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Most of Jay Z's albums are already back on Apple Music
Hip hop legend Jay Z pulled most of his music off of Spotify and Apple Music last Friday. It wasn't a huge surprise given Jay Z's involvement and stake in competitor Tidal, but it looks like things aren't quite so cut and dry here. After confirming that the majority of his discography was indeed gone from Apple Music in the US and UK last Friday, we're now seeing that the majority of his albums have already returned to Apple's streaming service.
Jay Z's albums are disappearing from Apple Music and Spotify
If you were hoping to make Jay Z's "Lucifer" part of your "getting ready to go out" playlist tonight that could be tricky depending on the streaming service you use. That's because as MacRumors and 9to5Mac noticed, Beyoncé's husband has started pulling his solo catalog from the likes of Apple Music and Spotify in favor of his Tidal service. As of press time, Spotify still had singles and his collaboration with R. Kelly Unfinished Business on offer, but a bulk of Shawn Carter's albums are missing. A Spotify spokesperson confirmed the move, saying that "some of his catalog has been removed at the request of the artist."
Apple Music for Android gets an overdue makeover
The Android version of Apple Music was very close to the iOS app when it first arrived, but it's clear that the software has lagged in recent months. While iOS and desktop users got a (frankly needed) overhaul last year, Android users were stuck with the old interface. No more: Apple has released a new version of the app that brings it up to par. That means a redesigned For You section with many more recommendations, stronger support for your own music library and a revamped player with quick access to your queue and lyrics.
Recommended Reading: Beats 1 is a powerful music marketing tool
Blink-182 and Apple Music Team up to Show Off Increasing Reach And Power of Beats 1 Steve Baltin, Forbes Beats 1 has been a key selling point since Apple Music's launch. The internet radio station boasts a number of big names and includes a slate of shows hosted by the artists themselves. Even if you don't have your own show like Dr. Dre, Drake or Run the Jewels, debuting new music with Zane Lowe can do wonders for your hype train. Forbes details the power of Beats 1 through the lens of rockers Blink-182. The Verge also has a look at how the platform helped catapult Drake's latest album to the top of the streaming charts.
Tool may finally let you stream its brooding art metal
A number of artists who were initially opposed to streaming services wind up with their music available there for one reason or another. The music of both The Beatles and Prince is now available for streaming after both were holdouts for a long time. According to Bloomberg, Tool frontman Maynard James Keenan may be the latest to change his mind.
Apple paid Chance the Rapper $500,000 for a two-week exclusive
It's tough for streaming music services to stand out. Cosmetic differences aside, all of them offer virtually the same thing. Each major platform has the songs listeners want, for the most part. One method that services are using to stand out is exclusive releases -- even if they're only exclusive for a short time.
Spotify hurtles past 50 million paid subscribers
Last we heard, Spotify had some 40 million subscribers. That was so 2016. Now the music streaming service has announced it's pushed past 50 million paying subscribers. Feel like helping the company celebrate? Well, you could start by listening to a certain song by Kool & The Gang. Soon enough, you could even stream it at a higher audio fidelity, too. Compared against Apple Music's reported (by CNBC) 20 million users, it shows just how far Apple has to go before taking on the current leader in the space.
Spotify gets into podcasting with three music-themed shows
Spotify dipped its toes into podcasting in 2015 by adding pre-existing programs to its lineup. Now it's getting into content creation and rolling out its own shows. The company is launching three original podcasts, and it says that's just the start.
Eddy Cue reveals 'Planet of the Apps' reality show details
Last fall we heard many of the details of the reality TV show that's coming to Apple Music, but now we've actually seen a bit of it. During an onstage interview at Code Conference, Apple exec Eddy Cue and co-producer Ben Silverman revealed a trailer for the show. As promised, Planet of the Apps will be very familiar to anyone who has seen Shark Tank, with entrepreneurs giving presentations and even literal elevator pitches to four potential backers (Will.i.Am, Gary Vaynerchuk, Gwyneth Paltrow and Jessica Alba), before it turns into The Voice, with each judge coaxing their picks along the path to success and riches.
Apple's Carpool Karaoke series gets its first trailer
It's been six months since Apple acquired the keys to the viral juggernaut that is Carpool Karaoke. In that time, we've learned that the iPhone maker plans 16 half-hour episodes that will include celebrities like Alicia Keys, Ariana Grande, John Cena and Will Smith, but there's been little talk about how it will stand alone from the original Late Late Show segment. Thanks to a new trailer, we now have some idea of the route Apple is taking: much of it is staying the same, but an Apple budget will also take the series in a couple of new directions.
