THE SWEETENING OF
THE APPLE

Let the love fest begin.

With Taylor Swift and the independent sector on board after Apple's change of heart regarding royalties during the Apple Music trial period, the forecast surrounding next Tuesday's rollout has instantly shifted from stormy to sunny.

Swift, as we noted here, tweeted this morning about her enthusiastic delivery of 1989 to the service. Indie label services entity Absolute, meanwhile, announced that it "is happy to confirm that we have finalized our negotiations with Apple" and "pleased to be moving forward with the service on its launch."

Coverage of the forthcoming service is now focusing on its capabilities and exclusives, while artists like Pharrell and Eminem are teased as participants in various aspects of the debut. The New York Times, for its part, published an in-depth profile of Beats 1's Zane Lowe.

Several folks who've demoed the service, meanwhile, are offering up testimonials that range from favorable to gushing.

A case in point: "Apple has figured out how to get ten dollars out of your wallet every month with ease,” writes Vibe’s Iyana Robertson. After reviewing the components of the service—which she describes as "quite literally the best listening experience I’ve seen thus far"—Robertson concludes, “my final thought was, ‘Shut up and take my money.'"

She praises the curation side (noting a “candy store of prepared playlists”), marvels at the thought of listeners worldwide digging on Beats 1 simultaneously, and dubs social segment Connect “Such a simple idea. Such a huge game changer.” You can read the whole thing here.

Stand by for rainbows.