music

These days, it seems like there is an endless variety of headphones to choose from. With new models popping up on a weekly basis, it’s hard to sort through the crowd to find the ones that fit you best. When it comes to active noise cancellation this elite selection thins out a bit, but there are only a handful that fall into the same category as A-Audio’s Icon over-ear headphones.

From a functionality perspective, these headphones give you everything but the kitchen sink. They can be used wirelessly via Bluetooth with active noise cancellation, in passive (wired) mode, and even feature dual sound profiles. Along with that, they include a wide variety of accessories that offer more than enough for any situation…

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YouTube appears to be experimenting with a new feature dubbed “YouTube Radio” that expands on its current “YouTube Mix” playlist feature to offer non-stop radio station based on the currently playing video (via Google Operating System).

The feature, as pictured above, is described as “a non-stop radio station based on the current video.” Users will be able to customize the experience somewhat with options to “like, dislike and dismiss videos to tailor your Radio Station to your taste.”
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YouTube is hosting a live music night in Los Angeles to celebrate the past year in music, with performances from some of the most well known artists, such as Tyler Ward and Megan Nicole, on the platform. The event is scheduled to begin at 7:00 PM Pacific (10:00 PM Eastern) and we have embedded the live stream ahead…

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When a content creator uploads a video to YouTube with music, an automated system called Content ID automatically matches the clip against an extensive database to see if the audio is permitted or infringes copyright. Yet, until now, it was impossible for a YouTube creator to know whether a specific track was allowed or not until after uploading a video.
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T-Mobile announced today the addition of 14 music streaming services to its Music Freedom program including Google Play Music. First announced at its Uncarrier 5.0/6.0 event in June, T-Mobile’s Music Freedom program allows customers on the network to stream content from supported music services without it counting against a monthly data cap. T-Mobile promised the addition of Google Play Music by the end of the year in August when Google’s subscription streaming music service was voted most wanted by T-Mobile’s customers.
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After a bit of a hiatus, YouTube announced today that it’s bringing back its Music Awards for a second showing. The event is set to take place sometime in March with the Google-owned company dishing out awards to recording artists selected by its viewers. In addition to having a say-so in who receives top honors, fans will also have some type of creative influence over the content being streamed.
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Billboard is about to add data from music streaming services to its weekly Billboard 200 charts for the first time as services like Google Play, Spotify and Apple’s Beats Music become increasingly popular. The New York Times reports that Billboard and Nielsen SoundScan plan to start incorporating both streams and downloads from music streaming services, in addition to the music sales the chart already covered, in order to more accurately reflect popular albums based on what users are listening to. The first chart including streaming services will include data for next week and arrive online Dec. 4:
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Google today officially announced its highly rumored YouTube music subscription service and its calling it YouTube Music Key. YouTube’s Music Key service with be available for a monthly subscription of $9.99 and unlock ad-free music, offline playback and video viewing, and the ability to play music in the background when using other apps.

The service is rolling out as a beta next week with a promotional price of $7.99/month, and early adopters will be able to request access from YouTube.com/MusicKey. YouTube’s Music Key beta service will be available through the YouTube apps on Android and iOS and through YouTube.com.

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Algoriddim, the team behind the popular music mixing app djay, first shipped the commercial version of its flagship app in 2007 on the Mac followed by the iPad version in 2010 and the iPhone version in 2011. Adding to the history of djay, today Algoriddim is launching djay for Android through the Google Play Store and Amazon App Store making the app its first on Google’s platform.

While djay is rooted in digital music mixing on the Mac then iOS, the new Android version is just as desktop class with high quality music playback and real time analyzing and mixing. Better yet, djay for Android packs in deep Spotify integration from day one–the iOS version first added up Spotify integration earlier this year–which means you have access to over 20 million songs for mixing together and playback.

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Google announced as part of its acquisition of Songza in July that it would bring some of the music streaming service’s features that users love to Google Play Music. Three months later, the company has followed through with those plans by integrating Songza’s “Concierge” feature with Play Music, enabling users to create contextual expert-curated playlists for an improved listening experience across all platforms.
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iHeartRadio today announced that it plans to release an Android Wear app on October 15th. The company, which recently rebranded from Clear Channel to iHeartMedia, says that the app will support all current Android Wear devices.

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Are you looking for a new playlist to get you through your morning commute? If so, Google Play Music has nine freebie tracks up for grabs that might make that ride into work, school or wherever a little bit smoother. Songs like Drake’s Hold On, We’re Going Home, Kendrick Lamar’s Bitch Don’t  Kill My Vibe, and Katy Perry’s Teenage Dream are all on the house!

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It’s official. Google has purchased music streaming service Songza (Play Store). Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but a report broke last month that Google was offering $15 million to acquire Songza. The deal follows Apple’s announcement earlier this year that it bought music streaming service Beats Music and headphones and accessories maker Beats Electronics for $3 billion.

The service is expected to improve Google’s own Play Music service as well as YouTube (and could possibly benefit YouTube’s potential music service) and other services, and Google says that nothing will change for Songza users in the immediate future.

If you’re not familiar with Songza, the service offers curated playlists in a music streaming service across various platforms including Android, iOS, and the Web. Playlists are chosen in several ways including based on moods and occasions.

Check below for statements on the acquisition from both Google and Songza…

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZgHGDGCBfc

Update: The Moto Stream is now live on Motorola’s website. It costs $49, uses Bluetooth and NFC technology to connect to devices, charges over USB, and has a 3.5mm to RCA connector for audio. Motorola also provides a bit more insight into this “DJ experience” it hinted at by describing a software feature called Heist Mode:
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Google’s video sharing medium recently celebrated its ninth anniversary and as a look back its rich history Mountain View has shared some interesting statistics about its impact on music. Over 120,000 videos have been inspired by the song Let it Go from Disney’s Frozen and half a million posts have been connected to Psy’s Gangnam Style. While these numbers are indeed impressive, they come up short when compared to the 1.5 million Harlem Shake-themed videos plastered across the web.

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