Beats 1 - page 2

Apple’s keynote to kick off this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference is going to be huge. So huge, in fact, that Apple already revealed some stuff early because Tim Cook and his Cupertino cronies won’t have time to cover everything during the jam-packed, two-hour event.

While WWDC might seem like a bit of a snoozefest for Apple fans who don’t know anything about Xcode and Swift, the 2016 edition of the annual developer conference should bring lots of new stuff even normals can get hyped about. The WWDC keynote will give us a peek inside the ever-evolving Apple ecosystem — and thus our clearest picture of the future of all Apple products.

This year, all of Apple’s platforms are set to get major updates, as are some of the company’s most popular services, like Siri and Apple Music. Here’s what to watch for during Apple’s keynote, which will kick off WWDC 2016 next Monday morning in San Francisco.

Drake certainly won’t regret making his latest album, Views, an Apple exclusive. The company helped rack up 1 million sales in just five days, with more than 600,000 of those coming within the first 24 hours of the record’s availability.

Beats 1 just announced its biggest dance music collaborator yet, in the form of massively-popular, 35-year-old Canadian house music producer Joel Thomas Zimmerman, a.k.a. Deadmau5.

Apple Music is shutting down its ad-supported radio as of January 28, pushing Beats 1 as the premier free “broadcast” for Apple. Apple sent the news out in an email to subscribers and free listeners today.

You’ll still be able to listen to all the Apple Music radio as an Apple Music member, but not as a free listener.

Apple has confirmed that it will shut down its Beats Music streaming service on November 30. The news comes just days after Apple Music finally arrived on Android, and users are being encouraged to switch over to its new platform.

Beats 1 DJ Anna Lunoe revealed some details about how she got picked for her weekly gig before Apple Music had even been announced. Zane Lowe was apparently so impressed with her earlier work that he gave her complete freedom over what she wanted to do for the show.

Known for her house and electronic mixes, Lunoe aptly plays an eclectic collection of dance music during her slot every Friday night at 9 p.m. Pacific time or 12 a.m. Saturday Eastern time.

Beats 1 launched triumphantly with Apple Music, but in a new interview with Beats DJ Zane Lowe, the radio presenter admits he’s “not sure” whether Beats 1 is a crucial part of the Apple Music package — although he hopes “there’s a place for it.”

In a surprising move, Apple Music senior director Ian Rogers has left Apple — just two months after the new streaming service was launched.

Rogers was key in shaping Apple’s online radio strategy, leading to the launch of Beats 1. Prior to joining Apple in August 2014, he worked as CEO at Beats Music.

Apple might be unfairly painted as an aging company run by middle-aged white dudes with “dad dancing” moves, but it’s certainly not shying away from controversial characters.

Cupertino’s roster today includes employees like Dr. Dre — a man who was the epitome of gangsta rap before becoming “hip-hop’s first billionaire” — and Trent Reznor, aka the singer who once made public his desire to, erm, sleep with you in an animalistic fashion.

It’s a safe bet that Apple wants to be down with the kids, but this controversy-seeking behavior comes with a fair share of risk. And it’s only going to be a matter of time before Apple is hit by it.

Along with the public release of iOS 8.4.1, which added lots of fixes for Apple Music and Beats 1, Apple also has a bevy of iTunes improvements ready today.

Apple just released iTunes 12.2.2, and the update makes using Beats 1 and Apple Music in iTunes a slightly less horrible experience.

Beats 1 radio has been arguably the best feature to come out of Apple’s foray into the streaming music world. With its fabulous lineup of rotating DJs and artist radio shows, Beats 1 has become a great place to discover new music, but many users have complained the station focuses too much on hip-hop and plays the same songs too often.

To identify Beats 1’s true taste in music, a new study analyzed data on more than 12,000 songs played on the station from early July to early August. After crunching the numbers, they found Beats 1 has something other radio stations lack: scarcity.

Apple Music now offers replays of several Beats 1 shows through a feature called Beats 1 Replays.

These full replays aren’t particularly easy to find, but here’s how you can locate them and catch up with shows you’ve missed in their entirety.

Apple Music has its share of big-name supporters from the world of music, but Oasis’ Noel Gallagher isn’t one of them.

The outspoken musician — who has taken issue with just about every topic under the sun at some time or other — criticized Apple Music for its Beats 1 radio station and its “Connect” feature.

Apple’s creation of the Beats 1 radio station has been one of the best parts about the company’s new Apple Music streaming service, but it might not be Apple’s only station for much longer.

As part of the deal Apple signed with major labels ahead of launch, Apple Music has the option to expand its lineup of Beats radio stations nearly at will, according to a new report citing sources with knowledge of the situation.

