about:

This was the idea of Pineapple Girl. She has always been fascinated with the way a song is poetry with a soundtrack, and the inextricable way music is part of our everyday lives. Some songs remind us of people or places, or of heartbreak or a child's birth or of a certain time in life or a TV commercial we really, really hate. PG often listens to a song and imagines the story behind it, and figured others did too -- she thought it would be enlightening to see what other people write, with one song as their focus. The collab title came from the Depeche Mode album of the same name, and the lyric quoted in the banner is from the Paul Simon song "Late in the Evening".

The first collaboration went live on Monday, August 25, 2003. Links to all the participating entries are at the MftM index page. If you have questions or comments, please email Pineapple.

As of September 15, 2003, the first Music for the Masses collab is closed. So many people inquired, though, that I will likely be hosting another one in a few months. Please send me an email if you are interested, and I will shout at you when we make the new plans. Thanks!

   how to participate:

Music for the Masses is open to anyone. Submit an entry by emailing a link -- not the entry or an attachment. Following are the guidelines and instructions.

  • An MftM entry should have one previously published song as its theme. Ideally, the title of the entry should be the song title.

  • An entry could be a reminiscence, a short fiction, a journal entry... anything goes. Use your imagination -- MftM entries should strive to interpret in the literary sense.

  • Entries should be at least 200 words long.

  • The lyrics to the song must be available online, and must be linked somewhere in the entry, preferably at the top. Many online lyric sites are thinly-veiled advertising media; we recommend that you try to find the one that forces the fewest or no pop-ups on your readers.

  • The entry may incorporate the actual lyrics or not, as the author sees fit; regardless, all entries must contain the following disclaimer language:

    All lyrics are the property and copyright of their respective owners. All lyrics are provided for educational purposes and personal use only.


  • Authors retain all copyrights to their own original writing.

  • It would be great if the reader can listen to the song; a link to an MP3 of the song, or to another website where it could be heard, is wonderful but not required.

  • The entry must be hosted by the author or on another third-party server.

  • The page on which the entry resides should not require payment for viewing (otherwise you risk violation of the non-commercial-use-only disclaimer).

  • There must a link back to the MftM main page somewhere on the entry page. There are also graphics you may use to promote the collab (see below).
  • The links page will follow the format: [SONG TITLE] by [ARTIST], by [YOUR NAME] of [YOUR WEBSITE]. Alternate names for entries will not be listed on the main links page.

  • Links for your MftM entry should be submitted via email. Be sure to also include the link to your website's homepage, if you want that linked as well.

  • In addition to a list of all entries, there will be a "jukebox" (a random link generator).

  • Participants may submit as many entries as they like! In order to function correctly in the Jukebox, each entry must be self-contained while following the collaboration guidelines.

  • You are responsible for all of your own content; if anyone contacts PG with a problem with anything you say about a particular song, she'll direct them back to you.

  • MftM reserves the right to reject an entry for any reason, although that's not likely to happen unless the entry is terribly offensive in a racist or discriminatory fashion, or is of an explicit adult nature.

   how you can promote Music for the Masses:

Feel free to promote this collaboration, even if you are not participating!

Please link to the main MftM page at http://www.pineapple-girl.com/music. If you are interested in using a graphic, any of the following (designed by the lovely and talented Beav) are available:

 

 

All lyrics are the property and copyright of their respective owners.
All lyrics provided for educational purposes and personal use only.