The Sound of Success: How Music Has Become Hospitality’s Secret Sauce

By AHL Editorial Team on 09.24.25

Giant Step, helmed by Maurice Bernstein, has spent over 25 years shaping how brands use music to craft identity, create experiences, and connect meaningfully with audiences. Today, together with A Hotel Life, Giant Step is launching a comprehensive whitepaper on “The Evolution of Music, Nightlife & Hospitality”. Blending unique perspectives and exclusive insights from leading voices across hospitality, music and design, it is both a historical lens and a valuable forward-looking view on what lies ahead for the success and longevity of hotel brands.
 

From Rebellion to Revenue: The Cultural Evolution

The relationship between music and hotels might have began with rebellion. The Chelsea Hotel was a creative ecosystem where Bob Dylan, Patti Smith, and Leonard Cohen found inspiration and create many of the hotel stories that still populate our imaginarium these days. These spaces transcended their traditional role, becoming cultural incubators where art and hospitality intertwined.

The 1980s brought the boutique hotel revolution. Ian Schrager and Steve Rubell, drawing from their Studio 54 legacy, understood that music could transform lobbies into dynamic social spaces. They curated soundscapes that defined identity and atmosphere.

By the 1990s, properties like Hotel Costes in Paris pioneered signature sounds, creating carefully curated compilations that extended the brand experience far beyond physical spaces. Their playlists became cultural artifacts that guests could take home.

Experience-Driven Hospitality Takes Center Stage

We know that modern hospitality has long shifted from accommodation to fully-thought experiences. Hotels like Habitas have integrated music into their “luxury with soul” philosophy, while Desa Potato Head in Bali redefined beach clubs as cultural institutions through cutting-edge music programming.

The visionary hotelier Liz Lambert, exemplifies this shift. “The San José was meant to be a musician’s hotel in my mind from the start. All of my projects kind of center around music and musicians. It’s a huge part of my life and my community, sitting around the fire while friends pass the guitar,” Lambert explains. Her transformation of a 1930s motor court into a bohemian retreat is a solid example of how authentic cultural programming creates lasting connections and brand legacy.

Music tourism has exploded, with platforms like Airbnb‘s “Live Anywhere” ethos offering curated musical experiences hosted by locals and artists. This decentralized model redistributes economic benefits to communities while offering authentic cultural encounters that millennial and Gen Z travelers crave.

The most successful brands treat music as infrastructure, not ornamentation. As Ben Pundole, Chief Brand Officer for DELANO Hotels and former Brand Experience executive at EDITION Hotels and Ian Schrager’s PUBLIC, notes: “Music has been a huge inspiration for the hotels I’ve worked on in the past 30 years. It brings people together, democratizes the audience, and elevates spirits.”

The Nightlife Connection: Why Club Impresarios Make Great Hoteliers

A striking pattern emerges among hospitality’s most successful cultural curators: many transitioned from nightlife. Ian Schrager (Studio 54), Sean MacPherson (MK, Area), Alex Calderwood (Ace Hotel), amongst others, excelled at what traditional hoteliers often overlook: the ability to make a room feel like the place to be. They understood how to curate not just music, but the entire cultural experience.

“While it doesn’t appear on the surface to be a logical progression, moving from nightlife into hospitality was quite natural,” explains Schrager. “Hospitality is the primary goal of both nightclubs and hotels — they both seek to look after people, to make them comfortable and happy.”

Pundole recalls a defining moment at the Times Square EDITION opening: “I will never forget the feeling in the room, wall to wall of New York’s who’s who, notables and celebrities, all colors, ages, persuasions going crazy. We knew it was a special moment in music and hotel history!”

The Future: Strategy Over Spotify

Music in hospitality is core brand identity. Looking ahead, successful properties must treat music as a strategic pillar, not a decorative afterthought. And the integration of audio into design requires early collaboration between hoteliers, designers, and Audio Visual specialists. As Dan Agne from Sound Investment notes, AV systems are “the heart and soul of a venue.”

Technology offers new possibilities — from AI-powered personalization to immersive soundscapes — but authenticity remains paramount. Hotels can’t fool guests with generic playlists and framed album covers. The hotels that thrive will be those that don’t just use music to entertain, but to engage, inspire, and transport. Immersive means interactive, surprising, and rooted in real artistry.

In an oversaturated market, the properties that sound as good as they look are the ones that truly resonate. Frank Roberts, Vice President of Brand Experience at EDITION & W Hotels, confirms: “Music-driven programming has not only generated significant additional revenue from bar sales and extended guest stays but has also strengthened our brand’s positioning in the luxury lifestyle space.”

And, as Schrager puts it: “Music isn’t just heard, it’s felt. And in hospitality, it becomes a living, breathing part of a property’s soul.”

You can read the content entirely on Giant Step’s website.

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