At first glance the interface is clean and simple. Everything is fast and snappy. Rdio strictly focuses on the music and doesn’t give you bullshit like tour dates, pictures, and background info on all the artists. Your choices to find music are New Releases, Top Charts, Heavy Rotation, and Recommended. You can search and listen to any song or album in their database as much as you want just like you own the CD.
Song Selection
When I first browse Rdio’s collection I notice they are missing GENRES! Their front page is just a collection of mainstream radio top 40 tracks and artists. This sucks for music fans that are really into specific genres like heavy metal and don’t care for top 40. You can’t go into a specific genre and browse their collection. You have to know what you want to listen to and search for it or find other listeners with similar taste.
Rdio boasts to have 7 million songs. I dont care to see if they have mainstream shit because you can find Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Eminem, and Usher on every online music service and hear them 50 times a day anyways. I want to know if they have the latest music that people on Twitter and the blogosphere are talking about.
Kanye West – See Me Now was leaked last week by Kanye himself and has had twitter and the blogosphere going crazy proclaiming Kanye is Back! Does Rdio have it? Nope but I’m sure down the line when radio officially releases it Rdio will have it. But by then it’s just popular and not new.
Andre 3000 – I d0: Has been a big single also buzzing in the music blogosphere. Does Rdio have it? Nope
I’ve been really into Jawaiian music this summer and I would like to discover some new Jawaiian tracks on Rdio. Two big Jawaiian artists are Fiji and Three Plus. Rdio has Fiji but not the songs I know and they dont have Three Plus.
So Rdio isn’t the place to discover the latest singles buzzing on the music scene. They also don’t carry rare lesser known genres of music. This is a huge letdown for me because as a DJ I need to be on top of all the latest music out and be knowledgeable in rare genres that aren’t played on the radio and MTV. Rdio just does not fill this need for me.
Suggestion;
If a music service poises to be the The Next Big Thing it MUST to be the answer to the question “Where did you find that song?” It must be the first place to have a song before it blows up and is featured on commercials and mainstream radio.
With technology anybody can make a professional studio quality song in their bedroom and put it out to the world. Hit songs like “Teach Me How To Dougie” and “Cooler Than me” were created in the artists bedroom and distributed via the internet by the artists themselves. Rdio must be the bridge for artists to get their songs out to the world instead of Zshare, Rapidshare, and Mediafire links. Rdio can be the label and distribution.
Myspace capitalized on being a great platform for artists to upload and promote their music. During its peak it just got messy and it was hard to tell a real artist apart from an amateur kid tinkering with Garageband. Since Myspace has fallen off nobody has really filled this void as a platform for artists and bands to promote their music. There are sites today that bands can upload and promote their music but listeners aren’t present and there are sites for listeners but artists and bands cannot upload and promote themselves. There is not one community of listeners and artists combined. There is still a huge void out there.
In addition to the mainstream stuff Rdio needs to be on the cutting edge of music by allowing all musicians to upload their music and creations. There’s tons of great music out there by unsigned musicians that needs to be exposed to the world.
Social Features
Social Aspect is ehhhh. You can follow other listeners like Twitter and view what they listen to and their playlists. None of my friends are on Rdio and I don’t know any of the people on Rdio. I dont care to spend time looking for random people with similar music taste. I also have no idea of who is good to follow. You have to search and flip through people individually to see their music taste. I’d rather spend time sifting through the music itself than sifting through people to find music.
Suggestion:
Make listeners more engaged by letting them dictate what is trending on Rdio. Give individuals statuses and rankings based on their number of followers and play list plays. Give people a platform to say “hey this song is awesome” People feel more entitled when they know of a good local or indie band that not many have heard of. It’s like ordering a rare micro brewed beer that makes all your friends ask “ooo what’s that?” then you proceed to tell them about it.
Right now bloggers are the biggest tastemakers in music. Hip Hop blogs Nahright and 2DopeBoyz started by individuals have more credibility with devoted hip hop fans than MTV, BET, and The Source. Give people a platform to be the next Nahright. But first Rdio has to open their music selection and allow more than just what the major labels say they can play.
Mobile
The main con is that the mobile app is not a good stand alone app. It cost $10 to use the mobile app and it offers less than the site. The mobile app is more of a sidekick to the site. The app remembers your listening history so you can easily replay any songs you have listened to on Rdio. It’s also great if you made playlists and your own collection of songs but you cannot search for other playlists or make a playlist on your phone.
The mobile app really lacks music discovery capabilities. You cannot view new releases or what’s popular on the site. It also severly lacks a radio Pandora like feature. This sucks for listeners who want to use Rdio in their cars. You have to constantly tinker with the app to change songs if you don’t already have a playlist made. You cannot set it and forget it.
Suggestion:
With mobile you’re on the go; in your car, working out, or partying with your friends. You don’t want to constantly search then play, search then play, search then play to listen to a bunch of songs on the go. You want to set it and forget like the Showtime rotisserie oven and have a nice stream of music catering to your musical taste buds. Rdio needs to focus more on simplicity and quality of music. Give me a Pandora like feature where I get a constant stream of music and unlimited skips.
Conclusion
Rdio is a good alternative to buying CD’s or MP3′s. For $5 or $10(for mobile) a month you have access to all the mainstream music you want. If radio and MTV were still the authority in determining what’s hot in music then Rdio would be awesome because everything you can find on MTV and mainstream radio is on Rdio.
Their music selection is pretty much the same as Rhapsody and Napster. As long as these services are the gatekeepers and and dictators of what music they carry then these services will never be The Next Big Thing. I’m sure this is mainly because they have to comply with the major labels who want to protect their assets.
Rdio does not fill my personal needs of finding the latest buzzing music in one place. I also do not want to sit in front of a computer for hours searching for good music. Music should be enjoyed in the car, out with your friends, and on the dancefloor. I want ease of use, simplicity, and quality music(not just the force fed mainstream top 40).
Does it live up to the hype? Unfortunately not. I was expecting more from founders of companies who have shaken up the music and telecommunications industries. I believe that The Next Big Thing in music will be a major label defying startup that exposes great indie artists without the help of the major label machines, allow listeners to be the taste makers, and dictate what they want to listen to.
Possibly Related Posts:
- My Review of Tumblr: The Pros and Cons
- No time for taxes? There’s an App for that!
- Apple TV + Boxee = FTW!!
- How to Send Free Unlimited Texts on Blackberry
