whyd

Month

March 2014

7 posts

Track of the Weekend #75: Tame Impala - "Stranger In Moscow"

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Big smiles here at the Whyd office today, despite the extreme amount of pollution in the air, we had our first truly viral track. For the entire week, we thought the track of the weekend was going to be the NEUS remix of Pharrell’s jam “Happy.” But this morning when we checked, Tame Impala’s cover of Michael Jackson’s “Stranger in Moscow" added by newcomer Boris Floyd Jr. had shot out of nowhere to the top of the hot tracks, being re-added almost 60 times in a day. 

You will hear why. Tame Impala's signature atmospheric style overlaps perfectly with MJ's ballad, on and on, again and again. 

Mar 14, 2014
#track of the weekend #whyd #hot tracks #michael jackson #tame impala #stranger in moscow #boris floyd jr #cover
DIALOGUE #2: Mawimbi & Whyd at The Machine de Moulin Rouge

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Next Saturday night (March 22) will be a rocking cabaret of afro-infused beats at the landmark establishment that is almost as famous as Paris itself. The Collective Mawimbi have been invited to create the line up for the Central area, and they are bringing two acts down for the UK for our aural pleasure, both featuring unique rhythms and percussions, filling some sort of pleasure zone that you didn’t know you had. It’s classic Mawimbi, and it’s why this party is going to be unlike anything you’ve heard before. 

The Busy Twist: https://soundcloud.com/thebusytwist

Drumtalk: https://soundcloud.com/drumtalk

Mar 12, 2014
#mawimbi #paris #nightlife #event #machine de moulin rouge #dialogue 2 #concert #afro-electro #whyd #party #soirée #fete #22 mars
The Editor of DumDum.fr Talks Music Journalism, Garage Rock, and Taking Music Head On

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The DumDum.fr team, that’s Anthony top left

Hello Anthony! Can you tell us about when you realized the importance of music in your life? 

It came rather late, as a teenager, I was really obsessed with soccer and girls among other things. Like all kids I liked music, but I developed a few different obsessions towards the end of my adolescence. When you grow up in the suburbs, far from concert venues and hype, you can’t fall into the scene out of luck. For me, it was garage rock, most notably the Black Lips, that I discovered thanks to their cover of a Dutronc track “Hippie Hippie Hourra.” An absolute headbanger. So I started to be interested in garage rock, the “Nuggets” compilations, those types of things. It was from that moment, more or less, that music would assume a capital importance for me. 

You are the Editor of DumDum. What is the objective of DumDum, and who are your readers?

We never really know too much about who are readers are. We get a good response from Facebook, Twitter, but I tend to think that the majority are always silent. These are questions that I prefer to not ask myself. As for the objective of DumDum, it’s to show music from a different angle, to try to go further. The project has matured greatly since we launched it. We made some novice mistakes, most notably editorial. Today, with our daily articles, we try to take music head on. And with out annexes, we try to take a step back, to tell stories, and talk about people. Because music, in the end, lets us say a lot about life and the world we live in. 

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Why did you become a music journalist? Are you passionate about music or writing? Or the two? 

Well, as I said before, it’s kind of crazy in my head. I studied at a journalism school, initially to become a sports journalist, I love soccer. But I quickly realized that I was heading straight into a wall: I picture myself at stadiums with my microphone trying to grab the stupid comments of football players. Therefore I directed myself rather naturally towards music and culture magazines. I started at Technikart, then the excellent magazine VoxPop that doesn’t exist anymore. Afterwards, it became a job, even if I don’t write exclusively about music. And fortunately elsewhere. 

You also contribute to other publications, like Snatch and Rolling Stone, is music journalism different from the web to print? 

Online music journalism and print aren’t very different along the lines of supports. On one hand, it’s a shame, I think that print magazines will stop doing news updates and talking about top singles. That makes sense: people don’t get their doses of discoveries from a paper magazine. They pay 5 euros to read long-form subjects, and deep interviews, things that we don’t find as much online. Looking back, that which I’ve written for DumDum or Rolling Stone I create in the same way. We have a tendency to think that an online magazine takes less work, that everything must be short, but in the end, I think that’s short-sighted: long-form has existed online for a long time, and it’s taking a more and more important place there. Looking at the stats from DumDum shows this, some of our long articles get a lot more clicks than the short little updates. 

Subscribe to DumDum on Whyd to stay up to date with their latest discoveries! 

Mar 11, 2014
#anthony mansuy #dumdum.fr #black lips #garage rock #music scene #music journalism #rolling stone #snatch #nuggets #editor #online #webzine #football #soccer #interview #whyd
NEW ALBUM: "Reversible" by InShape, Out Today (INTERVIEW)

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On the cobbled streets of Rue L’Olive here in Paris we meet the electro rock duo InShape, two up-and-coming artists who have been collaborating for the past few years. The latest result of their labor is the new album “Reversible" which is out today! 

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Learn about their history, collaboration and composition process and what they appreciate about their new album in our French interview, organized by the lovely girls at We Do Music: 

And take at least one listen to their single “Clarity” to understand what their unique style entails: 

Mar 10, 20141 note
#inshape #interview #podcast #clarity #new album #release #we do music #whyd #composition #production #reversible
Track of the Weekend #74: "Pictures" FlicFlac & Bearson's Remix of Benjamin Francis Leftwich

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Good morning Incubator! 

A beautiful week of springtime layered over us in Paris this week, and as the buds come out of the trees, the jackets and coats are being shed, velib’ stations are empty, and the long lost sun stirs smiles across hibernating Parisian faces. If any song can capture the feeling of the end of winter, it’s this week’s Track of the Weekend. FlicFlac & Bearson's remix of “Pictures" by Benjamin Francis Leftwich feels like it breaks through the low drizzling clouds into an abundance of light and warmth. Congratulations to Bertrand for the perfect timing sending it to the top of the Hot Tracks. 

Mar 7, 2014
#pictures #hot tracks #popular music #incubator #benjaming francis leftwich #flicflac #bearson #remix #bertrand marron #whyd #track of the weekend #paris #weather #spring #sunshine
"Sweaty, Erotic, Electro" Krone Korp March 14th

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Are you in Brittany? Or anywhere in western France and are looking for an awesome night out? Krone Korp are your guys. Created about a year ago in April, 2013 in Rennes, Krone is an association that brings together great music, culture, and fun people to its unique “sweaty, erotic, and electro” soirées. 

This time, it’s full techno, and the guys at Krone are bringing in some big residents the well-known Concrete soirées, famous in Paris’s electro scene. It’s all coming together at 1988 Live Club on Friday, March 14th, and Whyd is a sponsor of the event! 

Here’s the line up with links to their Soundcloud pages for your listening pleasure: 

FRANCOIS X (Paris - Concrete/Dement3d)

ANTIGONE (Paris - Concrete/Construct Reform)

THÉO MULLER (Rennes - Midi Deux) 

SEIMIANE & BLCKSMTH (Rennes - Krone Korp Records) 

Here is the official link, don’t miss it! 

Mar 5, 2014
#krone korp #sweaty #erotic #electro #rennes #france #nightlife #1988 live club #march 14th #whyd #soundcloud #francois x #concrete #paris #antigone #theo muller #seimiane #blcksmth #records #electronic music
Arte Creative + Maximo Park: Win A Concert At Your House!

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PHOTO: One of the many places that you could make Maximo Park play. Still clip from the promo video below.

ARTE Creative, buddies of our partners TRACKS from ARTE TV has come up with another excellent competition, this time they are offering to send rock band Maximo Park to play at your house! If you’ve always dreamed of bringing a world class act to play at a party, or to impress a date, or to piss off your neighbors, here is the chance you’ve been waiting for! 

Here’s what you need to do: send a one-minute video to ARTE Creative and get the most people to vote for it that you possibly can (send them to us, we will vote for them too!). The five most popular videos will be presented to the group, so they can choose the winner. Everything needs to happen before March 15th. You still have two weeks, but you need to hurry! 

NOTE! Contest is only open to French and German residents!

Here is the official contest details: http://creative.arte.tv/fr/labo/concert-domicile-maximo-park

And here is a teaser of the group: get hype! 

