• by august , Avida Landau , June 15, 2005

Starting today, America Online's teen-oriented AOL RED will begin hosting "Rob's Blog," a blog dedicated to reports--including behind-the-scenes video footage--from this summer's rock concerts in Europe.

The roving correspondent responsible for the posts is 24-year-old Rob Czar, who will spend the summer backpacking through Europe by train and sleeping in tent cities, while squeezing in backstage interviews with musicians from groups such as U2, Coldplay, Green Day, and Garbage. Along with a producer, Czar will visit major festivals including Pinkpop in Holland, the UK Homeland Festival, and the UK Download Festival.

This summer marks the first time AOL has gone to Europe for the music circuit, but the third year AOL has covered summer concerts. In 2003 and 2004, AOL sent Czar to the "Vans Warped Tour"--a tour of bands throughout the United States; Czar will again go to the Vans Warped Tour at the conclusion of his European trip. Czar also has hosted the teen version of "Junkyard Wars," "Project Junkyard," for Discovery Kids on NBC.

Malcolm Bird, senior vice president of AOL Kids and Teens, said that AOL RED's coverage of the Vans Warped Tour has proven to be one its most popular features, which is why this year the company is expanding the feature by going abroad.

Bird added that the segment has another purpose: It will give teens a chance to travel vicariously. "The way Rob is portraying his trip is exactly the way a teenager would have his trip," Bird said. "You have the age demographic of 16 to 17 who are looking to go on their first vacation abroad, giving them insight on what it is like."

AOL RED will promote Czar's reports on the AOL Instant Messenger welcome screen, and will also send out e-mail alerts to AOL RED subscribers, Bird said. AOL RED, which is targeted to teens ages 13 to 17 and only open to AOL subscribers, draws 4.2 million unique visitors a month from a variety of income levels and demographic backgrounds, according to Bird.