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Tidal is gifting music lovers a taste of its exclusive streaming content for 12 consecutive days, which started on Dec. 25.

Tidal, a subscription-based streaming serviced owned by Jay-Z and a variety of other high-profile music artists, announced Friday that those interested in the promotion won’t even need a credit card to sign up. With just an email address, they’ll be granted full access to the global music platform. For free.

“Heading into 2018, we’re looking forward to giving Tidal members more access and a high-quality soundtrack to everyday life,” said Tony Gervino, Tidal’s vice president of culture and content, in a statement. “We value what music and music culture means to people and trust this preview will give music fans a taste of the elevated music experience that Tidal is offering its customers.”

The new promotion will allow the company to attract more subscribers with a 12-day preview period to its Hi-Fi and Premium services, ending on Jan. 5, 2018. During this trial, Tidal will release new music videos, give away tickets, and roll out new content each day, including a new Rap Radar podcast interview with West Coast hip-hop artist Nipsey Hussle. Potential members will also have access to Tidal’s full platform via mobile app, web player, and desktop app, according to the press release.

Since its re-launch in 2015, Tidal has provided subscribers with exclusive access to new albums, music videos, documentaries, artist-curated playlists, podcast interviews, intimate events, concerts, and listening parties. “In 2017 alone, Tidal has hosted nearly 40 livestreams, hosted more than 70 events, released 335 original videos and shared more than 40 exclusive tracks, albums and videos with members,” reads the statement.

On Wednesday, Tidal announced the launch of its first TV app for the Apple TV and Android TV devices, which will allow subscribers to watch Tidal content directly on their television.

The post Tidal Offers 12 Days of Free Music and Exclusive Content appeared first on Black Enterprise.

While the long-awaited remake of Final Fantasy VII is still on the horizon, fans of the franchise have something to look forward to in the near future. Universal Studios Japan has revealed that it is temporarily bringing a Final Fantasy ride to its theme park in early 2018. The first look at the attraction appears to be heavily inspired by the Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children film, as Cloud Strife and his deadly rival, Sephiroth, engage in an aerial duel. But the female fan in this video doesn’t seem to be suitably freaked out by her face-to-face encounter with the iconic villain who inspired the “One-Winged Angel” theme.



Via Kotaku, the Final Fantasy XR Ride is essentially a redress of the VR-enabled roller coaster called Space Fantasy: The Ride. Final Fantasy XR Ride will make its debut on January 19, 2018 as part of Universal Studios Japan’s annual Cool Japan event. However, it will only be in the park until June 24, 2018, which is just a short six-month window for fans to experience the ride. The video offers a brief teaser of what gamers can expect, from the expanded world of Gaia to the beloved Chocobo birds. It’s not clear if the ride will only draw from Final Fantasy VII or if the other games and characters from the franchise will be used as well.

While this attraction will only be temporary, Universal Studios Japan is currently building a Nintendo-themed expansion that includes experiences based upon Super Mario and other iconic video game characters. Perhaps that may eventually lead to more games like Final Fantasy becoming fixtures of future theme park expansions in Japan. That’s certainly something we’d like to see in the U.S. as well!

What do you think about the first look at the Final Fantasy ride? Let us know in the comment section below!

Images: Universal Studios Japan/Square Enix

Writer: Hope Larson / Artist: Sami Barsi / DC Comics

Holiday specials are here as Batgirl #18 cameos Harley Quinn and sends Babs, Frankie, and Alysia on a Christmas adventure. Titled “White Elephant,” girls night out takes place at a bar that double booked their Gordon Clean Energy party with another one led by the opposite type of crowd – a company led by a bigoted, rich, entitled douche type. He’s our villain of the episode, even more so than Harley Quinn despite crashing the event to spread poison gas to everyone there. I’m hardly the holiday special type, but this one’s appropriately light, quick, and fun, and the chemistry between Babs and her friends help carry the issue.

The artwork is warm and has some beautifully drawn panels, and Sami Barsi is already my favorite artist on this series despite one panel where our 1% villain wears the least suit coat-looking suit coats of all time. Bradley Burr draped a shawl over his shoulder and called it good. We leaving bathrobe chic in 2017, fam. She’s laughing at you, not with you.

Babs, Frankie, and Alysia take turns solving a riddle that Harley left them to solve, and the three of them take their shots to answer the reason for the season. There’s a levity in the issue, so much that it feels that the life-or-death stakes aren’t real, that maybe none of them are even poisoned at all and Harley just wants to have some fun running them around town. Still, there are some boss panels throughout that weave heroic moments in between the comedy, which, in a holiday special, help keep our inner action fan satisfied.

In the end Harley leaves about as easily as she arrived, and Batgirl #18 wraps up as a holiday palate cleanser between arcs that flexes the muscle of Sami Barsi and color artist Jessica Kholinne. Batgirl, Alysia, Frankie, and Harley are all drawn well, from cocktail parties to rooftop selfies, and their close-knit friendship makes the issue worth the quick read.

7 out of 10

Reading Batgirl? Find BNP’s other reviews of the series here.

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The post Batgirl #18 Review appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.

Solange Knowles opened up to fans on Instagram about an illness she's been suffering from for months. On Instagram the 31-year-old singer revealed that she would not be performing at AfroPunk Joburg 2017 this week, because she dealing with an autonomic disorder. "The past five months I have been quietly treating, and working through an autonomic disorder," Knowles said on Wednesday. "It been a journey that hasn’t been easy on me... Sometimes I feel cool, and other times not so cool at all. It’s a complicated diagnoses, and I’m still learning so much myself, but right now, my doctors are not clearing me for such an extended lengthy flight, and doing a rigorous show right after." But she did reassure fans that she'll return to perform for them at a later date. Adding, "I can’t put into words how saddened and sorry I am that I am unable to perform for you guys this NYE, there is simply no other place I wanted to be than there with my family to bring in 2018 with you... but I give you my ABSOLUTE WORD I will come back with AfroPunk and deliver this performance... as it is so extremely important to me to connect with the people who have so closely inspired me in so many ways." NYU Langone describes autonomic disorders as: The autonomic nervous system regulates the function of the body’s internal organs, such as heart rate, blood pressure, digestion, and body temperature. People with an autonomic disorder have trouble regulating one or more of these systems, which can result in fainting, lightheadedness, fluctuating blood pressure, and other symptoms.  Knowles released her third studio album, A Seat At the Table in Sept 2016. Throughtout 2017 she performed songs from the project in curated art spaces, festivals and intimate concert halls. The talent has a 13-year-old son and husband, Alan Ferguson.