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Stable Diffusion update removes ability to copy artist styles or make NSFW works
AI artwork generator Stable Diffusion has been updated with a bunch of new features -- but many users aren't happy.
Bandcamp Fridays are back again
The music marketplace will waive its fees on the first Friday of each month through December.
HitPiece takes its NFT music platform down following artist outrage
A music NFT website called HitPiece has temporarily closed after artists accused it of appropriating their work without permission.
Bandcamp is bringing back monthly commission-free Fridays
For 2022, Bandcamp is bringing back its once-a-month commission-free sales days starting on February 4th.
Tidal adds a free tier and brings HiFi audio to its $10 plan
Artists will earn more royalties from users on the $20 HiFi Plus tier.
Bandcamp will keep waiving its fees one day a month through the end of 2021
Artists and labels have earned $56 million from Bandcamp Fridays.
Spotify will let artists and labels promote songs in recommendations
As part of a test, they can flag tracks they want to pop up in Radio and Autoplay.
The Grammy Museum built a streaming service to share its archives
The Grammy Museum will share its archives on a new streaming service COLLECTION:Live.
Amazon Music adds artist Twitch streams
Artists can now offer live Twitch streams in the Amazon Music app.
Facebook adds official music videos to News Feed and Watch
Beginning today, Facebook users in the US can watch official music videos on Facebook.
YouTube’s personalized music playlists are available to all users
YouTube Music's new personalized playlists are now available to users worldwide. Today, YouTube introduced its Discover Mix, New Release Mix and Your Mix. The playlists will curate your favorite songs, new releases and unheard tracks by your favorite artists, plus others you might like.
Zane Lowe's new Beats 1 show is all about new music
This summer, Apple created New Music Daily, a curated playlist with the latest and most popular tracks from around the world. Today, it's launching a companion radio broadcast on Beats 1. The weekly show, "New Music Daily with Zane Lowe," will feature interviews with artists, commentary and songs from the playlist. The first episode premieres today at 12PM ET (9AM PT) with guests Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez and Coldplay's Chris Martin.
Spotify will alert you to new music with sponsored pop-ups
Spotify is testing another way for artists to promote their music, but it's one that might annoy users. Artists and their teams will be able to sponsor the Brand New Music for You pop-ups in the mobile apps to let fans know about music they just released.
New music platform Audius plans to capitalize on SoundCloud's faults
A new streaming service, Audius, wants to make up for SoundCloud's shortcomings. The free hosting service and music streaming platform launched today, and it's positioning itself as a blockchain-based SoundCloud alternative that lets artists upload songs at no cost. The founders claim it's built with artists in mind and will be free from things like takedowns, which plagued SoundCloud.
Deezer's new royalty system could be a big deal for smaller artists
Deezer wants to launch a payment structure that more fairly rewards creators for their music. If the company can get the necessary rights holders on board, it intends to launch a user-centric payment system (UCPS) as a pilot in France early next year, with a global rollout to follow if all goes to plan.
Spotify lets you add 15-second song clips to Facebook Stories
Beginning today, Spotify will let users share 15-second clips of Spotify songs on their Facebook Stories. If followers tap on the preview, they'll be transferred to Spotify, where they can listen to the rest of the track. The change is geared toward musicians, and Spotify calls it "a more powerful way to connect with fans." But anyone will be able to use the new feature.
Spotify offers free direct uploads for indie artists
Spotify is making life easier for indie artists who want to get their music on the service by letting them directly upload their own tracks without having to go through an intermediary like a label or distributor. The free feature is launching in beta in Spotify for Artists.
GarageBand lessons are now free for aspiring musicians
GarageBand has long been a useful tool to record music, podcasts and more. Even better, the app is free to download and use on your Mac or iOS devices, making it easy to try. Recent updates have brought enhancements like a portal for free sound packs and a better drum sequencer (on mobile), along with Touch Bar support and realistic-sounding drummers on the desktop. Now, Apple is upgrading its music creation suite yet again, offering it's previously $5 artist piano and guitar lessons for free, along with more additions to its drummers, loops and sound effects.
YouTube music head says company pays higher royalties than Spotify in US
Making a living from streaming royalties is tough for music artists, and YouTube has had one of the worst reputations in the music industry for a while. Even Lyor Cohen, the current head of YouTube Music, knows that many are skeptical about the service's ability to pay out a legitimate rate. Cohen wrote a blog post on Thursday to explain why he thinks that YouTube deserves another chance, and that his company is the highest paying music streaming service out there.
Spotify adds a full list of tour dates to artist pages
Spotify has been providing concert info for a while, but now those listings are getting a bit more detailed. Late last year, the company teamed up with Songkick to serve up a list of nearby concerts based on your listening habits. That same partnership will now display full list of upcoming shows on artist pages under the "Concerts" tab. Just like before, there's a "Details" button beside each date that links to the event page on Songkick.