If you want to hear who this year’s MTV Video Music Awards nominees are, you’ll hear it on Apple Music’s Beats 1 channel first. Even before you’ll hear it on MTV!

Beats 1 already boasts a superstar cast of DJ’s but they’re about to get a new pair of hosts in the form of rap group, Run the Jewels.

Killer Mike and El-P are set to take over Beats 1 every Friday at 6PM PT for their very own show called “WRTJ.” The show will follow the duo as they complete the Run the Jewel world tour and talk about music, as well as the merits of unicorns and dragons.

Check out the teaser El-P published today:

Beats 1 is live 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and it’s a fantastic way to get your dose of what’s happening right now in urban music.

Problem is, just like the terrestrial radio that it uses as its model, Beats 1 doesn’t have an archived recording of its shows. If you want to hear a specific DJ or interview, you have to tune in.

There are ways, however, of recording the audio stream with varying degrees of “free” and “easy.” Two of them involve some technical know how while the third will require you to drop some cash. Check it out.

Apple Music isn’t available on Android yet — though it is coming — but that doesn’t mean you have to miss out on Beats 1 radio. Thanks to a new web app, you can tune into the 24/7 worldwide broadcast on Android and other unsupported devices right away.

One of the most highly-touted aspects of Apple Music is the streaming service’s focus on human curation — epitomized by its Beats 1 radio station, which skips algorithmic recommendations in favor of real, breathing human DJs.

If you miss out your favorite show, however, or else want to listen to the music selected by one DJ minus the chat, a neat feature of Apple Music is the ability to easily access the playlist of past shows.

Here’s how you do it.

So far, Beats 1 has been absolutely great. I’m a fan, and it’s been less than 24 hours!

Apple’s new global, 24/7 radio station is everything I hoped for — a discovery-oriented platform showcasing what’s new and what’s good. Of all the features of Apple’s big update to its Music services, Beats 1 is what I most looked forward to.

“Our genre is ‘great,'” explained DJ Zane Lowe on his opening show Tuesday. “That’s all we’re looking for.”

And that’s all I’m looking for too. In fact, I’m already obsessed with A$AP Rocky, who was played on Lowe’s show and I’d never heard before (yeah, I know I’m sad). A$AP Rocky is just one of half-a-dozen new artists I’ve tagged in iTunes for further exploration, including Beck, who I thought I hated.

I’m actually worried how I’m going to keep up. But isn’t this what radio is for?

If you’ve been playing around with Apple Music on your iPhone or iPad today, you might have wondered at some point what it’s like to listen to on your desktop computer.

You’ll have to keep wondering, though, because the iTunes update you need to listen to Apple Music isn’t out yet.

Open your iOS 8.4 Music app and start listening. Beats 1 radio went live today at 9 a.m. Pacific time or 12 p.m. Eastern time, one hour after the launch of Apple Music itself. But is it any good? I’m your fellow music lover here to answer that question in as much depth as possible based on some first impressions.

First, a little background: Apple’s own radio station billed as “programs from people who love music” will stay live 24/7, broadcasting in over 100 countries. The station promises interviews with A-list celebrities and even radio shows hosted by the celebrities themselves every so often. They’ll create their own playlists and mixes and broadcast some of their favorite tunes. Jaden Smith will have his own show, so prepare to have an existential crisis.

I’m a streaming music junky. I gave up collecting, owning, and maintaining music files on my own Mac years ago and I’ve never looked back. It’s the only sensible way to have access to millions of songs without having to worry about storing them.

I’ve used and tested Rdio, Spotify, Beats Music, and other on-demand streaming services over the past few years, so it made sense to check out Apple Music, the new on-demand service to come out of Cupertino.

It’s going to take some time to dig in deep, but so far, Apple Music is proving to be an amazingly comprehensive streaming music product that focuses on discovery, something that the competition struggles with. Within minutes of downloading iOS 8.4, I’m already listening to a playlist of artists I know as well as those I don’t – a perfect blend of old and new.

I’ve found a new streaming service to love in Apple Music, and I think you will, too.

Apple Music makes its big debut tomorrow, June 30, at 8 a.m. PST. It’s going to be a very big day for the music industry, and for us listeners. It’s the day streaming goes truly mainstream. From tomorrow on, it’s officially the streaming era.

But how does it work? What artists are going to be available? You probably have a lot of questions about what Apple Music’s launch means for you — and we’ve got answers.

Apple Music is set to launch at 11am ET/8am PT tomorrow alongside the release of iOS 8.4 One hour later at 12pm ET/9am PT, the inaugural Beats 1 radio broadcast will take place presented by DJ Zane Lowe.

While we previously knew that Apple’s new streaming music service would by launching June 30, it was left to Ian Rogers, Apple’s senior director of Apple Music to announce an exact time, which he did over the weekend.