Axehole

San Francisco startup Doppelganger is using virtual worlds to help promote music.

Yes - we may be using that term a little loosely, because the first virtual world is for the girl band The Pussycat Dolls - Nicole Scherzinger, Carmit Bachar, Ashley Roberts, Melody Thornton, Kimberly Wyatt and Jessica Sutta - best known for their track Beep:

[Will.I.Am]
It’s funny how a man only thinks about the…
You got a real big heart, but I’m looking your…
You got real big brains, but I’m looking at your…
Girl, there ain’t no pain in me looking at your…

[PCD]
I don’t give a…
Keep looking at my…
‘Cause it don’t mean a thing if you’re looking at my…
I’m a do my thing while you’re playing with your…
Ha, ha-ha, ha-ha, ha-ha

The Lounge is described as “an ultra-glamorous online club where fans can chat, dance, hang out and listen to live DJ sets with their friends.”

“The Lounge is always open,” said PCD lead singer Nicole Scherzinger. “We’d like to invite all of our fans to join our party and dance the night away.”

The Lounge is the first project to come out of the design partnership between music label Interscope Records and San Francisco’s Doppelganger.

The Lounge lets fans design their own avatars, customizing everything from their sneakers to their haircut. The avatars can walk, chat, dance and even take a dip in the VIP hot tub with their friends while listening to the music of Interscope Records’ recording artists such as The Pussycat Dolls.

“Getting to work with the PCD has been amazing and we’re really pleased that we can help the band embrace their global fan base,” said Doppelganger CEO, Andrew Littlefield.

It’s an interesting way to promote music. Unfortunately, the Lounge requires a download and install to run.

System Requirements: PC running Windows XP with 256Mb RAM (512Mb recommended) and a video card with 32MB RAM (64MB recommended).