After the Trump administration used Carpenter’s song “Juno” in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) propaganda video, the pop star responded, calling it “evil and disgusting.” The White House account has since deleted the post — but they’ve picked this fight with musicians before.
The “production release” of Windows MIDI Services just hit the Dev and Beta Windows Insider channels, and Microsoft says it will land on retail installs in “the next few months.” This means higher-resolution expression, two-way communication between devices, and less need for third-party drivers. MIDI 2.0 was announced in 2019, but adoption has been slow, with macOS and Android adding support in 2021 and 2022, respectively. There are still only a handful of compatible devices available, too.
One last time for the year, the site is waving its cut of sales, and every dollar will go directly to the artists. It’s an excellent opportunity to pick up that record you slept on all year, like University’s McCartney, It’ll Be OK, or Los Thuthanaka’s self-titled album.
Nashville’s writing rooms will never be the same.
Just a couple of months after entering beta, Ableton Live 12.3 is officially available as a free update for all Live 12 owners. There are also some updated devices, including a revamped Auto Pan-Tremolo. Push is gaining a new layout, too, that turns the top 32 pads into an X/Y expression controller.
This trailer for Netflix’s upcoming Star Search revival is really just a list all the celebrities like Beyoncé, Usher, and Britney Spears who were discovered on the original series. But it’s also the streamer’s way of announcing that Anthony Anderson will host the new live show when it premieres on January 13th.
If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.
As part of the settlement with Universal, Udio has amended its terms of service, and users can no longer download their outputs. This has AI music makers furious, and with good reason. Unfortunately, they have little recourse, as the contract they sign when creating a Udio account includes a waiver of the right to bring a class action. This should alarm customers of rival services like Suno, which is also in the crosshairs of the major labels.
Turns out splitting the musical into two movies was a pretty solid idea.
Honestly, that’s insulting.
The AI music company just announced that it raised $250 million in its latest funding round, and its valuation soared from about $500 million last year to nearly $2.5 billion. That money might be going right back out the door, though, as all three major labels — Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, and Sony Music Group — are currently suing Suno.
[Wall Street Journal]
In September, the band announced it would remove its catalog from Spotify due to Daniel Ek’s investment in military AI technology. That appears to be easier said than done. But in 2026, it will begin releasing music on a new label, and the group said it will be available digitally — just not on Spotify.
Stop letting your streaming service take the reins and start listening with intention.
The new feature is coming first to Canada, allowing users to connect and share music with like-minded fans across genres like rock, country, and K-pop. In Fan Groups, users can join or create chat threads, as well as save recommendations from others.
Amazon Music plans on bringing Fan Groups to the US and other countries next year.
Music recommendation algorithms were supposed to help us cut through the noise, but they just served us up slop.
There are a number of new effects and instruments in Cubase 15, plus a new pattern sequencer and a revamped Expression Maps system for creating natural-sounding performances. Stem separation for extracting drums or basslines is already available in other DAWs, but it will still be a welcome addition. One of the more interesting features is the beta release of Omnivocal, a powerful vocal synthesizer that appears to be built around the tech behind Hatsune Miku.
There’s a new trailer for director Antoine Fuqua’s Michael (Jackson) biopic starring Jackson’s nephew Jafaar in the titular role.
It’s too soon to tell whether the movie’s story will be any good, but it’s sure to have a banging soundtrack when it releases on April 24th.
The company’s new All-in-One artist subscription gives creators 100 percent of their distribution royalties, regardless of whether that money is coming from TikTok, Spotify, or Apple Music. The plan also includes a fee-free support button so fans can contribute directly to their favorite artists, on-demand vinyl pressing, and support for merch stores.
Open one of the the Rainy, Sunny, or Snowy Day themed playlists for the Animal Crossing: New Horizons soundtrack on the Nintendo Music app and you’ll now find a new “Play hourly tracks” button. Pressing it will automatically play the hourly track that correlates to your current time of day.
