SingersRoom.com is an R&B celebrity news and music review destination with up to the minute information on the hottest rhythm and blues artists on the scene. The site offers daily updates of celebrity news with articles on hot stories like the Jennifer Hudson tragedy or the success Keyshia Coles is having with her record braking release.
They offer lots of great r&b music videos and music reviews of the top r&b albums to keep even the lamest music lover on top of whats hot in r&b and hip hop. I’m not the biggest r&B music fan you have ever met but the site is an impressive collection of the best in rhythm and blues.
More reviews of the Xbox Experience play up the new NetFlix movie options but claim that the new Xbox interface is less than revolutionary and not a big deal fore most users.
I disagree in that I think that adding new content sources such as NetFlix movies and Zune music make the 360 and all around home entertainment device and far more than another game console.
I’m going to have to try out netflix just to see what the movie watching experience is all about.
Microsoft says its “New Xbox Experience,” which rolls out Nov. 19, will “change the face of home entertainment for every Xbox 360 owner.” It doesn’t.
In reality, the New Xbox Experience is more appropriately described as a new menu system. It won’t revolutionize your console, but it will improve your experience. Ironically, the most interesting feature about this revamp to a game console’s user interface has nothing to do with games. It’s about movies.
Here is the RSS link to mp3 and mp4 files from the ZuneInsider podcast. These Zune downloads are available for free to anyone looking for free downloads for their Zune or even their iPod.
Just click on the link below and you can either subscribe with your Zune player using the settings you have in your Zune software. You can also use your favorite RSS reader such as Google Reader or my favorite Firefox.
I spent 6 days in the hospital with a broken leg and if it were not for my trusty friend MAX the original Zune player I think I would have lost my mind. I have had this trusty old Zune for almost two years now and never was I so glad to have it with me then the time spent in a hospital in Montego Bay recently.
I was in a car crash and spent the first two days moving about but once I settled into Cornwal Regional in Montego Bay I requested my wife bring me my Zune so I could listen to my music which I gladly did for the first day or so until I realized how bored I was with all the songs I had on it. It’s been two months since I used the Zune and it’s got lots of my old faves on it but no new music. I was in the mood for something fresh and with no net access the built in FM radio was my best choice.
I ended up using the radio a lot over the 3 or 4 days I spent on my back waiting for doctors to tell me what was wrong and what we should do. In the end I got a cast and I’m back home listening to my old Zune again but this time I’m using the Zune Marketplace to download songs from some of the music I heard on the radio. I wish I could tag songs on the radio here like listeners can in select merkets around the States but I can’t. For now I’m forced to figure out who it is I am listening to and then I have to go search for what I want to hear.
The Zune is proving to be a great music discovery device and I am glad to see Microsoft so focused on the music.
A special edition Gears of War II Zune 120 has been announced. The new Zune 3 device is being released along with the latest edition of the gory Xbox game. Gears of War fans who want to show their pride with a new mp3 player will be able to order the special edition Zunes online for a limited time.
Microsoft couldn’t let the gory, highly-anticipated launch of Gears of War 2 (chainsaw duels! Rhhhahaararggg!) pass without bloodying a Zune or three in the process, Halo 3-style. Specifically, Microsoft has laser-etched that pesky little “Crimson Omen” onto a glossy black Zune 120, pre-loaded the device with 244 pieces of “Gears of War” media — the soundtrack, concept art, behind-the-scenes vids and so forth, nothing you won’t be able to find elsewhere — and squeezed it all into some “collectible” Gears packaging, featuring our testosterone-addled protagonist pondering the meaning of life.
It seems lots of people are asking about the value in purchasing songs from Zune MarketPlace that one hears over the FM radio transmitter that Zune players come with. Apple users are asking why they would download songs from FM radio but its because most of them do not have FM radio access on their portable music players.
Itunes is a powerful music store and they offer lots of free content in the way of podcasts in their directory but they do not offer access to FM stations like Zune does. I agree that purchasing songs over FM is probably not going to be a huge feature for Zune users but it does show Zune commitment to securing as much new content as possible for Zune owners.
