A lot of the music I find isn’t available on sites like iTunes to purchase (especially when it comes to the remixes). Thankfully, I discovered they (being people who are much more technologically adept than myself) have already solved this problem for me.
Using a YouTube to MP3 converter is ideal in many situations, and once you save the song, can be dragged directly into your iTunes library.
I prefer the site: http://www.youtube-mp3.org/ . It may not look like much, but trust me, it has everything you need for its purpose: to turn a YouTube file into an MP3 song.
It’s also simple. And by simple, I mean basically idiot proof. Simply:
- Copy the YouTube link for the song you want to create into the empty box
- Hit “convert video”
- The name of the video (as seen in the image below) should pop up with a “video successful” notification
- Click “download.”
You can then open up the newly created MP3 file (easily found in your “downloads”) and drag it directly into your music library. Although this isn’t quite as ideal as clicking a button on iTunes, it’s free and it gives you access to a ton of music that you might not otherwise be able to have on your iPod.
Keep in mind: Sometimes the videos can be parodies or an extended version of a music video with dialogue in it. If you want the best version to make as an MP3, I typically look for ones with with song title and then lyrics that also flash on the screen. It doesn’t always make for the prettiest screen shot picture to go along with the song, but it’s definitely a better idea in the end.
While you’re keeping that in mind, also keep this in mind: Official artist VEVO pages typically don’t let you convert their links, so it’s best to not even bother with those. Most remixes won’t come from a VEVO page anyway, and the ones that do have official videos can almost always also be found uploaded by someone else, most likely providing you with a link that will work.
Assignment:
Here’s an awesome cover to help get you started on your YouTube to MP3 downloading spree:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKcChGsDqnU
Lulu and the Lampshades wrote a song with the same beat as a game played at summer camps all over this great nation called “The Cup Game.” Good, but never got very famous. Then, a few months ago, this girl named Anna posts a video of her singing this song. I don’t know if I mentioned, but it’s crazy to watch people sing this and make the cup beats at the same time. Definitely give the video a watch before you download the song itself.
