Apple is launching DJ mixes in spatial audio with Dolby Atmos on Apple Music, the company announced on Wednesday. The company says the launch brings listeners into a truly immersive audio experience with “multidimensional sound and clarity.”
Detroit-based DJ and producer Jeff Mills is going to kick off the launch with an exclusive hour-long mix called “Outer to Inner Atmosphere: The Escape Velocity Mix.” The set also officially relaunches Apple Music’s acclaimed One Mix series, which is a showcase of the world’s top DJs and producers. Apple says new mixes will be added monthly going forward.
“The response to spatial audio from both subscribers and creators has been incredible, and we’re thrilled to expand this innovation in sound,” said Stephen Campbell, Apple Music’s global head of dance and electronic music, in a statement.
Apple also said that the arrival of spatial audio is a “natural next step” in Apple Music’s commitment to sound and DJ mixes following its recent launch of a program that properly identifies and compensates all of the individual creators involved in making a DJ mix. Using technology from Shazam, which Apple acquired in 2018 for $400 million, Apple Music is working with major and independent labels to devise a fair way to divide streaming royalties among DJs, labels and artists who appear in the mixes. This is intended to help DJ mixes retain long-term monetary value for all creators involved, making sure that musicians get paid for their work even when other artists iterate on it.
As part of today’s announcement, Apple Music also debuted 15 “Boiler Room” mixes that were captured at nightclubs, festivals and raves and are newly mixed in spatial audio for the first time. The app will add more sessions mixed in spatial audio throughout the year.
Apple Music is using Shazam to solve the streaming industry’s problem with DJ mixes
