Random Music News for Saturday, February 27, 2016

Hang on. Just two three more days and we’re done with February. Distract yourself with some music news.

1. A telco has launched a data-free music service. Is this a sign of things to come? Let’s hope so.
2. A fitness instructor in India was shot and killed by someone complaining that the music coming from his gym was too loud.
3. Japanese police arrested 44 people in a nationwide crackdown on illegal file-sharing.
4. According to some reports, Tidal subscriptions have gone way up since Kayne made The Life of Pablo an exclusive release.
5. Africa has its first music download service.
6. The night the Beatles played in front of 18 people.
7. The “Damn Daniel” meme is now a song. Of course it is…
8. If you ever had your heart broken in the 80s (or if you’ve ever turned to 80s music under those circumstances), you’ll appreciate this.
9. If you’re in the Toronto area, I highly recommend attending this session with John Seabrook on how the music industry really works today. I’ll be there.
10. A fascinating under-the-hood look at how Spotify works.
11. Speaking of streaming music services, is Samsung talking to Jay Z about acquiring Tidal?
12. And while we’re on the topic, music’s share of the world of digital content is not only small but shrinking.
13. Playable records that are actually tortillas. You read that right.
14. Wait: Bill Gates DJed on Jimmy Fallon? Yes. Yes, he did.
15. Elvis’ doctor, Dr. Nick, dead at 88.
16. Yoko Ono is in hospital suffering from dehydration after a bad case of the flu. She should be fine, though.