Hologram, Pop-Culture Abad Ke-21

Menonton konser hologram artis-artis yang sudah meninggal menjadi salah satu trend di Amerika saat ini. Saya belum pernah menonton langsung, Saat saya check di youtube, saya cukup terkejut. Mereka seperti hidup kembali. Trend ini cukup kontroversial dan mendapatkan perhatian dari berbagai kalangan. Untuk paper kampus,saya memutuskan untuk mengangkat phenomena baru ini dalam tulisan saya. Selamat membaca! 

(Konser hologram Michael Jackson 2014, photo oleh theguardian.com) 

Hologram: Immortal Life

Immortal life used to be told and written in a fairy tale. Now, human make it true by designing a 3-D technology that is able to create any shape and move from the light. Some famous late singers like Michael Jackson, Tupac and Lady Day have been brought to life with this technology. American scientist, Goreou reported that the first hologram was made in 1965 with the limitation on movement, was projected on 2-D screen and went to public for the first time via LIFE Magazine. Since then hologram has been developed well and is getting more sophisticated, more popular and globalized in 20^th century, the hologram has caught public’s attention and has withdrawn positive and negative responses. 

One of the positive impacts has been shown clearly by how the holograms have opened a new access for 6oies to 70ies music fans which is most of them are old. Fans from this era can buy CD or DVD or any new formats of record. They do not need to struggle to find old fashion type of record such as big black CD which is now rare and not produced massively. These fans can enjoy music on their age by keeping up with new technology. They can buy CD, DVD or simply go to YouTube to watch and to listen to their favorite singers. Holograms remind fans that their idol still exists in the world music industry. It is not surprising that the number of sales hologram on all audio visual products is getting higher.  In Zambia, almost 2 millions holograms have been sold for these past two years (Malambo, 2015).

Another positive force brought by holograms is as inter-generation fans interaction. Holograms mostly bring back singers and their music from the past. It gives opportunity to younger generation to be exposed more on music from different eras. As You Tube like button showed, Tupac and Michael Jackson hologram have been viewed by more than 38 million people around the world (youtube.com). This number indicates the possibility of music taste and trend can be no longer defined based on its era in the near future.

Holograms also encourage more competition among singers and music providers. As the market becomes more crowded with various late singers, it becomes more competitive. Now singers and music providers are hardly pushed to create and produce a better master piece. Their competitors are not only singers from their era but also dead musicians. Via holograms some dead singers like Michael Jackson, Tupac and comedian Andy Kaufman have already done their tours around USA (Itzkoff, 2015). The Whitney Huston Hologram is even taking for her world tour in 2016 (Chow, 2015).  This fierce competition has made some still-alive singers also made their own hologram.

Besides, holograms open opportunity for collaboration. The collaboration between or among alive-musicians and dead musicians via hologram becomes a trend. Elvis joined Celine Dion on the stage for American Idol in 2007 (Robertson, 2012). On the stage, Elvis hologram was projected perfectly looked like Elvis in a real life. It sang and moved in Elvis’ way. However, this collaboration was less engaging because hologram cannot interact. Every time Celine Dion made eye contact with the Elvis Hologram, the absent of response from it made this performance looked awkward. However, ovation and cheers from the audience were all room.

Another way that might benefit living musicians from having holograms is by helping them in doing their job. No more lip-sync, musicians can even have their concert by using holograms in different places around the world at the same time. It saves their time and no need to run a busy dizzy life. This is a great way to avoid camera and have little more privacy. In November 2011, Mariah Carey has done this in some European countries (Robertson, 2012). Further, Justin Bieber comes up in his video clip song entitled That Power featuring Will.i.am in the form of hologram. In this clip, Justin Bieber uses hologram not only to totally replace himself but also to portray the meaning of some lines in the lyrics.

Holograms have entered various elements of media and entertainment and it is obviously given tremendous benefits for the fans, singers and music industries. However the downside of holograms cannot be denied. Virtual reality porn of holograms has been developing. Sushter, founder of virtual reality network is designing live action hologram that allows users to see the performers from all sides (Snow, 2015). If this product comes into masses, it will likely make porn consumers more addicted and possibly increase the number of porn consumers around the world. The worst effect is people distract from achieving.

The existence of holograms also has raised ethical questions. Is it morally right to bring back people who already passed away via hologram especially to please us? Is it ethical to make a living from it? These questions have been echoing along the developing of hologram especially on the music industries. These questions are not only addressed to the fans but also to the music providers and the company.

Another disadvantage of holograms is the endless condolence of the family who are left. Losing one of family members is one of the biggest disasters. It strongly affects the other members. It can be even harder for them to getting rid their sadness because they can see them every day in the TV, magazine, newspapers or in other media formats. The endless sadness might lead the family to health disorder.

The last downside of hologram is the production cost. Up to 2015, not many holograms have been made. Most holograms are the super starts. Music Companies have to carefully pick up the right star from the past to be resurrected via hologram. The Wrong choice might lead them to not be able to gain the benefits since the production cost is pricey. It is predicted that to produce holograms cost US$ 40,000 per minute (Snow, 2015).

In summary, holograms can be seen as an angel or a devil. Holograms have opened opportunity for the music listeners and audiences to widely enjoy music from various ages. It is a new way for the old people to listen to their music during their era and a portal for young generation to enjoy music from the past. Eventually it gives meaningful contribution in thriving economy of a country. However, people should also consider who might get hurt and they should watch the developing of this technology so it won’t be misused and misled for negative purposes.

Cited Work

Chow, Endrew.R.”Whitney Houston as Touring Hologram.” New York Times 14 Sept, 2015:C3(L). Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 7 Dec. 2015.

Goreu, Thomas.J.  "Hologram history." American Scientist 100.2 (2012): 100. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 2 Dec. 2015.

Itzkoff, Dave. "Comedians to Tour, Decades After Dying." New York Times 24 Oct.

2015: C1(L). Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 2 Dec. 2015.

Malambo, Clement. "Govt Raises K2 Million From Hologram Sales." Africa News Service 12 Aug.2015. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 20 Nov. 2015.

Snow Aurora "Hologram Porn: The Most Realistic Sex Imaginable." Daily Beast 19 Sept.       2015. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 7 Dec. 2015.