Care to know what the deal is behind the Zune 4.5 firmware update. One half of the Zune Insider podcasting team, Matt Akers (Skipdeez) chats with Nate Muller, a PM for the Zune Team. Together they run through the on-device Smart DJ and purchasing from Zune Marketplace through the device and dock.

Check it!

So folks had noticed in the past few days this little link on zune.net that was alluding to a Zune HD 64GB. It was one of those things that I heard constantly about -- people wanting more space, especially if they do plan on syncing more HD content (specifically movies and TV shows) to their devices.

Well, folks. What can I tell ya? The 64GB Zune HD exists and it will be available through Zune Originals on April 12, 2010! That's a Monday, for those who didn't feel like looking at their calendar. The Zune HD 64GB will be able to hold 16,000 songs or 20 hours of high-definition video (and 25,000 pictures if you have that many). By being available through Zune Originals you'll be able to snag your shiny Zune HD 64 in platinum, black, blue, red, green, purple and magenta.

So what happens to the Zune HD 16/32? They're getting an official (read: official) price drop. All of that jockeying for position you were seeing recently... yeah, that was the retailers hard at work to get your discretionary income. Now, Zune is officially dropping dem prices:

Zune 16GB ($199.99)
comparable to iPod Touch 8GB ($199.99)

Zune 32GB ($269.99)
comparable to iPod Touch 32GB ($299.99)

Zune 64GB ($349.99)
comparable to iPod Touch 64GB ($399.99)

So now you have this bit of news in addition to the recent announcement of the Zune 4.5 firmware update. Things seem to be looking pretty good for Zune in the next few weeks.

So here I was, last night, doing something different with the music that I was going to sync onto my Zune HD. The idea was I was going to remove the 'heart-rated' playlist from my device and only keep Smart DJ playlists and channels. Every Smart DJ playlist was going to pull 30 songs each from the Marketplace. Channels... well, they were going to do what channels do.


So now I'm making a larger effort to discover new music (based upon some of my favorite artists and genres). My Zune HD, when docked at work and blaring through the speakers will present to me 99% of the time with something I had totally haven't heard or just heard and didn't bother to give a full-on chance. Now I say 99% because for some odd reason even if I say I want 'marketplace content only', I'll still get items that are sitting in my collection. I would think that if I want 30 marketplace songs, they all should have (pending) next to them as they download from the Marketplace.

Plus now, with the Zune 4.5 update and the chance to create Smart DJ playlists like that on my device, I'm allowed greater opportunities to find and discover new stuff. But in the course of this re-arrangement of my device, I came with this epiphany: I really shouldn't be sitting here downloading all of these albums and cluttering up my external drive.

Here's what I mean. Every Tuesday and Wednesday night I enjoy taking an hour before bed and rummaging through the Zune Marketplace, downloading CDs left and right. The problem arises when I go back and realize "Wow, I'm really not listening to much of this stuff." That's not fair to the artists and that's just wear and tear on my external drive. As large as my external drive is (1.5TB) if it's being filled up with music I won't touch, then what's the point of hitting the download button?

Earlier, whenever I discussed Zune Pass, I occasionally brought up what I called the Zune Pass cleanse. This is where I periodically just deleted all of the Zune Pass content from my computer. However, what I would do after that is start just a new batch of 1000 albums or so that I would incessantly download and not listen to.

So that's when I came up with the idea that maybe I shouldn't be downloading any Zune Pass music anymore. Maybe my 1.5TB external drive could be filled only with the music that I download to keep (using the 10 credits, or the free playlists, recorded TV from Windows Media Center or TV/Movies that I purchase/rent from Zune Marketplace). One of the great things Zune did in a recent release was separate music that you get for your Channels and "Marketplace Content Only" part of your Smart DJ playlists. I don't have to worry about this music cluttering up my live collection.

So I've decided to give this a try and see how it works: All Zune Pass music has been removed from my computer. Zune Pass will only be used to stream songs from the Marketplace or to help generate Smart DJ playlists and for Channels. *They* will be my primary sources of new music and now I can spend that hour every night just checking out what's new and streaming it. This might make it easier to use my credits since the stuff I give hearts to and the music that I do add to my collection are more likely the songs I want to keep, so when I go back with my credits I could then have the software sort by "zune pass content" and maybe have 11-15 songs presented.

Yeah, I know. I chatter a bit about Zune Pass, but I see it as such a great value add for my Zune ecosystem that I do like to take periodic looks at my own usage and analyze if I'm truly using Zune Pass to effectively discover new music or am I just (like a glutton) downloading tons of albums simply because I could.

