Artists Utilize Beats 1 Radio to Release Music
“Provider,” however, is not the first song Frank Ocean has released on BLONDED. Ocean also released his song “Biking,” featuring Jay Z and Tyler, The Creator, as well as his song “Lens.”
In addition to his own songs, Ocean’s BLONDED radio station features songs from SZA, Kodak Black, Frank Sinatra, and 21 Savage.
Many artists have began using Beats 1 Radio to release music. In 2015 Drake used his Beats 1 Radio station, OVO Sound Radio to release What A Time To Be Alive, a collaborative mixtape done with rapper Future. Since then, many other artists have used the platform to release their music in a more sporadic, exclusive way.
“BLONDED is probably my favorite station but there are a lot of good stations on the Beats 1 Radio from other artists and that were just curated by Apple,” says Maddie Welsh, senior.
Other artists such as Drake, Pharrell, and Mary J Blige also have an Apple Music’s Beats 1 Radio stations of their own.
Ahmad Muhammad, a recent graduate of Urbana High School stated that “OVO Station aka Drake’s station is probably the best Beats 1 Station. His music choice is really diverse and makes it different from a lot of the other stations that Beats 1 offers.”
Most of the artist controlled stations on Beats 1 are sporadic and only known about the day of, unless the artist announces it ahead of time. Stations like Drake’s OVO Station and Frank Ocean’s BLONDED station are focused on music, while Pharrell’s OTHERtone and Mary J Blige’s Real Talk stations tend to be a mix of music and talk radio.
Past stations from artists can be found on Beats 1 Radio On Demand. The recorded station and the playlist from the station are both available. Be sure to check Beats 1 Radio frequently for artist updates.
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