Virgin FreeFest 2010 Lineup Announced

Some parts of living in DC in the summer aren't so great...the never-ending heat wave we're currently experiencing for example. Throngs of tourists. More subway cars that don't have air conditioning than do...But one pretty cool part of living in DC in the summer, at least the past few years, has been the Virgin Mobile FreeFest taking place.

The FreeFest will occur on Saturday, 9/25 this year and being held again at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. “Our goal is simply to book the coolest bands we can. This year we’re breaking with the traditional format of monster headliner trickling down to baby bands, and instead we’re sprinkling fantastic acts all day long. It’s kind of like a festival on full-day shuffle,” said Seth Hurwitz, the Fest's producer and owner of the 930 Club here in DC. The 2010 lineup was announced today and includes the following acts:

M.I.A., LCD SOUNDSYSTEM, PAVEMENT, T.I., LUDACRIS, JOAN JETT, THIEVERY CORPORATION, MATT & KIM, JIMMY EAT WORLD, THE TEMPER TRAP, EDWARD SHARPE & THE MAGNETIC ZEROS, AND YEASAYER; DANCE FOREST: CHROMEO, SLEIGH BELLS, DIE ANTWOORD, MODESELEKTOR, NEON INDIAN

In addition to two main stages, a dance forest filled with inspired music, and a special second line march from stage to stage with Trombone Shorty will be held. We love us a good second line around here, and Trombone Shorty is fantastic so if you go, definitely go see him!

Tickets to the 2010 Virgin Mobile FreeFest will be available to the public on TicketFly at 10 am EST on Saturday, 7/24. Virgin Mobile customers and previous Virgin Mobile Festival ticket holders from the past four years will be invited via text and email to a private “free-sale” (much like a pre-sale, except free) to be held Friday, 7/23.

Last year, $80,000 was raised and 30,000 hours of volunteerism were generated for youth homelessness. This year, The RE*Generation, Virgin Mobile’s charitable initiative to end youth homelessness, is encouraging fans to make a $5 donation and in return receive a 2010 Virgin Mobile FreeFest mix produced by Rusko. The download will mash up select bands in the lineup to create a unique 20-minute mix. The DJ mix will be available for pre-order on Friday during the pre-sale with every $5 donated to youth homelessness. In keeping with the “free” mantra, Ticketfly is waiving all service charges when fans pick up their FreeFest tickets at Merriweather or the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. or print their tickets at home.

Another change this year is the premium ticket. This provides Pavilion seating, with a portion of the ticket price going to support homeless youth charities.

For more details on the ticketing, including options for donating money to youth homelessness, and to sign up the news alerts and updates, check out Virgin Mobile FreeFest.

Seen Your Video: Mates of State Cover Tom Waits at Virgin FreeFest 2009

Photos and text from Sunday's Virgin Mobile FreeFest 2009 are coming right up but one great thing from it was that I finally got to see Mates of State live. The Mates ended their set with a cover of Tom Waits' "Long Way Home" that was just lovely.

Virgin Mobile Free Fest 2009 Schedule Announced

The schedule for the 2009 Virgin Mobile Free Fest was announced today:

Pavilion Stage
1:30-2:25 PM: Mates of State
2:50-4:00 PM: Taking Back Sunday
4:20-5:30 PM: Jet
6:00-7:15 PM: The Bravery
7:45-8:45 PM: Weezer
9:15-10:45 PM: Blink-182

West Stage
11:15-11:45 AM: Sunday's Roulette
12:00-12:30 PM: The Birthday Massacre
12:45-1:35 PM: St. Vincent
2:00-3:00 PM: Wale
3:35-4:45 PM: The Hold Steady
5:15-6:30 PM: Public Enemy
6:50-7:50 PM: The National
8:10-9:20 PM: GirlTalk
9:50-11:00 PM: Franz Ferdinand

Dance Stage
1:00-2:00 PM: Holy F*ck
2:45-5:30 PM: Lee Burridge
5:50-8:15 PM: Danny Howells
8:15-11:00 PM: Pete Tong

News: Universal Music and Virgin Reach a Download Deal

From yesterday's New York Times. First Sony gets more with the new world order, now Universal Music....A few years behind the time, sure, but the music industry has to start somewhere. While I'm sure music industry execs bristle mightily when having to concede to stuff like this, it's good to know that they're at starting to change their mindsets about digital music and all that it entails, if only a little. Maybe next they'll get with the program in terms of larger festivals like All Points West, Download Festival, and Lollapolooza, and view online music sites in the same "press" light as they do dailies. Because honestly, where do you go to learn more about the bands playing these larger festivals, the Philadelphia Inquirer and USA Today, or sites like mine (hopefully)? Exactly....

PARIS — The Universal Music Group and Virgin Media said on Monday that they had reached a deal that would offer consumers unlimited downloads as part of a partnership that steps up antipiracy enforcement.

Universal, the largest recording company in the world, said it would offer its entire catalog — which contains works by artists like Amy Winehouse and U2 — to customers of Virgin Media for a monthly subscription.

The music will be free from copy protection, a feature that distinguishes the service from most existing subscription offerings. The cost of the service, which will probably start by the end of the year, was not disclosed.

In return, Virgin Media, the British cable television and broadband provider, agreed to take steps to reduce piracy on its network, something that other broadband providers have resisted.

The measures could include temporary suspensions of offenders’ Internet connections, the company said.

For the recording industry, developing new digital business models is essential because pirated tracks account for 95 percent of online music, according to industry estimates.

The announcement pre-empts by a day the expected publication of the British government’s plan for the digital economy, including antipiracy proposals.

Britain wants copyright owners and Internet service providers to cooperate in the fight against piracy, and it welcomed the agreement between Virgin and Universal.

“Government has a role in creating the right legal and regulatory framework for rights and copyright,” said Stephen Carter, the British communications, technology and broadcast minister, in a statement. “However, the market will flourish through innovative commercial agreements between companies, and agreements such as this will help significantly in reducing any demand for piracy.”

Analysts said Virgin, which has more than seven million broadband customers, might have been willing to yield on copyright enforcement because it also produces and sells content via its cable television system, unlike many broadband providers, which simply serve as a conduit for content.

“This is a really high-stakes game,” said Mark Mulligan, an analyst at Forrester Research. “Universal and Virgin have come to the table with all they can offer.”

The entrepreneur Richard Branson owns a 6.5 percent stake in Virgin, whose shares are traded on the Nasdaq stock exchange.

Virgin said it was talking to the other three major music companies — Sony Music Entertainment, EMI and Warner Music Group — in an effort to include them in the new service.