Mar 3, 20144 notes
#maximo park #arte tv #tracks #creative #video competition #concert a domicile #win a concert #whyd #live music

February 2014

16 posts

Track of the Weekend #73: 20syl's Remix of Schoolboy Q

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Deep hip hop rises to the top on Whyd this week as 20syl's remix of Schoolboy Q - “The Purge/Rapfix Cypher" takes the highest honors of the Hot Tracks. You all know 20syl from Whyd favorites C2C, and this track will instantly remind you just why they are so loved. Funky, fresh, and with that signature uniqueness, this remix will have you jamming all weekend long. 

Feb 28, 2014
#20syl #the purge #rapfix cypher #remix #c2c #hocus pocus #hot tracks #track of the weekend #schoolboy Q #whyd
Whyd + SXSW = Endless Awesome New Music

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Next week in Austin, Texas, the world’s bands, tech companies, start ups, brands, and music lovers will gather for what has become probably THE music and tech event of the year - SouthbySouthwest - and we will be there! 

Whyd was one of 10 French start ups selected by UBI France to represent France and present our ideas to the larger world. It is an honor and we are proud to be alongside other cool French start ups like our good buddies Evergig! So if you’re at SxSW and you’d like to meet up, let us know! 

But the real magnitude of SxSW is the sheer quantity and very high quality emerging artists. There will be nearly 2,000 groups and performers over the next two weeks. Impossible to take in, but don’t worry, we have your back. 

We put together the COMPLETE, and completely unofficial SxSW playlist, featuring every musician, group, and performer, for your listening and discovery pleasure. Trust us, it’s loaded with your next favorite bands. Share widely and enjoy! 

Feb 27, 2014
#sxsw #whyd #ubi france #evergig #selection #playlist #complete #unofficial #emerging music #event #tech #start up
Let Process Take You Into The Depths Of Your Mind

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Yo! Can you fill us in a little bit about your backstory? Who are you and where are you from? 

Yo! I am Remy (Auymer is my artist name) from the south of France, Marseille, and I have been based in London for four years now. I was working in shops and started to produce and play music there in my hometown and it’s here, in one of the most interesting cities in the world that I met Alice, half French and half Brazilian and also our graphic designer Federico. This city was for all of us a way to expand our interest for electronic music. 

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London is a city that is world famous for its music, the standard is really high. What are you bringing to the scene today? 

Process is a new project that we launched in May 2013. After exploring London’s clubs, bars, and private parties, we got amazed and inspired a lot, but we realized that the average entry price was quite high and that the spirit was often quite business oriented. Although we went to so many great venues, with brilliant atmosphere and proper sound systems, we always felt there were quite a lot of standards, and the first one was the high price. We soon realized there was one type of party you couldn’t really find and that was free (or cheap) entry, good vibes, intimate venue, just for the love of music. The normal story in London if you want to put up an event and get to have a “name” in the scene, you need to book a pretty famous DJ to attract people and it helps to have a big venue, already quite known. However, we didn’t want to think this way. 

Instead, we wanted something where people discover new music and new talent. From the beginning we thought that with minimized funds and some contacts, you could organize a party that would make people happy and create the right vibe, without necessarily having an already settled DJ. We thought of having more of a party for everyone, that people wouldn’t need to pay much to have a great night and that everyone could contribute, by telling their friends, playing, proposing ideas, etc… 

We got exactly what we wanted at our first event when we gathered around 100 deep vibe lovers in our intimate venue in East London and hell yeah it was such a great night! So I guess Process is just adding some fresh air to the scene, with no pressure to be successful or competitive in the industry; more of an alternative night with fresh and deep beats in a warm atmosphere… Just a night for fun, about music and great people! 

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Tell us about your obsession with deep music. Who should come to your events? 

We are really into all those kinds of post apocalyptic, dark, cerebral, acid, minimalist, and deep electronic music so it goes from deep house to dub to techno. And we keep on expanding our knowledge of it and musical culture here in the UK. It’s a type of music that could not be understood at first if you are not really into this. It might seem harsh and scary but it takes some interest to actually catch the little thing that makes you understand why artists such as Lucy, Tom Dicciccio, Rrose, or Polar Inertia (to name a few) are making this type of music; to understand what they are trying to say and get across. You will then understand the spirits that they put behind their machines. 

What we love the most is to see every time where they are driving us to another dimension that was unknown for us. I am pretty sure that the range of frequencies they use in their productions, which can be really love or really high, creates something in our body and brain. And this is what we want to do with Process, make people aware that this type of music can be really festive, energetic. I try to do a kind of step by step when I play at Process, going from different types of electronic music to drive the crowd to this dark, cerebral, and post apocalyptic dimension. 

It’s taking the crowd through a journey, and what is great about Process is that it is a diverse crowd; people there like many different types of electronic music, and the challenge is to get all of them to follow. And until now, all of them did! Indeed you don’t need to know everything about techno to go crazy on some deep beats, it’s all about explaining where I am trying to get you, and having you follow me! 

When is the next event and what else can we look forward to in 2014? 

The next will be in early 2014, still in one of our intimate venues with the same atmosphere! Then we have a couple of projects in mind, like a series of “open podcasts” in which everyone is invited to be a part of by sending his mix. Also, we have some collaboration in mind, with some like-minded friends to create always a better party and bring quality music. 2014 will be an inspiring year for us, no doubt about that! 

Subscribe to Process London on Whyd, and make sure to check out both Process London's and Auymer Music's Facebook pages! 

Feb 25, 20144 notes
#process london #auymer #remy #london #music scene #events #deep house #techno #parties #whyd #community #interview #atmosphere #DJ
Promoting Artists? Talk To We Do Music

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You are an artist promotion agency. What do you do for artists that they normally can’t do for themselves?

We are a promotion agency specializing in the web, a big nuance! We bring our assistance to artists, and most importantly, that which deals with their web presence: how to use different tools (from the website to a newsletter and also flashing partnership banners), web promotion (you can think of us as cyber press attachés), but also viral communication and social media. 

To sum up, the web is our game field, our medium of diffusion and the finality of our actions. 

Each artist has a different relationship with the web: sometimes, they are completely autonomous with their networks, mastering the abilities of diffusion tools and communicating effectively with the public. 

That’s in a perfect world, where there is a professional entourage like a manager or project manager from a label who is very invested in these questions. But almost always, and even with confirmed artists, signed to a label and very prolific on the web, we discuss strategy together: when, how and where to communicate? What about viral ideas? Which material? What are the strong points here? etc. 

The web has changed everything for musicians, do you see the web in a positive or negative light for the promotion of artists? 

More than positive!! It is mostly for that that we have specialized in the web. From the point of view of diffusion, all our actions have secondary effects, and information circulates very quickly. When a journalist finds something they love, there is no delay to talk about it with us or waiting to publish something in print. We can also mount very inventive operations, without limiting the type of content. 

What’s more, the web can also be a real jungle for novices, with its own codes, webzine trendsetters: one must know how to navigate and know musical preferences of journalists, and know which social tools correspond best with regards to the artists. 

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Tell us about a success story with one of your artists:

We don’t really have a magic story like that, web promotion is really more of a long battle, full of little victories, a group that you take farther and a juicy press release about the project that’s running.

But a nice recent story was our meeting with the Chinese group Nova Heart: we discovered them at a show completely by accident at the Mama Event. We immediately loved their project, and we discussed at length with the group and their manager to convince them that they absolutely had to develop their project in French territory.

Then we saw them again, completely by accident, six months later at the other end of the world at the Sakifo festival on Reunion Island which we worked on: the alchemy worked again, the sea and flavored rums even more. We finally were able to launch something together, and we released a completely underground EP in France and the project finished among the last of the Transmusicales de Rennes: their new album is coming in 2014, and it is going to be even bigger!

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Are there clients that you don’t accept to work with? (Because the style is not yours, the artist seems like an idiot, etc…)

We Do Music has existed almost five years and when we look back, we see that we’ve worked on a good number of projects. And it’s important to note that with each new album we put our image on the line, and our credibility with journalists, therefore we must be — above all — convinced by the music that we are charged with defending. It’s the bare minimum!

