedicated to the legendary singer.<\/p>\n

Soon after news of the Houston estate\u2019s plans, Rolling Stone<\/em> spoke to BASE Hologram CEO Brian Becker, whose company will create the Houston hologram, about the upcoming stage show, tentatively titled An Evening With Whitney: The Whitney Houston Hologram Tour.<\/em><\/p>\n

In addition to the hologram, the concert experience will feature \u201ca complete band onstage, backup singers, dancers, etcetera,\u201d Becker says. \u201cWe will substantially increase our use of the creative elements that are available to us with this technology because it is cinematic, which means we can do animation and special effects to really enhance the show.\u201d<\/p>\n

The burgeoning hologram industry<\/a> doesn\u2019t have the most dependable track record with bringing late icons to the stage. For every Ronnie James Dio<\/a> and Frank Zappa<\/a> \u2013 two deceased artists whose digital visages now entertain audiences on hologram tours \u2013 there are dozens of holograms that don\u2019t make the leap to actual illusions: Promised world tours from the holograms of Liberace<\/a>, Selena<\/a> and Patsy Cline<\/a> never materialized, the ballyhooed comedy club featuring the holograms of late stand-up comedians<\/a> never opened and planned holograms for artists ranging from the Notorious B.I.G.<\/a> and Tammy Wynette<\/a> never appeared.<\/p>\n

However, BASE has been the architect of two of the more successful hologram concerts: The pioneering Roy Orbison show<\/a> \u2013 soon to be joined onstage by a Buddy Holly hologram<\/a> \u2013 and a concert dedicated to late opera star Maria Callas. \u201cThe Maria Callas hologram doesn\u2019t get as much coverage in the pop world, but the Maria Callas hologram is really extraordinary<\/a>,\u201d Becker says. \u201cWe\u2019ve received acclaim from classical audiences and classical critics for not only the visual presentation but also the music and how we treated it, so that\u2019s something we\u2019ve been able to point to as what is needed when doing something with the vocal range and impact that Whitney Houston had.\u201d (BASE Hologram is also working on a show dedicated<\/a> to another troubled diva, Amy Winehouse, which was postponed in February due to unspecified \u201cunique challenges and sensitivities.\u201d)<\/p>\n

For the Houston production, scheduled to premiere in early 2020, BASE enlisted renowned director and choreographer Fatima Robinson, who has worked on everything from the Grammy Awards to Aaliyah videos to Michael Jackson\u2019s \u201cRemember the Time.\u201d \u201cWhitney was a groundbreaking icon with a transcendent style that evoked emotions in a way very few artists can. To be involved with something like this which will honor her memory in such a unique way is a dream,\u201d Robinson said in a statement. \u201cThe show is going to be a tribute to her grace, her charisma and her passion for music.\u201d<\/p>\n

Becker added that Robinson, as the director of the show, would have final decision on whether the concert will feature one Houston hologram or if the hologram will reproduce numerous eras from the singer\u2019s career.<\/p>\n

In 2015, the Houston estate endeavored<\/a> to bring the singer to digital life with Hologram USA. The following year, leaked rehearsal footage of the Houston hologram\u2019s debut \u201cperformance\u201d \u2013 a duet with Christina Aguilera on The Voice<\/em> \u2013 was met with so much online backlash<\/a> that the Houston estate nixed the performance. \u201cWe decided the hologram was not ready to air,\u201d Pat Houston said at the time. The curtain ultimately never raised on Hologram USA\u2019s Whitney.<\/p>\n

However, BASE is collaborating closely with the Houston estate to avoid a similar situation. \u201cI can tell you this: Everything we\u2019ve done with the estate, they\u2019re side by side with us. They have the approval rights of creative; they have given us those approval rights thus far for everything that we\u2019ve done,\u201d Becker says. \u201cThe estate, and Pat Houston in particular, is incredibly protective to the quality and legacy of the artist.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhitney prided herself on her family and that included her fans. She adored her audiences and that\u2019s why we know she would have loved this holographic theatrical concept,\u201d Pat Houston said in a statement. \u201cAn event at this level is something special and BASE Hologram\u2019s track record to be fully authentic and respectful made them the perfect partner. This upcoming tour will allow audiences to experience Whitney\u2019s amazing voice and passion for music for a long time to come and help them share that magic with future generations.\u201d<\/p>\n

via:: Rolling Stone<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After years of safeguarding the legacy of Whitney Houston, the late singer\u2019s estate \u2013 led by her sister-in-law Pat Houston \u2013 announced big plans for the singer on Monday, thanks to a publishing deal that could spawn an album of unreleased music, a Broadway musical and, for the second time, a hologram dedicated to the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-486115","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-music-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-19 16:30:47","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KQZR - The Reel","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kqzr","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kqzr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/486115","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kqzr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kqzr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kqzr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kqzr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=486115"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kqzr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/486115\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kqzr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=486115"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kqzr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=486115"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kqzr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=486115"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}