If you’re still paying for music or you are skeptical about downloading music files from LimeWire and other peer-2-peer networks you have come to the right place. In this article I will list about 11 legitimate websites and resources that will enable you to download and listen to music your favorite tunes so that you can enjoy them on your computer and on the go. Of course you may not be able to download Lady Gaga’s latest single, you will be able to listen to it though. Regardless you will be able to download and listen to a ton of great music for free. Check out the list below and let us know if you have any comments or questions in the comments section at the end of the article.
In this article we will cover the following resources:
- Free MP3 Downloads (two websites)
- Audio from YouTube Videos (two website/resources)
- Free Internet Radio (five websites)
- Recordings of Live Concerts (two websites)
Free MP3 Downloads
Site #1: Download Amazon MP3’s
The worlds largest online retailer also happens to sell MP3’s via their website. In order to entice customers to keep coming back for more music, Amazon makes a ton of free music available for download to your computer. Amazon MP3’s can be played on Windows Media Player, iTunes, and more. Follow the instructions below to locate the free MP3 section in Amazon.
1. Click on Movies, Music & Games.
2. Click on MP3 Downloads from the menu that appears.
3. When the page loads locate the Free Music button and click on it to open the free MP3 page.
4. Click on the Get MP3 button for the albums you wish to download.
A. You will notice that there are over 100 different titles in the Free section.
Save the files to your computer and sync the songs to your favorite portable media player.
Site #2: MP3.com Free MP3 Downloads
1. Go to MP3.com/free-music and locate the free song of the day.
2. Click on the download icon to download the song to your computer.
Like any other MP3 you save to your computer you will be able to play it using the media player of your choosing and will be able to sync the songs to your favorite portable media player.
Visit MP3.com
Audio from YouTube Videos
Believe it or not the biggest video website in the world also happens to have the largest collection of music anywhere. All you have to do is separate the video from the music file so that you can listen to your favorite song without having to watch the video. Follow the instructions below to learn how to download mp3 files from YouTube videos to yur computer.
Site #3: Zamzar.com – Free Online Video Conversion
Zamzar is a website we’ve featured in the past that allows you to download videos from the web, but it also has another feature that allows you to download just the audio portion of the video you want to download. This audio file can then be converted to a forma that works with your computer and portable media device so that you can take your music with you wherever you go.
1. Visit Zamzar.com and click on the Download Videos tab.
2. Paste the website address (URL) for the video whose audio file you are trying to download.
3. Choose the file format used to save the converted audio (MP3, AAC, etc.).
4. Enter your email address.
Note: Make sure you provide a valid email address. This is necessary for you to receive the email containing the link to download the video.
5. Click Convert.
6. Click OK when you receive the confirmation dialog box.
7. Open your email client and locate the email from Zamzar Conversion. Once you open the message click on the download link to download the audio file to your computer.
Site #4: Video DownloadHelper (Firefox Add-on)
YouTube Download Helper is a Firefox add-on that allows you to download YouTube videos from the browser. All you have to do is visit the YouTube page with the video you want to download and follow the instructions below.
1. Click on the DownloadHelper icon that appears next to the Firefox address bar.
2. Click on one of the download formats available.
3. Click on one of the audio options available (MP3 or AAC). Stick to Download and Convert, it’s the easiest.
4. Select the format to convert the file to.
Note: Choose an audio format that is compatible with your media player so you only have to convert the file one.
5. Click OK to begin the download.
Free Internet Radio
So far we’ve covered several sources to download the music files to your computer, but what if your looking to listen to the latest music and playlists that reflect your music tastes? This is where free internet radios from Pandora and Grooveshark come in. Below I will list these two services along with others to help you decide which to use. If you really like the services and don’t mind paying a nominal fee to get rid of the ads and get access to unlimited music that may also be an option for you. Some of these services like Jango go a step further and provide a Facebook-like experience for music lovers while Pandora sticks to just making sure you discover new music based on your ratings.
