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Music

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Tesla tests an update with more music apps and some parental driving controls.

According to Not a Tesla App, the 2024.26 update in testing has features like parental controls that limit speed and acceleration or notify about late-night drives, an AQI symbol for poor local air quality, and scheduled charging.

It also adds built-in apps for Amazon Music and YouTube Music streaming in the US if you have Premium Connectivity or an active Wi-Fi connection.


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MTV News lives on in the Internet Archive.

Last week, Paramount Global abruptly pulled the MTV News archive that remained available following its shutdown last year. Now Variety reports that the Internet Archive has amassed more than 460,000 snapshots of the site, which you can browse through using the Wayback Machine.


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Listen to the AI songs music labels say violate their copyright.

Some of the biggest players in the music industry are suing generative AI music startups Suno and Udio for copyright infringement. In the lawsuits, plaintiffs include examples of AI songs that sound a lot like human artists — and some are pretty blatant.


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Opus online.

You can catch the tremendous concert film Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus live during its online premiere June 30 at 8:00 PM ET on the Criterion Channel. And don’t worry if you miss the stream — you’ll be able to watch it on any time starting July 1.

(ICYMI: we interviewed the movie’s director Neo Sora back when it had a theatrical release.)


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Olivia Rodrigo’s tour broke Ticketmaster — but bots may be to blame.

A report from 404 Media highlights a new type of bot that gets around Ticketmaster’s queuing system by opening dozens of different browsing sessions on one computer, giving them multiple chances to snag tickets from fans. The mix of bots — and fans — likely contributed to Ticketmaster’s latest crash.


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Winamp lives on in this custom touchscreen stereo.

The iconic desktop media player has enjoyed several revivals, but none as technically impressive as Rodrigo Méndez’s Linamp.

Powered by a Raspberry Pi 4B, the stereo’s touchscreen interface features Winamp’s recognizable UI, allowing music to be played from CDs, storage drives, and even Spotify. Most of the iconic Winamp features are there, including playlist editing, but those hypnotic visualizers are, unfortunately, MIA.


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It’s Okay to Cry.

Late hyperpop legend Sophie, who tragically slipped and fell at the age of 34 from a balcony window in Greece in 2021 trying to look at the moon, has been memorialized on the 9th track “So I” of Brat, Charli XCX’s new album.

“When I’m on stage, sometimes I lie

Say that I like singing these songs you left behind

And I know you always said, “It’s okay to cry”

So I know I can cry, I can cry, so I cry”

I’m not crying, YOU’RE crying.


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Put Espresso in the sample pack hall of fame.

Right up there with Umbrella, baby.


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Google appears to be working on a Spotify extension for Gemini.

Google introduced AI extensions last year, letting the bot formerly-known-as Bard connect with other Google apps and services. It’s continued expanding the feature, most recently adding a connection between Gemini and YouTube Music, but now Android Authority has found code in the app indicating Gemini could connect to Spotify, too, eventually.

Hopefully, Gemini works better than our experience with the Rabbit R1.


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Here’s how BBL Drizzy set a precedent for sampling AI-generated music.

As Drake attempts to flip taunts by Kendrick Lamar, Rick Ross, and Metro Boomin on Sexyy Red’s “U My Everything,” the beat transitions into a sample of the AI-generated song “BBL Drizzy.”

While the Udio-generated master recording is public domain, creator King Willonious’ lyrics are copyright protected, so he could get paid for a writer credit, as Billboard reporter Kristin Robinson explains.


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Taylor Swift loves easter eggs.

Did you know the release timeline for 1989 (Taylor’s Version) was sneakily announced using nail varnish and latte art? Or that the rerelease of Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) was teased via colorful elevator buttons in her Bejeweled music video?

This fascinating rabbit hole brings you into the loop regarding the puzzles and hidden messages that Swifties have obsessed over for years.


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Finally!

“It is time to break up Live Nation-Ticketmaster,” said US Attorney General Merrick Garland, in a statement announcing the DOJ antitrust lawsuit.


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What do you think about Apple Music’s top 10 albums of all time?

Apple Music’s team of experts crowned Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill as the number one album, followed by Michael Jackson’s Thriller in second and The Beatles’ Abbey Road in third. You can check out the full list of top 100 albums from Apple’s website.


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Winamp wants your ideas.

The company announced that it’s “opening up its source code” and invites developers to contribute to the Windows version of its music player. It’s also releasing a mobile app in July. As ZDNet points out, the company will still own and decide what goes into the official version.

Winamp didn’t immediately reply to a request for more information, like whether and what open-source license it’ll use.


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Rest in peace, Steve Albini.

The indie rock icon, Steely Dan hater, and prolific shitposter died of a heart attack. Among the records he engineered were Nirvana’s In Utero and Pixies’ Surfer Rosa. Here’s Albini on the recording industry in 1993, and a more recent feature on his growth since then.


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AI FKA Twigs.

While pleading with US lawmakers to protect artists like herself from the threat of generative AI, Twigs revealed that she created an AI version of her likeness.

“In the past year I have developed my own deepfake version of myself, that is not only trained in my personality but also can use my exact tone of voice to speak many languages.”

She plans to use the AI FKA Twigs to help promote her work globally.

“Even with my upcoming album I can explain in depth what it is about creatively. It also allows me to spend more time making art.”

The hearing was related to the bipartisan No Fakes Act bill currently being considered.


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What really went wrong with Grimes’ Coachella set.

Grimes manager DAOuda made a lengthy post on X to clear the air about the technical mishap that occurred during Grimes’ Coachella set last weekend. It apparently boils down to a last-minute update and a computer swap.


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Coachella weekend two continues.

YouTube’s livestream from the music festival is available once again, as it will be through 2026 at least. This year it includes NFL-style multiview in YouTube’s TV apps so you can keep an eye on more than one broadcast.

The schedule is available here, and hopefully, this weekend, everyone will know how to use their equipment properly.