iLike Strikes Deal With Rhapsody for Full-Length Streams

Social music discovery site iLike made a series of announcements today, most notably full-length song playback through Rhapsody. iLike hooked up with digital music service to allow 25 full-length streams per month for its over 30 million users. After the 25 full streams have been used, users can either sign up the Rhapsody service or return to using the 30-second streams. The full-length streaming playback will soon also be usable for Facebook's iLike application. iLike also announced a plan to pay out royalties for streams, marking the first time music delivery on social networks has been monetized.

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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