Are you ready to rock? (or rap, or pop, or…) Web Upon will direct you to 45 sites that offer free music in one form or another. I visited the first 25 and found sites that were favorites of mine and others that were new – I also found a few that are now defunct. Here are the top ten as ranked by Web Upon:
- Pandora
Create your own Radio Station(s) – I have nine. Input one of your favorite bands or songs and Pandora (a product of the Music Genome Project) gives you the opportunity to listen to other bands and songs that are similar to the favorite one chosen. If you like a song you can give it a thumbs up. If you don’t like a song, you can give it a thumbs down and Pandora will move on to the next song. As a result, I have found several new bands that I really enjoy. You can’t choose any specific songs, but Pandora is for you if you enjoy a mix of old and new (to you) tunes. We had a bit of a scare recently about Pandora closing down, but they took on some advertising in order to keep the free tunes coming. This is also my favorite music site. - Last.fm
You will find lots of music on Last.fm. You can join this listening community (meaning pay for services) and make new friends who share your musical interests. As a Last.fm member, you have the ability to play full tracks and/or create a custom playlist. - IMEEM
I’m not a user, so this is from the Web Upon site: If you really dig your music, then you have come to the right place. IMEEM is the biggest and most comprehensive music resource on the web to get great music. Join the IMEEM community and share your music interests with others or watch music videos if you are not too busy. - Songza
I like Songza. You can find and listen to the artist or song you like. You aren’t required to subscribe or to pay for the services (differs from Last.fm or Rhapsody), since Songza pays for licenses (ASCAP, BMI, SESAC) which, in turn, pays the publishers, writers, and artists while listeners get free music. - thesixtyone
Edited from Web Upon: This website offers music to listen to, but not download. Listeners can earn points by bumping up favorite songs that catches on with other listeners and they too can bump up the song. Listeners are the ultimate judges of the song’s success or failure. It’s kind of like American Idol on steroids. - Grooveshark
From Grooveshark: …an online music community that rewards you for sharing, reviewing, and discovering new music. Featuring Autoplay, a new tool from Grooveshark Lite [that] builds a live playlist of only the music you want to listen to, from a library of over five million songs. Discover, recommend, share, and download music without restrictions. - SpiralFrog
Over a million songs to download legally and free. You are required to register for a free membership to start downloading music. Lots of features. - Mp3eq
Featuring the top songs from music charts around the world. Another social network that allows you to download free Mp3s or add your own. - Ruckus
This is a music network that focuses on students, providing opportunity to download and listen to free music. Edited from Web Upon: Students can download unlimited free and legal music from more than 3 million songs. Additionally, students can legally download hundreds of popular movies and television shows through the Ruckus service. - Jamendo
From Web Upon: Open your ears to a whole new world of music talent at Jamendo. This site offers its members full free albums to download from the emerging new pool of artists and musicians from all four corners of the planet. Wanting something new to listen to, then Jamendo is the place for you.
Enjoy!