Bobbyisms: Beats Music and the new Internet radio

Header image for Interrobang article CREDIT: STEPHANIE DIANI
The Beats Music executives from left to right: Ian Rogers, Luke Wood, Trent Reznor, Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre.

I write about random things a lot. I write a lot about random things. Although I spend my days working at a record label, my interest in music on social and digital platforms extends far beyond my typical daily duties.

Whether in my ears, on my phone or in a venue, I integrate music into my every day. As such, the recent announcement of new music streaming service Beats Music struck a chord with me, and my experience with music online leads me to think that the impact of the service will be felt here in Canada, far before we have the opportunity to join.

Launching in the United States on January 21 with a library of over 20 million songs, BeatsMusic is at once a cutting-edge new online music subscription service that pairs traditional listening and recommendation with the personal touch of music programmers, and also the next step in the realization of the company vision to elevate the music listening experience.

“Beats was created so people could hear the music the way the artists intended, but speakers were just the first step,” said Luke Wood, president of Beats Electronics. “Beats Music is the final piece in making that vision a reality.”

Beats Music is headed byWood, along with recording artists and producers Dr. Dre and Trent Reznor, record label magnate Jimmy Iovine and Topspin's Ian Rogers. Most of us are familiar with Beats' audio equipment sector, founded by Dre and Iovine in 2008.

Beats Music, however, is a new venture built on the foundation of MOG, a young streaming service purchased by Beats Electronics in 2012. MOG was one that cropped up in recent years in the wake of popularity by services like Spotify and Rdio, however with the panel of executives at the helm now, Beats Music stands to break into the market in ways that many similar platforms could not.

While online platforms like Songza have been experimenting with the concept of traditional music curation, Beats Music takes a personal approach to the art of building playlists and presenting music to listeners — before launch, they unveiled a team of industry experts that includes radio programmers and music directors, music writers and bloggers, record label A&R personalities and more.

The intended result is a concierge service unlike any other available: a streaming service that goes beyond the mere “sounds like” model to make suggestions to users by actually analyzing the data that accrues and offering fresh content programmed by industry professionals. In such a way, Beats Music is blurring the lines between subscription services and Internet radio like never before.

“We're digital music consumers, too, and have used every service on the scene,” CEO Ian Rogers wrote in explanation recently on the company's blog. Rogers' marriage of his interests in music and technology made him a leading figure in the birth of music on the Internet over 20 years ago. “But a feeling kept nagging at us — these aren't actually ‘services,' they're ‘servers.' Lots of ways to access music, but we noticed they provided little more than access to a catalog ... in our experience it's always been a living, breathing human who has brought us that song we fell in love with.”

Beats Music is a premium-only service; there will be no free subscription tier, though upon launch all new users will have a 30-day trial period before they are required to commit to the regular price of $9.99 per month.

Although there is no sign of a Canadian launch date on the immediate horizon, Beats Music is a relevant step in the music industry that deserves our attention. On one hand, they've struck an exclusive retail deal with Target to distribute gift cards, and trial subscriptions will be offered with the purchase of Beats gear and electronics — an assuring sign that Canadians won't be excluded from service, as with their chief competitor Spotify.

On the other, Beats Music has committed to paying artist royalties on an even scale; although they haven't released info on rates, artists will receive the same royalty rates whether they are signed to a commercial label, a small independent, or even if they are completely unsigned. This model in Canada should certainly appeal to the dense musical communities we have across the nation, offering inclusion into the service to artists of any kind.

“Beats Music is based on the belief that all music has value and this concept was instilled in every step of its development.We want it to be just as meaningful for artists as it is for fans,” said chief creative officer Trent Reznor recently. “We're committed to providing revenue to artists, while helping to strengthen the connection with their fans.”

While we have to wait to see what impact this new service will make on the industry, you can go to beatsmusic.com in the meantime and enter your email to place yourself in line to claim your username and be notified when it makes a debut here in Canada. Follow along on Twitter @beatsmusic to get the latest news, or on your preferred social network, including Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

And for more of the latest music news, views and concert previews, consider following this column on Twitter @fsu_bobbyisms. This week on campus: Max Wray plays a nooner concert on Thursday in Forwell Hall, and New Music Night on Friday is a hip hop concert presented by The Consignment Show, featuring ELMNT, John River, Ngajuana and more. I'm out of words.