We all use Zune Pass differently, I know. So share with me some of the ways you use Zune Pass. Do you download like a madman (or madwoman)? Do you just stream and only download what you plan to keep? What are your methods for discovering new music?

I want you to take a real good look at yourself and your Zune Pass usage. What do you see?

I have been hit with an invitation to the Zune L.A. space this Wednesday at 5pm, for what I've been told is a special meet up and "sneak peek". My guess is that with the recent announcement of the Zune 4.5 firmware update we may get a chance to see some of that up close, but not gonna know the real deal until arrival. I am looking forward to meeting some new peeps and hanging out at the Zune L.A. space. So stay tuned for me on Twitter and such as I report from the special event this Wednesday. Looks to be a lot of fun.

For those who haven't been to the Zune L.A. space (*ahem* Seeson *ahem*), I found a video done by TechZulu of my boy, Paul Chang from Zune giving a small tour of the place. Check it:

What's up, ZuneNation?

Everyone's been chomping at the bit about what's going on with the Zune 4.5 update? Turns out we now have some information to share. As it stands the Zune 4.5 update is primarily a firmware update for the Zune HD. With it, however, comes some great things to make your music and video experience that enjoyable and intuitive

What can you look forward to? Let's take a quick look:

Smart DJ - A popular feature on the Zune Software now comes to the device. You'll be able to create your own dynamic playlists, built around your favorite artists or albums. When you're viewing your artists or albums, the familiar Smart DJ icon will appear. One press of that button and you'll get your instant mix on.

Zune Pass subscribers, connected to WiFi will be able to pull from the collection on the device as well as music in th Zune Marketplace. Non-Pass subscribers will get a mix using stritctly music that is on the device.

Picks - Yes, you read that correctly? Now through your Zune HD, you will be able to get recommendations based upon your listening habits and how they collaborate with other listeners in the Zuneosphere.

Zune Marketplace on the TV - When connecting your Zune HD to the AV Dock, you'll now be able to browse the Zune Marketplace for music (music only, folks). Once again, if you're connected to WiFi (like in your house, for example), you can opt to either download songs directly to the Zune HD or stream them through your home theatre system.

Specifically you'll be able to browse New Releases, check out recommendations from your Picks page, search for a specific song or artist, or even create a new Smart DJ playlist on that 50" television you have!

Video Codecs - Zune will now officially support MPEG-4 Part 2 Advanced Simple Profile (ASP)  -- whew, say that 5 times fast -- including XVID and AVI support.

Then there's the question of when this is going to be available. Well first off it's free (we all likes us some free) but the official word from Zune is that it's coming 'in the next few weeks'. Until then, discuss amongst yourselves which of these things you are looking most foward to. Or drool at the picture, that's perfectly fine too...

Oh, and sorry legacy device owners, none of this seems to be making its way to your players.

One of the favorite features of those with a Zune Pass subscription are the 10 free credits they get every month. One credit can be used to download any available song in the Marketplace. Well, let's backtrack that. If the song is available for individual purchase, then you can use a credit for it. Credits can't be used for any video nor can it be used towards an 'album only' purchase.

Now some individuals reach a dilemma when they see that they have 10 new credits to use: How exactly am I going to choose which songs I want to have permanently. In a recent software release, Zune attempted to make that easier by including a little link in the upper-right corner, underneath the ZuneTag. When you click this link, which looks something like "Credits (10)", you are presented with a menu that's similar to the music purchase screen. After a few minutes, the software will present 10 songs to you and ask if these are the songs that you want to use your credits for.

How does it know which songs to recommend? It takes the top 10 Zune Pass songs you've been listening to (based upon play count) and offer you those first. There's even a little marker that will tell you if the tracks are in MP3 format or protected-WMA format (yes, some of those still exist).

Another way that Zune helps with the 10 credits issue is in the Marketplace. If you look around you'll find playlists that are exactly 10 songs deep. That's because it's designed to be a playlist you could use your 10 credits for. It could range from 10 songs by a particular artist to 10 songs revolving around a particular theme.

