Twitter just announced the release of a “suggestions” feature; giving recommendations of who to follow based on who a user follows, and who those followed users follow.  Similar to Facebook’s “You have 5 friends that like this” recommendations, this feature will likely not be as “annoying” to some users because it will won’t be found on the home page or the main feed.  When it goes live it can be found at the “Find Friends” link – something most users don’t even get around to, or in other user’s profiles.

The API will be released so developers may add this to applications, which might serve more purpose than its current state.  If this picks up, I speculate Twitter will have ad-based suggestions and encourage users to use this paid method to increase followers; rather than use the promoted trends.  I think this is a great way to reduce spam and help fund their transition to a solid server (rather than cloud based one).

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Nashville is a town filled with inspiring music. Music that makes you want to be a writer yourself, change the world in some small way, or just change the path your life is on. Thad Cockrell’s album “To Be Loved” is one of those rare albums that contains music that inspires from the kick off of “Pride (Won’t Get Us Where We’re Going)” to the very final track “Oh To Be Loved”.

Thad grew up in NC, the son of a preacher, & was not only surrounded by the word of God but music every Sunday. According to Thad when he was young, sitting through his 4th Sunday service, it was the music that touched & stirred his soul. Thad really didn’t start playing music till he was out of college because according to him “I was tortured without doing so!”.

“To Be Loved” is Thad’s 4th album, & in my humble opinion is his strongest to date! Thad wrote the songs on “To Be Loved” to be as if you were sitting at his house, talking about faith, love, and life’s struggles. These are songs written from Thad’s heart with strong messages of faith that will shake any man to the very bottom of his soul. Layered in catchy music, the lyrics weave throughout & come through as being truly moving, soul stirring & hope giving.

There is so much great music on this album that it was really hard to pick just one to highlight. “Great Rejoicing” is the one I’ve decided to chose. It’s one of the most beautiful songs on the album with lyrics that speak of hope after this life is finished. “There is going to be a great rejoicing. The troubles of this world will wither up & die”. Thad’s voice is strong throughout & backed by some beautiful harmonies with music that compliments & doesn’t over power.

“To Be Loved” can be downloaded in its entirety, for free in exchange for your e-mail address at Noisetrade.com. Thad is currently on tour & hopefully will be making his way back to Nashville sometime soon. Follow @ThadCockrell on twitter for all updates, or visit his website, www.thadcockrell.com.

Digital copyright laws changed again after the Electronic Frontier Foundation won three major and two minor new exemptions to the old DMCA. The three major exemptions affect iPhone owners, video remixers, and eBooks without an audio version. The minor exemptions effect gamers and people using computer programs with dongles. These rulings could affect the way people listen to music, and make music too.

Apple released a statement about the decision to “legalize” jailbreaking iPhones saying that it still violates the end-user license agreement and will void the warranty. Users that have already ran out of their Applecare might choose to Jailbreak for cloud music services like Grooveshark, which is currently not allowed in the US. Of course there are tons of Apps users could enjoy, like GV Mobile which allows users to utilize Google Voice rather than their carrier. If you already started jailbreaking your phone and want ideas of what to do with it, read about these ten apps.

Video remixing is now allowed for non commercial purposes. This means a lot of the videos removed for copyright infringement on YouTube may find their way back as users test the new limits. Musicians may be able to push this boundary, too. We might even see AutoTune the Movies as a successor to AutoTune the News.

E-Books without audio versions can now have their DRM legally broken to allow a text reading application to speak the book. The law states very clearly though, that if an audio version exists a user cannot legally bypass the DRM – no matter what the cost of the audio version is. Time will tell if publishers test out raising the prices of audiobooks, or if users simply don’t care if there is an official audiobook and would rather save money.

Gamers will also have an excuse to break copyright protection under the guise of “good faith testing”. Supposedly, this will help increase security. The hackers will also be allowed to legally hack computer programs protected by dongles that are no longer for sale in the marketplace.

I wonder often how anyone could have coined the phrase

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me

when we’ve all been at the hurtful end of prejudicial words that cut deep, and sometimes leave wounds that last longer than a bruise. Especially when I have also seen words inspire and start movements. And, for me, there has been nothing more powerful than the first time I said my son’s name allowed to him moments after his birth. That kind of power is staggering…humbling.

