Downloaded, Alex Winter’s documentary highlighting Napster and the digital music revolution, is heading to theaters and Video On Demand. The VH1 Rock Doc will be hitting viewers this summer.
VH1 and AOL Team Up to Distribute Downloaded Documentary
VH1 is partnering with AOL to widely release director Alex Winter‘s new documentary film Downloaded, which covers the rise and fall of the infamous mp3 file sharing —some would say file stealing— application Napster, as well as the ramifications that this service had on the music industry at large. In addition to being shown in theaters, the documentary will be streamed online and made available through Video On Demand.
SXSW 2013: When Was The Last Time Your Favorite Musician Bought A Compact Disc? (VIDEO)
One of the most amazing things about the evolution of the music industry is that music is suddenly more accessible than ever. The days of having to go out of your way and make a special trip to a record shop are long over. Now, the only thing standing between a consumer and a song they want to buy is the speed of your wireless connection. This advancement of technology has its costs, though: Many have penned obituaries for the medium that energized the music business in the 80s and 90s, the compact disc. Read more…
SXSW 2013: George Clinton Is “Horny” For A Parliament-Funkadelic Reunion (And 11 Other Finding The Funk Revelations)
From L to R: Lumar LeBlanc, Bootsy Collins, Novena Carmel, Arthur Baker, George Clinton and Bernie Worrell.
One of our favorite things about SXSW —besides the abundance of Shiner Bock, natch— is that it’s the biggest musical melting pot in all of the United States. Over the course of a few days in Austin each and every March, acts from every conceivable genre of music come together for both performances and conversations, but more importantly, to bond with one another. Perhaps nowhere over the course of the weekend was that issue of “bonding” more relevant than at Saturday afternoon’s panel celebrating the upcoming release of the VH1 Rock Doc Finding The Funk, which saw former Parliament-Funkadelic members George Clinton, Bootsy Collins and Bernie Worrell putting aside rumors of alleged beef for one glorious hour of truly funky storytelling. Read more…
SXSW 2013: Top 6 Most Provocative Questions Answered At Today’s Downloaded Panel Discussion
From L To R: Shawn Fanning, Sean Parker, John Perry Barlow, Alex Winter and moderator Eugene Hernandez.
VH1′s latest Rock Doc, Downloaded, made its world premiere at the South By Southwest Music Festival on Sunday night. The film tells the story of Shawn Fanning and Sean Parker, the two teenage hacker wunderkinds who brought the music industry to its knees when they founded Napster in the late 1990s. Earlier today, director Alex Winter joined Fanning, Parker and internet activist/Grateful Dead collaborator John Perry Barlow for a lively panel discussion about the disruptive effect this product had on the world.
We’ve collected the session’s most provocative quotes for you below. Read more…
SXSW 2013: Napster Co-Founder Shawn Fanning Tells The Story Of How He Finally Got Revenge On Lars Ulrich
When you see Downloaded, the VH1 Rock Doc that made its world premiere at the 2013 SXSW Festival last night, director Alex Winter presents some clear lines of demarcation between who he views as the heroes and villains of the story. Shawn Fanning, co-founder of Napster and the “face” of the company, is presented as a sympathetic figure, and the frightened “old world” mentality is personified by Metallica‘s drummer Lars Ulrich, who famously led the charge against the file-sharing service. We caught up with Shawn Fanning last night and asked him if, after all these years, he still had beef with Lars.
SXSW 2013: Downloaded Stars Shawn Fanning And Sean Parker On The Lessons They Learned Launching Napster
The world premiere of Downloaded, the latest entry in the Emmy award winning VH1 Rock Docs canon, went down at Austin’s Paramount Theater last night as part of the 2013 SXSW Festival. We were there on the red carpet, where we caught up with the film’s primary subjects, Napster co-founders Shawn Fanning and Sean Parker, and asked them each about the single biggest lesson they learned during this equally exciting and chaotic time.