Now, as an MVP, I enjoy offering people small tips on how to get the best out of their Zune experience and one of those tips is to click that Credits (10) link underneath their Zune Tag. Yet, recently, when I clicked on that link, I don't even end up getting any of the 10 songs that are recommended to me. What I end up doing is going into the album view, changing the music presented to "Zune Pass Content" and then going through there and individually choosing my own songs. I've found this to be much more satisfying than blindly letting the software choose for me. Even if they are 10 songs I listen to a lot, is that a guarantee that they'll be the ones that I'll choose when the credits become available? I mean hell, there are times when I will take 2 credits and pick a totally random song from the Marketplace. That's how I ended up with gems like the Jeffree Star song "Prisoner".

So my question is how do you approach using your 10 credits? Do you use the recommended songs feature quite often or do you pick and choose at your own leisure? How do you think the credits feature could be improved as far as helping people decide which songs to use them on?

1. What type of Zune do you currently own?  
80GB - it's the only one big enough for my collection.

2. What have you learned from your friends at Zune Social?
I'm just starting to interact with Zune Social so I guess basically I'm learning about how to use the Social from my friends.
 
3. What made you decide to get a Zune over any other MP3 player?

4. What type of music do you listen to (name as many as necessary -- genres/groups)?

5. What's your favorite thing about Zune (favorite feature)?
The Zune player itself?  That's tough.  I think how easy the interface is to use.  As for the Zune software, I definitely love the fancy Now Playing screen with pics and stats.

6. Where do you use your Zune? Working out? At the office? 
Mostly on transport.


7. What are some of your hobbies? What's your life like away from Zune Social?
I love to sew.  I also enjoy reading.  Most of my time is spent on my favorite hobby/career stuff - African Intellectual Property.

In our short existence, Inside the Circle has had the privilege to interview many distinguished musicians and figures in various industries. I'm always aware that when running a blog these interviews can get lost in the shuffle of our various other postings about free music, concerts, new releases, etc. So at this point in time, I wanted to give you a list of those interviews. Feel free to give them and read and leave comments with your thoughts on what you find out.

• Manafest: (Christian Hip-Hop Artist)
  http://www.insidethecircle.net/2010/03/quick-conversation-with-music-artist.html
   
• Sweet Jane: (Dublin-based Rock and Roll Band)
  http://www.insidethecircle.net/2010/02/120-revolution-sweet-jane.html

• Kaitlin McGaw: (Senior Project Manager for Grammy Academy; Singer/Songwriter)
  http://www.insidethecircle.net/2010/01/podcast-episode-13-conversation-with.html

• Tyler Bleszinski: (Founder of SportsBlog Nation; Brother of Cliff Bleszinski)
  http://www.insidethecircle.net/2008/11/we-have-interview-with-bleszinski.html

• Drew "Rukes" Ressler: (Photographer to DJs and Music Festivals)
  http://www.insidethecircle.net/2009/02/interview-drew-rukes-ressler.html

• The Simple Things: (Pop trio feat/ Kaitlin McGaw)
  http://www.insidethecircle.net/2008/09/artistic-expression-simple-things.html

• DJ Sista Stroke: (House music DJ now situated in London)
  http://www.insidethecircle.net/2009/12/podcast-episode-9-conversation-with-dj.html

• Natalie Martin: (Singer/Songwriter):
  http://www.insidethecircle.net/2008/08/artistic-expression-natalie-martin.html

Addendum: If you are having trouble clicking the links, just copy and paste them into the URL bar in your browser. Thanks.

In my various roles, I'm getting a chance to introduce Zune to a new gathering of potential users. In the course of various community gaming events and even while traveling out and about on a given day, I'm asked by people what device am I using, how does it work and how could they try using it (and, in a sense, give something other than iTunes a try). So this is what I normally have people do when they want to try out the Zune ecosystem:

Note: This is an old version of the Zune Software!

• Download the Zune Software - The software is free and people love them some free. This is also the best way for individuals to get used to the control scheme, layout and design of Zune. If they don't like what they see then they can simply uninstall the software and never have to worry about it again. Now of course Zune isn't going to read all of a person's iTunes music. In that case you have to tell them to burn the iTunes music to a CD and rip back into Zune. If they refuse to do that then I believe iTunes has a way you can convert DRM'd music into a Non-DRM'd format.  

• Join Zune Social - Now that they've imported their collection, it's time to meet others who share their tastes in music. A membership into Zune Social allows them a chance to meet others who share the same taste or branch out and discover new stuff.

