On this day (October 1) in 1994, Megadeath became the first band or artist to launch an official website. The site, called “Megadeth, Arizona,” was a virtual city in which fans could gather, get all of the latest news, and express their excitement for the band’s forthcoming album, Youthanasia.
Videos by American Songwriter
Today, it’s common for bands or artists to have official websites and multiple social media platforms on which they interact with fans. However, 31 years ago, that wasn’t the case. The internet was in its infancy, and the world was slowly catching on. However, many in the music industry were seemingly afraid of getting involved. Megadeth, and their label, Capitol Records, on the other hand, were willing to take a risk.
[RELATED: Behind the Band Name: Megadeth]
More specifically, a young marketing professional named Robin Bechtel knew she needed to do something bold. After seeing success with multimedia campaigns for other artists, she decided to jump into the World Wide Web with both feet.
The result was a website that featured a chat room, up-to-date news on the band, a collection of digital postcards and other images, and more. It was groundbreaking.
Robin Bechtel Changed the World with Megadeth, Arizona
It started when Robin Bechtel’s cousin invited her to his office to show off his new computer. He also introduced her to the World Wide Web. “And I knew. Holy sh*t. This is it,” she wrote in her article recollecting the creation of the site. Not long after that, she was invited to join the marketing team for Megadeth’s forthcoming album, Youthanasia.
During the first brainstorming meeting, she pitched the idea of moving some of the marketing to the budding internet. The executives in the room brushed off the suggestion. Then, Bechtel worked up a proposal “to create a virtual cybertown in cyberspace.’ It would be called Megadeth, Arizona–based on where the band lived and recorded their album,” she wrote. Lou Mann, the Senior VP of Capitol Records, signed off on it and gave her a $30,000 budget. At the time, neither of them truly knew what was going to come of it.
She enlisted Wendy Dougan, an artist who designed album packaging, and copywriter Jane Bogart. Neither Dougan nor Bogart knew what the internet was.
The team pushed the limits of technology of the time to make something truly revolutionary. “For content, we assumed a band website would offer the basics like news, music, and video… Like any town, we thought it should spread gossip, deliver the mail, and conduct town meetings. So we created a few ‘Internet firsts,’” Bechtel wrote.
The “firsts” were a chatroom and the Megadeth, Arizona digital postcard.
The site was also one of, if not the, first to offer video and audio clips.
The site quickly caught on, inspiring a wave of growth on the internet.
Featured Image by Goedefroit Music/Getty Images
Leave a Reply
Only members can comment. Become a member. Already a member? Log in.