A Portland-based company called Rumblefish will open an online store called Friendly Music tomorrow, specially made for folks who want to put music in their YouTube videos without worrying about having their content pulled for legal reasons.
When you buy a song on Friendly Music, you’ll be granted the right to modify it and use it in the soundtrack for your online video as long as you attribute the artist and you don’t use the video for any commercial purpose. That means you’ll be permitted to use it for your wedding or birthday video, but not for a product advertisement or an ad-supported web series.
The service resembles iTunes, but each track costs $1.99. You can search by artist or genre or even insist on or eliminate specific musical qualities. Artist selection is initially limited to lesser-known acts with just a few exceptions, but Rumblefish hopes to find some bigger names in the near future.
Though the legal rights apply to content uploaded to just about any video website, the company struck a deal with YouTube specifically to ensure that there won’t be any confusion about the legality of content that users of both services upload.
This is just another constructive response to the problem of illegal music uploads on the video-sharing site. The challenges aren’t 100% resolved, but we’re getting closer.
YouTube has already made big strides in dealing with the issue by implementing a system called “Click-to-Buy” that serves up iTunes or Amazon music store links for songs when they play in the background of a video. Furthermore, a federal judge sided with Google last week over a $1 billion lawsuit by Viacom.
Reviews: Google, YouTube, iTunes
More About: copyright, friendly music, license, music, rumblefish, video, youtube
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Tags: copyright, friendly music, license, rumblefish, youtube
Greetings once again, music lovers! Thanks for checking out this week’s edition of Free Music Monday, where we give you 10 free tracks in honor of the #musicmonday tradition on Twitter.
We hope you enjoy this edition’s eclectic selection of free tunes we’ve collected. If there’s a genre you’d like to hear more of, drop us a line in the comments. And if you’d like to appear in a future edition of Free Music Monday, please check out the submission guidelines at the end of this post!
A note for FMM fans: the column will be going on vacation for the next two weeks whilst its author does.
1. [INDIE] Latch Key Kid: “Wide Open” — Folksy and feel-good, Latch Key Kid’s newest song goes out to Mashable readers today (right-click to snag it). Hailing from Manhattan Beach, CA, Gavin Heaney is the singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist behind Latch Key Kid. Check out more on his website and on MySpace.
2. [POP] Bryant James: “Falling Star” — Boston’s Bryant James offers Mashable readers a free copy of this upbeat pop meets hip hop single featuring an ethereal female vocal hook. Right-click to snag your copy, and find out more about the artist on his MySpace page.
3. [SOUTHERN ROCK] J Roddy Walston and the Business: “Brave Man’s Death” — Hailing from Baltimore, J Roddy Walston and company craft indie rock with a solid Southern kick. They offer Mashable readers a free download from their Don’t Break the Needle EP [iTunes link] — snag it via the widget below and watch for their full-length album to drop July 27. Check out more about the band on their website and on MySpace.
4. [ELECTRONIC] Nichole Alden: “Home” — Los Angeles-based singer, songwriter and producer Nichole Alden (pictured above, right) develops genre-busting tracks from dark electronic with industrial flavors to sultry pop on into driving, in-your-face rock and roll. Her prolific catalogue has been featured in the hit series Dexter, high-profile international ad campaigns for Audi, Peugeot, Harley-Davidson and more. She offers Mashable readers a free copy of the pre-album promo release single “Home” off her forthcoming third full-length, set to drop in August 2010; snag it via the widget below and check out more about the artist at her website.
Home (Pre-Album Promo Release) by Nichole ALDEN5. [FOLK/GYPSY] Katzenjammer: “Tea With Cinnamon” — This Norwegian all-female quartet (pictured above) employs a wide and unusual array of instrumentation for their folk meets country blues meets vaudeville style of Eastern European-flavored circus pop. Snag your free download of “Tea With Cinnamon” below off the foursome’s debut album Le Pop and check out more about the band on their website and on MySpace.
6. [RAP ROCK] David E Beats x The White House Band: “We On (The Bond Song)” — Try to imagine Danger Mouse crossed with classic and stoner rock and you’ll have some idea of the sound emerging from this loud and high-energy new Brooklyn band. Flavors of everything from blues to metal to jazz to Hendrix can be found in this heavy guitar riff-laden track from their forthcoming EP Method dropping this July, all yours for the low price of your right-click. Check out more about the band on MySpace.
