Riot Games has released its second Sessions album, hoping to inspire creators with its “dreamstate vibes,” according to Toa Dunn, the head of Riot Music Group.
Riot introduced its latest Sessions album, a series of “creator-safe” tracks that can be used without copyright concerns, at The Game Awards today. After releasing Sessions: Vi last summer, Riot has now delivered Sessions: Diana, featuring 43 different tracks and some of the artists who worked on the previous copyright-free album.
Dunn spoke with Dot Esports about the new Sessions album and explained how it differs from the previous one.
“The intention behind sessions is really kind of to explore the broader opportunity of different vibes, different fields, and tones,” Dunn told Dot Esports.
He later explained how Sessions: Vi is a bit “brighter” since we see the Piltover Enforcer relaxing in a more urban setting in the artwork of the first album.
“But for Diana, it’s kind of a little bit of a flip from that,” Dunn said. “It’s really about nature and the cosmos. And so there’s this kind of, and nocturnal dreamy land feel to it. … We wanted it to feel different. We wanted to show another way where it’s still sessions, it’s still there, but it’s just a different take on a different vibe.”
Both albums were made with streamers and content creators in mind, who can use these tracks while monetizing their content and without worrying about infringing Riot Music’s trademark for intellectual property. Sessions are the product of Riot’s promise to “help ease some of the pains that creators around the world feel when dealing with copyright challenges in their videos and streams,” Dunn said.
A “large number” of community artists worked on Sessions: Diana, some of whom collaborated on the creation of the first Sessions album, including Laxcity, xander, A.L.I.S.O.N, chromonicci, and Hanz. But the whole new take on the second Sessions album is the animation and engaging artwork of the video.
We see a “young Diana,” as Dunn said, following a trail through the forest, up on a mountain, and down to the sea. With the new album, Riot wanted to “explore a new vibe” and did so not just with the music, but with the animation as well.
“You’re following [Diana’s] thoughts on this trek,” Dunn said. “It’s a bit of reality, but more of what’s going on in her head and reality transforms around her.” And from Dunn’s point of view, that was the “best way to tell her story” and the best way for people to “understand it and be immersed in this with us.”
With Sessions: Diana, Riot added more content to help the community be creative and get involved in what the team is creating around League’s universe.
“We’re invested in the future,” Dunn said. “And we want to connect with our fans and players. And if anything, we want to give our fans and players a reason to invest with us too, right. To come along this journey with us.”
Sessions: Diana will be available on all major streaming platforms, including YouTube and Spotify, as of Dec. 9.