Prince's music returns to Spotify and other services this weekend (updated)
Prince removed his music from every streaming service except Tidal in July 2015, but the artist's catalog returns this Sunday. Spotify and HeartRadio have confirmed the return of works like 1999, Purple Rain and Diamonds and Pearls. You can see all the albums that Spotify will offer right here. Engadget has learned that Amazon Music will also offer the tunes and BBC reports Prince's music will be available on Apple Music and Napster as well. However, there's still no word from Google or SoundCloud as to whether their services will offer the artitst's discography.
Apple moving international iTunes arm to Ireland next month
In a note sent out to developers, Apple has confirmed it's moving its international iTunes business from Luxembourg to its European hub in Ireland effective February 5th. The company pre-empted the move last September, when it transferred all developer contracts and an estimated $9 billion in assets between the countries in preparation. And from next month, responsibility for Apple's iTunes arm serving over 100 countries (not including the US) -- and covering the iTunes, iBook and App Stores as well as Apple Music -- will formally transfer to its offices in Cork, Ireland.
Apple Music's 'Carpool Karaoke' features Alicia Keys and Metallica
We still don't know exactly when Apple Music's version of a popular Late Late Show segment will debut, but we do know some of the singers who will appear on it. During the first batch of 16 half-hour episodes of "Carpool Karaoke," Alicia Keys, Ariana Grande, Blake Shelton, John Legend, Metallica and Will Smith will all take a ride with rotating hosts. That's right, different people will be behind the wheel during the course of the first "season."
Apple TV universal search now supports Apple Music, TBS and more
As Apple continues to improve the one-stop streaming experience of Apple TV and its standalone TV app, the much-hyped universal search has finally added enough partners to make it a robust and useful feature. With a few updates this week, universal search on the fourth generation Apple TV now supports over 50 different streaming apps and services in the US -- meaning you can search for shows and content across Netflix, Apple Music, Animal Planet, TNT, TBS and dozens more right from Siri or the Search app.
'808: The Movie' is Apple Music's latest exclusive
Apple was clear from the jump that it had bigger plans for its streaming service than just audio. Today, the Apple Music subscribers get an exclusive look a music-focused documentary: 808: The Movie. We first learned about the film that chronicles the history of the iconic 1980s drum machine back in 2014 and it was set to hit theaters last year. It debuted at SXSW in 2015, but had yet to see a wider release.
Apple Music has 20 million paid subscribers
Apple says it added three million Music users since September, bringing its total subscriber count to 20 million. Furthermore, VP Eddy Cue tells Billboard that 60 percent of those are new customers who haven't purchased an iTunes song in the last year. By contrast, Spotify announced it had 40 million users in September, after adding 10 million premium subscribers in a six month period.
Kanye: Apple and Tidal 'bullshit' caused Drake rift
Kanye West says that he and Jay Z didn't appear on the final "Pop Style" track of Drake's Apple Music exclusive Views album because of Apple's rivalry with Tidal. "Y'all didn't get, what y'all were supposed to get with me and Drake on this song because of some Tidal/Apple bullshit," he said in a Saint Pablo tour video spotted by The Fader (below). He added that Jay Z pulled his own vocal "out of respect to Meek Mill," presumably over the infamous Mill and Drake Twitter tiff.
Apple and Spotify start streaming unofficial mixes
Earlier this year, both Spotify and Apple inked deals with Dubset for unofficial mixes, one of SoundCloud's most popular services. As TechCrunch reports, the first of those is now streaming, a DJ Jazzy Jeff Jeff remix from Anderson .Paak. Dubset's MixBANK system automatically scans samples to find original copyrighted materials, and pays artists, labels and publishers where appropriate. That tech allowed Spotify and Apple to clear the legal hurdle and start playing remixes.
Drake has the first album with a billion Apple Music streams
Apple's strategy of cherry-picking exclusives for Apple Music seems to be paying off. Drake's Views, which debuted on April 29th, has already attracted 1 billion plays -- a first for the company's plays streaming service. The album was technically a timed exclusive -- Spotify and others snapped it up five days later -- but still, that tiny window could have been important. Apple is trying to build a reputation, much like Tidal was, of being the best place to listen to new music. Any special deals it can negotiate will further that cause, and potentially bring in new subscribers.
Paid streaming services provide a big boost to the music industry
Streaming continues to play a bigger role in music industry revenue and now it's starting to provide some real help offsetting declining album sales in the US. In its mid-year report, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) reports that the industry saw its biggest growth in the first half of 2016 since the 1990s, up 8.1 percent year-over-year to $3.4 billion. In terms of music streaming as a whole, revenue from those services was up 57 percent during the first half of the year and it now makes up 47 percent of the music industry's total revenue. That's up from 32 percent of the total revenue this time last year.
