Apple Music
Drake’s Dance Album Shatters Apple Music First-Day Streaming Records
Break out the champagne, Champagne Papi. Drake‘s newest and seventh studio album Honestly, Nevermind has broken Apple Music‘s record for the most first-day streams for a dance album. And it only took one hour. Since the 35-year-old hip-hop superstar only gave one day’s notice before he released the album, achieving such a record is quite impressive, even considering Drake’s prominence in the contemporary music landscape. A departure for Drake, Honestly, Nevermind has been simmering in a melting pot of mixed reviews since its surprise release on Friday, June 17th. Executive-produced by Grammy-winning house music artist Black Coffee, the album is dominated by electronic-focused production from the likes of Coffee, Carnage, Rampa, &ME and Alex Lustig, among others....
Drake’s ‘Honestly, Nevermind’ Breaks Apple Music Dance Album Record for Most First-Day Streams
Drake gave just one day’s notice before his surprise new album, Honestly, Nevermind, hit streaming services Friday (June 17), and yet it’s already become Apple Music’s biggest dance album in history by breaking the platform’s record for first-day streams worldwide, according to a news release by the streaming service. What’s more impressive? It only took one hour to do so. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Honestly, Nevermind marks the 35-year-old rapper’s seventh studio album to date, featuring 14 total tracks and just one guest artist on “Jimmy Cooks,” the project’s final track which sees assistance from 21 Savage. The only warning he gave of the record’s arrival was a strikingly simple Instagram photo of the album’s psychedelic cover a...
Apple Music Celebrates Pride Month With Mixes From CloZee, DJ Minx More
Kicking off a month of curated Pride programming, Apple Music has announced a curated interview and DJ mix series to be released every Sunday through June. It will all take place on Apple Music’s year-round Pride page, where you can now find mixes by CloZee, BAMBII, DJ Minx, DJ Oshkosh and more. “While the listeners go through this musical journey, I wanted them to feel inspired, motivated, safe, and loved,” CloZee said of her mix in a statement. On the inclusion of “Color of Your Soul,” her massive collaboration with GRiZ, she added, “This is the track I was most excited to include…When we play this live, it’s just a huge Pride moment, with rainbow lasers and visuals. It’s always super fun.” Princess Nokia, Orville Peck, FLETCHER and others are al...
BTS Share Memories of Early Songs in First Episode of ‘Past & Present’ Radio Series on Apple Music
BTS took a trip down memory lane during the first episode of BTS Radio: Past & Present on Apple Music 1. The K-pop superstars launched the weekly limited series on Saturday (May 28) with an hour-long show that gave listeners an inside look into some of the septet’s early recordings dating back to 2013. “We wanted to use this radio show to celebrate nine years of BTS with you guys and with our ARMY all over the world,” RM said in announcing the three-episode series. “Every episode is dedicated to you,” the singer continued. “We wanted to share the BTS songs that help tell our story.” Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news During Saturday’s inaugural episode, the South Korean group discussed songs including “Intro: The Most Beautiful Moment ...
Exclusive: Watch Swedish House Mafia Discuss Early Ambitions and 2010s EDM Boom
Thanks to Swedish House Mafia, it feels like 2010 again. Back then, electronic dance music was enjoying its heyday. And Swedish House Mafia were emblematic of the scene at the time—cohesive and tight-knit, but combustible and ready to explode. You couldn’t go to a music festival without hearing the visceral, signature sound of the trio, who dominated the circuit like Michael Jordan in Game 6. Generational anthems like “Miami 2 Ibiza” and “Don’t You Worry Child” soundtracked the EDM boom of the early 2010s, a timeframe which Swedish House Mafia conjured with their long-awaited debut album, Paradise Again. Released just days ago, the record functioned as a neurotransmitter, triggering the elusive serotonin rush that fans thought would never happen aga...
The Ledger: For Streamers, Does Catalog Size Matter?
The Ledger is a weekly newsletter about the economics of the music business sent to Billboard Pro subscribers. An abbreviated version of the newsletter is published online. If millions of songs are uploaded to streaming services yearly and no one listens, do they make a sound? Yes and no. Someone — but not many people — listens to most every track. But few tracks could be called popular by any definition. Spotify’s catalog grew from 70 million to 82 million tracks in 2021, according to the company’s last two annual reports. That works out to an average of 33,000 per day. Some of its competitors grew faster and further, according to figures in public reports and press releases. Apple Music shot up from 70 million in January 2021 to 90 million in November 2021. YouTube Music also took a big ...
