DJ Earworm Mashes Up The Biggest Hits Of 2010

DJ Earworm

DJ Earworm

There you have the 25 finest Billboard Hits of 2010 mashed up together, courtesy of DJ Earworm.

This megamix (part of his “United State Of Pop” series) obviously includes artists like Ke$ha and Katy Perry, and for many people that is reason enough to skip it altogether. Yet, DJ Earworm’s chops are nothing short of impressive, and even those who hate the artists involved (a list that also includes Bruno Mars, Eminem, Taio Cruz and Lady Antebellum) could learn a thing or two from it.

This is the full list of artists/songs that are mashed up:

Ke$ha – Tik Tok
Lady Antebellum – Need You Now
Train – Hey, Soul Sister
Katy Perry Featuring Snoop Dogg – California Gurls
Usher Featuring will.i.am – OMG
B.O.B. Featuring Hayley Williams – Airplanes
Eminem Featuring Rihanna – Love the Way You Lie
Lady Gaga – Bad Romance
Taio Cruz – Dynamite
Taio Cruz Featuring Ludacris – Break Your Heart
B.O.B. Featuring Bruno Mars – Nothin’ On You
Enrique Iglesias Featuring Pitbull – I Like It
Young Money Featuring Lloyd – Bedrock
Jason Derulo – In My Head
Rihanna – Rude Boy
Lady Gaga Featuring Beyonce – Telephone
Katy Perry – Teenage Dream
Bruno Mars – Just the Way You Are
Mike Posner – Cooler Than Me
The Black Eyed Peas – Imma Be
Jay-Z + Alicia Keys – Empire State of Mind
Usher Featuring Pitbull – DJ Got Us Fallin’ In Love
Travie McCoy Featuring Bruno Mars – Billionaire
Eminem – Not Afraid
Iyaz – Replay

Remix Subterranean Homesick Blues And Win A Trip To South by Southwest

Now It’s Your Chance To Remix Bob Dylan’s Timeless Classic And Win A Trip To South By Southwest In The Process.

Now It’s Your Chance To Remix Bob Dylan’s Timeless Classic And Win A Trip To South By Southwest In The Process.

This is the day for fans of the gnomic singer/songwriter that also happen to love technology. Sony is currently holding an open competition in which people are invited to remix Dylan’s seminal ‘60s track, “Subterranean Homesick Blue”. The prize? A trip to South By Southwest in Austin next March.

The actual remixing process is done entirely online. A neat interface will let you take Dylan’s vocals along with all the individual instruments, and have your own way with them. And those who are skilled enough will be able to record themselves and bring what they see fit into the mix.

As long as Elvis Costello doesn’t show up and decides to write “Pump It Up Pt. 2”, it should be a very even and enjoyable competition for everybody…

Apple Is Tripling The Length Of Song Previews On iTunes

Apple Is To Let You Preview Songs On iTunes Three Times More Extensively

Apple Is To Let You Preview Songs On iTunes Three Times More Extensively

Nothing to complain about here, really. If you are based in the US, you will soon be able to listen to 90-second previews instead of the 30-second clips that can be sampled right now on iTunes.

This is the letter that Apple itself has sent to record labels:

“We are pleased to let you know that we are preparing to increase the length of music previews from 30 seconds to 90 seconds on the iTunes Store in the United States. We believe that giving potential customers more time to listen to your music will lead to more purchases.”

Audition For The Next Season Of American Idol Via MySpace

Now You Can Audition For American Idol Via MySpace

Now You Can Audition For American Idol Via MySpace

Are you the kind who grinds his teeth when watching American Idol, and slur “Heck, I could sing much better than that one! If only I had had the chance…”. Well, if you aren’t on the upcoming season there will be no excuses. From now on, American Idol will let people audition via the Internet.

All that you have to do is to record a short video (no longer than 40 seconds) and submit it via MySpace. The song has to be chosen from an approved online list, and you will have to perform it entirely a capella. Continue reading

Double Lyrics – A Directory Of Lyrics That Are Reviewed And Rated

Double Lyrics

Name: Double Lyrics
URL: http://www.doublelyrics.com

I am sure very few among us can claim to have a favorite lyrics site. I mean, there are a zillion of them out there. Personally, I have always been keen on the AZ Lyrics website because it is lightweight, the lyrics are arranged album by album, and (yes, I know I am fastidious) the punctuation and the use of capitals is fully accounted for. As a non-native speaker of English, I always print the lyrics to all the albums that I buy that don’t include them. A site like AZ Lyrics lets me get them quickly, and create a Word document with them painlessly.

Still, I am always looking for alternatives. And I must say that the Double Lyrics website has got a lot going for it. For starters, whenever you carry out a search you get results that are sorted by relevancy. You don’t get a jumble of links that might be what you needed or something completely unrelated. The most relevant lyrics are ranked by the site’s engine and featured on top, while the ones that will probably have nothing to do with your query are relegated to the bottom of the list.

