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What Were the Most Popular Songs of 2012?

By Emily Temple on

This past week, Spotify released a list of the most popular songs of 2012 — or at least the most popular songs on the streaming music service. In a semi-surprising upset, Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know” beat out the much-parodied “Call Me Maybe,” and Justin Bieber didn’t make the top ten. That said, we find this list — which includes two Flo Rida songs — a little depressing, if only for its homogeneity. We had thought this over-produced pop phase would be over by now, but alas, it was not to be. Then again, we genuinely like a couple of these songs, so who are we to judge? See the top ten after the jump, and let us know what you think these songs say about the state of our culture in the comments. … Read More

Tech

How to Talk to Your Parents About Spotify

By Emily Temple on

At some point in every tech-savvy young person’s life, they’ll come to a humbling realization: ”My dad took care of me, but now I need to take care of his needs… and by needs, I mean streaming free songs off the Internet.” In this cute and actually sort of helpful PSA produced by Fuse to promote their Spotify playlists, you’ll learn the best ways to assist those loved ones (we’ve all got ‘em) that just can’t quite figure out that darned computer. Which is important, because you don’t want to miss out on all the Your-Mom-and-I sexy time playlists that your dad secretly wants to share with you, and your mother has to get her Toto fix somewhere. Click through to watch the PSA, and let us know about your own trials and tribulations teaching someone else how to work the Internet in the comments. Because everyone has enough Internet, mom. … Read More

Web

Louis C.K. Is the Webbys "Person of the Year"

By Caroline Stanley on

The winners of the 16th annual Webby Awards have been announced, and among the celebrities being honored by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (yes, that’s a real thing) are Louis C.K., whose wildly successful $5 distribution method for his “Live at the Beacon Theater” comedy special earned him Person of the Year;… Read More

Music

Barack Obama’s Spotify Playlist, Categorized

By Judy Berman on

He’s already conquered basically all other forms of social media, from Tumblr to Instagram, so it was only a matter of time before we’d find Barack Obama on Spotify. Vulture has posted the president’s complete playlist, and since it was most likely compiled (or at least approved) by a committee of PR specialists, we can probably infer from it a whole lot about the image he’s hoping to project. So, after the jump, we’ve grouped what Obama’s listening to based on who he’s trying to reach, from progressives to Middle America to his own wife. … Read More

Music

Awesome Infographic: The Fascinating History of Radio

By Judy Berman on

Children of the ’90s, do you remember Real Audio? How about Sonicwave, the world’s first Internet radio station, and the first time you heard the word “podcast”? As Sonos reminds us in an attractive and educational new infographic, these milestones are all a part of the 120-year history of radio, which kicks off with Nikola Tesla in the 1890s and stretches all the way through to today, with services like Turntable.fm and Spotify. Give yourself a crash course in the medium after the jump. … Read More

Tech

Have You Tried Facebook’s New “Listen With” Feature Yet?

By Judy Berman on

The social listening revolution is upon us. As TechCrunch reports, Facebook is rolling out a new feature that allows users to hear the music their friends are hearing. Here’s how it works: status updates and chat windows will be tricked out with “Listen With” buttons that, when pressed, will open a chat room… Read More

Web

The Time Has Come: Free Spotify Accounts Beginning to Run Out

By Emily Temple on

Streaming music site Spotify, much beloved across the Atlantic, finally hit the US market this summer — July 14, to be exact — and many music lovers have been enjoying their free access to the site ever since. Or, maybe not quite enjoying to the fullest — the free version of Spotify has… Read More

Music

Napster No More: Website Closes Permanently, Tomorrow

By Alison Nastasi on

After reading our headline, you might be thinking: “Napster still exists?” Indeed it does, but today is the music sharing site’s last day on the Internet. Napster will close its doors permanently tomorrow, Thursday. The company will be merging with Rhapsody, the largest on-demand music site in the States. Napster originally allowed its users to… Read More

Music

Coldplay and Spotify: What’s an Album Worth in 2011?

By Tom Hawking on

You’ve probably read recently about Coldplay’s decision to keep their new record Mylo Xyloto off insta-streaming sites like Spotify, Rdio, Rhapsody, etc. The move has led to much industry hand-wringing, and headlines like “Coldplay snub sounds alarm for streaming music.” It’s certainly an interesting choice on the part of the band and their management, and after the jump we wonder what might be behind it — and what a similar decision might mean for bands who aren’t quite the commercial juggernauts that Coldplay are. … Read More

Web

What’s On at Flavorpill: The Links That Made the Rounds In Our Office

By Caroline Stanley on

Today at Flavorpill, we weren’t surprised to see that Avatar topped this list of the Internet’s most pirated movies. We were shocked, however, to hear that indie filmmaker Patty Jenkins (Monster) has signed on to direct Thor 2 — maybe this means we’ll see more character development? We examined … Read More