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Record labels and publishers strike deals with SongLily, a licensing platform  A game developer recently paid SongLily $1,440 to license �Ace of Spades� by metal band Mot�rhead. Photo: Joel Ryan/Associated Press The music industry has identified a rare constituency willing to pay handsomely for music in the digital age: videogame-app makers. In recent months, major record companies and publishers have struck agreements with a startup called SongLily, a music-licensing platform aimed at videogame and mobile-app builders. There are about 19 million of these software developers world-wide, according to Evans Data�s 2016 Global Developer Population and Demographic Study. The deals allow SongLily to offer some of the labels� well-known songs to game and app developers for an annual flat fee, currently about $1,440 per major-label song, for up to 100,000 app downloads or unique registered players. That is a bargai...

Chinese streaming service provider QQ Music is one of the most successful companies riding the current digital music boom. (Photo : YouTube) Major Chinese and international music labels are starting to recognize the potential of digital music distribution and are now in a race to get the most out of the boom. The development was made apparent during a gathering of prominent music industry players in Beijing on July 25.Among those present were Sony Music, Universal Music, and Warner Music, China Entertainment News  reported. One of the main points of discussion in the event was the growth of the Chinese digital music industry. According to the data provided by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, digital music sales in China has grown by as much as 83.8 percent in 2015, posting revenues of $170 million. Among those companies that have successfully ridden the boom was QQ Music, a digital music service platform operated by Tencent, one of China's main in...

Ronnie James Dio passed away in 2010 after battling stomach cancer. On Saturday, Germany held their heavy metal Wacken Open Air music festival and fans were stunned when they saw what appeared on the stage. They saw Dio, in hologram form, perform as it yelled out the heavy metal anthem �We Rock.� The Dio hologram also flashed the famous �devil horns� hand gesture that Ronnie made famous.   The group that created the hologram, Eyellusion, came from across multiple music and technical industries and has taken over a year to come to fruition. Their goal was to create a believable hologram of Ronnie Dio that could be used with the band Dio Disciples, a group that formed to keep performing the music of Dio. The band formed shortly after Dio�s death. Wendy Dio, Ronnie�s widow, commented about seeing her late husband on stage once again. �I cried the first time I saw it. It was quite, quite scary. Our crew, when they first saw it at rehearsal, they were in tears. It�s abso...

The Listening Room image by Scott Clark. When thinking about top home furnishings specialty retailer Crate and Barrel, one usually thinks about what to put for the wedding registry or what to get for your kitchen or bedroom to have your home looking sleek. Music is probably the furthest thing from one�s mind. Now, in an attempt to appeal to the music lover and geek inside all of us, Crate and Barrel announced yesterday a brand new collection of cutting-edge audio equipment, exclusive furniture and accessories as well as a selected collection of vinyl recordings thanks to its brand new partnership with Capitol Records. Speaking on this announcement, Crate and Barrel CEO said: �We believe in the power of music to create connections, shape celebrations and enhance homes. Music moves people. At Crate, we wanted to create a space for long-time collectors and those new to vinyl to kick back, relax and enjoy some of the best music of the past 75 years.� Planned to be released in S...

Adam Sike's of Cigar Box Nation just completed a beautiful new guitar for Husky Burnette ! Founded late in 2008 by "King of the Cigar Box Guitar" Shane Speal, Cigar Box Nation is now maintained by C. B. Gitty and continues to be THE Internet home for the Cigar Box Guitar/Handmade Music movement! It is a network of artists, from builders to players and everything in between. It�s about sharing ideas, p ictures, and videos on Cigar Box Guitars and other primitive instruments! Want to know more about the bands and acts out there touring, and playing cigar box guitar? Click here!

Among all the peaceful still lives, noble portraits and soothing art pieces, there are paintings that give audiences a more unsettling and disturbing view on creativity. These paintings go from mildly weird or strange to absolutely shocking and deranged. Can you handle these 25 disturbing art pieces? Many have tried and many have failed. Caution: Contains disturbing images. Check out the written version for more info - http://list25.com/25-disturbing-art-p...

This is an experimental home made instrument. It's design is inspired by the regular electric bass and the contrabass.