Abstract
In 2012, the holographic image of a resurrected rapper Tupac Shakur performed “live” on stage at Coachella with Dr. Dre and Snoop Dog. Meanwhile, the hologram J-Pop star, Hatsune Miku, has been performing “live” concerts to paying audiences in Asia, and later the USA, since 2006. Through an analysis of popular media, fan comments, and academic approaches, this chapter explores how these two holographic performers stimulate different ontological and ethical questions for their live and online audiences. Considering the willingness of the respective audiences to accept each hologram’s “presence” as a legitimate live performer finds a comparison that supports Mashahiro Mori’s (1970) “uncanny valley” thesis: the Tupac hologram elicits an uneasy response, because it appears to be “too real” and it also raises ethical concerns regarding the presentation of a dead person’s image as if they were alive; whereas the Hatsune Miku hologram appears to be just “real” and “ethical” enough for fans to form a deep affinity with her presence. Thus this chapter finds that while the hologram is already an acceptable presence on the live music stage, genre conventions, performance narratives and ontological conditions impact on spectator willingness to accept the presence itself as “live.”
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