Many people still listen to the radio and having the ability to grab a new song you hear over the FM radio on your Zune is a nice feature for those of us looking for new music from old sources.
Among the new features, Zune will enable its users to download music wirelessly and to buy songs they hear on the built-in FM radio. A new crop of Zunes will come in 16 gigabytes and 120 gigabytes and in new colors — blue on silver and all black. And Zune will start offering recommendations based on the music users listen to.
So as many of you know I have had a 20 plus year love affair with Madonna. It started from the first time I saw the Like A Virgin video and its been consistent like her career ever since. I have never had the pleasure to see her in concert as I have never been able to score Madonna Tickets but should the chance ever happen I am hoping to catch her one day soon.
The woman has been able to remain on top of an industry full of new faces and styles. No other performer has been able to reinvent themselves as many times as she has and it seems she’s been able to stay on the cutting edge of style and music for decades now. More impressive has been the trend setting she has done and there is no doubt her influence on music and popular culture since the mid 80’s up until today.
If I had the money for Madonna Tickets I would go just to see what kind of crowd she still pulls but I think it would have been better to have caught her at her peak in the 90’s. Her most recent shows have become politicized and although I agree with her position I disagree with using an entertainment venue to spew your views on the world if it’s not a part of the music you sing normally.
Let the music play and go see a Madonna Concert when you get the chance.
Here is a review of the Zune 16Gb player from PC World. They seem to agree with most everyone else that the Zune has finally become a serious music player with high features end iPod does not offer.
The additional capacity of the 16GB player should come in handy for those who decide to use the many new features available to the Zune 3.0 firmware. You can now access the Zune MarketPlace from your wireless device and do things like purchase songs you hear on the radio station thanks to the new partnership Zune has with many major radio stations.
The hardware specifications on the Zune 16 are very similar to those of the Zune 8 and what really changed was the harddrive capacity and the high gloss finish of the new Zune 3 players.
The 16GB Zune retails for $200–the same price that the 8GB Zune carried when it debuted. Size (including the 1.8-inch screen), weight, and the device’s battery life (according to the company’s spec) remain the same for the $200 Zune 16GB. At 0.3 inch thick, the 16GB Zune is noticeably bulkier than the 0.24-inch third-generation iPod Nano; it also weighs a bit more, at 1.7 ounces versus 1.3 ounces for the Nano.
I have been attending more live performances and not listening to as much music on my Zune in the past few months. I much prefer live music and listening to a band perform than I do to listen to the same garbage over and over again.
I have tried lots of new music using my Zune pass and its been much fun trying out so many new artists with the playlists features but there is nothing like a live concert if you can get good Concert Tickets. As new as it may be much of the new music out there today sounds like the same junk respun by talentless actors who play musicians on television or something but they can’t really sing. Music today has become more about style and less about substance and it feels very empty to me.
Lil Wayne sounds hard as nails but I have my doubts about how tough a life he lives and how hard he actually is. Whatever the truth is he sells Concert Tickets and CD’s by the truckload and the guy is literally making a Milli, a Milli, a Milli, a Million dollars a day talking crap he does not seem able to back up.
Thankfully you can still find some good deals on better shows so find Concert Tickets for whatever music you like and put down your mp3 player and see a live performance.
Computer maker Asus on Monday announced a touchscreen smartphone that should make mobile professionals more productive.
The company’s latest handset — the Asus P552w — uses a Marvell Tavor 624 MHz processor to run Window Mobile Professional 6.1, and it’s capable of many productive mobile applications. The handset’s can send and receive e-mail and instant messaging, and it can view and edit Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files.
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The smartphone lacks a physical keypad, as all of the input is done through the phone’s 2.8-inch touch screen. Some have found Windows Mobile to be a cumbersome to use on a touchscreen device, so Asus has implemented a custom user interface it has dubbed Glide.
With Glide, a user can perform navigational functions like zooming, selecting, and scrolling with flicks of the finger. The interface can also be used with integrate applications for functions like reading news, viewing slideshows, and checking the weather.
