Skip to main content

Apple readies for iTunes Festival with dedicated Apple TV channel and revamped app

1237813 autosave v1 itunes festival
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Apple’s free iTunes Festival, now in its seventh year, kicks off at the Roundhouse venue in London at the start of September, offering music fans 30 days of concerts from some 60 artists, including the likes of Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake, Katy Perry, Thirty Seconds to Mars, Arctic Monkeys, Queens of the Stone Age, and Primal Scream. Even Elton John’s making time for it.

In preparation for the event, the Cupertino company has once again added the festival to its line-up of Apple TV channels, offering viewers the chance to enjoy live coverage of the London event together with limited-time on-demand replays of performances.

itunes_festival_apple_tv
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Don’t have Apple TV but still want to catch some shows? The Cupertino company’s revamped iTunes Festival app, rolled out Tuesday, will see to that, with live and recorded streams of a selection of performances offered throughout the month-long event.

The app also gives news updates and information on each artist, plus….what’s this? Handy links straight through to the iTunes store so you can buy your favorite tracks? Who would’ve expected that?

If you live locally, why not put your name forward for free tickets – just click on the app’s Win Tickets link found on each artist’s profile page and tap in your details. And then cross your fingers.

“Music fans around the world are going to love watching this incredible month of music, whether in London at the Roundhouse or on their iOS device,” Apple executive Eddy Cue said recently, at the same time promising this year’s event would be “the best ever”.

Lady Gaga is set to launch the festival at the start of September with “one hour of all new music”, according to one of her tweets.

[via MacRumors] [Top image: dwphotos / Shutterstock]

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Apple may do the unthinkable — allow third-party iPhone app stores
App Store displayed on an iPhone 14 Pro against a pink background

Ever since 2008, Apple has only allowed its own App Store on the iPhone. In the past, if you wanted alternative digital storefronts, you’d have to jailbreak your device. But in response to impending regulations from the European Union, Apple may be allowing alternative app stores on the iPhone and iPad in the near future — potentially as soon as iOS 17 in 2023.

According to a report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, this will be the very first time that Apple will allow third-party app stores on the iPhone. It seems that Apple is already dedicating a “significant amount of resources to the companywide endeavor.”

Read more
Apple Music Sing brings karaoke singalongs to iPhones, Apple TV
Apple Music Sing.

Apple wants you to sing like everyone's listening with its new Apple Music Sing feature, a karaoke mode that works with the music streaming service's popular lyrics experience.

Available later this month on iPhone (11 and later), iPads (third-gen and later), and the 2022 model of Apple TV 4K (not earlier models, for some reason) to really max out the karaoke experience in living rooms, Apple Music Sing will be incorporated right into the Apple Music app, giving you the option to use a slider to control the volume of the vocals in Apple Music's song library so you can sing along. With the slider, you can tweak the volume to either blend your voice with the singer's or drop them out completely to go solo. Background vocals are also viewable independently from the main vocals for budding backup singers to follow more easily, and a Duet view separates multiple singers' lyrics on opposite sides of the screen.

Read more
AT&T just made it a lot easier to upgrade your phone
AT&T Storefront with logo.

Do you want to upgrade your phone more than once a year? What about three times a year? Are you on AT&T? If you answered yes to those questions, then AT&T’s new “Next Up Anytime” early upgrade program is made for you. With this add-on, you’ll be able to upgrade your phone three times a year for just $10 extra every month. It will be available starting July 16.

Currently, AT&T has its “Next Up” add-on, which has been available for the past several years. This program costs $6 extra per month and lets you upgrade by trading in your existing phone after at least half of it is paid off. But the new Next Up Anytime option gives you some more flexibility.

Read more