Vibe Magazine Shuts Down

In breaking news Tuesday it was announced on website Dailyfinance.com that longtime hip-hop and R&B magazine, Vibe Magazine, would be immediately shutting down production of its print magazine. The main reason for the shutdown was the company's inability to reduce its large debt down, due to a collapse in print media advertising. With auto manufacturers and other companies scaling back on their advertising costs, it's hurt TV shows, newspapers and magazines, including Vibe. Vibe's circulation had apparently fallen by about 200,000 in the past year or so. According to the NY Times, the only major hip hop magazine left in circulation now is The Source, however hip hop heads will be quick to mention XXL Magazine, another popular publication. The website Vibe.com is still operational as of this writing, and includes a large tribute to the late King of Pop, Michael Jackson, splashed across the front page. The site also still offers a "Subscribe to Vibe" link but that is likely to change soon. It's sad to see Vibe go, but once again it's a sign of the times. These days magazines have shifted their presence more to the online realm, as they can reach more people and probably attract more advertising revenue than with printed copies in stores,

Vibe's 80 Best Songs of 08' So Far

Online music and entertainment site, Vibe.com is releasing a list of what they believe are the "80 Best Songs of 08", 16 tracks at a time. So far they've released just the first 48 tracks (80-32) of their listing, but it's a mix full of variety; everyone from Joe Budden to Red Spyda, Duffy, Leona Lewis, Danity Kane, Young Jeezy, Wayne, G-Unit, Kanye and many of the hottest singers & rappers in the game are represented. The tracks come from the Billboard charts as well as unreleased singles, remixes and mix tapes. Here's a look at #60-50 as determined by Vibe: 60 “SINGLE LADIES (PUT A RING ON IT)” Beyoncé 59 “I DECIDED, PT. 1” Solange 58 “GET LIKE ME” David Banner feat. Chris Brown and Yung Joc 57 “GIRLS AROUND THE WORLD” Lloyd feat. Lil Wayne 56 “STAY WITH ME (BY THE SEA)” Al Green feat. John Legend 55 “UMMA DO ME (REMIX)” Rocko feat. Young Jeezy, T.I., Boo, and Big Kuntry King 54 “THREADS” Portishead 53 "THE CRAZY" Wale 52 "DON'T STOP THE MUSIC" Rihanna 51 "CHEVY MONSTA" Rich Boy 50 "HERE I AM" Rick Ross feat. Nelly and Avery Storm Based on the above list, Beyonce's little sister has sure grown up into a singer in her own right. Solange's song just barely beats out "Single Ladies" which TIME magazine refers to as one of its top 10 songs of the year, period. Solange's Neptunes-produced track definitely has some oomph to it, but if she will ever have the star power of Beyonce really remains to be seen. Check out Vibe's first hot 16 songs and Vibe's second hot 16 songs and Vibe's third hot 16 songs complete with imeem-powered audio clips of each selection.

Printable Sheet Music Sites

Printable sheet music is available online in many genres and formats. Many sites offer free sheet music you can print to your printer directly and use for musical performances or other circumstances you may need them for. There's blank staff sheet music available, musical instrument arrangements, well-known songs and more! If you're learning a particular musical instrument you may find great practice pieces on sheet music to print out and refer to. Use the list of links below to find the printable sheet music you need and print it out for your personal use. To use the links below, simply Copy/Paste or highlight a URL and right-click your mouse to choose "Copy". Then, paste that URL into your web browser's address bar by right clicking again and choose "Paste". Enjoy these selections of sheet music for your printer. Printable Sheet Music Sites http://www.all-about-beethoven.com/freesheetmusic/flutesheetmusic.html http://www.blanksheetmusic.net/ http://www.download-sheet-music-online.com/ http://www.sheetmusicnotes.com/ http://www.origenmusic.com/ http://printables.kaboose.com/Music-Printables.html http://www.virtualsheetmusic.com/How.html http://www.writtenmelodies.com http://www.yokewong.net/freesheetmusic.html http://www.angelfire.com/sk/syukhtun/freesheet.html The above sheet music and music notes should provide you with a good variety of printable sheet music. These links provide sheet music for genres such as folk and children's music as well as various instrument arrangements including the piano, flute guitar, and so forth. Check back here often for updates! (Note: MC's Music Notes is not affiliated with any of the above list of URL links and operates independently of these sites. Please contact individual sites for questions/concerns regarding their printable sheet music).

MTV Moving Beyond Music TV

MTV isn't your mom and dad's music television anymore, or even your grandparents. What originated as cutting edge television with catchy special effects, sexy dance parties and tricked-out music videos is moving away from its tried-and-true, ADHD-style original format. Music video killed the radio star, and now the internet may kill the music video star. As many music fans know, the channel progressed from music videos to dance parties to reality TV & dating game shows. Don't panic just yet, the channel itself isn't leaving the air, but they are definitely finding ways to reach people besides TV. According to the latest issue of Fast Company magazine, MTV is placing bets on several alternate forms of entertainment from video games to mobile apps to virtual reality and downloadable content. Here's a look at some of MTV's newest ventures: The Virtual Lower East Side - a Virtual world similar to Second Life which will be set in New York City's gritty music scene. Will allow new young bands to showcase their stuff, and also has tons of advertising possibilities. Jerry Bruckenheimer - the super producer behind many huge movies signed a deal to produce video games for MTV in December 2007. Rhapsody America - partnered with Verizon Wireless and Real Networks, this music store is set to challenge iTunes. Flixwagon - a mobile-to-web video platform. On one August weekend it delivered 6 million streams of the Jonas Brothers live. Nextornot.com - Just like the MTV show NEXT, this online site mimics the dating concept for the web. Harmonix - MTV bought the video game maker in 2006. They're mainly responsible for Rock Band and its sequels, grossing more than $700 mill in revenue. MTV also has been selling $2 song downloads for Rock Band by the millions. Gracenote - partnership which makes a ton of song lyrics available to internet and mobile phone users. dance.mtv.com - Amateur dance groups from around the world can post their videos and be rated by users of the site. mysupersweetparty.com - A site for 15 year old girls to plan their huge birthday bashes with the help of peers. Campus Daily Guides - Website developed for major college towns which is backed by a local search and advertising network. As you can see MTV is definitely getting futuristic. Once known for cool animated videos by Dire Straits and Peter Gabriel, they're now making major moves into the world wide web and beyond to keep up with the hipness of social media, video viewing, interactivity and music downloads. Back in 2005, MTV had the opportunity to buy Myspace but didn't seal the deal, drawing heavy criticism and even resulting in a major CEO being axed. MTV also failed in its attempted music download service, URGE, and its video content site Overdrive. So now MTV is definitely paying attention to what its current viewership wants for entertainment's sake. With declining numbers for its shows, MTV is willing to take the risks that music fans will want content in other ways besides the "old fashioned TV set". Times are definitely changing and before you know it, Music TV just might be as out of date as the 8-Track or VCR! Read more about MTV's ventures for the future in the November 2008 issue of Fast Company magazine!