Looks like Microsoft is trying to bring some new exclusive content to the Zune MarketPlace. Seems MS executives have been hitting talent agencies and production companies in search of new video content for Zune.
I hope they score some cool video clips that can be sent from Zune to Zune for a viral marketing thing. Of course it will require a firmware update to share video and unleash the WLAN chip on my 30GB player and all those spaking new Zune 2 and Zune 3 device to be sold.
It appears that Microsoft has been sending executives to talent agencies and production companies in Hollywood over the last few months seeking ideas for video programming for the Zune, its media player. The content may either appear on the Zune platform only, or will move elsewhere with Zune branding.
Richard Winn, director of entertainment development at Zune told Reuters: “What we would be looking to do with any form of original content is the added component that Zune could provide that iTunes or any competing service couldn’t.”
I made it through the first night of Reggae SumFest and I had a great time. I did not make it to the final act of the evening and I missed “The Doctor” and Jamaica’s reigning “King of Dancehall” Beenie Man on stage. I woke up at 5am and watched the sun rise on Thursday morning and was not able to squeeze in a nap during the day so when the sun started to pop up again this morning I thought I was hallucinating at the pretty light show and remembered the hour long drive home ahead of me. I called it quits and drove home early for some short sleep and now I’m up again with little hope for any sleep again before the show tonight. I may end up missing some part of tonights show as I expect I’ll take a nap during the day at some point. My van is parked within easy access and a sleep break is easy with the press pass. I can walk in and out as I wish with the armband I’m wearing and not even the cops say much to me. I did notice like 100 police dogs all over and when I tried to snap a shot of one the guy made me put my camera down. It was a beautiful all black German Shepard with perfect form. I just wanted a pic of the dog but he would not have it. I don’t question Jamaican police I just go with the flow.
I was out gunned for interviews and the little bit of video I did get is probably crap because my camera with built in mic could not compete with all the noise in the room. Many of the people running interviews had much nicer cameras with attached microphones which made the interviews possible. I was stuck alone with my handheld video camera and no tripods allowed because of space constraints and tripping hazards. It was sad really but I had my digital camera and I got some good still photos. I spent much of the night networking and the show turned into a huge opportunity I think with a number of Jamaican artists expressing interest in working together with me on some online music projects. I’ve found so many musicians with a MySpace page and not their own website. I show them how powerful and easy something like Wordpress is and they can manage it from there. Having your own website allows you to generate your own income, builds a better brand with your music and gives you greater creative control. Anyway lets hope I can get a short nap and move on today. If not tonights coverage may be even weaker.
I had my Zune and WiFi on but I never caught a signal anywhere. not very surprised at the fact there are no Zunes in Jamaica but I was hoping for someone from the media or maybe an artist or band member to have something with them. No Zuners at SumFest except MAX and me.
I went to the Reggae Sumfest 2007 last July and I got the idea to ask for a press pass this year and yesterday I got an email requesting a photograph for my pass which has been approved. I did not expect that I would be able to do so because I got a late start and actually made my request after the official accreditation process had been closed. I think I was able to sweet talk a very special young lady in SumFest administration who facilitated my special request and was able to help me out.
I was only planning on going for just one day, Thursday evening is Dancehall night and my good friend Ras Slick wants to go that night. The King of Dancehall Beenie Man headlines with Bounty Killer, Elephant Man and Mavado for what should be an explosive evening of hardcore Jamaican musicians. Now that I have backstage and artist access I suppose I’ll have to go for the 3 main evenings and my plans are now to catch Friday and Saturday nights shows as well. I’m not very prepared but I think it should be a fun experience.
Friday nights line-up features Lil Wayne, Keyshia Coles, John Courtney and Jah Cure who happens to be smoking hot here in Jamaica right now. This guy has a huge fan base here in Jamaica and is set to remain so for quite some time it seems. I’d like to interview him just to ask him some questions about wa gwan here in Jamaica. He seems to be a powerful influence on Jamaican youth and I’d like to hear his views on things in his home country. Jamaican musicians have incredible impact in the development of young Jamaicans and it’s not uncommon to hear 5-7 year old kids singing the latest hardcore hits word for word. I know a few 5 year olds who swear to be “Gangsta for Life” as the “Gully Creep” for me.
