What in the XP happened this year?

It’s beginning to look a lot like end-of-year wrap-ups

We’re almost done with the longest (or shortest?) year since 2020. May we remember 2021 as the time when events and experiences came back in full force. Then were canceled. Again. But then came back. Again!?

The past two years taught us to explore and embrace technology to keep pace with ever-changing consumer demands. And yes, while hybrid events are here to stay, let’s be honest, we’re all jonesing for the day when we can fully fire up our Instagram Stories and live IRL again in earnest. Safely. But before we get too ahead of ourselves, let’s celebrate all that we accomplished this year because, seriously, XP pros were tasked with reinventing the wheel — while unicycling through fire — and we f*cking did it.

Below, check out our (yes, you saw this coming) end-of-year wrap-up. We’re highlighting the biggest XP themes from 2021 as well as putting the spotlight back on our three most popular articles of the year, as chosen by you, dear reader.

Also, in the spirit of the season, we want to thank you for being an XP Land subscriber. What began as the little newsletter that could has grown into a full-on editorial source for the experiential industry. We have a team of on-the-ground XP reporters and a full-on editorial staff filled with exciting — and out there — plans for 2022 and beyond. But, in order to reach these goals (“host an industry conference that rivals Inbound by 2023!”) we need to keep growing.

If you love reading XP Land as much as we love writing it, would you forward this email to a few other industry folks? The more subscribers we have, the more badass creators we can highlight, connections we can make and resources we can provide.

Have a happy holiday season and yes, go ahead and eat that last cookie in the kitchen you can’t stop thinking about, you totally deserve it.

Biggest XP themes of 2021

1. Meta takes on the metaverse: Mark Zuckerburg couldn’t just go to space like all the other billionaires, he had to take over the metaverse. With the launch of Meta, Zuck established his stake in the rapidly growing virtual reality (and realty) space. We’re divided on whether the metaverse is cool or creepy, but with every brand from Gucci to McDonald’s signing on, we’ve only just scratched the metaphysical surface.

2. Hybrid events are staying (but evolving): What started as a safety measure to ease people back out into the world became a really cool way to unite fans with experiences they would never have otherwise been able to attend. Hybrid events confront long standing XP barriers to entry — cost, travel and time — head on. And virtual event technology is only getting better.

3. Festival safety isn’t up to snuff: Producing festivals is difficult without a deadly virus raging and almost two years of pent up social anxiety, so their return was perilous to say the least. We watched nervously as Lollapalooza kicked off Hot Vax Summer, then were heartbroken by the deadly crowdsurge at Astroworld. But, it’s up to us to learn and evolve — every fan deserves transparency, communication and trust.

4. People really love immersive art: Who had “competing Vincent Van Gogh immersive experiences” on their 2021 Bingo card? From Artechouse to Banksy — and basically all of Art Basel Miami Beach — the tantalizing combination of art and technology was everywhere this year. And don’t expect immersive art experiences to fade away, there will always be more creatives to spotlight — and more NFTs to sell.

5. Events still make us emotional: Joni Mitchell tried to warn us that “you don't know what you got 'til it's gone” and damn was she right. This year’s events hit us right in the gut, resulting in all the feels. From the Field of Dreams game’s Hollywood ending to Broadway’s triumphant return, we really missed being a part of a larger community. Let’s keep that positivity and camaraderie pumping through 2022, together.