I believe in words and the roots of words. I was the kid who looked forward to that section of the SATs where I had to match a word to its meaning by dissecting its Latin root and hoping I got it right. Maybe if I’d actually ever truly prepared for those tests, I would have even done well at them. Thing is, words, their rhythm and meanings, have always struck a chord with me.

When you pick a name for your company, brand or service, how deep are you digging to find the right name? Are you testing it out with friends and family? Are you investigating the origin of the word or words and their meanings? The people at large may not be thinking about that or even care when they hear your name, but you should. Does it resonate? Will it be timeless or timely — know why you need one, the other or both.

Think, too, about the words that you know only as “140 characters.” I think we have all heard the term “140 characters” so much that we forget the power of the words we create in a tweet. They will be gone in mere minutes, but could be read by thousands, and repeated by even more. Don’t underestimate that power, and don’t waste it. Respect your words and your potential to impact another.

There are no pictures and no video in this post for a reason. I want the words to stand alone…together, to mean something. Where have you seen the power of words used well in branding or social media?

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Nashville is blessed with talented musicians. Musicians from all over the US find their way here & in many cases the city is made better because of it. A perfect example of this can be found in the singer/songwriter duo, Jenny & Tyler. Jenny & Tyler both met at the University of Delaware, got married, made/released their first record “Prelude”, toured, all before heading to Nashville in 2007 to pursue their music career more seriously.

Jenny & Tyler bring a style deeply influenced by jazz, bluegrass & pop music to create a sound that is catchy & unique. There is something about their music that grabs a hold of you & makes you want to hear more! “This Isn’t A Dream” does exactly that & then some. In “This Isn’t A Dream” you can clearly hear their jazz influences. With hints of the progressive jazz movement that has been made famous by artists such as Norah Jones & Jamie Cullum and a splash of Maroon 5 thrown in for good measure, this is a song that you’ll catch yourself singing over & over again before you even realize it. The lyrics contain a strong message of how we can chose to let life pass us by & hope for something better or we can make something better happen now. If nothing else “This Isn’t A Dream” proves that Jenny & Tyler will be a force impacting the Nashville music scene for some time to come. Jenny & Tyler are currently at work on their next album and you can be part of that process. Check out the video below & then head over to Kickstarter.com to play your part in supporting their new album!

Jenny & Tyler will be playing a show at Ugly Mugs on July 31st at 7pm sponsored by Music City Unsigned. This is going to be an awesome night of music so make sure you stop by!

http://www.myspace.com/JennyandTyler

CBS Launch of Radio.com

Radio.com is combining the power of 600+ “real” radio stations along with Last.fm’s scrobbling in an attempt to become the online source of radio. Google shows 3,350,000 searches per month for “radio”, meaning CBS now has one of the most valuable domains on the web. But, Radio.com will have a lot of competition to deal with (Pandora and Grooveshark). What can CBS offer that is different?

The slick user interface, sections for news and sports, along with links to AOL & Yahoo stations are the main selling points of Radio.com. It seems as if they’re trying to give terrestrial radio a live-podcast feel. My first encounters with the service were basically nonstop advertisements for 3 minutes. Fortunately, mute still works.

But once the ads are over, a nice cover-flow appearance of what you’re listening to is displayed above relevant information to the station you’re listening to *sometimes. Sometimes means it doesn’t always update when the song changes, for no reason that I can see. But when it does work, an indicator displays if the artist is on tour, along with the ability to buy ring-tones that are based on similar artists.

It doesn’t require a sign-up, so go try Radio.com and see if it fits for you.

“And if there come the singers and the dancers and the flute players, buy of their gifts also.  For they too are gatherers of fruit and frankincense, and that which they bring, though fashioned of dreams, is raiment and food for your soul.”

- Kahlil Gibran The Prophet

1. It makes us feel good
2. It connects us to something bigger than ourselves
3. It stimulates creativity
4. It inspires us to do good
5. It bonds us to our fellow men
6. It allows us to shut down, even for a second, to enjoy living
7. It gives us a reason to get together
8. It is an education
9. It serves as a motivation to get through the mundane
10. It is a universal language

Why do you listen to music? Add your thoughts in the comments below!