Apple renames Beats 1 to Apple Music 1, introduces two new radio stations

In line with keeping its brands aligned, Apple renames its Beats 1 radio station into Apple Music 1. At the same time, the company introduces two new radio stations: Apple Music Hits and Apple Music Country. The former play top hits and favourites from the '80s, '90s, and 2000s, while the latter highlights country music.

"For the past five years, if ever there was a meaningful moment in music culture, Beats 1 was there bringing human curation to the forefront and drawing in listeners with exclusive shows from some of the most innovative, respected, and beloved people in music," Oliver Schusser, vice president of Apple Music, Beats, and International Content, said in a statement. "Now, Apple Music radio provides an unparalleled global platform for artists across all genres to talk about, create, and share music with their fans, and this is just the beginning. We will continue to invest in live radio and create opportunities for listeners around the world to connect with the music they love." 

Click to read more ...

Taylor Swift's 'Folklore' smashes first day streaming records

Taylor Swift's Folklore is raking in its streams, breaking several first-day streaming records since its release on July 24. Folklore now sets the global record for first-day album streams on Spotify by a female artist with 80.6 million streams. On Apple Music, it's the most-streamed album in 24 hours with 35.47 streams. And it has set indie/alternative streaming records in the US and worldwide on Amazon Music, though we don't get official figures. Swift's representatives have confirmed that the album sold over 1.3 million copies worldwide within the first 24 hours of its release.

The pop star announced the surprise album on social on Thursday, July 23, which she was inspired to make and release since the coronavirus pandemic hit and affected her plans to tour her previous album, Lover. You can check out the lead single of the record in the music video above.

Source: NME

Apple Music, Spotify supports #BlackLivesMatter in an unprecedented fashion

Apple Music is using its platform to stand with #TheShowMustBePaused and #BlackLivesMatter social equality movements in response to widespread unrest, violent protests, and riots that have affected various American cities. The past few days have seen a swell of civic unrest after the death of George Floyd, a black man that died while being restrained by police officers in Minneapolis. Visiting Apple Music and going to any of its stations or the Browse section leads to the above page and a Listen Together call to action which plays only black music, much of which is timely in this time of protest. 

Update on Wednesday, June 3, 2020 at 8:55AM by Nicole Batac

Spotify, for its part, placed black filter over the covers of some of its prominent playlists and podcasts, while adding eight minutes and 46 seconds of silence to these participating playlists and podcasts—which is the length of time officer Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck.

Apple Music is coming to Samsung Smart TVs

Here's another first for Apple and Samsung. Apple is bringing Apple Music to Samsung smart TVs, particularly those launched in 2018 and later. It's the first time Apple is bringing its music streaming service to a smart TV. The look of the app is similar to the Apple TV version. Recent Samsung TVs also have the Apple TV app, which gives you access to Apple TV+ service, Apple TV channels, as well as movie and TV show rentals and purchases.

Source: MacRumors