Vine has been added to Android
The new social media trend, Vine, has finally spread its wings and flown from its iPhone nest into the waiting arms of its Android brethren. For those that haven't jumped on board with the new app, Vine is a video sharing social network where users can shoot 6-second clips that run into a continuous loop. With Twitter and Facebook integration, the network has attracted 13 million users.
Vine for Android is lacking some of the basic features found on iPhones like hashtags and direct mentions, it does offer the ability to zoom, which is notably lacking on iPhones. As the updates continue to roll out, these features will begin to fill out. There are also plans to include some Android-exclusive features, as well.
Some creativity can be utilized for Vine videos, such as some inventive stop-motion animation videos. My personal favorite Vine so far has been of a dog touching a Super Mario mushroom for a power up. I personally have been using Vine for live shows, like this sneak peek at ShowYouSuck's live remix of "The Return of Headbanger's Ball" at SXSW this past March. If you haven't yet, follow Ruby Hornet on Vine for future updates.
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[via IGN]
More Artists Added to North Coast Music Festival Lineup
Continuing on with our long list of summer festival lineups, North Coast has added some new artists to their already large list of musicians. After the mayhem that will be Spring Awakening, Pitchfork, and Lollapalooza, but before Riot Fest, will be the North Coast Music Festival. Serving to be the summer's last hold on music festivals, this year's North Coast is shaping up to be a solid way to spend your weekend before the leaves begin to drop.
New additions have been announced to the lineup that will now feature Danny Brown, RL Grime, Wu-Tang Clan, Nas, Midnight Conspiracy, Flatbush Zombies, and more. In addition to the musical additions, North Coast has also made official partnerships with the Hard Rock Hotel and Crowne Plaza for those traveling into Chicago for the festival.
You can buy tickets for this year's North Coast Music Festival here.
Google Adds New Video Features to YouTube Videos
Heads up, aspiring filmmakers: Google and YouTube have now made it easier for you to achieve your dreams. Yesterday, YouTube announced their addition of "enhancement" features for uploaded videos. They used slow-motion as the highlighted feature for the announcement. Now, those uploading their videos to YouTube can create slow-motion videos using the editor to slow down speed to 1/8th the normal speed. Other features include color/brightness correction, stabilization, color filters, clip trimming, and face blurring.
What do you all think about this? Personally, I prefer when filmmakers and video editors do their work through proper post-production avenues, such as Final Cut or Adobe Premiere. At the same time, this could help aspiring videographers who might now have access to or knowledge of FCP and Premiere. One thing's for sure: The amount of funny slow-motion videos will grow exponentially.
[via YouTube Creators]
Spring Awakening Schedule and Daily Tickets Available
Spring Awakening, one of the largest dance music festivals in the country, is getting ready to take over Soldier Field next month. From June 14-16, dance music fiends will be twerking, juking, grinding, two stepping, and popping and/or locking to a few big names in EDM, including Moby, Krewella, Bassnectar, Zeds Dead, and Paul Oakenfold. Some notable Chicago groups/DJs performing during the three-day festival are my LOD brother PHNM, Chicago super duo Flosstradamus, and ex-resident Rehab Djs, Team Bayside High.
Official after-parties have been announced today as well. The announced list, which you purchase tickets for below, include Moby at the MID Friday night, Zeds Dead at the House of Blues Saturday night, and Calvin Harris at the MID Sunday night. Three-day VIP passes have sold out, but a few single-day VIP passes and normal single-day and three-day passes are available.
You can read the press release, complete with ticket purchase links, below.
Spring Awakening Music Festival 2013 is just 15 days away, and it's set to be the largest all dance music event in Chicago with over 75,000 fans descending on Soldier Field! Single day tickets are on sale now, and can be purchased exclusively through Clubtix.com! Three day VIP passes are completely sold out, but there are still a limited amount of single day VIP and general admission three day passes still available! Spring Awakening Music Festival also released the daily lineup of artists performing and the official after parties, taking place at Chicago's premier nightclubs!
The official Spring Awakening Music Festival after parties have been announced. They're all on sale now to the general public. Full listing below:
Friday
- Moby and Revolvr at the MID - Tickets
- PANTyRAiD & Zomboy at the House of Blues - Tickets
- Dirty South at SpyBar - Tickets
- DJ Bl3nd at Volkan - Tickets
Saturday
- Nicky Romero at the MID - Tickets
- Zeds Dead with Salva at House of Blues - Tickets
- Cajmere at SpyBar - Tickets
- Nervo at Palladium - Tickets
Sunday
- Calvin Harris at the MID - Tickets
- Excision and Minnesota at House of Blues - Tickets
- Boys Noize at Spybar - Tickets
Monday
- SAMF Closing Party at Evil Olive w/ Porn and Chicken - FREE w/ RSVP
SAMF was blown away by the creativity from all of our contest entries, from chalk and t-shirt designs to our DJ competition. The amount of talent that poured in from all over the country made it a very hard decision. Check out the submissions for our "Chalk it Up" and Poster design contests. Congratulations to all of the winners!
Head to Clubtix.com now to get your tickets to Spring Awakening Music Festival!