Then, before we say yes, we ask groups to come take a coffee with us, and we must see that we match up on a human level too. Sometimes, we like a project that is very young, unknown to the world, but we take the bet and help them develop. Those are the most exciting projects, everything is to be done! 

Make sure to subscribe to We Do Music on Whyd, Like We Do Music on Facebook and follow them on Twitter!

Feb 24, 20143 notes
#we do music #promo web #artist promotion #paris #pr agency #whyd #interview #digital strategy
Track of the Weekend #72: Darius - "Espoir"

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It’s been an instrumental type week and one that saw a lot of movement on Whyd's editorial front. You clearly have noticed the new design of the blog that we've been testing. You have also probably seen both of the video interviews that we did this week, as we develop our video series featuring some incredibly interesting people working on awesome music projects. At the end of the week, it's nice to have something like “Espoir" from Darius, who claims his 2nd Track of the Weekend. 

Romantic, exuberant, and hopeful as the name implies, “Espoir" comes off Darius’s new EP "Romance" out on Monday. Thanks as always to Radar Bazaar for nailing this one. 

Feb 21, 2014
#darius #espoir #romance #instrumental electronic music #popular music #track of the weekend #whyd #hot tracks #radar bazaar
Paris Funkmaster & 22Tracks Curator DJ Soulist Video Interview

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Perched atop Montmartre off of a private street stands the Hotel Particulier. Surrounded by gardens, tables, and proud cocks who strut around (of the chicken variety), it is here that we meet DJ Soulist, one of Paris’s most established DJs, responsible for the event What The Funk which has been running for over 10 years. 

Inside the Hotel is a room where Tony’s bowtie is finally not out of place: stuffed fowl, fireplace, giant stag, all the elements of haut culture. Enjoy with a tumbler of bourbon.  

Big thanks to the team at Hotel Particulier and of course Masscut for making this all possible! 

DJ Soulist: The Whyd Interview from Tony Hymes on Vimeo.

Feb 20, 2014
#dj soulist #stag #deer head #interview #whyd #paris #funk #what the funk #22tracks #relax #beats #hotel particulier #masscut
From The GroundSounds Up: Culture From LA And Beyond

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GroundSounds is rapidly emerging as a popular destination for culture heads: what’s the average reader/viewer/listener of GroundSounds like?

The average reader/viewer/listener of GroundSounds varies, however most are avid music listeners who love to discover new musicians, bands, and artists. Our readers come to GroundSounds to read about emerging trends, watch exclusive video interviews, and musical performances. If you’re a creative mind looking for inspiration, come to GroundSounds. 

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Jon, how did your background in entertainment media lead you to where you are today, and what are you doing differently than everyone else? 

If it wasn’t for my media background I wouldn’t know how to run and operate GroundSounds efficiently and effectively. I have gained a lot of skills working for various media outlets, as well as many industry contacts that have helped my journey along the way. GroundSounds video content definitely helps to separate us from the bunch, not many music blogs are on red carpets getting exclusive info, and the ones that are tend to focus on talking to already established acts, while we are focusing on the “little guys,” the musicians or bands that everyone tends to skip over. I feel that our attention to up-and-coming musicians as well as emerging artists is definitely giving us an edge. GroundSounds is also operated out of pure passion, this is not a job - I think this aspect has a profound impact on what we are becoming, it is coming from a very pure and genuine state of being. 

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Tell us about the team: who is the best at chess, who knows about the most obscure bands, and who do your readers like the most? 

The team is amazing, GroundSounds would not be possible without the team! As far as chess is concerned I’m not certain, however when it comes to finding diamonds in the rough (amazing obscure bands) Brendon Goldwasser definitely gives the team a run for their money. However, I should add that Jake Craney isn’t too bad either! Big shout outs to the rest of the team Danielle Turner, Tahsan Scott, Tim Gadient, Ryan Cornelius, Emily Vargas, Bigg A.D., Tessie Navarro, Jolie Doggett - each and everyone of them bring so much to the table. 

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LA is famous for two motifs in music: sun and angst. Which one will rule in 2014? Are musicians feeling positive or jaded? 

While it is extremely easy to become jaded in LA, we don’t have time for that! We keep things moving with positivity and a bright outlook, as do many musicians and bands, we hope they keep it that way! 

Feb 19, 20143 notes
#LA #music scene #groundsounds #music blog #interview #jon berrien #culture #whyd #new music #emerging artists
Turning Tracks into Stories: A Revolutionary Idea From Shut Up And Play The Books & La Boudonnaye

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Last week one of the most innovative artistic projects on the web was launched by Shut Up & Play The Books, a music and literature site, with a very interesting angle: anyone can suggest a track that they love, and five tracks will be selected for an ultimate playlist. From this playlist, code-named #pentatracks, 5 authors will write short novellas over the course of two months. The resulting anthology will be published in digital and print by La Boudonnaye, for the pleasure of the world’s audiences.

They are using Whyd to host the #pentatracks playlist, and you can nominate your favorite track for the next 10 days directly on Whyd by mentioning @ Shut Up & Play The Books. Your track just might make the cut to inspire a new type of literature. 

We’re excited to be a part of such a new idea, and you can learn all about the project in our video interview with Laurent Bettoni of La Boudonnaye [EN FRANÇAIS]. And click here for the official rules or participation. 

Send in your tracks now! 

Feb 18, 2014
#laurent bettoni #whyd #interview #la boudonnaye #digital publishing #shut up & play the books #contest #tracklist #novella #authors #innovative arts #crowdsourcing #video
Wednesday Evening: Jolicloud's Ecosystem Party

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On Wednesday evening here in Paris Whyd will be presenting at Jolicloud’s Ecosystem Party. For those of you that don’t know, Jolicloud is a virtualization software where you can access and manage all of your content. Jolicloud will be making some big announcements, and you can probably imagine what that might be…

If you’re available, we highly recommend that you come and see some of the presentations. It’s free and we’ll be there! 

Link to the event to reserve a ticket

Never stop jamming! 

Feb 17, 2014
#jolicloud #virtualization #ecosystem #integration #event #paris #tech #whyd
Track of the Weekend #71: Todd Terje - "Delorean Dynamite"

One of our favorite Norse alliterates is back with a new cut that reminds us of the days of Back to the Future: funky, bouncy, with midis flying high and enough synths to establish this track in the 80’s. “Delorean Dynamite" is the new single from Todd Terje’s upcoming album "It’s Album Time" due out on April 8th! Thanks to the always trendy Radar! for snapping it up first! 

Feb 14, 2014
#track of the weekend #todd terje #delorean dynamite #radar #whyd #community #popular music #hot tracks
Party Photos from Last Night @ Le Dandy

Headaches abound, stomachs upset from half-chewed late night kebabs, and only two of us are in the office (it’s almost noon) which are three signs of an EXCELLENT night partying together last night. Thanks to DYLTS for all of their help, to Leze Majestic, WEKEED, and Cheaper Shepherd for jamming all night, and to everyone who came out to say hi. 

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Stickers from DYLTS

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Leze Majestic

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Adrien Lemaire & Friends - Founder DYLTS

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Dr. Joly

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A great partnership: Whyd x DYLTS

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Manu & Gilles

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Vimare & Company

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Loick Muller + Bottle of Vodka = Peace and Love

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Voilà

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Jie

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Hipster limit reached: Instagramming a polaroid 

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Looking for a way into Tony’s mind

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Playing a game where if you laugh first you get slapped, it ended in a tie.

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Feb 14, 20143 notes
#party #photos #aperomusictech #le dandy #paris #nightlife #wekeed #leze majestic #dylts #cheaper shepherd #concert #whyd #team #gilles #dr. joly #loick muller
See you tonight!

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Final call for everyone in Paris, tonight Whyd and DYLTS are taking over Bathroom Afterwork at Le Dandy (metro Pigalle). To recap: 

#AperoMusicTech starting at 19hr30, followed by the WEKEED concert part kicking off around 21hr30. If you’re with Whyd, tell them at the door to get in for free after 21hr00. Awesome stickers up for grabs for DYLTS’s 2nd birthday! 

Official event link

We’re looking forward to seeing you there, and don’t worry if you’re not in Paris, we’ll soon be coming to your city too! 