• Get the 2-Week Free Trial of Zune Pass - Keep in mind, they haven't spent a single dime yet (unless they did the iTunes music conversion). Now they're going to get a chance to see what it's like to have an entire Marketplace (well almost all) of music at their disposal. The 2-Week Trial asks for a credit card, but that's only because if you plan on continuing the subscription, the transition is easy.
• However, I personally recommend to people that they purchase a 1-month Zune Pass card and use that. First they get a full month to try it, secondly if they don't like it they can stop but they'll essentially get 10 free MP3s for their trouble. A much better deal in my opinion. Yes, they'll spend $15 for this, but with the free songs it's really only a $5 trial.

• Purchase a device - So here's a question: Do they pick up a legacy device or a Zune HD? Of course people are going to want the Zune HD. It's an ideal device and the latest, greatest toy. But if, even at this point, people are still sticky about joining the Zune then maybe a simple 4GB device would be best. Again, this gives a person a chance to start seeing how all of these things tie together. Yet, if by this point they're ready to go full-strong into Zune, maybe you could convince them on a Zune HD :)

• "Buy Once, Play Anywhere" - If your friend happens to also own an XBOX 360 now's the time to show them one of the icings on the cake. Tell them that any videos that they purchased at the Zune Marketplace most likely can be downloaded through the XBOX 360 (at no additional charge, mind you!). Likewise, any videos purchased through XBOX can be downloaded through the Zune software (assuming both marketplaces sell that same content). Then the content can be sync'd to the Zune device and taken on the go.

This is the way that I present Zune to others and it has seemed to work well. But I'm curious to hear how you introduce Zune to your friends or potential users. Where do you start them? More than likely you've given them a demonstration of the device (be it legacy device or Zune HD), so what kind of feedback do you hear?

Back in October, I shared a press release revolving around contest to help up and coming young bands get a chance to perform on a major stage. Well now the two bands who have won that contest are announced.

Inside the Circle wishes to congratulate both bands for winning the contest and for being given a grand opportunity to showcase your talents on a major stage. We hope that this leads to a long, prosperous career!

The press release, with the details is below:

GET OUT OF THE GARAGE MUSIC CONTEST
ANNOUNCES THE
GET OUT OF THE GARAGE SHOWCASE
AT THE LEVI’S®/FADER FORT

On October 1, 2009, Converse and Journeys launched the second annual Get Out of the Garage Music Contest, a contest designed to target untapped talent in the artist community.

Out of over 5,000 entries, Twank Star and Southern Backtones were chosen as the Grand Prize winners.  They won an all expense paid trip to play the Get Out of the Garage showcase at the Levi's®/FADER Fort, in Austin Texas, on March 18th, 2010.

Twank Star and Southern Backtones will be opening up for Flying Machines (last year’s Get Out of the Garage Music Contest winners).

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and Mayer Hawthorne & The County will be headlining while Passion Pit DJ’s in between sets.

Get Out of the Garage Showcase
March 18th, 9pm at the Levi’s®/FADER Fort
1101 E. 5th Street, between San Marcos & Waller
RSVP: http://mailer.cornerstonepromotion.com/pages/show/converse-presents-the-get-out-of-the-garage-showcase

The Get Out of the Garage Music Contest website is dedicated to the winners of the contest.  Each band is given an individual page on the site, where viewers can stream the winning band’s songs and check out their bios and pictures. Check out winners here: http://www.getoutofthegaragemusiccontest.com

For more info about the Get Out of the Garage Music Contest, please go to www.Getoutofthegaragemusiccontest.com

For more info about Journeys please go to www.Journeys.com

And here we go...

One of my favorite events of the year (whether I actually attend or not) is the Playboy Jazz Festival (NSFW). For an entire weekend in June, Playboy brings in some of the big names in jazz (traditional, smooth, dixieland, you name it) to perform for a enthusiastic, picnicking crowd at the Hollywood Bowl.  For the past years, the Masters of Ceremonies has been renowned comedian Bill Cosby. This year is no different as Bill will return to MC the show. If you're in the Los Angeles area mid-June, here's some of the events taking place as well as the line-up for the main show.

