In France, there’s one day a year where instead of going to the show, the show comes to you, wherever you are. It’s the Fête de la Musique (World Music Day), a 40-year-old tradition where music takes over every city, town, and village across the country. This year, Spotify put a new spin on the celebration by handing the reins directly to the fans.

On June 21, we popped up on the iconic Place de la Bastille in Paris for Fan de la Musique, a free concert built on a simple but powerful idea: What if the fans were in control?

Throughout the event, the night’s soundtrack was created in real time for the fans, by the fans. Literally: a scannable QR code displayed on stage allowed the audience to vote on the next track and collectively shape the energy of the evening.

The lineup was a celebration of French music’s vibrant present and future, with DJ sets and live performances by Ronisia, Tiakola, Adèle Castillon, and miki. RnBoi delivered some of his biggest hits, while CRYSTALLMESS and Jeune Morty played back-to-back in an eclectic set.

As the night went on, surprise performances from Eva, Miimii KDS, and Théodora kept the crowd buzzing, all culminating in an electrifying finale by Kalash. 

While the 5,000 free tickets were snapped up in just 40 minutes, the energy was felt across the city. The stage’s open-air construction carried the music to the nearly 10,000 fans who gathered and danced in the streets surrounding the main square.

Fête de la Musique is just one more way Spotify is creating a fan-first experience on the platform and in real life.