Never stop jamming!

Feb 13, 2014
#do you like that song #event #aperomusictech #party #paris #le dandy #bathroom #afterwork #wekeed #dylts #concert #whyd #community
Whyd Bookmarklet adds Deezer and DailyMotion Functionality

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A little news on the development front! We’re full steam ahead on the mobile app development, avoiding all icebergs and premature demises, but Grand Master Adrien still managed to pull a little trick out of his sleeve: 

The bookmarklet now supports DailyMotion videos and embeds and it works on Deezer too. For the moment, it will only recognize the Deezer track that you are playing, and not other tracks on the page you are viewing. 

Much, much more to come! Never stop jamming

Feb 11, 2014
#whyd update #programming #bookmarklet #deezer #dailymotion #functionality #development #whyd #app
Calling All Music People: Looking For Interesting Projects To Interview

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Yes, after almost two years of hard work, featuring awesome people and serving as a platform for souls to share their stories upon, our blog will soon be getting a much-needed facelift, and so will the content that is shared here too. We will be pushing towards more dynamic formats, like podcasts, vines, and GIFS; and most importantly, video. 

So we need your help: if you know someone who is doing something truly amazing, but is almost completely unknown, send us a tip! If you yourself are trying to do something never done before, shattering musical genres, inventing new business models for music, or designing awesome cover art for different groups, and you want to be interviewed, please, hit us up and make yourself known! 

All tips should be sent to tony[AT]whyd[DOT]com

Can’t wait to take this thing to the next level!

Feb 10, 20144 notes
#music people #features #interviews #projects #video #podcasts #blog #facelift #new format #new design #content #stories #whyd #community
Track of the Weekend #70: Fixpen Sill + 20syl - "Obsession"

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A gastro/stomach flu filled week is finally coming to a close, but there has been some epic music shared across Whyd, helping to cope with the writhing stomach pain, dry heaving, and chills while wrapped up in bed. Most notably, two intriguing French forces came together for a track called “Obsession" a refreshing commentary on hip hop and rap from Fixpen Sill (a hip hop duo from Nantes/Paris) and 20syl, one of the members of Whyd favorites C2C. If you haven’t heard the track yet, you can instantly identify 20syl’s signature style, and Fixpen Sill’s lyrics are pretty entertaining, if you speak French is, but the key takeaway is the chorus: "Rap is something you do, hip hop is something you live."

Congrats to Raphael RC from TUNE X TUNE for nailing this Track of the Weekend! 

Feb 7, 2014
#gastro #stomach flu #20syl #fixpen sill #french hip hop #rap #obsession #c2c #whyd #track of the weekend #trending music #collaboration #dj
Vinhal: The Founder of Fita Bruta, Talks Music, Brazil, And The International Scene

It is a cloudy, chilly winter’s day in Paris when Vinhal joins me via Skype to recount his adventures in music from a place that could not be further away from the French capital, both culturally and temporally. Vinhal himself is no stranger to Paris, having spent time studying here. It’s where he even picked up one of his current jobs. But on this day our winter is his summer. 

Vinhal works for X5 in Brazil, a compilation service with offices in Stockholm and the US as well, which takes catalogues from labels and repackages them for sale. It was this job that started during his Paris days, and he kept after he returned to Brazil. Yet his focus and passion for Brazilian music go much deeper, which is evident in his other jobs: supervisor at the CCBB, or the Cultural Centers of the Banco do Brasil, where he is currently organizing the Bahai Invasion music showcase. there are three CCBBs, in São Paulo, Rio, and Brasilia, and together make up one of the most visited museums in the world. Remember, Brazil is a huge country. 

Working in a cultural center would give anyone the credentials to discuss their country’s culture, but Vinhal is more of an authority than that. He is the founder and one of the editors of Fita Bruta, a website that has covered and followed Brazilian and international music for the past three years. Fita Bruta literally means “raw take” or the recording of a track before it is mixed and mastered. Fita Bruta has rapidly grown to be a site of reference for the Brazilian scene. 

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When asked where Brazilian music is making inroads internationally, Vinhal first mentions the holy grail: the US, where trending artists like Tyler the Creator and his crew — as well as groups like Vampire Weekend — cite Brazilian music as a cool source of inspiration. There is also the recent release of The Existential Soul of Tim Maia, a compilation created by Luaka Bop (David Byrne’s label) especially for the US market: 

Vinhal also points to Portugal, which inhales Brazilian music, something that might be expected, however he notes that not very much Portuguese music makes it down to Brazil. “It’s just that Brazil is so big!” And finally, Spain is an interesting market for new Brazilian indie music. Of course, there is also “Ai Se Eu Tu Pego” which, for better or worse, at least created a worldwide sensation that put Brazil a little more front and center in the world music scene. 

As for the future, Vinhal and his crew hope to professionalize Fita Bruta this year, continuing with their mission. To keep up with the latest tracks that Vinhal finds, subscribe to him on Whyd, and make sure you connect with Fita Bruta too if you’d like to learn more about what’s rocking Brazil at the moment. 

Feb 6, 2014
#m vinhal #fita bruta #brazilian music scene #interview #portugal #brazil #spain #us #tyler the creator #vampire weekend #ai se eu tu pego #ccbb #x5 #music business

January 2014

9 posts

Track of the Weekend #69: Metronomy - "Love Letters"

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You’ve been waiting for it (we all have). The most sexual-numbered Track of the Weekend has finally come. “Love Letters" by Metronomy has seduced us: licking our ears, fondling our chests, tickling our $%^#@, s#&$@g our #$%&#@, and #%&@$ our &@$%# like only Metronomy can. Congrats RADAR! for getting it to us first! 

Never stop #*&%$@$

Jan 31, 2014
#metronomy #love letters #track of the weekend #69 #whyd #popular music
Party Time: Thursday, February 13th, all your questions answered

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Oh yeah, after what has been two exciting months, which saw the Whyd community grow by 60% in January alone, we’re busting out the dancing shoes to celebrate at the latest version of #AperoMusicTech. Just as we’ve upped our game with Whyd, so will we up the game with our next party on Thursday, February 13th. 

What’s going on? 

Those of you Whyd faithful know about trendy music blog Do You Like That Song? which was just featured yesterday as the Music Blog of the Week in The Guardian! They are celebrating their 2nd birthday which officially happened this week, but throwing a party at “Bathroom” a unique event series at Le Dandy with us and some other cool partners, combining forces with #AMT for an excellent evening of jamming.

Thanks to their connections in the music space, DYLTS has brought in WEKEED, one of Paris’s hottest electro duos blending beats and sensuality, which promises to be an excellent show, just listen to this track: 

Where are we partying?

Moving up the venue scale for 2014, we’re hosting the party at Le Dandy, one of Paris’s most visually stylish “appartements de nuit.” Come before 21h00 for free admission, or, if you show up a little later, just say that you are with Whyd or DYLTS and you should be fine! 

Should I take my Friday off of work?

No, don’t waste a vacation day, just ask to work from home, that’s what we’ll be doing!

Can I bring friends?

Yes, all of them.

Here is the official event link

See you there! 

Jan 31, 20141 note
#never stop jamming #aperomusictech #amt #le dandy #do you like that song #paris #event #nightlife #community #party #wekeed #leze majesté
Two tracks per day & India's Music Scene: The Whyd Interview with Trackdrops

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Yo dudes! Can you introduce yourselves? Where are you from and when did music start seriously influencing your lives?

Vikram: I am a Canadian who moved to India just so that I could miss the T dot. An erstwhile investment banker turned entrepreneur, I’m best known as the reason why women stay single. Music was instrumental to my memory of childhood. I was surrounded by a healthy variety of genres from the inimitable Rick Astley to ghazal maestro Ghulam Ali. The fault of which lies with my parents, both of whom had a schizophrenic record collection that would play out every evening. I became extremely active (bordering on obsessive) around the time Radiohead launched their “In Rainbows” album. 