Free Community Events:

Sunday, May 2, 3 p.m.
Playboy Jazz in Beverly Hills
Beverly Hills Civic Center Plaza
Bill Cunliffe Septet; Celebrating Oliver Nelson; The Blues and the Abstract Truth
Johnny Crawford and His Orchestra

Sunday, June 6, 4 p.m.
Playboy Jazz at Warner Center Park
Warner Center Park, Lou Bredlow Pavilion, Woodland Hills
Special Guest TBA in April
Sal Marquez and his trio
Lao Tizer and his band
Calabasas High School Band

Thursday, June 10, 7:30 p.m.
Jazz on Film with Ebony Repertory – New Location!
At the Nate Holden Performing Arts Center, Los Angeles
An evening of rare and often never-before-seen jazz footage and musical rarites hosted by noted jazz archivist Mark Cantor

Main Festival Lineup:

• Chick Corea Freedom Band with Christian McBride, Roy Haynes, Kenny Garrett
• Sax for Stax featuring Gerald Albright, Jeff Lorber and Kirk Whalum
• Kurt Elling
• Los Van VanMarcus Miller Band with featured guest artist Christian Scott
• The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra Salutes Louie Bellson
• Javon Jackson Band with special guest Les McCann
• Naturally 7
• Jake Shimabukuro
• Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue
• El Dorado High School under the direction of Richard Watson

• George Benson
• Manhattan Transfer
• Bobby Hutcherson and Cedar Walton Quartet
• Salif Keita
• Robert Randolph & The Family Band
• Esperanza Spalding
• Irvin Mayfield and the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra
• Tiempo Libre
• Cos of Good Music with Dwayne Burno, Ndugu Chancler, Mark Gross, Jay Hoggard, D.D. Jackson and Ingrid Jensen
• Jazz Mafia’s Brass Bows and Beats
• L.A. All District High School Jazz Band under the direction of Tony White and J.B. Dyas

It seems that North Hollywood is on an arts resurgence. When I arrived there last night to check out the Hear NoHo Music Festival, I was greeted with a place that seemed alive and bustling. The Hear NoHo festival is an event that happens the first Thursday of every month. For a small price ($12) you get a few venues and a few bands. You're allowed to jump from venue to venue to hear these different groups. It's a great way to see some art and hear some new ensembles in the process.

Art by Jeff Ramirez

My reason for going to the Hear NoHo festival on this particular night was to hear Thomas Nicholas perform an acoustic set at the Cella Gallery. The Cella Gallery was a great little space that was hosting an art exhibit where the artwork looked like photographs from afar, but you could definitely see the paintwork when you came up close. It was a presentation by Jeff Ramirez called "This is the life / These are the real things". My only issue with the event was that they had the performer, stand in front of the front door and perform. Maybe if they had put a curtain behind the performer then people wouldn't think to come in through the front door during the performance. Kind of distracting to look behind the person "on stage" and see people walking by, jogging by and stopping to hear what was going on.

Thomas put on a great acoustic show. He performed songs from his last album "Without Warning" (including the title track) as well as tracks from his forthcoming album, which -- according to him -- is in the process of final mixdown and heading to mastering. Based upon the songs that he showcased during his performance I am definitely looking forward to his new album coming out soon. I would also say, however, that after seeing him perform acoustic twice in a row now, I have to find a way to see him perform with his entire band. One of the problems with guitar and voice is that even though the songs are different, because it's done acoustically they can end up sounding the same to some people. Which is no knock against the artist, it's just the nature of things. I would love to hear how his full ensemble sounds in a room performing those same tracks.

Thomas Nicholas performing...

The people who attended the event were definitely into the music. Thomas has a great energy about him and he even rolled with the punches with the stuff going on behind him (remember he's standing in front of the front entrance to the Cella Gallery with no curtain behind him). At one point a guy jogging in a neon outfit (who looked like someone out of a Devo video came to the front entrance and stopped). Now obviously he drew the eyes of everyone in the room. Thomas quickly made the comment "Hey, that's my friend." then quickly retracted "Um, no his isn't actually!" drawing bits of laughter from the crowd. The neon dude even opened up the front entrance a bit to listen to the music. He liked what he heard because he nodded a little bit, but then proceeded to continue. Honestly, though, that's the kind of thing that could take away from a performance, so again I recommend some sort of curtain behind the artist or a different location within the venue to play.

After the performance, Thomas, his wife DJ Colette and some of their friends hung out at the Pitfire Pizza place for a late dinner and coffee. It was interesting to sit with these guys and listen to the stories of working in the Hollywood scene. One of Thomas' friends, Woody Schultz was featured in the movies "Avatar" and "Beowulf". He also had a couple of friends there who were managers and here I was sitting at this table. Although, to my credit, I recommended that Thom have the BBQ Chicken Panini, which he seemed to enjoy.

I highly recommend that if you're in the North Hollywood area on the first Thursday of any given month that you check out the Hear NoHo festival. It's a great way to hear music and hear new sounds. The Pitfire Pizza place is also highly recommended as they serve great organic food.

All in all, it was a great night of music and friends.