Sony Contemplates Selling Its Entertainment Divisions
During my high school days, Walkmans were still the go-to portable music devices amongst my peers. Just around the time Apple released its first iPods, and before the entire music industry was revolutionized with the focus towards digital releases, CDs were the norm, with Sony being the biggest name in the game with its huge selection of CD, tape, and portable radio players. Of course, a lot has changed over the past decade, with most high school kids probably unfamiliar with the "Walkman" brand. Even outside of music devices, Sony's reputation as the top dog in consumer electronics has dropped a bit with other companies like Samsung and Microsoft rising up to take a chunk out of Sony's hold on the electronics industry.
Nowadays, Sony's largest earnings come from its various entertainment divisions, including Sony Pictures Entertainment (film and TV) and Sony Music Entertainment (self-explanatory). Last week, Daniel Loeb, chief executive of the hedge fund The Third Point that owns the largest stake in Sony at 6.5%, suggested that Sony sell a portion of its Entertainment holdings in order to amass larger profits from the divisions. Loeb's proposed idea would involve Sony selling a 15-20% stake in its Entertainment divisions to existing shareholders, allowing Sony to focus on its electronics division, which includes the aforementioned Walkman line of products. The proposal, Loeb predicts, would result in a 60% boost in share value.
Of course, Sony is reluctant to sell off portions of its most profitable divisions, especially considering Sony Pictures' stance as one of the top TV/film production/distribution studios with franchises like Ghostbusters and Spider-Man, as well as various franchises under Sony Pictures-owned Columbia Pictures (Skyfall, Men in Black, etc). Sony Music, meanwhile, is Bruce Springsteen's label, whereas Sony/ATV Music Publishing holds the rights to The Beatles' and Michael Jackson's catalog along with the Jackson estate.
A board meeting has been scheduled to discuss Loeb's proposal which will determine Sony's official decision on the matter. For now, this is an interesting development that could shape the future of Sony and its various divisions.
[via Bloomberg, via The Verge, via New York Times]
Yahoo Buys Tumblr for $1.1 Billion
In an attempt to appeal to younger generations, Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer confirmed the purchase of blogging service Tumblr for a startling $1.1 billion. Tumblr, a site known for its assortment of GIF-heavy blog posts, is popular amongst younger crowds. Mayer wrote a Tumblr post herself, promising "not to screw it up." A good sign of Yahoo's promise is retaining Tumblr founder David Karp in the same role as CEO. Karp also assured no major changes would be made, stating, "Our team isn't changing. Our roadmap isn't changing. Tumblr gets better faster with more resources to draw from."
However, what does the acquisition mean for both Yahoo visitors and Tumblr loyalists? Tumblr might see an increase in advertisements as a way for Yahoo to monetize the site. However, a huge problem potential advertisers face is the large number of Tumblr accounts sharing pornographic material. Yahoo might claim to act as transparent as possible, but I wouldn't be surprised if they begin to come down on the more adult-driven blogs. On the plus side, popular Tumblr blogs could be displayed on Yahoo's front page.
Only time will tell exactly how the acquisition will affect either party, but one thing's for sure: Yahoo's ready to jump back into the fray alongside Google. Who knows? Maybe we'll hear the classic "Yahooooo!" yodel from yesteryear once again.
[via CNN Money]
Yeezymania Is Back! New Video + SNL Performance + Album Artwork & Title
Kanye West set the internets ablaze once again this weekend with a handful of incredible promotional teasers such as a video worldwide premiere across six different cities, a polarizing performance in front of a mass national audience and a controversial album title.
First, Kanye took to Twitter on Friday to announce he would be projecting a brand new video for his single "Black Slaves" on 66 locations scattered around the globe, including six in Chicago. Check out some footage at Millenium Park shot by Maks G of GoWhereHipHop here.
Ye then went on Saturday Night Live the following day and performed "Black Slaves" & "Black Skinhead", both very powerful records infused with an undeniable energy which carried an unapologetic message. Million $ Mano also made a cameo behind the boards. You can stream both performances below.
Lastly, on Sunday it was officially announced that Kanye's forthcoming album would be entitled Yeezus and confirmed the project's artwork, which was leaked by Kim Kardashian and seen above.
After all the pandemonium there's nothing left to say but; Yeezus drops June 18th, be sure to cop it and be a part of history.
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The Riot Fest 2013 Lineup is AMAZING
Wow. Just as I was going on about how I greatly dislike music festivals, the first wave of bands were announced for this year's Riot Fest. For those that don't know, Riot Fest was started in 2005 as a way to help put together a seemingly dream lineup of various punk bands. Since its initial launch, the festival has grown exponentially, not only moving the festivities from the Congress Theater to Humboldt Park, but also establishing shows across the country under the Riot Fest brand.
There's music here for everybody, as Riot Fest's growth has begun to include all facets of independent music. Some noted hip hop acts include DOOMTREE's Dessa, Atmosphere, Public Enemy, and Saul Williams. However, the main focus is on punk/alternative/pop-punk bands. Some of my personal highlights are blink-182, Rancid, Against Me!, Toots and the Maytals, Mephiskapheles, Bad Brains, and amazing local Chicago bands The Lawrence Arms, Maps and Atlases, and a reuniting The Broadways. Maybe I'll find some time to catch Brand New and Taking Back Sunday so I could sing along to the two songs I know from them.
Seriously, there's something here for everybody; whether you can quote every song Brendan Kelly has ever written, got star tattoos during the early 200s, or go out in a full three-piece suit, Riot Fest 2013 is shaping up to be the best Chicago-based festival of the year. Go ahead and buy tickets for Riot Fest 2013 here.