7. [CHIPTUNE] Little-Scale: Biometrics — Australian inventor and chiptune composer Little-Scale offers his new album entirely free; snag your free download from his website. Composed primarily using the iPhone sequencer/synthesizer/sampler app Nanoloop, the album showcases the creative possibilities of mobile music-making.
8. [INDIE/REMIX] Sebastian Waldejer: “Ode To The Farewell (John Derek Bishop remix)” — This track is a collaboration between Norwegian singer/songwriter Sebastian Waldejer and DJ/producer John Derek Bishop, the final result being an ephemeral and subtle mix of dreamy indie pop with a dash of jazz-flavored electronica. Snag your free track from the widget below, and check out more about the artist on his website.
Sebastian Waldejer – Ode To The Farewell (John Derek Bishop remix) by CCAP 9. [TRIP HOP] The Silk Demise: “Element of Red” — Lush trip-hop vibes out of Toronto characterizes The Silk Demise, combining the production talents of multi-instrumentalist Bill Litshauer and the vocal stylings of Olivia Zielinski. Atmospheric and prolific, the group offers a full download of the albums Music for a Film and Unlocked from their MP3s page; check out “Element of Red” on the latter work and more. Discover more about the group on their website.
10. [ELECTRONICA] Bankai: Teen Slut Pimp Strut — Not only does DIY music movement artist Bankai offer this six-track album for free, the Melbourne-based producer also offers the free stem source files that make up the album under a Creative Commons license. Stream or download the album from the widget below, and check out a ton more from the open source artist on his website and on Soundcloud.
Teen Slut Pimp Strut by Bankai
As always, big thanks to all who tuned in for this week’s Free Music Monday! If you find something you like in this feature, please feel free to share it with your music-loving friends. You can always check out the latest edition of FMM, plus all the past editions, on the Free Music Monday tag page, so be sure to tune in each week. We’ve also included the list of past Free Music Mondays at the end of this post in case you want to check out the back catalog.
Huge thanks to everyone who has submitted tracks. If you sent us something and we haven’t included it yet, stay tuned for a future Free Music Monday. Here is how to submit your music to FMM (please remember we’re going quiet for the next two weeks!):
Attention artists/labels: there are new submission guidelines for Free Music Monday. Please pick one track you’re willing to give away to Mashable readers as a free download and either a) include it as an attachment in your email to barb+FMM AT mashable DOT com (25 MB file size limit, please) or b) include a link to a location where we can download the song (use temporary file sharing sites like zshare at your own risk, because we may not get around to auditioning your track before the links expire). If you want to use “in exchange for email” or other specific widgets to offer the track to Mashable readers that’s totally fine — just send us or point us to the embed code. Please also include any relevant information about the artist (or link to their bio) plus their Twitter account, if they have one.
If you’d like to also point us to more of the submitted artist’s work online where we can stream and/or download it, please feel free — but you must complete either a or b to be considered for Free Music Monday. Due to overwhelming submission volume we are sadly unable to include each and every submission or even reply to every inquiry. If we haven’t posted your track yet, you are welcome to submit another new track at a reasonable and totally not pushy time interval. If we’ve already posted a track from your band or artist, we are unlikely to double up and post something else from you for some time — as much as we love all of you! This makes FMM more diverse and inclusive of new music. Thanks!