Incidentally, I did a small demonstration of the Zune HD for Colette. I was able to show her what the device does while her music is playing (you know the artist imagery, bio, etc). I even began by asking her if her iPhone was able to do something similar, which it can't. She thought it was pretty cool that it would show her discography (which she thumbed through), pictures and biography. She was able to demonstrate to me all of the great food that she's had on her travels as a DJ and some great cocktails that a guy at the Roosevelt Hotel mixes that are organic in nature, but still potent enough.

So my co-workers and I were discussing about American Idol. Frankly, I don't even watch the show anymore because America doesn't know what it wants. Then I opened up my Hotmail (yes, I still use Hotmail!) and saw an ad for one of the Las Vegas clubs. They decided that they were going to host a night starring the guy who sung that "Pants on the Ground" song. It'll be a live performance and people could have their chance to see him live.

Now wait a second...

If my brain is correct, Las Vegas is one of those places where you have to have $500 in your pocket, $500,000 in your bank account and 56 girls for every guy (and even then the guy might not get in). So why would I waste all of that just so I can see the "Pants on the Ground" guy live? Then what's the next ad I see: Come meet the cast of "Jersey Shore".

I'm sorry, when did we decide that having no real talent is the same has having true talent? So much to the point that people would hit up the high class places to say they saw these people in person?

Everytime I visit Ariel Publicity's website to look for new MP3s to feature on the blog, I'm presented with a long list of artists. People who have been busting their ass day after day. People who have been lugging gear, hardware and mics to gig after gig. People who hope that everything sounds right and then leave with a check that will barely cover the gas. These are people who are actively seeking that one-in-a-million chance to make it big and get on that Grammy stage. After all, who doesn't want the chance to have Kanye West interrupt them during their acceptance speech?

Instead, we're bombarded with people who because they did something stupid or act in a stupid fashion get advertised as the hot new thing to come see. Do you realize that people who host club nights in Vegas get a least 5 figures for their apperance? 5 FIGURES! Meanwhile, the young upstart group is barely getting half a figure and that's after doing 3 performances in the same day. Not to mention having to do an 8-5 job so they don't have to decide whether to eat or pay rent.

Now the reason I brought up the "Pants on the Ground" guy in particular is because I personally think that sends the wrong message. Now every fool is going to try to make an ass of themselves on American Idol just so they could be noticed by someone and get the same kind of fame. If I remember American Idol it was supposed to be a show that highlighted true, undiscovered talent. That's how we got people like Carrie Underwood, Daughtry, Kelly Clarkson and Adam Lambert (ok, scratch Adam Lambert), but you see what I mean. These were people who deserve all of the accolades that they get. Meanwhile, some old dude -- sings a ridiculous song (yes, I think the song is total nonsense) and now we're fawning over him. Even Brett Favre decided he was going to sing it in the locker room.

I guess the reason this gets me so hot and bothered is that I come from the angle where I've seen friends do whatever it took to take the talent that they had and make something out of it. I have friends from college who still can't catch a break (even though I think they deserve to be bigger than where they are). One of my dear friends, Natalie Martin, is a great singer so how come she isn't doing a show somewhere? Incidentally, Natalie's album is in the Zune Marketplace (under Zune Pass) if you wanted to check it out.

I could go into a whole spazz about American Idol. In fact, there was a "Conversation Piece" I had written long time ago called "When someone wins, the music lover loses" dealing with the fact that for the most part the winners of American Idol go on to obscurity while the runners up go on to stardom (Can someone please explain to me THAT phenomenon?) but I'll save all of this for a future conversation.

Right now, I just wanted to vent a bit about how can we turn basically the un-famous into superstars and leave well-deserving acts on the sidelines to fend for scraps. It shouldn't be that way.

Maybe if I stood outside with my actual pants ON THE GROUND, I could get a gig at Caesars, no?

1. What type of Zune do you currently own?  
Wait, do I have to have a Zune? Don't worry. Right now, I've got a Black 16 gb Zune HD, which happens to be my first MP3 Player (as long as you don't count my laptop), and it goes pretty much everywhere I go

2. What have you learned from your friends at Zune Social?
I guess I've pretty much learned everything I know about MP3 players. I have to say, Zune has the best community of anything that I've every used, always helpful.
 
