There is a variety of music channels on YouTube. Some are more professional, like Todd In The Shadows which provides in-depth reviews and discussions of Billboard hits as well as one-hit wonders; other channels, like Finn McKenty a punk rock expert offering advice to young musicians, offer genre specific content.
Captain Beefart
Don Van Vliet (known by his stage name Captain Beefheart) left behind an astounding body of work, mixing free jazz with blues. Many consider his Trout Mask Replica one of the greatest recordings ever released; its influence can be heard everywhere from PJ Harvey to Black Keys. But the man known by this curious name also had an outlandish sense of humor and perspective on modern culture that few others could match.
In 1968, Van Vliet assembled the Magic Band to play his eccentric blend of free jazz and blues music. Their first release offered some psychedelic hues; their second is far more unconventional: jump-cut time signatures, mixing random free jazz elements with pop song structures; blues and neoclassical shades comingle into thick atonal textures with Van Vliet’s raspiest voice parodying the day’s cultural and political newsmakers deftly parodying each track on this record.
But the songs don’t just engage in abstract wordplay – they tell stories too. “Moonlight on Vermont” takes inspiration from Bo Diddley’s 1956 Willie Dixon cover and adds battery cables and harpsichord for good measure; similarly on “Title Track”, an earthy blues featuring Beefheart’s signature bassline and harmonica playing augmented by feedback and distortion effects.
Trout Mask Replica’s follow-up album streamlines its eccentric space trips and amps up its musical complexity, produced by childhood friend Frank Zappa and featuring songs such as the caffeinated drum grooves of “Orange Claw Hammer,” sexual psychosis of “Sheer Nausea,” or its blues ballad dedicated to Jan.
Stoned Meadow of Doom
Stoned Meadow of Doom is a YouTube channel created and run by Clint Beed, an avid doom music fanatic. His channel serves as an invaluable way for unsigned bands to reach new audiences; Battling Giants Entertainment of Omaha Nebraska have seen tremendous success due to being featured on his channel!
In February of 2020, Beed posted several racist and offensive comments to SMOD Nation Facebook group and elsewhere on the web that addressed profiling and anti-Semitism – prompting multiple bands to distance themselves from his channel.
Beed has maintained his Stoned Meadow of Doom channel despite these challenges and still provides full-length albums from doom, stoner rock, and blues bands – attracting over 75,000 subscribers and acting as an invaluable resource for listeners – often featuring independent bands not signed to record labels which do not receive much publicity otherwise.
Alongside streaming full-length albums, the channel also hosts live concerts at Bigs Bar in Omaha, Nebraska. This venue provides a fantastic atmosphere and sound system suited for up-and-coming stoner, doom, and blues bands alike. In addition, friendly staff make for an enjoyable concert experience!
Although Stoned Meadow of Doom channel has been successful, it has recently come under scrutiny for promoting racism and sexism. A number of bands that had once been promoted by it have distanced themselves from it due to this controversy, including ones they once promoted themselves.
NoCopyrightSounds
NoCopyrightSounds (NCS), is a British record label which offers royalty-free music to content creators. Their licensing model and support for artists have made NCS an attractive option among music producers and YouTubers alike; its popularity also allows artists to reach wider audiences.
NCS produces an eclectic variety of music, such as house, dubstep, pop/indie dance and drum and bass. Their music has been used in over 250 million videos by some of the biggest content creators, vloggers and brands around the world. Furthermore, they have established a community of creators who use NCS music in their videos; creators who can utilize its free license for any monetized videos by providing proper credit in the description section.
Billy Woodford established BillyW Woodford Media LLC on August 14, 2011, initially as a music promoter channel but eventually evolving into a recording label. Though initially they only had a handful of subscribers, over time their YouTube channel became one of the most watched music channels.
NCS has revolutionized how music is created and distributed. Offering royalty-free tracks to content creators has disrupted the traditional business model of the music industry and opened up a revenue stream for independent musicians.
NCS goes beyond royalty-free music to offer artists other services they may need for success. Their Artist Development program offers advice to improve music and create a better marketing strategy while their Promotion Team assists artists to find opportunities and network with creatives in order to broaden their audience and increase revenue.
Armada Music
Armada Music was founded by Armin van Buuren alongside Maykel Piron and David Lewis in 2003 and quickly grew to become one of the biggest independent dance labels worldwide. Their artists have had an enormous global impact; winning six International Dance Music Awards’ Best Global Record Label titles between 2005-2011! Boasting offices in Amsterdam (HQ), New York, London and Laren (NL), Armada offers full services to producers. Armin van Buuren himself, Arty, D.O.D, Jan Blomqvist Eelke Kleijn Loud Luxury Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano as well as THEMBA!
Armada Records houses several sub-labels that specialize in different genres, including Armada Trice, Armada Deep and Armada Captivating. Armada was recently recognized with seventy seventh ranking on Mixmag’s Label Of The Decade poll; additionally they’ve received multiple accolades such as two GRAMMY nominations and high profile chart successes.
Armada’s YouTube channel showcases music videos and performances by its artists. With more than eight million subscribers and views globally, Armada’s YouTube presence is essential in its online presence and has amassed over 1000 playlists that cover an extensive variety of musical genres.
Label recently made headlines when they announced Beat, their newest investment initiative. This new venture seeks to acquire back catalogs in dance and trance music genres; their first two acquisitions were KMS Records master recordings catalog and L.A.-based Russian DJ/producer Arty, otherwise known as Alpha 9. Artisan served as advisor on this transaction.
Berklee Online
Berklee Online allows students worldwide access to Berklee’s award-winning curriculum from anywhere at any time. Their undergraduate and graduate degrees, multi-course certificate programs and online courses have won dozens of national accolades in recognition of quality programming and instruction.
Students from over 144 nations enroll in Berklee’s online courses, offering weekly chats with instructors and personalized feedback on assignments. Furthermore, there is also access to a supportive community of music professionals that share a passion for learning together – some courses even come offered in Spanish!
No matter your level of electronic production knowledge, or whether you want to expand it further, Berklee Online provides something for you. Their video tutorials on using software and hardware to produce music provide a good place to begin learning from experienced faculty, staff and alumni who have made an impactful difference in the music industry.
Berklee College of Music embraces a philosophy of inclusion, respect and equity for all in its mission and online education offerings. The institution relies upon this shared understanding as its driving force – this also applies to its online education offerings – with students, instructors and staff from diverse life experiences, viewpoints and belief systems coming together within our virtual community of learning; so building an environment of integrity for these classes is vitally important to ensuring its success; any instances of academic dishonesty will be dealt with according to appropriate disciplinary procedures including warnings, suspension or dismissal (please refer to our Academic Integrity Policy and Process for further details). For further details please review the Academic Integrity Policy and Process document (available here).