Napster tricked me and iTunes seems to have done the same. They’ve duped the world into believing they’re on our side but Dr. Dre and I see right through them. Our motives are much different but our hatred does bear some similarity. They’re both agenda ridden. That’s called selfishness. Without it, Dre and I would have little to write about.

The Internet was supposed to have the power to unite the world and cure cancer. There was no ceiling. Instead, we got up-to-the-minute scoring and an unnatural amount of desperate housewives who would do ANYTHING to curb their loneliness. But also, we got some “information sharing” that, unfortunately, included a pre-released Metallica song.

This kicked off a very important copyright infringement debate, which of course, didn’t interest me in the least. I was by no means an expert, considering I was still pronouncing it “Nabster” at the time, but I was tickled hearing Lars Ulrich use the word “acquiescing”. The hoopla perked my interest as to what all the fuss was about.

I’ll vividly recall my first day on Napster. My first search was, “Momma Said Knock You Out, Unplugged.” LL wasn’t jazzed about the unplugged idea but found favor with the flexibility of live musicians and ended up blowing the house out with Momma Said. I hadn’t heard the song since and couldn’t wait to hear it every day. Seven years later and it’s hard to put into words how passionately I now hate that song.

The second song I downloaded was the Jane’s Addiction version of “Sympathy for the Devil”. I’ve argued with many that Sympathy is the greatest song of all time. That’s based on lyrics, catchiness, sing-a-long ability and its climatic build to a strong crescendo. I never loved Mick’s voice though and Jane’s cover filled the song’s only hole, creating near perfection. Again, seven years later and that perfection makes me want to cut myself a little.

Pre-Napster, you’d make mixes with the resources at hand which wasn’t much. I recall making what was supposed to be my go-to mix at a friend’s house. However, for some reason, I added “Eighteen and Life” and “Speedo” from the ‘Goodfella’s’ sound track. I’m not sure why but that mix was tainted forever. Constructing a playlist with your 20 favorite songs just wasn’t realistic back then. That all changed with Napster. I’ve since beaten all 20 of them into the ground. Their original intentions were to familiarize me with music I’d never heard. What it did was make me despise the music I knew and loved.

Now, another start-up company is finishing the plight that Napster began. A company called TuneCore is getting the music of any band into the most popular online stores. TuneCore does not take any money on the backend. Instead, they charge one time fees of 99 cents per song and within weeks, those songs are on the pay-for-play sites like eMusic, iTunes and the new copyright friendly Napster.

Napster still lives at a monthly cost with a portion returning to the artists. I’m more partial to the pay-for-play iTunes where things have become even bleaker then Napster. iTunes provides a conduit straight into your soul with their “Top 25 Most Played” selection. When I realized this existed, I discovered my number one most played song was (GASP!) “Goodbye to you” by Michelle Branch. As you can imagine, I found this very disconcerting.

I vaguely recall going through a phase with the Laguna Beach Soundtrack and I remember finding favor with this tune…but 161 times!?! Apple probably reported me to the government as a potential nut-job when I hit 150. If I get within 100 yards of Michelle, I’ll probably be picked up as a stalker. (The top five wasn’t much better. Rufus Wainwright’s ‘Hallelujah’ from the ‘Shrek’ soundtrack was the most embarrassing. Should I leave my wife and just come out of the closet now or wait until all my grandparents pass?)

This made me take a good, long, hard look in the mirror. Not only did Napster cause me to hate all my favorite music, iTunes is causing me to hate who I am, all while forcing Casey Kasem into retirement. I’m starting to think Lars was right on.

(On an unrelated side note: Casey Kasem is really fun to say. It makes me feel a little naughty like swallowing gum or shooting the dog with the leaf blower. It’s not like saying “luggage” or “hopscotch” which is pure torture.)

Are we really in the Information Age? Or should we rename it the Napster Age? When I think of how my life changed due to the internet, I see email first, music second and who cares a distant third. (Online poker, if my wife or mom is reading. Housewives, if not.) It’s hard to believe the impact that one 19-year-old had on the world.

That being said, can TuneCore really be what Napster claimed they were? With notable artists like Ziggy Marley and Izzy Stradlin on their client list, I’m guessing so. And if so, what thorn in my side will it produce? Again folks, it’s called selfishness. It’s a great creative stimulant. But either way, it seems the Napster ideal is attempting to come full circle all by it’s self. The good news is that Suge Night didn’t have to kill anybody.