Marley, The Critically Praised VH1 Rock Doc, Makes Its Television Debut This Weekend
Before opening in select theaters on 4/20, Marley was first unveiled in an intimate screening at SXSW back in March. Now, with unprecedented support from the music icon’s family and close associates, the documentary on reggae singer/songwriter Bob Marley makes its long-awaited on-air debut this Saturday night at 9 p.m. ET/PT on VH1. For the first time, Marley’s story —his lifestyle, career, political impact, influences, and tragic battle with cancer— will be televised in rich detail, and for music-lovers and fans of history, this film is an insightful must-see, proving to humanize a man who Rolling Stone places at #11 on their 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
The most recent addition to the Emmy award-winning VH1 Rock Doc arsenal, Marley opens in St. Ann, Jamaica where Robert “Bob” Nesta Marley was born. Fanatically drawn to music early on, Marley would soon team up with Neville “Bunny Wailer” Livingston and Peter Tosh to form their band, The Wailers, helping to usher-in upbeat-rhythm Reggae music as it evolved from Ska in the Jamaican music hub of Kingston. An array of archival photos help director Kevin Macdonald paint a picture of the legendary hit-maker’s humble youth; capturing the band’s creative process and Marley’s gradual ascent within the music industry, Marley also boasts rare-seen performance footage and insider interviews to shed light on the musician’s career spikes, spiritual vision and untimely death. As record producers, engineers, band-mates, and executives wax nostalgic on the dreadlock-donning international superstar, viewers are slowly immersed into Marley’s world; one where activism, the affections of women, and a competitive attitude all played a major role in the trajectory of his success.
Read more…
Uprising: Hip-Hop & The L.A. Riots: The Spotify Playlist
Uprising: Hip-Hop & The L.A. Riots premieres on VH1 tonight at 9 p.m. ET/PT, and is the latest entry in VH1′s award-winning Rock Docs series. The documentary film, narrated by Snoop Dogg, takes a look back at the riots that occurred in the wake of the Rodney King verdict exactly twenty years ago this week, and the role that hip-hop played in both predicting and ultimately chronicling the tension between the residents of South Central and the police.
The film premiered in Los Angeles last week, and our colleagues over at VH1 News got some 1:1 time with Arsenio Hall before the film began. He detailed for us a story of how Ice Cube passed along a cassette tape to him with an early version of “F*** The Police” on it, which led Arsenio to (ultimately unsuccessfully) lobby his corporate bosses to book N.W.A. on his eponymous talk show. It’s a fascinating anecdote, and one that reflects a time that’s increasingly hard to remember, a time when hip-hop hadn’t yet fully made its way into mainstream American culture.
We also put together a Spotify playlist for you below, Music from Uprising: Hip-Hop & The L.A. Riots, which contains most of the music that you’ll hear in the documentary film tonight, songs like N.W.A.’s aforementioned “F*** Tha Police,” Ice Cube’s “We Had To Tear This Mothaf***a Up” and Dr. Dre’s “The Day The N***** Took Over,” among others.
Celebrating The Life of Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes 10 Years After Her Untimely Death
Ten years ago today, Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes was taken from the world far too soon in a tragic car accident in La Ceiba, Honduras. She lived a vibrant life in her short 30 years. Left Eye was the eclectic rapper in the influential trio TLC with members Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas and Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins. Selling over 50 million records worldwide, TLC is the second best selling American female girl group of all time. Outspoken and incredibly cool, the tattooed bad girl was captivating from the moment we laid eyes on her. She was among the new wave of female artists who determined for herself what identity she wanted in the industry. And we loved her for her unapologetic authenticity.
In 2002, Left Eye traveled to Honduras for a spiritual retreat away to take a break red carpets, media and her troubled relationship. Surrounded by close friends, Left Eye recorded the journey of what would be her last days. Lopes’ family granted VH1 her personal film archive, which was used to make the Last Days of Left Eye documentary in May 2007. For her musical contributions, accomplishments and fearlessness to be herself, we honor her. Gone too soon but never forgotten.
[Photo: Getty Images]
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