Parade Of Stars: The Parade Of Stars is a professional songwriter Tip Sheet, and electronic version of one of Americas oldest and most respected music information source. The owner of this publication is Chuck Chellman, who has been doing this Tip Sheet for the past 26 years! Song placement info is broken down into genres, including Country, Gospel, Rock, Jazz, R&B, Rap and Pop. For subscription information go to http://www.paradeofstars.com or email paradeofstars@home.com.
East Coast Music: Another free subscriber newsletter is from East Coast Music Publishing. They get a lot of request for film and television and major label submissions. The monthly newsletter consists of their current projects seeking submissions for from artists and songwriters and other companies seeking submissions, articles, announcements, interviews, reviews, industry news and we plan to do chats to further network. In its first 4 issues it already has 500+ members. Their site is at http://community-2.webtv.net/EastCoastMusic/KEYTOMUSICSUCCESS/page12.html. To subscribe send a blank email to eastcoastmusic-subscribe@onelist.com; to post your announcement or article, please send it to ecmpnews@hotmail.com.
PROUD TO BE EXCLUSIVE: Microsoft Corp. and LAUNCH Media Inc. announced the availability of music videos in Windows Media(tm) Format on LAUNCH.com's (http://www.launch.com/) unique streaming music service, LAUNCHcast. The music service has grown to stream more than 1.5 million songs per week and has amassed more than 200,000 user-created stations. According to the press release, "Unlike traditional Internet streaming applications that offer only genre-based, preprogrammed channels, LAUNCHcast gives people the opportunity to design their own music station in either audio or video format." It also says, "To guarantee the best audio and video experience, LAUNCHcast uses Windows Media exclusively." Based on the recent Microsoft ruling by Judge Thomas Pennfield Jackson, it makes one wonder if Launch.com is offering Windows Medai Player files exclusively for quality or for business reasons.
CDLIMITS: Here's a new website for bands that want to sell their CDs online, but don't want the merchanrt credit card account, web design, programming and maintenence that are required to get it to happen. CDLIMITS (http://cdlimits.com) offers a web page with images and audio, and only charges $2 per CD sold (using their merchant account and fulfillment; you send them your CDs, and they stock 'em and ship 'em). Though certainly not the first to offer this service (with many others going online monthly), nor the cheapest (there are numerous package start-up fees), it's a clean, quick site that offers musicians online sevrices most bands are looking for these days. And, in reference to the Launch.com story above, CDLimits.com offers its audio samples in Real Audio exclusively, not necessarily because they care less about quality, but because Real is the most widely used and industry-accepted streaming technology on the Internet.
ULTRAViBE: ULTRAViBE.com is an "E-tainment portal" created to bring new music via a cutting edge multimedia entertainment experience, and they are interested in bringing your band on board to be part of the UV movement. ULTRAViBE.com is artist friendly, and welcomes unsigned artists and those signed to indie labels. Bands get non-exclusive online exposure, and ULTRAViBE.com puts on shows using the bands' MP3 content. Select participating bands will also be featured in ULTRAViBE.com-hosted concerts. Simply send you band's name, mailing address, web address or MP3.com band page URL, and a contact name and phone number to submissions@ultravibe.com, or call (408) 317-1759. And you can check out their site at www.ULTRAViBE.com.
LISTENTOTHIS: Here's another web-based secure transaction site, allowing bands that have their own websites to accept credit cards online. But, unlike CDLimits.com and most other authorization sites, ListenToThis.com charges NOTHING to use their credit card service except for the VISA-Master Card/AMEX fee, usually below 5% (although the standard rate for most merchant accounts is aroung 2.5 %, but who's counting). The site shows you how to incorporate their program into your own site, customize it to fit in with your pages, and even use the site to authorize cards later on (after returning from a gig, etc.). You do your own fulfillment, meaning that you pick the shipping and handling charge that you will pass on to your customers, and get a chance to make some $$$ off the shipping, as well. And there are NO monthly charges, NO monthly minimums, and NO merchant account signup and monthly fees. Compared to other cards services like this (including GEMM.com and CCNow.com), this is by far cheapest service of its type, and except for the 1 or 2% points I wonder how they plan on making any income at all and survive (except possibly just lasting long enough for an IPO).
LISTENSMART: Here's a new site, still in beta, trying to enter the lucrative MP3 domain market. They would like to be known as the new music site offering the best opportunities for artists. The site operators have made special efforts to insure that concerns of artists expressed through other sites are addressed openly on listensmart before the site officially launches. The more music sites the better for indie artists, so check it out and see what they can offer you and your band - go to www.listensmart.com to learn more.
ONE MILLION MP3 MARCH: Emusic.com surpassed one million sales of MP3 audio tracks in March 2000. The site features over 100,000 songs from over 600 independent record labels and such popular artists as Bush, Elvis Costello, John Lee Hooker and Tom Waits, with purchases and downloads of 99 cents singles to $8.99 full-length MP3 albums.
THETRACKHOUSE.COM: Indie label/production company Instudio produces artists (including blues artist Donkey Man), a video interview series (Instudio), reviews of current indie and major releases, and links from most of those features to online purchasing of CDs and/or MP3's. The site features complete links to plugins required to view the site (and most other multi-media websites), and provides some original content available for free viewing, although the design and execution of the site itself is rather cookie-cutter, utilizing free site space available form www.homestead.com, and not particularly interesting visually (and some of the programming add-ons messed up my computer screens).
URMUSIC: URMUSIC.com is a European-based music site, well designed with custom icons and simple yet catchy animations. Just starting out, the site is giving away 4500 EURO (a bit over $4500) worth of music gear for signing up and offering youyr input. They plan on featuring info on music gear, including instruments, recording equipment. DJ Gear, software and pther product reviews, as well as Euro music rvies and news.
TICKETS ONLINE: In a new agreement between MP3.com and Tickets.com, the two sites are working together to make it possible for music fans to find concerts and purchase tickets for their favorite MP3.com artists, including potentially any of the over 56,000 indie artists who post music and tour info at MP3.com. This could be a great opportunity to increase band awarness and sell tickets to more fans online for all kinds of shows, and is a trend sure to continue to proliferate in the future, until any band can sell tickets for their local shows to national and even international tours.
© 2000 Music Connection Magazine.