Steve: My name is Steve Abraham and I’m from Mumbai. I’m pretty sure music started playing a serious role in my life ever since I was a kid. Much like Vikram’s upbringing, my parents would play all this great music in the house ranging from the Beatles to Doo Wop to Jazz and the Blues. I probably didn’t fully understand what I was hearing at the time, but I knew I liked it. Ever since then, music has been a part of my daily life. Everclear’s “Sparkle and Fade” was the first album I really “got into” as a teenager. 

You created Trackdrops. What’s the general idea, who’s the team, and who should come listen to your site? 

Vikram: The team is Steve Abraham, aka Punkflop; and myself, Vikram Ramchandani, aka Nika. It must be noted however, that the chicas dig da Nika. True story. 

Steve: Trackdrops is a simple idea - a daily dose of one song each from our individual tastes with no restrictions on genre or time of release. What sounds good to us goes on the site. Vikram and I have always had these long conversations about artists we like, so we were hoping to take that conversation online and hopefully get people to see the reasons we like a certain song. Two songs a day are more than enough. In this day and age the amount of information you’re exposed to is overwhelming, so this way people can actually take the time to focus on and hopefully appreciate the music. All are welcome of course - whether you’re a music junkie or a person just looking for something new to listen to. 

What is the music scene like in Mumbai? Should we all start booking tickets to come out there? 

Vikram: Of course you should book your tickets, given the state of the economy we are in desperate need of dollars and pounds. The music scene in growing at an incredible pace with the advent of new music venues, schools and concerts. We have also burnt all remaining copies of any Venga Boys trakcs. 

Steve: Like Vikram said, the music scene is definitely picking up. We have had international artists play in the country who I never thought I’d see live in India. However, we do have a long ways to go in terms of catching up with other international music havens. There is a local music scene, but I find that the same handful of bands is circulated throughout the year, which tends to get boring after a while. So unless you’re into specific Indian bands or want to visit India, I would save my money for another city if it is the music you are chasing. 

Do you have any plans for the future of Trackdrops? Anything we should look forward to in 2014? 

Vikram: We are extra excited to get a playlist out for the people who visit our site on a daily basis. So our fingers are crossed in hope that the super stellar team at Whyd get a Wordpress plug in sorted out. Till then we’re just gonna keep dropping some aural goodness. 

Steve: We’re really just taking a day-by-day approach with the site - adding minor details to make it more interesting and user friendly. But overall we’ve kept things minimal, as that was the whole point of Trackdrops in the first place. The focus will always be on the music. Implementing playlists through Whyd was always in the cards, so we’re excited about getting that launched. I think the main thing to look forward to on Trackdrops in 2014 is what we always look forward to every year - new music! 

Jan 29, 2014
#steve abraham #vikram ramchandani #punkflop #nika #trackdrops #music curation #music blog #interview #whyd #community #embed #influence #india #mumbai
The Next #AperoMusicTech @ Le Dandy: Thursday, February 13th

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Now that everyone has had a chance to settle back into the year properly, we are pleased to announce the next #AperoMusicTech on Thursday, February 13th. The event is celebrating the 2nd Anniversary Party for our good friends and trendy music blog Do You Like That Song? who will be lining up a few different artists to play at the event including WEKEED! It promises to be a great time, we can’t wait to see you there! 

Jan 28, 2014
#le dandy #paris #event #aperomusictech #anniversary party #do you like that song #DYLTS #whyd
500,000 Tracks Added

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January has been absolutely enormous for us here at Whyd, with an overwhelming international response to the opening of the platform, new team members, a big infusion of investment, and massive growth. Last week, we passed an important milestone, one that makes us take a moment to pause and reflect:

Last week, we passed 500,000 tracks added to Whyd. This is roughly the equivalent of 3.32 years of music, which is pretty good since we’ve only been around as a music service for less than two years.

For this, we deeply thank our wonderful community of music lovers whose pursuit to never stop jamming has been nothing short of wonderful music to our ears.

We love you!  

Jan 27, 20141 note
#whyd update #500000 #tracks
Damien joins the Whyd Team

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Welcome to the Whyd family Damien! What a strong addition to the team! Damien is the man who will bring us the mobile app we have all been dreaming of. 

Damien is currently based in San Francisco but it’s only a matter of time before the Whyd team joins him.

We’re so excited to have you with us. Gonna be an exciting ride.

Never stop jamming!

Jan 23, 2014
We're Open: The New Era Of Whyd Begins

Today is a big day, and a big deal. We’re extremely excited and happy, with gigantic smiles on our faces and big hopes for the future. If you can’t already tell, Whyd is a little bit different.

We are so very, very, very proud to announce that Whyd has raised $700K of seed investment, to allow us to expand the team and power forward into the future to connect music lovers from all over the world and to help you organize the best of the newest music you find on the web. 

And as of right now, Whyd is no longer an invite-only community, we have opened to larger audiences to connect them to you and your music, and to help them share their favorite music with you too. We welcome all of our new community members with open arms, and we would like to take a moment to thank everyone who has joined us over the past year and a half. Your support has ben critical, and it is thanks to your advice and help that we were able to raise this money and continue our mission. We are doing this together, and your roles will only become more important as we continue.

So keep sending us emails, keep suggesting things, keep telling us when things don’t work, keep coming to our events, keep pushing us to be better, and most importantly, never stop jamming. 

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Jan 6, 20145 notes
A "Happy" New Year from Pharrell: Track of the Weekend #69

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In France at midnight on New Year’s there is an embarrassing tradition to play an abomination of a song called “Les Sardines” by Patrick Sebastien while everyone jumps around. To prove it, it was the top most-played song on Spotify along with Abba’s “Happy New Year” in France for New Year’s Eve.

(Insert heavy sigh here)

Our sushi party was clearly spared this terrible fate, and we imagine that a lot of Whyd music lovers enjoyed a better listening experience while ringing in 2014. One song resurged in popularity, Pharrell’s bouncy and pleasant “Happy" which debuted strongly about a month ago but got added to a lot of New Year’s playlists and rose to the heights of the hot tracks. Melo, congratulations on your first track of the weekend! Great way to start 2014. 

Never stop jamming! 

Jan 3, 20141 note
#track of the weekend #pharrell williams #happy #melodie lily #whyd #popular music #new years #happy new year #france #spotify #patrick sebastien #sardines #abba
Playlist Contest: Who Will Buzz in 2014?

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The New Year is upon us, and what a year 2014 promises to be. If 2013 was any indication, we will have an excellent year of jamming in store for us. But the question we would like to pose to our community of excellent music lovers: who will be the bands and artists that break onto the world scene this year? 

So here’s the deal: starting on January 6th, give us 7 tracks from 7 different new artists that you think will make a push across the world in 2014. Then, share your playlists. After two weeks (so until January 20th) the three most-shared playlists on Facebook and Twitter will be the finalists, from whom our jury will select the best playlist. The winner will receive a bottle of Champagne to celebrate the New Year. 

And, since the internet is notorious for never looking back, at the end of 2014 we will go back and see whose playlist was the most accurate (even if it wasn’t one of the finalists). If you turn out to be the clairvoyant, we will treat you to a huge dinner with champagne and cocktails to your heart’s content in December 2014. So start thinking about it now, the playlist contest goes live on January 6th. 

Jan 2, 2014
#playlist contest #whyd #new music #new artists #music scene #whyd stuff #predictions #2014

December 2013

13 posts

Whyd's 2013 Year In Review

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Well, it’s the last day of 2013, a day of reflection for all of the cool events and milestones from the past year. We started 2013 with a trip down to MIDEM in Cannes, meeting with cool music lovers and industry folk. We flashmobbed a Durban Dance, created hilarious Whyd memes, partied in Barcelona and at the #AperoMusicTech events across Paris.   

We boosted the product with the new recommendation system, launched totally new profiles, stuck a shuffle in there, created Hot Tracks by genre, and beefed up the social features with comments and mentions to get to the Whyd that you see today. 

But more importantly, we shared hundreds of thousands of the best of the newest tracks thanks to you, our wonderful community. What will 2014 have in store for us? Some amazing things, you will see the first step on January 6th, so hold on tight! 

