MTV International and Aloft Hotels Partner to Support Emerging Music Talent

MTV, the world’s premier youth entertainment brand and leading-edge Aloft Hotels, designed for the hyper connected global traveller, today announced a partnership to create three new and exclusive MTV Live at Aloft Hotels music events featuring break-through artists at Aloft Abu Dhabi on 20^th May, Aloft London Excel on 26^th May and Aloft Munich on 9^th June.

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The partnership, brokered by Viacom Velocity International, the in-house integrated marketing team for Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN) features two new platforms to support emerging artists: MTV PUSH FUTURES Live at Aloft Hotels and Club MTV Live at Aloft Hotels. Both will give fans access to rising global talent and the greatest night of dance music, respectively.

Aloft Hotels has put a spotlight on up-and-coming artists since the brand’s inception in 2008 with Live At Aloft Hotels, the signature ongoing music series offered at every one of the brand’s 100 plus hotels worldwide and MTV has a rich history of showcasing rising talent. Together they’re bringing the best of both worlds to Europe and the Middle East.

In London and Munich, MTV PUSH FUTURES Live at Aloft Hotels will feature acoustic performances from breakthrough stars Anne-Marie (Aloft London Excel) and Max Giesinger (Aloft Munich). Both intimate performances will take place at Aloft Hotels' W XYZ bar, for approximately 150 invited music fans and competition winners.

Club MTV Live at Aloft Hotels will take place at Aloft Abu Dhabi’s vibrant rooftop, one of the UAE’s most popular party venues, and will feature a 60-minute DJ set from one of the world’s most exciting emerging electronic DJs, Jonas Blue, to an audience of around 2000 dance music fans.

“We are delighted to be partnering with Aloft Hotels whose vision of providing exciting and entertaining experiences to young fans is directly aligned to ours, through championing emerging talent and giving them a platform” said Lee Sears, Vice President of Viacom Velocity International. “MTV’s expertise lies in working with the hottest new talent, delivering live, unique music experiences for our fans and telling stories in a compelling and exciting way to our highly engaged and hyper-connected audiences. By working with targeted social influencers and leveraging our hugely popular social media platforms, we at Velocity International are able to deliver a seamless commercial campaign for our partner Aloft and a fantastic experience for music fans across both brands on all their favourite social channels,” added Sears.

“We are delighted to join forces with MTV to elevate the ‘Live at Aloft Hotels’ music series to new heights in Europe and the Middle East with innovative content that speaks to today’s hyper-connected millennials,” said Stephan Croix, Vice President of Marketing, Europe, Africa and Middle East. “Both brands are passionate about supporting emerging talent and live music and we are thrilled to present these three amazing ‘MTV Live at Aloft Hotels’ events.”

MTV will deploy the full might of its international network of top performing new media and social channels to amplify all three ‘MTV Live at Aloft Hotels’ events across the UK, Germany and the Middle East. Filmed content will be packaged into short-form clips and distributed across MTV’s social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat), including the first ever branded content on MTV’s international YouTube channel and co-branded vignettes created for Snapchat.

In addition, two on-air 60-second vignettes will run on MTV’s channels in the UK and Germany in June following the MTV PUSH FUTURES Live at Aloft Hotels events, helping to maximise audience engagement and drive fans towards the online content.

Having previously worked and toured with Rudimental, Essex star, Anne-Marie is ready to break out on her own. With a UK headline tour earlier this year and solo singles ‘Boy’ and ‘Do It Right’ under her belt, the three-time world karate champion is confirmed to perform at the London Greenwich event following a huge victory at MTV Brand New 2016 where she received the most votes in the competition ever.

After his debut “Laufen Lernen” (“Learn To Walk“), which Max Giesinger released on his own, the young artist comes back with his second album “Der Junge, der rennt” (“The Boy Who Runs”) and his unmistakable first hit single “80 Millionen”. When you listen carefully to the new album, you will discover a mid-twenty who enjoys playing with his new found creative voice. His songs convince with their dynamic diversity, carry you away and – if suitable – put you in a thoughtful mood. “Der Junge, der rennt” was released on April 8th via BMG.

Born and raised in London, Jonas Blue is taking the music industry by storm. From pop to classic dance music, as well as delving into elements of tropical house, Jonas is crafting a sound which fills the void that so many are craving on the music scene. His debut release ‘Fast Car’ was a global smash, reaching #1 in the UK, Germany, Sweden, Australia and New Zealand and the #1 spot on the US viral chart on Spotify.

Both MTV and Aloft Hotels have built a reputation for advocating and supporting emerging artists. Music and entertainment powerhouse MTV is the only global music player with coordinated local on-air and online teams, reaching millions of music fans every day. From large-scale live shows such as MTV Crashes and MTV Brand New in the UK to MTV World Stage and MTV Push, MTV is widely recognised as a youth destination for new music.

Known for its vibrant social scene and innovative global music programming, Aloft gives guests and music-loving locals free access to emerging artists as well as some of the hottest bands at WXYZ bars. For a complete and up-to-date list of all artists, locations and performance dates, please visit LiveAtAloftHotels.com and join the conversation @AloftHotels using #AloftLive.

Further details on ticketing and social competition giveaways will follow shortly.

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Notes to editors

About Velocity International:

Velocity International is VIMN’s sales team offering content-led strategic marketing campaigns that go beyond traditional TV and online media buys and take full advantage of the massive and growing reach across TV, digital and social media of Viacom’s brands including Comedy Central, MTV and Spike.

About MTV

MTV is the world’s premier youth entertainment brand. With a global reach of more than a half-billion households, MTV is the cultural home of the millennial generation, music fans and artists, and a pioneer in creating innovative programming for young people. MTV reflects and creates pop culture with its award-winning content built around compelling storytelling, music discovery and activism across TV, online and mobile. Outside of the United States, MTV is part of Viacom International Media Networks, a division of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAB, VIA), one of the world’s leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms.

About Aloft Hotels

With more than 100 hotels now open in 16 countries around the world, Starwood’s Aloft brand delivers a fresh approach to the traditional staid hotel landscape. For the ‘always on’ next generation of traveler, the Aloft brand offers a tech-forward, vibrant experience and a modern style that is different by design. For more information, please visit www.alofthotels.com. Aloft, like all brands within Starwood's portfolio, is proud to offer the Starwood Preferred Guest® program, the industry’s richest loyalty program. To learn more, please visit www.spg.com.

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Contact information

MTV/Viacom International Media Networks
Seema Alibhai, 0203 580 2106
seema.alibhai@vimn.com
or
MTV/Viacom International Media Networks
Anna Dally, 0203 580 2104
anna.dally@vimn.com
or
Starwood Hotels
Julien Guitard, +32 2 204 5160
Associate Director Communications – Europe, Africa & Middle East
Julien.Guitard@starwoodhotels.com
or
Starwood Hotels
Maria José Crousillat, +32 2 204 5410
Communications Manager – Europe, Africa & Middle East
MariaJose.Crousillat@starwoodhotels.com