The Recording Academy’s Grammy Week took place on Roblox between 30th March and 3rd April this year, with Colombian pop star Camilo one of the key acts performing in the virtual world. 

This made Camilo the first Latin act to perform in Roblox, with other acts such as Glass Animals, Walker Hayes and Sofia Carson also appearing there during the week. While they all have their own audiences and pulling power, Camilo was positioned as the main draw. 

“When Roblox approached me, I immediately got very excited because this was the first time in my life that I would be doing something like this,” said Camilo ahead of his performance. “I was already incredibly honored to be one of this year’s nominees, and to perform in a completely new way in the Metaverse, brings it to a whole new level. I can’t wait!”

The Camilo performance was supplemented through the week with other artist-led activities such as meet and greets, treasure hunts and the chance to win virtual merchandise items. There were also virtual quizzes and fashion items that were created using Roblox’s Layered Clothing technology. 

It is interesting that the Grammys were heavily publicising the involvement of Camilo – over and above the other named acts – and this was primarily because he was the only one doing a full performance. (The others were doing meet and greets.)

There were a lot of Camilo-related virtual goods on sale, too. This included a digital moustache, based on his trademark handlebar design, for 75 Robux, a chunky necklace (70 Roubx) and a Colombian flag superhero cape (110 Robux). Roblox was throwing an enormous amount of promotional weight behind his involvement. 

Having a Colombian act headline here is a significant moment for both Roblox and the Grammy Awards, showing that they are prioritising Latin acts, in part to help boost the acts themselves but also to pull in Latin viewers to the platform and the show.