Think iTunes is the Only Way to Go for Online Music?
Kelli enjoying Songza
April 29, 2013
Many students choose to listen to music while they’re working to relieve the stresses of school. Whether it’s listening to Macklemore or smooth jazz, music helps students relax while working. But listening to music while working extends beyond the school environment.
The first thing that comes to people’s mind when thinking about listening to music is downloading songs from iTunes. Some students think that iTunes is the best invention ever and it’s worth the money to buy the songs off a legit website. But other students don’t see the point of spending $1.29 for a song that they can listen to on other websites.But, there are other music websites that play your favorite types of music and more!
Some students find their favorite music by accessing YouTube and searching for the song. But there is one problem with that: before any of the artists post the actual music video, many other YouTube users somehow find the song on the internet and post it on YouTube. But, due to copyright issues, the music has to be played at a certain pitch, often one that doesn’t match the original.
Other sites that are designed especially to play music in its correct form. But not all sites are created equal.
Kelli Bagwell ’14, a.k.a. Ms. 8tracks, is famous for her constant use of the popular music site 8tracks.com.
“It’s really great and it’s exposed me to a lot of different kinds of music that I wouldn’t have really listened to, ” she says. For example, as she was exploring 8tracks, she noticed a genre called “Electro Swing” under the trending music section.
Kelli says that the Electro Swing song she listened to conjured up images of a famous Gatsby party full of champagne and shimmery dresses, just like in The Great Gatsby, a book she read for English this year.
Other popular choices with students are Songza, Grooveshark, and Pandora.
Songza creates a custom playlist based on time of day, how you’re feeling and genres that you like. For example, you can get fired up with a “Pop Punk Pick-me-up” on a “late Thursday morning.” Consider that if you’re trying to concentrate on homework, Songza may just have a playlist that plays calming music so that you don’t get distracted.
Scarlett Raven, ’15, says Songza “allows me to discover great new music. I found out I really like Romanion folk music….”
Grooveshark allows listeners to choose their favorite artist and listen to any one of their songs, without listening to commercials. Listeners can also create playlists.
Last year, former student Charlie Githler and current senior Wyatt Page created playlists. For example, in their playlist called “Free Period”, you can listen to artists such as Wiz Khalifa and Avicii! Click here to take a look!
Pandora is a personalized internet radio that allows you to create your own radio station based on your favorite artists and genres.
Lauren Stewart, ’14, say, “Pandora is a really great website, but the only annoying thing is all the commercials they play.”
All of these websites can be accessed on the go by logging on to the various mobile websites or by installing the iPhone app. If you like to listen to music while taking an evening drive around town, just get your phone and start listening!
So if you’re not willing to pay money to download for the most popular songs on the charts, or listening to the off-tune music on YouTube, then check out these websites!