3. What made you decide to get a Zune over any other MP3 player?

4. What type of music do you listen to (name as many as necessary -- genres/groups)?

5. What's your favorite thing about Zune (favorite feature)?
Aww, now that's unfair... I can only have one? Well, I guess that would be the artist data. I love being able to read bios about my favorite artists. After that comes Zune pass, Smart DJ, The Social, The Software, and lots of other stuff... but its hard to tell what my true second favorite thing is- all of those are so great!

6. Where do you use your Zune? Working out? At the office? 
Well, since I'm in school, I can't really use it throughout the day, but I walk to school in the mornings (it’s a mile), and I definitely get some listening in then. Other than that, I use the software whenever I'm using the computer (except when I'm using Pandora), as well as when I do homework. One time that I do not listen to music is when I run, but that's just my personal choice. 


7. What are some of your hobbies? What's your life like away from Zune Social?
I'm on twitter a lot, lol. Well, I run for my school (distance), and that pretty much takes up my whole life. I'm interested in Science/Tech, mainly. I read, used to do it more, but now with books in school... :/ Anything Fantasy/Science Fiction is good.

It was a good friend on Twitter who first turned me on to Manafest's music (Thanks, Josh!). It was Manafest's song "Bounce" that kept me coming back. But, overall, it was Manafest's delivery style and overall musicianship that keeps his stuff on a permanent rotation on my Zune HD. So I was pretty excited to be able to fire off a few quick questions to him about life and music.

If you look up Manafest in the Zune Marketplace, you'll see him listed under Christian music. And it's true: He's managed to combine two seemingly un-combinable genres together, Hip-Hop and Christian music. It's in that same vein that makes people like Kirk Franklin so popular. They are able to share their Faith, but do it in such a way that it even appeals to the younger crowd.

Today, he describes himself as a mash-up of Eminem + Linkin Park and certainly his newest single "No Plan B" demonstrates what that combo would sound like. It's from a forthcoming album, but Inside the Circle is happy to provide the track, free of charge, for our readership.

Before we get to that, however, here's the quick interview between Inside the Circle and Manafest.

Where are you from? How does living there affect your songwriting? Do you focus on any political themes?  If so, please tell us in more detail about them.
I live in Pickering, Ontario Canada..where I live doesn’t really affect the writing too much, I’m tour so often that I’ve learned to write where ever I am. If I had a choice place to write it would be California...No I don’t focus on any political themes, but if I was to lean to one side more it would for peace and stop the war.

What are your main musical influences?
My main influences are the Bible, my wife, other bands/music, and life experiences when I travel.

What was the first album you ever bought?
I’m pretty sure it was Michael Jackson BAD, that was one of my favorite records growing up.

First concert you ever attended?
The first concert I ever attended was EPMD with the Executioners and Rahzael from the Roots.  I was totally blow away.  Super young just started writing lyrics and had a great time with some friends. It was awesome.
 
Do you support any specific charities and how do you give back as an artist?
I always go with the saying from my friend from Nomis Design who says “Live to Give”.  I support World Vision and my wife and I sponsor a child, and also share about them from stage and ecourage other people to do so.  There’s been many people who have given of there time and finance to me which has made a huge impact on my life.. Why can’t I do the same.

Do you actually participate in other social networking sites aside from MySpace?
I use Twitter and Facebook as well, it’s great to be able to connect with the fans directly. Espcecially when the interface is easy to use and can get more done in less time.
 
How has the explosion of social networks helped you to better connect and communicate with your audience?
It puts millions of people around the globe right in front of me, fans that I was just hanging with in Japan on tour I’m connecting with via the computer now. Posting pictures video has allowed a closer connection with fans which is great.. It’s not about being the super star and this one sided communication.

What advice would you give to an up and coming artist?
Write the best songs you can, tour and build a fan base. Don’t expect anyone to do for you that you haven’t done or aren’t willing to do for yourself.

What's downtime like for you? What do you like to do that's not music-related?
Downtime for me is watching movies, going to the gym, surfing and skateboarding.. I need more of that in my life...

And, as promised, here's the song "No Plan B" from Manafest's forthcoming album "The Chase".To download, I recommend right-click on the file and hit 'save link as...' (or some variation thereof). Enjoy the track.

To new music, that is.

Connected entertainment is a great idea, especially when the content doing the connecting is free. Recently two new podcasts, and a Zune Video Marketplace option have come to the Zune Service. I think they promote this idea well. The first podcast, New Movie Trailers, is what it says. It provides a stream of new trailers for those interested in watching previews for upcoming theatrical releases. The second podcast, Trailer Vault, presents a themed bundle of movie trailers, available for purchase or rent, from the Zune Video Marketplace. Both podcasts are presented in high definition. New Movie trailers is available in 1080p while Trailer Vault is 720p. As an alternative option, Trailer Vault is also available as a free purchase from the Zune Video Marketplace in both standard and high definition. Thanks to Podcast Producer Rob Greenlee of the Zune Team for the initial heads up.