Saturday nights show features T-Pain as the main act with Reggae legend Beres Hammond and rising star Tarrus Riley backing up a mixed line-up of international stars. John Holt, Etana and Rootz Underground are also on the bill and should make fora great days music. I’m looking forward to my week. Anyone else in Jamaica for Sumfest with their Zune?
Real Networks and MTV have partnered up to release a new mp3 store under the Rhapsody label. The online music store will feature the latest music releases from the 4 major labels in DRM free format available for download at 99 cents for a single song and $9.99 for an entire album.
I think another DRM free music store will be good for the industry. It will force iTunes and Zune to push more DRM free content in their own stores if this new store takes off. You have to wonder how well another mp3 store will do and what they might offer different from others
Rhapsody America, the Web’s top subscription-based music service, opened a digital download store today, becoming the latest company to challenge the dominance of Apple’s iTunes.
Like other recent challengers — and unlike iTunes — the Rhapsody MP3 store will feature songs that aren’t constrained by anti-copying measures. The four major record labels will provide Rhapsody such songs, which work on any digital music player and can be copied an unlimited number of times. Apple has such music from only one major label.
The store from Rhapsody America, a joint venture of RealNetworks and Viacom’s MTV Networks, offers another indication that the music industry, in its struggle with Apple over the pricing of music, is cultivating a new breed of Apple competitor.
Rhapsody is charging 99 cents for a single and $9.99 for an album, the same pricing as on iTunes.
Description: A thrill ride of melody and transition… Hard rock energy with alternative styling. Not afraid to drift into metal/hardcore influences or to strip down to a intimate alternative setting. Our music thrives on melody, transcending chords and rhythm.
Biography:
Fading out Silence is…
Jonathon Trone: Lead Vocals
Deanna Trone: Keyboard and vocals
Dominic Bellasperanza: Guitar and Bass
Thomas Turner: Drums
A thrill ride of melody and transition. One that will drop you from a cliff and convince you that the impact won’t come, have you experience the shock of a lifetime, then smile and walk away leaving you bleary-eyed and breathless.
That is the goal we try to achieve with every single song we write, and every show we play.
What we want to bring to the listener is a message that is eerily haunting and beautifully hopeful.
Started roughly in 2001, it began as a couple of friends getting together to have fun, but slowly grew into something resembling a dream. When we realized that is could become something more than just a way to put our talent to constructive use, we began pursuing it with all we had. We’ve hit some rough spots along the way, lost members to moves and harder situations, and hit some times where it seemed honestly hopeless. But all the difficulties have helped mature our sound and strengthen our drive to what it is today.
The love and passion, for the art that is music, is still growing and will continue to grow exponentially. It goes beyond just enjoying stepping onto a stage and having fun…it is truly something that when we get together and write, perform, or practice we get lost…lost in a euphoric bliss that can only truly be experienced when we share it with others, which is exactly the desire that drives us.
To all our fans now and the ones to come, thank you so much for the amazing support, we love you dearly! And heres to the future! May you be there with us!
That about sums us up…
Peace and Mercy!
Jonathon
Press
Release:
Fading Out Silence
Fading Out Silence is about filling your mind with music. These alt-rockers have got the tunes to carry out that desire. Fading Out Silence is a versatile band, covering a broad range of emotional impact in its music. The band’s softer side offers melodic textures and intelligent, heartfelt lyricism while the heavier side of the band takes the melody and smarts and delivers them with crunch and punch and hints of metallic energy. Either way, it’s a musical rush of songwriting passion.
Essence of Expression
For Fading Out Silence, writing music is more than just tossing some beats, notes and words together to make people clap their hands. Much more. Music is the embodiment of the human spirit, emotion captured in melody, the communication of inner self to inner self, artist speaking to audience. Music is a reality in and of itself and one inextricably entwined with the mind and heart of man. “It truly is the essence of expression,” says Fading Out Silence. “To take what you’re feeling and mold music around it to fit the mood is one of the most amazing gifts one could have.” Music, declares Fading Out Silence, goes beyond telling others about what happened to you – it’s sharing with them the experience in a way they will truly understand. “To sculpt your experiences into something tangible for someone else to hold is showing people who need hope that there is someone else who understands the pain or love or any other emotion that they are going through.”
