The Internet serves as a place where you can read the latest news, chat with friends, watch tv or movies and listen to music. Websites for music lovers are sites where audiophiles can create a customized listening experience. Some services are free, others require users to pay a monthly fee.
Pandora is an online radio station that only plays music you like. The way the site works is that you can key in the name of a favorite artist, composer or song, and Pandora will play the requested tracks. You have the option to give each song a “thumbs up” or “thumbs down” rating. Based on the ratings you provide, Pandora plays additional tracks that are in a similar style to the artist, composer or song you started your custom station with. Once you give a “thumbs down” to a track, the song won’t be played again. You can create up to 100 different stations.
Rhapsody is an online, subscription-based music service. Users pay $10 per month for unlimited access to a library of more than 10 million songs. Rhapsody users can create multiple playlists of songs downloaded from the library, and can listen to their playlists via their computer or an app that can be downloaded onto a smartphone such as the iPhone or Android. A two-week free trial is available. The website also features album charts, new releases and staff picks to help you discover new music.
Last.fm offers free online radio. When a new user signs up for Last.fm, they can listen to music of their choosing and a feature that Last.fm calls “the scrobbler” helps Last.fm to make personal recommendations of additional songs or artists that the user might enjoy listening to. The Last.fm community connects music lovers from around the world, users can chat on the sites official forums about their favorite artists.