Universal Music has signed a record deal with L.L.A.M.A, a Lego figurine that features in upcoming Lego music video creation product Vidiyo.
Described as a Los Angeles-based DJ and producer of Latin American descent, L.L.A.M.A is signed to sub-label Astralwerks and their first single 'Shake' features Ne-Yo and Carmen DeLeon.
Vidiyo is an augmented reality app that lets kids scan Lego figures, before choreographing their digital likenesses into music videos set in their real-world surroundings, with pop music from the likes of The Weeknd, Katy Perry and Imagine Dragons.
Universal Music says L.L.A.M.A is a "live action, human version of the DJ Llama minifigure from the Tropicon BeatBox [in Vidiyo]" and that the character is "not tied to any one type of music genre".
"It's an honour to sign the first ever llama and Lego minifigure to a global record deal," says Astralwerks VP Marketing Luke Armitage in a press release.
"When L.L.A.M.A first played us the early demo of 'Shake', we all knew we wanted to work with him. The LEGO Group's partnership with UMG completely aligns with our mission to surround the electronic music space with innovation."
The release also includes quotes attributed to L.L.A.M.A himself, who says: "Labels are for clothes. No musical style is off-limits for me. I just want to work with people that don't take life too seriously."
Joshua Burke, VP of Strategic Marketing and Global Partnerships at Universal Music, told Newshub it's important to the company that L.L.A.M.A "is his own artist", but the plan is for all his tracks to be collaborations.
"Of course, there were writers for the original 'Shake' track that's coming out - Ryan Tedder being one of those writers. But the idea is that each release of L.L.A.M.A will feature a combination of a bigger superstar and an emerging artist," said Burke.
"The common thread is going to be his vibe - the energy, the playfulness, the danceability. L.L.A.M.A is from Latin America, so there'll likely be some of those elements. He plays maracas, so those will probably be in there."
Despite L.L.A.M.A's name and vibe, Burke told Newshub the artist has no relationship with another artist they may remind you of.
"No, there is no connection to LMFAO, but it's not a bad idea for future collaborations," he said.
Burke said Vidiyo will have 30 songs at launch with another single added at least every two weeks thereafter. Those will include both established hits as well as brand new tracks.
"It's just an amazing combination of the best of both of our organisations," said Burke of Vidiyo.
"This product will allow so many musicians to get their music in front of millions of fans and inspire creativity."
L.L.A.M.A's track 'Shake' is set to be released on February 19 before the Lego Vidiyo products are released on March 1.