Kanye West Touts $1.3M in Stem Player Sales, Says Exclusive ‘Donda 2’ Release Sinks Apple Deal
After announcing Thursday that his forthcoming album, Donda 2, would be streaming exclusively on his branded Stem Player, Kanye West (now known as Ye) says he’s raked in over $1.3 million in sales over the past day alone. On Instagram Friday (Feb. 18), Ye posted that as of 11:09 a.m. PST he had sold more than 6,200 Stem devices in the past 24 hours, with sales totaling over $1.3 million. “Thats faster than I’ve ever sold any T shirt. God has a plan. New frontier,” Ye wrote of the sales figures. “Everyone that is supporting our revolution is changing the game for all artist. We no longer have to bow to people who don’t even truly care about music. I feel like I’m back at SOB’s performing Jesus Walks.” Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news At the time ...
Apple May Soon Offer Music That Adapts to Your Heartbeat In Real-Time
Go from REZZ‘s midtempo to Headhunterz‘s hardstyle in just a quarter-mile sprint. Apple has acquired AI Music, a startup that creates songs using artificial intelligence based on your heartbeat. The tracks that AI Music’s Infinite Music Engine is capable of creating are royalty-free, dynamic, and change in real-time based on the user’s interactions. A higher intensity run, for example, would signal a more upbeat and energetic sound. AI Music reportedly believes their proprietary Infinite Music Engine is capable of generating custom music to provide the most flexibility for users based on their activity. “Music that adapts to your heartbeat, audio advertising that matches listener context, universal licenses across formats… All of this is possible, and mo...
Apple Music Shows ‘Love’ for Joni Mitchell Too After She Asks Spotify to Remove Her Music
Following Neil Young and Joni Mitchell‘s requests to pull their music from Spotify, the streaming platform’s No. 1 competitor, Apple Music, is promoting the availability of both artists’ catalogs on its own platform — with a wink. On Thursday (Jan. 27), Apple Music first highlighted Young’s catalog under the editorial header “We Love Neil,” displayed prominently for users browsing for music on its platform. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news By Saturday, a “We Love Joni Too” header highlighting selections from Mitchell’s catalog was added directly below the Young header. Both phrases seem to be in response to the artists’ requests that Spotify purge their catalogs from its platform, due to COVID-19 vaccine misinformation spread by Spotify’s popula...
Jay Wheeler Details Releasing an English-Language Album: ‘It’s a Personal Project for Me’
Jay Wheeler’s year is off to a great start after being named Apple Music’s first Up Next Artist of 2022, making his late-night television debut, and releasing a new EP — all in the same week. The Puerto Rican singer-songwriter is the latest addition to Apple Music’s monthly program that’s geared toward identifying, showcasing, and elevating rising talent. He joins the list that once profiled Bad Bunny, Natanael Cano, and other Latin stars. Explore See latest videos, charts and news As part of the campaign, Wheeler, who landed on DJ Nelson’s radar in 2018 with his song “Por Tu Culpa,” counts with an Up Next film, where he opens up about being a victim of bullying, believing in himself, and his supportive loved ones. He also sat down with host Sandra Peña for an interview to discuss his upco...
Apple Music Launches Fitness DJ Mix Series With Aluna, Valentino Khan, More
Let’s be honest here—we’re all full of crap with our New Year’s fitness resolutions. We stomp into the gym on January 2nd with a “clear eyes, full heart, can’t lose” mentality à la Friday Night Lights, but wake up in December with nothing but a pizza-filled potbelly and regret. Ergo, it should come as no surprise that one of the world’s largest streaming services has launched a dedicated space to share fitness-related music content and light a fire under the collective ass of its subscriber base. Apple Music today announced its new “Fitness DJ Mix” series, a hub where artists and DJs share exclusive mixes designed to offer spirited workout experiences. Moving forward, fans can expect one new mix each month. The first collection features...
Above & Beyond Partner With Amazon Music to Share Playlist of Songs Remixed In Spatial Audio
Immersive and spatial audio are becoming the next step forward in audio. Trance group Above & Beyond have now teamed up with Amazon Music to share remixes in Dolby Atmos’ spatial audio format. Reworked tracks include “Almost Home,” “Screwdriver,” and “1995” by gardenstate. When listening to the album, take note of how various synths and percussive instruments are placed in the mix. The percussion seems larger, synths have more room to move amongst the melodies, and time-based effects (like delay and reverb) fill in the space much more fluidly, giving the tracks a totally new feel. Listen to Above & Beyond and Amazon Music’s spatial audio playlist below. Recommended Articles Spatial audio is a new form of technology that brin...