Free Music Monday Back Catalogue
- 10 Completely Free Downloads (April 12, 2010)
- 10 Entirely Free Downloads (April 5, 2010)
- 10 Free downloads and More (April 26, 2010)
- 10 Free Downloads Compiled For You (June 21, 2010)
- 10 Free Downloads for Your Ears (June 14, 2010)
- 10 Free Downloads Just for You (March 22, 2010)
- 10 Free Tracks (March 8, 2010)
- 10 Free Tracks to Download (May 10, 2010)
- 10 Fresh and Free Downloads (May 24, 2010)
- 10 Totally Free Downloads (March 29, 2010)
- Alternative Rock Edition
- Covers, Remixes, and Mashups Edition
- Free Music Monday: Download 10 Free Tracks (May 3, 2010)
- Electronica Edition
- Free Downloads for Your Collection (Feb. 8, 2010)
- Free Downloads for Your Ears (Feb. 1, 2010)
- Fresh and Free Downloads (Jan. 25, 2010)
- Get 10 Free Downloads Right Here! (March 1, 2010)
- Get Your 10 Free Downloads (May 17, 2010)
- Get Your 10 Free Downloads (April 19, 2010)
- Hip-hop Edition
- Labor Day Edition
- Live Edition
- Memorial Day Edition (May 31, 2010)
- Rock and Pop Edition
- Singer-Songwriter Edition
- This Week’s Free Downloads (Feb. 15, 2010)
- Tune in for Free Downloads (June 7, 2010)
- Video Edition
- Your Submissions Edition
- Your Submissions, All Downloads Edition
Reviews: Mashable, TwitterMore About: free music monday, mp3s, music, musicmonday, twitter
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Tags: free music monday, Lists, mp3s, Music Lists, musicmonday
The new game Def Jam Rapstar from Konami and 4mm Games isn’t just a hip hop karaoke game or a challenging performance simulator like Rock Band 3. It’s a social media platform for building connections, promoting yourself, speaking your mind and maybe (just maybe) becoming an actual rap star.
We were given a behind-close-doors tour of the game by representatives from Konami, 4mm Games and Def Jam Enterprises, and we learned most of the details about the core music game play and the social media “metagame” that’s attached.
The Music Game
The game itself is similar to other karaoke games; you pick up a microphone and rap along with the track you’ve selected, and the game grades you on lyrical accuracy, timing and other musical factors.
Songs are presented with their music videos, profanity-free, though you’re free to use the harsh language from the original recordings if you want — it won’t affect your score.
You can even play in Duet mode, bringing your friends in to perform different parts in a song with multiple performers. Konami will offer new songs for download weekly, starting on day one.
There are several other modes, but the most unique and exciting is the Freestyle mode. We’ll talk about that alongside the game’s social media features.
The Ambitious Social Features
The social features of the game are tied primarily to the Freestyle mode, which you can use to rap on top of original beats and samples provided by Konami. As you lay down your audio track, the game uses your game console’s camera (the PlayStation Eye, the Xbox Live Vision Camera, and probably Microsoft Kinect) to record your performance on video.
You can edit the video afterwards, throwing in special effects and graphics, then post it to Def Jam Rapstar’s online community.
Links to videos and other updates are sharable on Twitter, Facebook and MySpace, but it’s not just about socializing. A whole game is built around a system of rap “battles” between users who upload video challenges to one another. Winners of battles (and MCs who accomplish other objectives) gain badges similar to the Xbox 360’s achievements.
All the profiles, news feeds and videos from Rapstar’s community are viewable by anyone on the web whether they have a game console or a copy of the game or not.
You can join crews, find followers and fans, or even strike up rivalries — either by challenging someone to battles frequently, or by getting kicked out of your crew. That last one will make you a rival to everyone in the old crew.
There are even roles for people who don’t rap. Promoters have their own metagame; they gain badges for using social media to spread the word about their favorite artists.
Becoming a Real Rap Star
Konami, 4mm and Def Jam Enterprises see the game as a breeding ground for new talent, and they’ve designed the Freestyle mode and the online tools with artists’ self-promotion and expression in mind.
They’ll cherry pick the finest talent — rappers who stir up vast armies of fans with superior lyricism, timing and pitch — and put them in professional production studios to create featured content for the network.
That would seem to fit with the hip hop ethos of coming from nowhere to conquer the whole world.
The game will launch on the Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360 with at least 40 songs and videos from artists like Dr. Dre, 2 Pac, 50 Cent, Ice Cube and more this October 5 in North America and November 2 in Europe.
Reviews: Facebook, MySpace, Twitter
More About: def jam enterprises, def jam rapstar, e3, E3 2010, facebook, gaming, hip-hop, Konami, music, playstation 3, rap, social media, twitter, video games, Wii, Xbox 360
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Tags: def jam enterprises, def jam rapstar, e3, E3 2010, Games, gaming, hip-hop, Konami, playstation 3, rap, social networking, video games, Wii, Xbox 360
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