Roger Fingas
Apple will indeed have a number of mainstream musicians host shows on Beats 1 including Drake, Disclosure, St. Vincent, Josh Homme, Pharrell Williams, and Elton John, a report said on Thursday.
Some other people who will have shows include actor Jaden Smith, and Dr. Dre, one of the co-founders of Beats, the The New York Times said on Thursday. Beats 1 will alternate one- and two-hour programming blocks from the station's usual DJs — during weekdays including Zane Lowe, Ebro Darden, and Julie Adenuga — with the special celebrity shows, which will be both planned and hosted by the celebrities in question.
Most other programming details have yet to be made public, but John's show will be called "Elton John's Rocket Hour," and mix old and new music.
The station is also beginning to line up celebrity interviews. The first guest will be rapper Eminem, whose interview has already been recorded, despite Beats 1 not going live until Apple Music debuts on June 30.
Beats 1 is different approach to radio for Apple, which has had little success with the Pandora-like iTunes Radio. A modified version of that service will remain intact alongside Beats 1.
Apple Music itself will be an on-demand service, akin to Spotify or Rdio, costing $10 per month at the end of a three-month free trial. That trial has proven controversial, since Apple initially didn't intend to pay rights holders for streams during that period. It recently reversed course, and is now expected to pay 0.2 cents per song during trials, as well as an additional smaller fee for songwriting rights. A more conventional royalty structure will kick in after trials are finished.
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35 Comments
It would be cool to have a 24 hr. live stream (a la Periscope) from the DJ booths. In fact, it wouldn't take much more of a leap of imagination to see Apple creating a range of Beats stations as MTV-style video channels on Apple TV.
[quote name="sog35" url="/t/186923/beats-1-to-feature-celebrity-shows-hosted-by-elton-john-drake-pharrell-dr-dre-more#post_2739958"]killer. this will be so hot. where are all the Beats acquisition haters now? Doing a sleep over with Robert Frost? [/quote] Ooh just what everyone has been waiting for...Elton John's Rocket Hour. :lol: SiriusXM has had celebrity shows/hosts for a long time. I don't see what the big deal is.
I don't see Yo Yo Ma being considered, just these useless pop stars who make their insipid little tunes.
SiriusXM has had celebrity shows/hosts for a long time. I don't see what the big deal is.
Sirius XM requires special hardware and a monthly subscription, while Beats 1 is available for free on every Mac and iPhone sold in the last 5 years?
EDIT: and iPad and iPod touch.
[quote name="BobJohnson" url="/t/186923/beats-1-to-feature-celebrity-shows-hosted-by-elton-john-drake-pharrell-dr-dre-more#post_2739968"] Sirius XM requires special hardware and a monthly subscription, while Beats 1 is available for free on every Mac and iPhone sold in the last 5 years? EDIT: and iPad and iPod touch. [/quote] I still don't see what the big deal is. Are people that interested in celebrity talk shows?