deezer.com
Most people feel that music speaks to them on a very personal level, connecting them with the emotions and experiences of others through its universal language. It is one of the most widely loved art forms in history and can be appreciated by everyone regardless of their cultural background or native tongue.
Music plays an important role in our lives. We listen to music for a variety of reasons, including while we drive, work out, party, and more. The right soundtrack can make any activity better.
Music is important and very popular. We often meticulously craft elaborate playlists to fit certain moods and activities. For example, I have a lengthy sleep playlist of songs that help lull me into a deep and dreamy REM cycle.
This is why you need to find the right music streaming service to fit your unique musical needs. Each music streaming app on the market offers a different vision for how music can be accessed. Some, for instance, rely more heavily on the emulation of radio (think iHeart Radio, Pandora, Last.Fm, etc.); whereas others allow for a more customizable and personalized experience (Spotify, Tidal, Sound Cloud). In order to discern which music streaming service is right for you, you must take a look at each one and see if it will be harmonious with the ways in which you prefer to listen.
Now that we have covered the basics, it is time to take a closer look at Deezer. Based out of Paris, France, this music streaming service offers over 56 million songs to choose from. Although it may not get as much global attention or clout as other services like Spotify or Pandora, Deezer is definitely worth considering. As of right now, 14 million people are actively using the service every month. Let's dive in and see what all the fuss is about!
History
In 2006, Daniel Marhely developed the first iteration of what is now called Deezer. Originally, it was called Blogmusik and was created to provide people with unlimited music streaming via technology. Thank goodness for Marhely's efforts, as his dream has come true and we can all enjoy unlimited music streaming at our fingertips.
It didn't take long for Blogmusik to be charged with copyright infringement by the French agency, SACEM. The site was promptly shut down in April of 2007. Marhely did not let this discourage him, though. By August of 2007, the site was back up and running, this time branded as Deezer (a much better name anyway).
He struck a deal with SACEM which said that he would pay off the copyright holders, with money earned through advertising on Deezer, in return for permission to stream the songs that they streamed on Deezer from iTunes; the agreement also dictated, for some reason, that Deezer must give its users the ability to download the songs that they streamed on Deezer from iTunes, resulting in Deezer earning a commission on each purchase.
In 2007, Deezer proper finally launched. At this point, Marhely had not yet negotiated contracts with any major record companies. This, of course, resulted in a limited library of available songs. It took more than two years, but eventually Marhely was able to get the three largest labels in the world onboard: Universal, Sony, and Warner. In addition, Deezer also acquired the rights to music from several smaller, lesser-known labels, which has led to the rich collection of music to be found on the service today.
Design
The Deezer app has an impressive rating of 4.6 on the Apple App Store. This is due, at least in part, to Deezer's intuitive and aesthetically pleasing design. The app is extremely user-friendly, making it easier than ever to browse songs, make playlists, discover new artists and tracks, and keep up with your favorite podcasts. The best way that I can think of to describe Deezer's design would be to say that it is sleek, modern and visually appealing- something like a cross between Spotify and Apple Music. It has all of the convenience functionality of Spotify with a very intuitive organizational structure, much like Apple Music. As far as music streaming apps are concerned, Deezer easily has some of the best designs on the market.
Content
As of the time of this review, Deezer offers 56 million songs available to stream and download as well as a regularly updated list of all the best in streaming talk radio shows. This service is not just for music lovers, it caters to just about all of your audio streaming needs.
As a Spotify user, you'll be familiar with ?Flow? - this is the same personalized listening recommendations and suggested new genres, artists, and songs that you can access under the ?Discover Weekly? playlist on Deezer. However, unlike on Spotify where these are set in stone once you've created your playlist, you can use Flow to explore new music at any time.
Desktop and Mobile Experience
The Deezer app has a user-experience that is nearly perfect. There will be no learning curve whatsoever standing in the way between you and hours of uninterrupted listening with Deezer. You are not limited, however, to just listening to songs on your smartphone either-thanks to Deezer Premium?s download capabilities, quickly and conveniently listen to your music on any device, making the desktop experience just as great as the mobile one.
Pricing and Plans
If you want to upgrade to the premium plan, which is $9.99 a month, you will be able to avoid ads and have no limit on skips per track, as well as offline listening capability. The final option is the family plan which costs $14.99 a month and includes up to six family members with their own individual profiles and access to the entire library of songs.
Deezer offers three different plans- Deezer Free, Deezer Premium, and Deezer Family. Each plan has its own pros and cons- for example, the free version has ads but unlimited track skipping; premium removes ads and allows for more skip per track; while the family plan costs more but gives each member their own profile with no ads or limits on track skipping.
Unlike the free plan which offers a limited number of skips and ads, the premium plan at Deezer gives you unrestricted access to all of its features, including no ads, offline listening on any device, and unlimited skips. The premium plan is priced at $9.99 per month, about on par with other services of its kind.
In contrast, Pandora family is essentially the Standard package times 2. This means you get only two individual profiles, each of which is significantly weaker than Deezer Premium?s capabilities. At a whopping $29.99 a month, this plan is anything BUT a steal.
Suggestions that I have for Deezer
I would like to see Deezer make it easier for independent and underground artists to get their music featured on the service, as well as make it easier for them to upload their music frequently. Sure, Deezer does offer songs from plenty of indie labels, but I think it could be made easier for any band anywhere to quickly upload their music to Deezer. Spotify and Apple Music, for contrast, are both pretty good about this. I believe that Deezer should follow suit.
Conclusion
All in all, Deezer may just be the best music streaming service you've never heard of. It is truly a hidden gem, and I don't know why it doesn't get more attention on a global scale - perhaps they could benefit from a more active marketing campaign or two - but it deserves to be recognized for what it is. With more songs than both Spotify and Apple Music to choose from, plenty of podcasts, great app design, and some fun and useful features, Deezer might just be the streaming service I needed to convert me from Spotify.
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