Articles about Music

YouTube has become the defacto place to find just about anything and, while cat videos remain popular, music is also a big part of the service. Users seem to flock to the place to watch music videos by major artists that sometimes go viral, as well as unknown people who become memes.

YouTube spent some time reminiscing about its memorable past in an announcement of the birthday celebration. "To call out just a few highlights in YouTube history, there are more than 120,000 videos inspired by 'Let it Go' (based on videos posted with that title), half a million by 'Gangnam Style,' and a stunning 1.5 million videos by 'Harlem Shake' (that’s a lot of motorcycle helmets). These inspired riffs got us thinking about those magical moments when songs become bona fide trends—and people all over the world start remixing, covering, parodying, dancing, and lip-dubbing", says the company's Claire Stapleton.

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Streaming music is the future, there is no question about it. The concept of buying, downloading and storing music is so passé. This is a natural evolution of the music market as the world heads to the cloud. Strangely, Apple was absent in the initial boom. While Spotify, Google Play Music All Access and Xbox Music were on the forefront, Apple was stuck in the past with half-baked services like iTunes Radio.

Apple's failure to lead in this segment has cost it dearly -- $3 billion dollars. You see, today, the company announces that it is buying Beats Music and Electronics for that much. In the blink of an eye, Apple is a leader in music again, but was it worth it?

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Having been born in the 80s, I've seen a lot changes in technology. Believe it or not, our first VCR was a hand-me-down with a wired remote -- yes, wired. We also did not have a cordless phone for quite a while. Instead, we had a phone with a 50-foot cord. My first Walkman, a non-Sony portable cassette player (they were all called "Walkman" back then), had crappy corded headphones. Are you seeing a trend yet? Cords, cables and wires were a necessary evil.

Luckily, nowadays we have wireless everything. The coolest technology for me is Bluetooth headphones. The fact that I do not need to strategically run a cable down my shirt or jacket is a godsend. Unfortunately, the quality of Bluetooth devices vary wildly. It is easy to buy a wireless set of cans that sound terrible. So, are the VOXOA HD Wireless Stereo Headphones terrible or great?

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Back in April, at the Microsoft Build conference, the company unveiled a music site called 22tracks. It was not designed to compete with its own Xbox Music or other rival services, but more as a concept to display the power of Internet Explorer.

Now Microsoft is announcing that 22tracks will be expanding to work across all browser platforms. The service was already designed to run on Windows from IE, Windows Phone and tablets like the Surface. However, this update is also expanding what the service can do.

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Rdio is one of the fastest growing music streaming services on the market these days. The company is trying to keep pace with a number of rivals in the increasingly competitive field of internet and mobile entertainment.

Today Rdio is announcing that it's expanding to a staggering 60 nations. This is an additional nine countries being added to the existing regions, and puts the service on six different continents.

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Music services these days are a dime a dozen. New ones pop up all the time, and some make it, while others fail. It's a tough business, given the amount of choices available to customers. Now we learn of one more that failed to find the niche it needed to be a successful business.

Ex.fm has announced it will close up shop on May 19th. This didn't come as a major surprise -- the company had given warning signs previously, but managed to keep things afloat a few additional months. However, now a blog post from the company tells the tale.

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Where would music be today without Rock 'n' Roll Star or Supersonic? If you are of a certain age, then you likely remember the debut of the classic Oasis album titled Definitely Maybe. It was a landmark moment that introduced Liam, Noel and their colleagues to the world.

Things have been on a bit of a rollercoaster since then, but today marks 20 years since that album hit stores.

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You may be surprised to learn this, but I used to be a crate-digger -- someone who frequented record-stores searching for vinyl. I may not look it, but I was massively into hip-hop vinyl collecting in the 90s and early 2000s. Many of my weekends were spent in Fat Beats or Beat Street in New York, just digging through boxes and crates searching for hidden gems or good deals. Sadly, the internet ruined this hobby for me and most record stores have closed. Instead of digging through crates, I now dig through Google Play Music All Access for streaming tunes.

One of my favorite record companies back in the day was Stones Throw. Besides putting out great hip-hop albums like Peanut Butter Wolf's "My Vinyl Weighs a Ton" and J Dilla's "Donuts", it also released obscure music on 7-inch. If you aren't familiar, most records nowadays are 12-inch, so the smaller 7-inch variants stood out and were fun. To celebrate an upcoming documentary on the record label, Rdio is hosting an exclusive playlist.

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Spotify has been a bit behind with its Windows Phone features, concentrating mostly on both Android and iOS. But today, the music service has set things right, adding new features to the mobile version of its app for the Microsoft platform.

"Today we’re introducing a new update to our Windows Phone users. The update brings features Discover and Browse, meaning it’s easier than ever to discover new favorites, as well as finding the perfect playlist for every mood and moment", states the company's Channtal Fleischfresser.

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TuneIn Radio is one of the hottest music services right now, allowing customers to listen to both terrestrial and internet-based stations. Now the company is implementing a radical upgrade to the way it works.

The service is trying to become more social, a bit like a Twitter for music fans. "TuneIn will connect millions of listeners and broadcasters from all over the globe with new features including a personalized live feed, profile pages, and the ability to share content with the Echo feature", states the company.

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Pebble, the upstart smartwatch maker, has been busy so far in 2014, unveiling new apps and products. In the meantime, other companies are working to support the platform, including Pandora. The music streaming service today unveils its support for Android customers, matching what it has already done for iOS.

While this may sound simple -- Pandora was already on Android -- getting the tunes to your wrist is another story, and requires a special adaptation of the app. "We’ve already seen a great response to the first 'wearable' technology device that Pandora is available on, so we’re thrilled to share that the Pebble app is now available for Android smartphone users as well", says Pandora's Mike Grishaver.

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As the streaming music business continues to heat up, Spotify is taking another step to stay ahead of the competition. The service is one of the more popular, but staying at the top is not as easy as it seems.

Now Spotify is teaming with mobile provider Sprint to bring a new deal to potential customers -- of course, you'll have to be on the mobile network in order to take advantage of this new offering. "Starting from May 2nd, all existing and new postpaid Sprint customers can get a 3 and 6 month free trial for Spotify Premium. This offer will launch in all channels on all compatible Sprint postpaid devices", says Spotify's Candice Katz.

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Warner Music Group (WMG) is looking to expand its horizons and markets, continuing to look into new areas for business opportunities. The latest step is a move into China with the announcement of an acquisition of Gold Typhoon's music catalog and artist roster.

In a press release, WMG refers to Gold Typhoon as "one of the most successful independent music companies operating in the Greater China Region". The label operates in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan and hosts some of the most popular pop and rock artists in the region.

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What a long strange trip it's been for the music industry. Starting with MP3s and Napster, travelling through iTunes and DRM, to reach where things are today. Now online music services are not only legal, they are the norm, and there are plenty to choose from.

Most sites differentiate themselves by features and number of tracks available, but now Rdio is taking a step towards setting itself apart by streaming audio quality. To do so, the service has teamed up with former Grateful Dead member Bob Weir for an initiative it has dubbed "Artists for Quality".

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Internet radio has become quite popular, with an ever growing number of services, including favorites like Pandora and Spotify, as well newcomers such as Beats Music. For the most part customers use these services on smartphones and computers -- thanks to Google Music All Access and a Bluetooth speaker on my desk, my Nexus phone gets me through the day.

But there are also stand-alone products designed just for this purpose. Grace Digital is one of the leaders in the field and the Encore is one of the top-of-the-line offerings from the company.

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