Dec 31, 2013
#whyd update #never stop jamming #community #paris #events #product updates #parties
Les Disquaires de Paris: Whyd's First Podcast [EN FRANCAIS]

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PHOTO COURTESY: NADEGE SOQUET

In early December we met with the dudes from Les Disquaires de Paris, a new association that represents record stores from around Paris. Their mission: have record shops curate playlists and give listeners the details for where to buy physical records from their local record stores. It’s an awesome idea, a virtuous cycle, and a mission that we hope will continue. 

Listen to their interesting story, how it works, Tony’s horrible French, and what their plans are for the future in Whyd’s very first podcast! 

Dec 30, 20131 note
#whyd #interview #podcast #les disquaires de paris #record stores #playlists #association #paris music
Kings of the Year: DISCLOSURE

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Going by the usual method of determining the Track of the Weekend, in this case #68, it would be J.A.C.K.'s upbeat remix of Disclosure's mega single “When A Fire Starts To Burn,” which Tom Crou shared on Whyd and with a little help from Aline it’s been re-added 45 times (!!!) If a track could be on fire, this would be a southern California wilderness disaster. 

But, since Disclosure has just spent the entirety of 2013 owning the Hot Tracks, we need another title for them to explain their incredible worldwide success. Therefore, by popular decision and completely deserved, we anoint Disclosure Whyd’s Kings of the Year, where they will live in infamy until the end of time. 

Never stop jamming! 

Dec 20, 2013
#disclosure #j.a.c.k. #remix #when a fire starts to burn #track of the weekend #kings of the year #whyd #popular music #social network
Do You Like That Song? Christmas Mix 2013

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Our good buddy, playlist contest organizer, and all around musical maniac Do You Like That Song? has put together his end of the year Christmas Mix 2013 featuring his top tracks from the recent past and current present. It’s smooth, funky, and a must-listen for all of you out there getting ready to snuggle up, drink some hot wine, and doze off in front of the fire while forgetting about work and all your cares in the world. 

Just look at this tracklist: 

Cherokee - Don’t Matter feat. Darianna
Jonas Rathsman - Feel What I Feel
Les Loups - Out Of Sight (Ft. Moona)
Bit Funk - Soul Satisfaction
Clubfeet - Cape Town (Panama Remix)
Dino Lenny - I’m Coming Home
Route 94 - My Love
Rhye - The Fall (BRONX Night Dub)
Todd Terje - Spiral (Radio Mix)
Lifelike - Night Patrol
Kraak And Smaak - How We Gonna Stop The Time (Feat. Stee Downes)
Agnes Obel - Fuel To Fire (Hubert Kirchner Edit)

Yeah, exactly. Thanks DYLTS for hooking it up! 

Dec 17, 2013
#do you like that song #dylts #christmas mix #2013 #year end music #hot tracks #popular music #smooth #funk #adrien lemaire #whyd #music lover #mixtape #soundcloud
How Did Maxime Guedj Get 1.6 MILLION Fans? Passionate Hard Work, And A True Love Of Music

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1. Can you introduce yourself? When did the music bug infect you?

Hi! I’m Maxime. Two things I love: solving problems and music. I believe music is essential to us, has always been around and will always be. Given that, I try to improve people’s lives by building web products focused on music. Passion, creativity, focus, and harmony are my four cardinal directions. 

I’ve been listening to music since forever, I couldn’t sleep without it when I was a kid. It really infected me when I had the chance to be the art director at Radio Everyone. I then interviewed many artists, discovered what was going on behind the scenes and decided I wanted to be part of this world. When you see the joy you can bring to people thanks to the universal language of music, everything else looks quite boring in comparison :)

2. You founded the huge music community on Facebook “Je Ne Peux Pas Vivre Sans La Musique (La Musique)" how much time did you spend choosing its name, and how can you explain its incredible success?

It was in 2009. At that time I remember I understood the power of communities and that it should be the base of any project online. Seeing the rapid growth of Facebook, that’s where I wanted to bet and I started a group there with this name. It attracted a few people and in a few weeks we were a few thousand exchanging music there. Then Facebook released their famous “Pages.” Seeing the huge potential of a page compared to a group, I converted it (you could do that at this time). The magic of viral buzz started instantly, it was really crazy. Hundreds of people were liking it every second! I couldn’t stop refreshing my browser and for a week I couldn’t go to class because I couldn’t focus on anything other that that! In a couple of months, more than 300,000 people liked it and today we’re reaching more than 1,640,000 fans! 

It would be pretentious and untrue to say that I’ve got a clear explanation of all of that it was all planned. But I can say this is the result of a few things: luck, passionate hard work, and perfect timing. One of the many things I’ve learned is you’ve got to stay creative and true to yourself along the road if you want to keep making something people truly enjoy and are willing to spread around them. I try to always remember that behind data, analytics, likes, comments, and clicks there are real people behind their screen using what I create so I’d better make something that is honest and has a positive impact. 

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3. How does your love for discovering new music translated into your new project Mailtape?

Mailtape is an idea I had during a trip to San Francisco. We help people discover new music in a very natural way by offering Sunday morning listening sessions. We’re trying here to create a very intimate moment where the listener can really let herself go with the music and open her ears to new sounds never heard before, without judgement. 

Our home is open and inspiring artists are collaborating with us on every session, giving that way their unique touch to it. Nicolas Jaar, Connan Mockasin, Kid Koala, HVOB, Fat Freddy’s Drop and many other have already been featured. 

We’re two working on it with Ludovic. We’re thinking about opening new positions in order to spread this experience to more and more people around the world. 

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4. Who should sign up and how can we support it?

Well, everybody course! You just need to love music and be curious. Signing up is as easy as ABC, put your email, and…that’s all! We’ll make sure to wake you up gently every Sunday morning. 

If you love it and want to support us, spread the word and don’t hesitate to make donations directly through our website. 

Thanks Maxime! You can subscribe to him on Whyd to keep up with some of his latest personal discoveries! 

Dec 16, 20131 note
#maxime guedj #je ne peux pas vivre sans la musique #la musique #facebook page #social media #interview #mailtape #weekly music letter #curation #entrepreneur #profile #community #buzz #whyd
Track of the Weekend #67: Disclosure - "January" (Kaytranada Edit)

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THIS IS KAYTRANADA’S CAT

For the whole week we thought that the powerful combination of Daft Punk and Julian Casablancas, The Strokes frontman whose pleasantly drunken, Lower East Side lyrics make for a melancholic, auto-tuned romp alongside the steady pop beats of the French electro-power duo. But no, no, it doesn’t happen like that on Whyd. 

In a surge of popularity, Kaytranada's edit of Whyd favorites Disclosure’s track “January" bubbled right to the top of the Hot Tracks in the nick of time, solidifying its place as the Track of the Weekend and giving Disclosure their 4th Track of the Weekend. Kaytranada - the Haitian-born, Canadian electronic artist - strips the track down, exposing it for what it is, before rebuilding it into an infectious bounce that keeps rebounding around the corners of your mind long after you finish listening to it. His new album of remixes drops on December 17th!

Big thanks to our man Scotch for slipping this into our aural drinks!

Never stop jamming! 

Dec 13, 2013
#kaytranada #never stop jamming #whyd #popular music #trending #music #streaming music #social music network #electornic music #january #disclosure #edit #remix
The Next Level: Comments, Mentions, and So Much More

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2014 is nearly upon us, and the future waits for no one. The Whyd community has been growing rapidly, but so has it’s depth and density. More and more Whyd music lovers are meeting offline, coming to events, and connecting to share amazing music across the world. Now, just released today, we take the social element of Whyd to the next level. 

First, you will see a new, denser stream, with smaller track boxes that expand to reveal what we’ve all been waiting for: comments. We replaced the track page with this box to better integrate it into the listening experience. Now you can have conversations with other music lovers based on the tracks that you both enjoy. Want to add another friend to that conversation? Use the @ to mention people and bring them in, enhancing the experience making sure that people don’t miss out. 

This type of communication is badly needed in a place where people are emotionally connected by the excellent music they share. We’ve had many examples of people getting in touch with us because they wanted to contact other Whyd music lovers, something that Whyd was definitely created to encourage! 