Also, users can both review and rate lyrics. That is nothing new (many sites let users “comment” on lyrics, and fans take advantage of that opportunity to review them), but its usefulness is not questioned by anybody – you will have a bigger chance of finding what you are after in that way. And once you have found it, a well-written review can always let you figure out what a cryptic song is all about. For example, how many are really aware of all the possible interpretation of Cat Steven’s “Moonshadow “? How many are aware of the cancer interpretation, the Vietnam chopper interpretation…? Only fans are. And if given the chance to review a song and illuminate everybody else, they are likely to do it. Continue reading

The World Of Social Networking In Songs (Part 1)

Like it or loathe it, social networking has changed the very paradigm in which we become acquainted with others and interact with them. Facebook is the undisputed flagship of the whole social phenomenon – it has over 500 million users and a movie (directed by no other than Steven Soddeberg) that is premiering in a mater of two months.

Time, then, for a little revision of how it all got started and evolved.This is a collection of songs, spoofs and parodies of the world of social networking. Facebook, MySpace, Twitter… everything is mentioned at some point or the other.

I hope you like this selection, and I also hope that you check back tomorrow for part 2 of this feature.

1– My Mom’s On Facebook

This is my personal favorite. This video was actually featured in MusicKO way back in March. It is a hilarious hair metal song by comedy group Back Of The Class that deals with the nightmare of having your mom befriending you on Facebook.

2– Welcome To YouTube

A wry and clever piano number by Bo Burnham:

3– A Social Network For Two: A Modern Love Song

Time for a sweet interlude, now:

Continue reading

Venossi – Making The Discovery Of New Music Something Natural & Logical

VenossiName: Venossi
URL: http://www.venossi.com

Venossi is a new site that has taken one of the best features offered by Facebook, and a feature that Facebook actually took from Twitter, so it is alright – a thief who robs a thief gets a hundred years of reprieve. I am speaking about the fabled news feed, something that has become an integral part of the way that we interact trough Facebook. Before the news feed was available, learning who had befriended who, or what your friends were talking about necessitated you checking their individual profiles. But now, we are all able to learn about that the moment we log in.

Well, take that concept and apply it to the music that others are listening. That is what Venossi is all about. It will enable you to see what songs your friends are playing, and also to read music-related conversations that they have been involved in as part of a feed that is constantly updated. Continue reading

YouTube Now Features A Recommendation Engine For Music Videos

As many of you probably noticed, YouTube’s music page has been overhauled, and a key feature has been added: a recommendation engine for music videos based both on your settings, preferences and these clips that your friends are sharing.

In practice, this turns YouTube into a tool for discovery that makes me think a lot of the days in which MTV actually played music.

Such a move was long due in the face of competing services such as The Hype Machine and Pandora, and it was somehow announced just a couple of weeks ago with the release of LeanBack (a service for discovering videos based on what your friends are watching). Continue reading

The iPhone 4 Antenna Song (Video)

The Way You Should Hold An iPhone 4 In Order To Avoid Antenna Problems. Either That, Or Get A Case.

The Way You Should Hold An iPhone 4 In Order To Avoid Antenna Problems. Either That, Or Get A Case.

Many touted the release of the iPhone 4 as one of the events of the year. It turned out they were right – the amount of press we have seen over the last month was unprecedented, but for all the wrong reasons. The iPhone 4 proved not to work if held in a certain position, and that made things tricky for right-handed people, and downright impossible for left-handed ones.

Reports began springing up incessantly until Dave Letterman himself did a parody of the whole situation, and a consumer report advised people to buy an iPhone 3GS instead. At that point, Apple swung into action fast. Earlier today they held a conference in which Steve Jobs acknowledged that the problems existed, and that customers were to receive a free case that prevents the problem of blocking the antenna from happening.

But before the announcement was made, Internet performer Jonathan Mann (known for recording and releasing one song a day) had time to write a song about the whole antenna fiasco and post the video for all to see on his site. It is named “The iPhone Antenna Song”. Will it go down in history as the official soundtrack to antennagate? Judge it for yourself:

Kyle Jenkins (Songr) – Interview

Kyle Jenkins from Songr (the social service for the discovery of music that I just reviewed) was kind enough to sit through my interview the same day my original post was published. Thanks a lot, Kyle! You will find his answers below.

Songr
Full Name: Kyle Jenkins
Age: N/A
Startup: Songr
Position: Owner

THE STARTUP

Tell us a little about your startup. How was it conceived? What are its most distinctive features in your opinion?

Oddly enough, the best ideas come when you least expect it. I was simply singing to myself in the shower (yes..yes..) when I realized I had sung the same song over and over for the past week! This led me to my hunt for better songs, which, to my dismay, brought me no results.

After hours of Googling, the only good source seemed to be YouTube, which, as we all know, isn’t dedicated to music. This got me thinking. I mean, I couldn’t be the only one with repetitive shower songs right?

Since I had some free time, I started on the design and, after 5 tries, finally got one that seemed decent. Working from that, I utilized my limited PHP skills and coded the site.

Eventually, I hit a wall when I was coding the rating system. I received help from a good friend on this part – which he coded our perfectly.

After 3 days of work, I finally got the site together. Over the next couple of days I started implementing features slowly, but efficiently. We are now working on a community system which allows for user registration and interaction.

I mean, the whole point of Songr is that it’s community powered, right?

What was the original launch date?

It was originally planned to be in late April, but additional allotted time allowed us (well, me) to complete it sooner.

What has been the response so far? In which countries has it been more successful?

It’s been pretty successful actually. We’ve received around 300 unique visitors daily since launch, but it doesn’t seem as if the majority of them are voting. Hopefully, the planned community features will encourage this. Continue reading