The best thing about these free online radios is that you can take them with you no matter where you are (so long as you have an Internet connection of course). Pandora has apps for the iPhone, Android mobile devices, and even an Adobe Air app that runs on multiple platforms. You can even use Pandora with new TV’s from Sony, streaming devices like Boxee and Logitech’s new Google TV device.
Site #5: Pandora
Pandora is personalized internet radio that is designed to help you discover new music you’ll love mixed in with music you already know. Pandora is powered by the most comprehensive analysis of music ever undertaken, the Music Genome Project: a crazy project started over ten years ago to capture the complex musical DNA of songs using a large team of highly-trained musicians. Pandora allows you to listen to ad supported music for free with the option to pay an annual subscription which enables ad free music and the use of the Pandora One client.
Pandora is currently available for the browser, Adobe Air, iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, Palm WebOS and home entertainment devices.
Visit Pandora.com
Site #6: Grooveshark
Grooveshark is similar to Pandora in that you are able to listen to music based on a genre or artist, but unlike Pandora Grooveshark has a built-in social element that allows you share and discover new music with other Grooveshark users. Grooveshark offers a free limited, ad-supported account, and a premium unlimited account. Grooveshark for the iPhone is unofficially supported with Jailbroken iPhones and is available for BlackbBrry, Palm WebOS, Nokia, and Android phones.
Visit Grooveshark.com
Site #7: Last.fm
Last.fm is a music recommendation service that you can start using by signing up for a free account and installing The Scrobbler. The Scrobbler helps you discover music based on the songs you play. This helps Last.fm tell you what songs you play most often, which songs you like the most, how much you’ve played an artist, which of your friends have similar tastes, and more. By focusing on the music you already play they can help you discover more music to listen to.
Last.fm has mobile apps for Android and iPhones and also supports the Xbox, Logitech Squeezebox, Sonos, and Revo music players.
Visit Last.fm
Site #8: Jango, The Facebook of Internet Radios
Think of Jango as a cross between Pandora, Last.fm and Facebook. Jango provides users with more control over the songs that are played. For instance, I can tell Jango that I would like the next song in queu to be of the same artist I’m listening to, with Pandora it’s all luck of the draw, you may or may not be able to listen to another song from your favorite artist right away. Another feature that sets Jango apart from other streaming services is how you are able to view who’s listening to song you are tuned to, what their comments are, and any suggestions they may have. You can also explore their profiles to see what music they’ve been listening to. You can even add them as friends and connect via Jango.
Unfortunately Jango can only be used via a browser on your computer. There is no mobile app as of this writing.
Visit Jango.com
Site #9: Rdio
Rdio is the only service listed here that requires a subscription payment of about $4.99 per month after the three-day trial is over. That doesn’t mean you should skip the chance to listen to the latest music for three days free. Rdio allows users to listen to any song in any album without restrictions and you can sync the music to your portable media player. To be frank this is probably the best service for the money in terms of the music you can listen to.
Rdio is compatible with the iPhone, Android devices, and BlackBerry’s. You can also download songs to listen while offline.
Visit Rdio.com
Recordings of Live Concerts
If you love the sound of live audiences accompanying your favorite artists and enjoy the uniqueness of the songs when they are performed live then you’re going to want to download concert recordings of your favorite artists. There are two websites that I found that offer this unique content, both list trade friendly artists that are okay with the recording and distribution of their live performances. One of the websites does require a BitTorrent client to download the recordings and the other provides them directly from their site. The choice is yours.
Site #10: Bt.etree.org
Bt.etree.org is a place where users can share live concert recordings of trade friendly artists. Bt.etree.org requires that you use a BitTorrent client like Vuze or µTorrent to download the audio files.
Visit bt.etree.org
Site #11: The Internet Archive – eTree
The Internet Archive has partnered up with Site #10 above (etree.org) to provide high quality live concerts in a lossless, downloadable format. Think of the Internet Archive as an extension of etree’s website. All music is from trade-friendly artists and is strictly non-commercial. Songs from the Internet Archive do not require a BitTorrent client to download.
Visit Archive.org to download the concert recordings you wish to listen to.
Do you know of other resources for free music online? Please share in the comments section below.
Service descriptions via respective websites.