Watching movie previews can be fun. True, this functionality already exists in a number of ways on certain screens (i.e. the program or device that displays your video). However, this is the first time you can keep the trailers you want and transport them from one screen to another, should you desire. As discussed before, I think the ability to watch the trailers you want on multiple screens within your (Zune) ecosystem has a lot of potential. Similar to the way you can watch TV shows and movies on multiple screens you can now do the same with movie trailers. Over the next couple days, let us look at some ways to get at the new movie trailer options from different screens within the Zune Service. Specifically let us focus on the web, the Zune desktop software, Windows Media Center, Xbox 360, and devices. Essentially, how can we get the same great content on five different screens?

Web – Podcast Streaming

Short of hopping from theater to theater, watching movie trailers on the internet is probably the most popular way of satisfying a desire to see movie previews. Thanks to the September 2009 platform update, you can stream video podcasts and movie trailers from Zune.net. Since we are looking for podcasts, we will focus on the Podcast section. Last year, I reviewed the nuances of navigating the podcast section of Zune.net. This year, getting to the podcasts is even easier; just click on ‘podcasts’ from the Zune homepage. Once there, look at the left column of links and select ‘entertainment,’ then select ‘movies.’ Alternatively you could search for either title (New Movie Trailers or Trailer Vault) in the search box from the upper right corner of any Zune.net webpage.

ZuneTip: Web Video Playback

After selecting either podcast, click the play icon next to the trailer or trailer bundle if you chose Trailer Vault. Once the Silverlight video player loads, click watch, and enjoy. Notice Zune automatically dims the lights, thanks!

ZuneTip: You can get to the same podcast page within the Zune software by clicking the ‘Subscribe’ button next to the podcast’s picture or the ‘download’ links next the individual podcasts. From there you can subscribe to the podcast or download individual episodes.

Web – Free Video Purchase

The first themed video bundle out of the Trailer Vault focuses on comedy. As an alternative to the podcast of the same name, it is available as a free purchase from the Video section of Zune.net. To be clear, these are the same videos, just available through different means. To find this video from within the Video section, look at the left column, select ‘movies,’ then choose the ‘other’ genre. Currently, Trailer Vault: Comedy Edition is the most popular movie within this genre. If the movie does not appear on the first page, be sure to click on the ‘A-Z’ sorting option above the first two titles to search for it alphabetically (picture). Also you can search for “Trailer Vault” from the search box in the upper right corner of the genre page.

Purchasing this video from the Zune.net Marketplace is similar to the experience Marques described of renting a movie from the Zune desktop software. Clicking the ‘Buy’ button brings up the confirmation page shown above. The first screen asks you to confirm your purchase while giving you the option to choose standard or high definition. In this case, high definition equates to a 553mb WMV file at 720p. Standard definition will yield a 138mb WMV file at 480p. As noted in the picture above, choosing the marketplace version allows you to “buy and play” on your Xbox 360, Zune device, and PC. With some folder monitoring magic, the same buy once play anywhere experience can be accomplished in Windows Media Center and on the Xbox 360, using the podcast version of this video.

After pressing ‘Buy’ the purchase is complete. The website instructs you to open either the Zune desktop software or to find the video in the Zune Video Marketplace on your Xbox 360 to complete the purchase and begin downloading Trailer Vault: Comedy Edition. Notice buying an episode online was a simple two step process. I believe an additional step would be needed if you did not have an adequate number of points.

If you click the ‘Buy’ button again after completing your purchase, the website presents a helpful reminder. In addition, perhaps it should tell you where to go to get your purchased content.

ZuneTip: From the web, if you want to watch movie trailers that are not in the New Movie Trailers podcast or are not featured in the Trailer Vault, visit the movie trailers page of the Video section at Zune.net. Unfortunately you cannot download these trailers.

This completes the look at web portion of the movie trailer connected entertainment experience. Stay tuned as over the next couple of days our focus will shift to the Zune desktop software.

Since I have not published all of what I intend to discuss, some new links may appear and some wording may change to reflect the content of future posts as I look at other areas of the connected entertainment experience; bear with me. Overall, I intend for there to be five posts. However, I doubt all will be finished and posted this week.