Soul of Sound
Music is part of the very fabric of our senses. We can feel the beats vibrate through us. Our ears revel in the music. With a computer program (or something else …) we can even visualize the concept of music. Music can be translated to mathematical formula. Music is everywhere. It’s part of us and part of everything. And that’s exactly Fading Out Silence is here to conquer silence and bring music as a messenger of promise. It’s way more than mere entertainment. “Music is the soul of sound,” says Fading Out Silence. It can shape the world and alter the direction of the future. It can be used for dark purposes and light. It has power and requires responsibility. “With the ability to be a gift one moment and a weapon the next, it is a medium of purpose, and as such the wielder must always be aware of the message’s intent.”
The Artist at Work
Fading Out Silence has shared concert time with 30 Seconds To Mars and has recently completed a pair of CDs, each designed to show off a facet of the band’s musical personality. “Our softer, more indie rock album entitled ‘The Set It to Silent Project’ will be released in November 2007,” according to Fading Out Silence. “Our harder alternative rock album entitled ‘Improv-ed Improvement’ was released in August.” Fading Out Silence is working with A&R Select, the world’s leading artist development firm, based in Los Angeles, CA.
“The diversity of Fading Out Silence’s sound is key to the depth and impact this band has on mind and heart with its serious rock energy.” - A&R Select
I’m an avid online shopper and I buy many of my things over the internet. I generally use big shopping sites such as Amazon.com and TigerDirect.com for my electronics and computer equipment. Is shop a number of smaller sites for other things like shoes and sporting goods and I have been known to shop eBay on occasion for unique items or when I need a new toy from some guy who can’t have his anymore. I think the last thing I bought on eBay was a Halo Zune for a giveaway some many months back. i just don’t like dealing with many smaller shops online. Most of them are simply resellers for some other larger shop and they just screw up the process most of the time.
I like everyone else who shops online appreciate the bargains to be had on the web while shopping for just about anything. Most websites offer the best prices on their websites and you can always find a deal on the web over what you might find in a retail store. Some stores now offer their closeouts exclusively online. I like to search for the best price on the web but searching has become a drag with all the junk in the way and when I find a website with a load of deals in one place it makes me smile. I was happy to find a new coupon site today that has an awesome selection of coupons online and some of the best coupons for places like my favorite site Amazon.com as well as many other large shopping sites like Sears and of course kids favorites KB Toys and GameFly to name a few. They have 100’s of different store coupons available and you could probably find a deal or discount on just about anything you buy online. There are no gimmicks or catches to this one and you get the coupons discounts after you click through to the sponsor site and make a purchase online.
You do not have to join their site or supply information to anyone other than the retailer and of course the big players all use secure website so shopping online should be safe and smooth. An online coupons site like this one will come in super handy when the holiday shopping season rolls around and folks start building wish lists and what not. I know I can always use some ideas for what to get and a coupon to the right store may just be the right way to spark some ideas for this Christmas and the gift giving season. I can already see I’ll be doing 100% of my shopping online this year as I am in Jamaica and most of my friends and family are back home in the States. online and securing free shipping seems like my best choice for this year and 1-Coupons.com should be of great help to me and maybe you as well.
This is an advertisement for a website that actually offers free music downloads, well they are as close to free as you may find legally anyway. EZ-Tracks.com is actually a rather simple and straight forward music download site with free access to unlimited mp3 downloads.
The site has over 30,000 legal and free music downloads from some of todays hottest artists and they are all DRM free mp3 files. You can find the latest and greatest tunes on digital downloads from top musicians such as “No Air” from Jordin Sparks and featuring the super popular Chris Brown or “Love in This Club” by the new King of Pop, Usher and featuring the equally hot Young Jeezy. Not bad for free right?
