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Record executives and radio DJs may have controlled what made it onto record store shelves in the past, but a web-app called thesixtyone is helping its users decide for themselves what they want to listen to now. With a goal of helping young artists get discovered, thesixtyone has created a way for music lovers to listen to songs by musicians they’ve never heard of before and download those that seem worth listening to again.

If you’re sick of the music on the radio and tired of the tunes you’ve downloaded onto your iPod, it might be time to give thesixtyone a try. Head over to the site – www.thesixtyone.com – and click on the word “ready” to begin. Immediately, a song will begin playing by an artist you’ve most likely never heard of before. If you like the tune, then keep listening and add the song to your playlist. If you hate the song, there’s no hard feelings. Just click the arrow on the right-hand side of the page to start listening to another song by an undiscovered artist. When you find a song you actually enjoy, download it to your hard drive and import it onto your iPod. Musicians who sell their songs on thesixtyone are paid directly without having to give a cut of the proceeds to their record companies or distributors.

Thesixtyone isn’t just a service that allows people to listen to music and sell their songs on the web, either. The web-app also offers an interactive gaming element that lets users recommend songs they like and earn points when other users download or recommend those very same songs. Users can also comment on songs, make friends through the site, and complete “quests” or journeys just for fun. For music aficionados who enjoy being on the cusp of new music trends, thesixtyone is a great web-app.

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