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folkrockf... folkrockf...
 
M$2 May 30, 2009 08:51 PM

I'd like to legally download popular music for free. Any suggestions?

I used Spiral Frog until they went under recently. With them, I could legally download all sorts of music, including popular / Top 40 / hot artists and songs. I'd like to find another service like that.

It needs to be legal here in the United States, for starters. It needs to work on a PC (Windows Vista). It needs to offer downloads, not streaming music - I already stream music through Pandora and Yahoo! Music, so no need to recommend more services like that.

Also, I've tried out QTrax and didn't like it very much. They require you to be connected to the Internet to listen to the files, which doesn't always work for me. (Satellite Internet isn't always reliable...and I disconnect from the wireless network here at home when I want to get some real work done.)

Oh, and I know how to find independent / unsigned downloads - I'm looking for popular music. Everything from Melissa Etheridge to Godsmack to Eminem...and then some. I've already taken advantage of eMusic's free trial, too, so no need to mention that service.
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Interesting: easyeboy

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pmacdon1 pmacdon1
 
 May 30, 2009 09:36 PM
So there are a lot of services that offer free music, but I don't know of any that offer free, popular, DRM free music. The best way I know to do this is to use a google search for mp3 files. I like to use this website to automate the process for me:

http://www.jimmyr.com/mp3_search.php

It works really well and it can find almost any mp3 to download.

The are a few downsides to this. First, there isn't a structured database of music like on services like itunes. This can make it a little slower to find and download music, so thats a definite downside.

The second downside is that the legality is debatable. If the reason you want to download legal music is because you are afraid of legal action, then you have nothing to worry about. You can only get in trouble for uploading music, not downloading it. Really it is the websites that are hosting the music that are performing the illegal action, rather than the person who is downloading the music.

However if your reason for wanting legal music is a moral one, then this probably isn't the solution for you. The record labels won't receive any compensation for your downloads.

I know its not a great solution, but at least its a free option for finding popular artists. Here are a few of the songs I found with this method.

Eminem:
http://g2radio.frag-media.net/mp3a/Eminem%20-%2004%20-%20Cleanin%20Out%20My%20Closet%20-lordraven.mp3
http://www.yoraps.com/music/mixtapes/eminem-relapse.mp3

Godsmack:
http://nozdormuserver.myip.hu/Zene/Saj%C3%A1t%20Zen%C3%A9k/Godsmack/ -- (4 CDs)

Melissa Etheridge
http://hfbtest.net/Songs/Melissa%20Etheridge%20-%20The%20Only%20One.mp3
http://music.d3net.net/English/melissaetheridge-theweaknessinme.mp3
http://fiesta.mp3mirror.com/M/Melissa%20Etheridge/ -- (12 CDs)
Source(s):
http://www.jimmyr.com/mp3_search.php

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folkrockfa... folkrockfa...
 
May 30, 2009 10:15 PM
I was actually looking for downloads that aren't of "dubious" legality. Spiral Frog was fully supported by participating artists and labels, which is why I'm looking for something similar to that service, as I mentioned in my question.

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pmacdon1 pmacdon1
 
May 31, 2009 10:20 AM
Yea I figured you were. The Spiral Frog business model doesn't work though. I have seen a lot of companies like that fail. Since they all use DRM, when they are gone, so is your music usually. So when it comes to downloading free popular music, "dubious" is really the only long term solution currently available.

Hopefully someone comes up with a business model that works soon though.

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trevortye trevortye
 
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easyeboy easyeboy
 
May 30, 2009 09:01 PM
Here's a list of 40 Ways to Download FREE Music Legally
http://www.friedbeef.com/40-ways-to-download-free-music-legally-an-ultimate-guide/

There are more than enough ways to download music FREE, and legally.

Last.fm
http://www.friedbeef.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/lastfm.jpg

Etree.org Live Music Archive
http://www.friedbeef.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/livemusic.jpg

Amazon.com
http://www.friedbeef.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/amazon.jpg
Source(s):
http://www.friedbeef.com/40-ways-to-download-free-music-legally-an-ultimate...

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folkrockfa... folkrockfa...
 
May 30, 2009 10:12 PM
I just waded through all of the links and sites that you gave me and came up with ONE remix of ONE Eminem song. That's marginally helpful at best, but thanks for trying.

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soundboy soundboy
 
May 30, 2009 10:06 PM
Currently I get most of my new music off of music blogs. They usually have the newest songs that are popular. Most will offer the mp3 until the artist or label requests that it be removed. I use the site The Hype Machine which gathers mp3 posts from tons of the best music blogs out there. Give it a try and see if you can find what you are looking for.

http://hypem.com/

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greggypett... greggypett...
 
November 20, 2009 11:56 PM
There are some really good itunes software downloads here you should try out.
Source(s):
http://www.soundcrank.com


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