You know there is no such thing as free on the internet and of course you have to sign up to their website and provide your information including a cell phone number so they can send you some ads by phone but thats not such a bad deal for some free legal music downloads is it?
I love the internet and all the wonderful things it allows for people from all over this great big world of ours to do each and every day. I’m never amazed at the seemingly limitless opportunities that the internet presents to all people from all cultures and all countries. The educational possibilities for a student with internet access are nothing short of amazing to say the least and the web has certainly changed the way the world learns. Online learning has reached a whole new level providing services and course study of an astounding number of subjects to new learners every day.
Distance Learning is not for all students and some of us may find learning on the computer to be difficult to say the least but a majority of us are technologically savvy and feel at ease on a computer and to have the ability to take a learning course at our own pace is just what we need to achieve the degree that we seek. I live online and taking an course over the web would probably be best for me if I had the desire to pursue a degree. I don’t think I need one with the state of my own business these days but if I did I would probably take an online course of some form.
I have considered a business degree of some sort and the Business and Management course at KaplanLearning.org.uk would probably fit me well if that were my goal but with my focus on internet business I would probably be better suited to pursue the Internet Marketing Foundation they offer but I think my 10 years experience working from home trumps their degree.
If you are interested in working or learning online then you really should look at what they offer or at least take a look at some other program.
Here is a selection of mp3 downloads available from Amazon featuring Damian Marley. He has become one of my favorite musicians. I really like almost all of his work and I think he’s a very talented person. I had the pleasure of meeting him and brother Stephen backstage at the Smile Jamaica / Africa Unite show in Oracabessa Jamaica recently and it was an awesome experience. The whole show was cool and I met many others including K’naan and Swiss Chris.
I submitted this photo as seen above to his Wikipedia page from the same concert. The show was amazing and I really enjoyed myself. I got some better shots but made an ass of myself in the process of taking them. It’s a long story but I got me a handshake and short conversation with Ziggy and Stephen and was able to express my appreciation for the work they have done in following their footsteps. I fell in love with Bob Marley and his music the first time I heard it and about 15 years later I’m in Jamaica listening to his sons carry on the family legacy.
Damian is the favored brother amongst most Jamaican youth. His music is harder and more ghetto than any of the other brothers and he is no doubt the King of Kingston. Just about everywhere on the island that I have been I can hear his music or some mix of it blaring out of some giant speakers. The Marley legacy lives on in his children and Damian took more of his fathers more militant side. His music sounds more inspired by Peter Tosh than Bob Marley.
Zune has sold over 2 million units and grabbed a whopping 4% market share in it’s 2nd year of production. Zune hit the 1 million mark back in 07/07. That was one million in just under the first year and this 2nd million comes in at about 1 1/2 years after the release date of the first player. They made the jump from 1 to 2 faster so it looks like Zune may be gaining steam. It was expected that Zune would be a late bloomer and Microsoft stated in the very beginning the had a 3 to 5 year plan for this.
I would think they are mildly pleased with hitting 4% market share in that time. Many folks had Zune doomed from the start and most thought it would never make it this far. I knew Microsoft was planning for a long battle and it looks like their efforts may be paying off. They have not had the best of luck with Zune and they have even been their own worst enemy at times but Microsoft has the hammer approach to marketing and they’ll just keep pounding away until the get it right. We’re gonna love zune and they’ll keep shoving stuff at it until we do!
I’m really digging the new games on Zune and I have beeen letting the kids use it more since we put them on it as well. I think Microsoft should work on porting as many free games for Zune as they can find and start adding some fan favorites into the Zune MarketPlace alongside Podcasts and Videos for a full service media market place. If I could find more Zune games to download I’d have more fun I think.
Microsoft’s Zune picked up a percentage point in the MP3 player market, bringing its share to a whopping four percent, with two million units sold. Microsoft has said from the start that it will stick with the Zune for as long as it takes for the player to gain traction, and it looks like that’s starting to happen.
Apple’s share of the MP3 player market share dropped a single point to 71 percent, according to the NPD Group’s study, but its lead is still monstrous. The bigger loser between Q1 2007 and Q1 2008 was Creative, which saw its share halved to two percent.