You will also see a sleek new player at the bottom of the screen with a pop up window for the video (if it comes from YouTube or Vimeo) and enhanced controls. Now you can toggle the video on or off. You can go to full screen (you can also still use the F key for that), and if you click on the song title, it brings you back to where the song is playing from if you’ve navigated away from it. 

There are many other small design updates, modernizing Whyd’s look while still retaining the purposeful simplicity that has carried us so well. We’ll let you find those for yourself :)

Of course, we need your feedback to report bugs, tell us what worked and what didn’t, and most of all is your experience on Whyd improving? We’re always here at hello@whyd.com

Never stop jamming! 

Dec 12, 2013
#never stop jamming #whyd #update #comments #mentions #new function #communications #social network #announcement #news
Playlist of the Year: The Hottest Tracks on Whyd from 2013

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It’s that time of year again, when people frantically try to sum up the events, changes, and developments of entire year in blog posts, articles, and podcasts, and look forward to the year to come. There is no doubt that 2014 is going to be a monumental year for Whyd, and also for streaming music services in general. But now it’s time for one of our favorite things to do as music lovers, present the playlist of the year, featuring Whyd’s Tracks of the Weekend.

2013 was a good year for Woodkid, Flume, and Ryan Hemsworth, relatively new artists that have taken the world by storm with all three netting two Whyd Tracks of the Weekend each. It was also a year of bands returning to the scene, like the obvious Daft Punk but also Whyd favorites Metronomy, Arcade Fire, Arctic Monkeys, Phoenix, and Vampire Weekend. New faces that are still nascent like Man Is Not A Bird, In The Valley Below, and Chamberlain also earned their spots on this playlist, and we look forward to great things to come from all of them.  

Without further ado, the best music from 2013 as determined by our global community of music lovers, PLEASE SHARE AND SHARE WIDELY: 

Dec 9, 2013
#track of the weekend #hot tracks #popular music #music #streaming #2013 #list #year end #2014 #preview #arcarde fire #daft punk #vampire weekend #chamberlain #man is not a bird #in the valley below #metronomy #phoenix #whyd #community #trending #woodkid #flume #ryan hemsworth #playlist
Track of the Weekend #66: Sam Cooke - "Having A Party" (ProleteR Tribute)

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The holiday season is officially upon us, and we are looking forward to one of our favorite things: lots and lots of parties. Fitting then that the Track of the Weekend this week is a spiced-up tribute to Sam Cooke’s Motown classic “Having A Party" put together by French beatmaker ProleteR. How can you not love a song that so effortlessly croons:

“Mister, Mister DJ, keep those records playing,
Because I’m having such a good time, dancing with my baby.”

Never stop jamming! 

Dec 6, 2013
#track of the weekend #sam cooke #proleter #hot tracks #having a party #tribute #holiday season #whyd #community #tony hymes
Get A Head Start on 2014

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Are you one of those cool kids that knows about bands before they even exist yet? You went to Daft Punk’s flute recital in middle school? You knew Lana Del Rey when she was just Liz Grant? You hate the machine that churns out catchy pop and you feel robbed when you know that Lorde was on Universal the whole time? Yeah, us too. Luckily, thanks to London’s Music Like Dirt, you can get a peek at the music that will take the world by storm, next year. 

This playlist “The UK Blog Sound of 2014" is everything that mainstream music is not, but everything that it will be. The future sounds bright. 

Dec 5, 2013
#music like dirt #neil meads #2014 #new music #blog sound of 2014 #cool tracks #future #forecast #playlist #feature #whyd #community
Awesome Party Organized by Simplib, Hosted at Deezer: Featuring Some Great Music Start Ups

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Last night was nothing short of an excellent occasion. The brand new platform Simplib, which is a way for people to share cool websites (like Whyd!) that they find with their friends, organized a warm and exciting event at Deezer Headquarters in the middle of Paris. 

The idea was simple, showcase cool music start ups, and bring us all together to show what we do to interested people, journalists, and potential partners. Along with Whyd were our good buddies Evergig, who have seen some major success in 2013 through revolutionizing the concert going experience. We also got to meet and chat with some extremely cool dudes at 22Tracks, one of the best sources for new music around. 

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There were masterful cocktails, great beer, a cool show, jam sessions, innovative presentations, more stickers than you could attach to your body, and a brilliant vibe that kept running well after the event was supposed to be over. 

To the organizers at Simplib, thank you so much for your hard work, organization, and for inviting us to be a part of this. To Deezer, you guys are awesome, we love your enthusiasm and it was great to be in the nest. To all of the Whyd cats who came down to chill with us, thank you!! If you can’t tell, we are still buzzing with the energy. 

Looking forward to more of those types of events! 

Dec 4, 2013
#simplib #deezer #whyd #evergig #music event #start up #networking #22tracks #event
Broadcaster at Radio Campus Paris, Community Manager at JNPPVSM, Jonathan Melgar Cannot Live Without Music

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IMAGE: COURTESY RADIO CAMPUS PARIS

1. Can you introduce yourself? Where are you from?

I’m Jonathan Melgar, I’m the Community Manager of JNPPVSM, a great community of music lovers on Facebook. I’m also a music broadcaster at Radio Campus Paris (93.9 FM). Everyday I dig finding the best new albums and bands. These bands just need a little push to start their careers and as far as I can, I try to give them this visibility on the radio. 

I grew up in the northern suburbs of Paris, way too close to CDG airport. I now live in Paris at Menilmontant. 

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IMAGE: COURTESY JONATHAN’S WHYD PROFILE

2. What is Radio Campus Paris, what do you do there, and who should listen to your broadcasts? 

Radio Campus Paris is an associative radio based in Paris. Its role is to give a voice to the student community in Paris. You’ll hear all kinds of radio shows on it: cinema, news, art, history, sciences, but mostly MUSIC! 200 people are working hard everyday to give the best experience possible to our audience. 

It’s original, with no advertisements, fresh music, and lovely people. If you are looking for a new way to discover music, just turn on your radio to 93.9 FM in Paris. 

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IMAGE: COURTESY JNPPVSM

3. You just started a new adventure as the Community guy at “Je Ne Peux Pas Vivre Sans La Musique” (I can’t live without music) which could be the motto of every music lover on Whyd. What attracted you to the project and what are your goals there?

I was attracted to JNPPVSM because I’ve always had this will to share music as widely as possible. I love to ask people randomly what is the artist or song they love RIGHT NOW and I start digging in my head to find out what could be their next crush in music. Sharing is caring! 

The originality of this community: they post dozens of YouTube videos everyday in order to share them with the rest of the community! 

4. Time to get personal, what type of music makes you move? When did you realize that music would occupy such a large part of your life? 

I think I realized that music was going to be important in my life around 20. It’s kind of late but some people will just never realize what they’re good at, ever! I had first experience in the music industry at this time and I knew I was made to dig and share music. I have to say I’m lucky, working as a music broadcaster on Radio Campus Paris and managing JNPPVSM is so cool and it’s so me! Wouah!

I just made this playlist for Whyd and its community! Hope you’ll like it. 

Thanks Jonathan! Make sure you follow him on Whyd for his latest favorite tracks! 

Dec 3, 2013
#whyd #jonahtan melgar #radio campus paris #la musique #jnppvsm #je ne peux pas vivre sans la musique #facebook music group #music selection #curation #trendsetter #interview #profile
A Huge Opportunity for Man Is Not A Bird, and THEY NEED YOUR HELP

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Hello everyone! Hope you had a nice weekend, we celebrated Thanksgiving in Paris, with the Whyd team and our buddies coming together to give thanks for everything that we are lucky enough to have. One thing that we are very lucky to have are great friends and co-workers, who have become big parts of our lives. One of those people, Adrien, the man who makes everything at Whyd possible, needs our help! 

As you surely know, Adrien is the drummer for the post-rock group Man Is Not A Bird (MINAB), who have been buzzing lately around northern France after their tour last week in Angers, Strasbourg, and Paris. They are playing a concert on Wednesday (December 4) here in Paris at Batofar, and it is very important that you are all there. 

The organizer of the concert is also organizing a concert of MINAB’s favorite group: And So I Watch You From Afar, in the spring 2014 here in Paris. He said that if we can get a big group together, Man Is Not A Bird might be able to open for And So I Watch You From Afar! It would be a dream come true, a completion of the cycle of creation and inspiration, and would be the type of story that everyone wants to see. This week, we can make that happen. 

