Nations Connect spoke yesterday at NY:LON Connect, a global music industry summit in London, about what the music industry can learn from esports.

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Nations Connect's Andy Stanley and Patrick Mahoney spoke on the topic of esports and the music indus ...

Nations Connect's Andy Stanley and Patrick Mahoney spoke on the topic of esports and the music industry at NY:LON Connect, a global music industry summit in London. (Photo: Business Wire)

NY:LON Connect is a global music event that brings together top executives and influencers from the international music industry to explore points of action for the upcoming year.

We Are Nation’s CEO Patrick Mahoney and Nations Connect’s COO Andrew Stanley delivered a keynote presentation on the topic titled “Move Over Mario,” about the growth of the esports industry and how music is quickly becoming a major part.

Stanley discussed the current landscape of esports, where influential artists like Steve Aoki, Jennifer Lopez, Imagine Dragons, and Drake have stakes in esports.

Mahoney and Stanley each have backgrounds in the music industry and spoke about the potential for an esports tour, similar to what Warped Tour did for the music industry.

“These athletes are going to tour...Kids will pay big money to watch these guys play, and they average more per-head on merchandise than your average musician. Esports is crushing the merch market per head,” said Mahoney.

Stanley went on to point out that esports games and influencers have their own curated playlists on streaming services like Spotify.

“If you can get on these curated playlists, then you’re going to make money and you’re going to get global exposure,” said Stanley.

Nations Connect was founded to create esports partnerships with other entertainment sectors, including traditional entertainers, musicians, and artists.

Mahoney was also a member of the panel discussion titled “Outside the Bubble,” about music connections to other industries outside of music, including gaming, television/film and more.

Other panelists and moderators at the conference included Dorothy Hui, VP of Digital at Sony Music UK, Helena Kosinski, VP Global at Nielsen Music, and Isabel Garvey, Managing Director of Abbey Road Studios.