So go to this link: http://www.fnacspectacles.com/place-spectacle/manifestation/Pop-rock-Folk-DADS—-MAN-IS-NOT-A-BIRD—JEAN-JEAN-BFD04.htm and reserve your places today. If there is ONE concert that you are going to attend, please make it this one. The music is excellent, the venue perfectly suited, and the possibilities are powerful. Let’s do it! 

Dec 2, 2013
#man is not a bird #and so i watch you from afar #tickets #event #adrien joly #tour #paris #batofar #concert #opportunity #whyd #team #thanksgiving

November 2013

11 posts

Track of the Weekend #65: Cashmere Cat - "With Me"

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At the beginning of the week, it looked like the cultural force that is Pharrell and the clever idea behind the 24-hour music video were going to rule the hot tracks with the wonderfully positive track “Happy" added by Whyd's guardian angel Mélodie Lily. But that song is destined for greater things — like serious radio play around the world for the near future and maybe even more. 

Music on Whyd move so much faster, and instead it’s the oddly unpredictable “With Me" which gives Cashmere Cat their second track of the weekend, added by world explorer and graphic designer Julie Bénard, “With Me” is deep and sometimes confusing, the the impact is undeniable. 

Nov 29, 2013
#julie benard #melodie lily #whyd #hot tracks #track of the weekend #happy #pharrell williams #cashmere cat #music #trending #streaming music #with me
Track of the Weekend #64: Flume & Chet Faker - "Drop The Game"

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What happens when two Australian electro artists who are already well-known around the world get together? Endless possibilities. “Drop The Game" harks back to call and response, a bit of a round, leveraging the sound of voice to drive the music forward, heightened by the touches of electronic scaling that trace the background like the lines between the stars in constellations. And the dude dancing in the video must have inherited the moondancing gene from MJ because he defies gravity and friction. Awesome video to watch! 

Big thanks as usual to R∆D∆R! for nailing this one. If you haven’t you should head over to his brand new page on Facebook and show the man some love! 

Nov 22, 2013
#chet faker #flume #moondance #drop the game #new release #track of the weekend #hype music #whyd #radar!
The Very First In-Page Whyd Button: Check Out Museekly

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Some of you might know Thomas Vimare from the heavy beats that he drops on the Whyd community. Others might know him from the slick design he uses on his Whyd page. But you might not yet know about his project Museekly, which just launched this week, as a new way to bring forward the art and design of music, while sharing the cool favorites that he finds across the web. Take one look and you will be hooked. 

But the coolest part (for us definitely) is the sharing options that he has programmed into the site. Alongside each track is the Facebook, Twitter, and now Whyd button for people to share the music from Museekly directly to their Whyd page. 

It is an amazing development that we are very excited about and look forward to seeing more in the future!

Make sure you follow Museekly on Twitter, Like it on Facebook, and of course subscribe to Museekly on Whyd! 

Nov 19, 20132 notes
#thomas vimare #museekly #twitter #facebook #whyd #whyd button #music sharing #new music #blog #development #programming #update
Breaking the Barrier Between Physical/Digital & Visual/Sound: The Missing Channel Interview

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1. How long has The Missing Channel been around? How did it start?

The Missing Channel is a multi-shaped label that started as a experimental project in Amsterdam in 2010. It started after four years of playing gigs and creating visuals for music in various places around France and The Netherlands. We have always been interested in linking images with sound, but were quite frustrated by the conventional format of the VJing: it always consists of a screen behind a musician and is always there to somehow complete the music. But practically, it mostly acts on the same level as stage lights. How can we change that? how can both of these media really communicate? The Missing Channel was then created on this motto: always trying to approach music like we approach visuals and the other way around. 

Since 2010, The Missing Channel has been creating events and connecting numerous artists together on the internet first, and then during real gigs or exhibitions. The Missing Channel is more about bringing people together rather than patronizing them like any conventional label would. 

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2. What is unique about The Missing Channel?

The Missing Channel is unique only by its plurality, it is fed by the different actors that all brings their own cultural and artistic background. This joyful mess, somewhere along the creative process, creates a real experimental atmosphere that brings all the actors of the label together in a single movement. 

The Missing Channel is a label for a movement. Especially in a literal sense: it aims at studying music and visuals by experimenting with the moving media that carries and expresses themselves and/or a message. The Missing Channel could be described as a net-label. It was born on the digital medium, the internet, but should not remain intangible, that is why we always try to materialize all the work on a physical level: gigs, exhibitions, books, posters… But those media are not treated as merchandising and especially carriers the work of the Label, each object released carries the concept of The Missing Channel: Why can’t a poster be a song? Why can’t we store an image inside a song? Why can’t a gig be played over internet to cross the physical distances?

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3. Who should listen to your music?

It is always hard to describe an audience especially when you try to think about music and visuals outside the conventional “trend tribes” that characterize external visual outlook along with a specific music genre. Let’s say we like to cross borders, so on the same level we always love when people that usually listen to one specific type of music, who belong to one specific music tribe, end up in one of your gigs listening to our music. And whether they like it or not, there is always an interesting talk that emerges from our confrontation. 

But of course we do electronic music, which means that we do compose music with analog and electronic devices, but that’s all. We are inspired by lots of genres of music and we try to play with composition dogma that exists in electronic music as well as in metal, rap music, etc….

So everybody should listen to our music, everybody with an open mind who wants to expand their usual listening habits. We would not say that people who like “electro” should listen to our music (they can of course) but actually this word was invented at the end of the 80s by major labels in order to embody all the electronic genres and this decision ended up normalizing and narrowing electronic music down until what we know today as “electro music.”

4. In your opinion, how are you changing the dynamic between music and images?

You can only change something when you propose something different and do it in a generous way. What we do are proposals for a new way of seeing the relationship between images and sound. We try to experiment during events, but also when we release new songs, in the digital or physical world. For an example, for the first physical release on The Missing Channel, PaulusP’s Pagus EP, we tried to question how labels usually distribute music: we decided to store the whole EP on mediafire and make is available for free, but the physical version had to add something to that. So we gave away a pack with three visual cards and one CD, the visuals printed on the cards were actually the song directly translated into image form, using a transformation process and the CD was empty, with the URL to download the EP. The whole idea was to question the CD as a medium that carries music and create a real communication between the digital and physical version. And this communication continues with the user as he is able to burn the EP as well as other songs he would judge interesting to juxtapose. 

When we talk about the relationship between music and visuals, we can not avoid the question of the representation of the artist and his music on state. Each live event is for us an opportunity to try to understand the role of the DJ as part of a musical show. This always raises some questions like: does the DJ/Musician have to stage himself, stage his own music? Does this mean that he has to exacerbate his movements? Show his instruments in some sort of attept to prove that he is indeed “making” and not only “playing” (like pressing play on a device) music? That is why every artist on the label have a kind of amateurism in common in their way of crafting music. We all try to make things and not only play them well, and just like an amateur does, when we make things, we experiment, we try, make mistakes but end up most of the time surprising ourselves. 

Thanks for this very innovative look at the music world! Subscribe to The Missing Channel on Whyd for all of their latest tracks! 

Nov 18, 20133 notes
#the missing channel #innovative record label #interview #profile #whyd community #amsterdam #london #france #new music #visual art
Track of the Weekend #63 - Metronomy Is Back!

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Ahead of their next major album release in March of next year, Metronomy dropped their single “I’m Aquarius" at the start of this week. After Pierre-Guillaume added it to Whyd and it got boosted by Aline, the track shot straight to #1 on the Hot Tracks almost immediately. 

If you’ve been with us since the very, very beginning, you will remember the way that we always used Metronomy for an example when describing how Whyd works when we were in beta. “If you want to add a track, like, say, Metronomy, you click here…” “If I re-add a track, say Metronomy…” You get the idea. So needless to say the Whyd team is comprised of big Metronomy fans, and we can’t wait for the new album! 

Nov 15, 20131 note
#track of the weekend #metronomy #im aquarius #aline #whyd #beta #hot tracks #popular music
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