The Source Magazine Relaunches TheSource.com and Becomes the first Hip-Hop Brand Endorsed by Apple for the iPad

NEW YORK, June 16 /PRNewswire/ -- The Source Magazine (www.thesource.com), the leading publication of Hip-Hop music, culture, politics and sports has relaunched its website with new digital properties and a sleek makeover design to attract the major players online. The new site has just been selected as one of Apple computers' 'Ready for iPad'  websites, a prominent list of sites that take advantage of the latest web standards to deliver content that looks and functions beautifully on the new Apple iPad. On TheSource.com users will have access to the latest news, music videos and The Source Digital Archive, the only digital library of its kind chronicling over 20 years of Hip-Hop music, news, events and related content alongside every article, photo, interview, record report and Unsigned Hype since the magazine's inception in 1988.  The Source Digital Radio, a free online Hip-Hop station programmed by tastemakers at The Source and powered by Slacker.com (www.slacker.com), will soundtrack the The Source brand's online experience with the latest Hip-Hop music. Exclusive content from the site will also be available to mobile users via the Nokia Ovi Apps store which supplies Nokia's network of 1.5 billion subscribers (worldwide) with the latest in mobile phone applications.

The Source and its digital team developed its new digital user interface to help create an innovative online community that allows visitors to create "MySource" profiles while logged onto the site and voice their opinions about various topics in The Source forum. After 90 days of beta testing to sort through The Source's massive amount of content, phase one of the site's redesign was created with a strategy to inspire users "to create their own digital expressions." Upgrades to the site's interface will come in versions 1.5 and 2.0 with more activity and interaction from users.

The Digital Archive features original copy from rare and hard to find articles, early images of Hip-Hop and videos spanning two decades of Hip-Hop culture. This complete catalog of information will become pop culture's most detailed documentation of Hip-Hop available online. Users will be able to research "unsigned hype" articles,  "record report" reviews and magazine covers to see a time line of major Hip-Hop stars' rise to fame, including Jay-Z, Notorious B.I.G., Lil Kim, Nas, Snoop Dogg, Lauryn Hill, Common, Eminem and more. Every aspect of Hip-Hop culture has graced the pages of The Source Magazine and for the first time that creative entity will live outside those pages digitally.

"The best  way to see the evolution of Hip-Hop culture is through the pages of The Source Magazine and now thesource.com," explains publisher L. Londell McMillan. "Its transformation from music and entertainment into business, fashion, and politics is best understood from the multi-cultural and multi-generational prospective of The Source reader. The Source's  digital archive is a reflection of that transformation. All other Hip-Hop inspired mediums are products of what was started at The Source Magazine over twenty years ago."

The Source Digital Radio offers a definitive Hip-Hop collection ranging from industry icons to groundbreaking newcomers and is available today on mobile phones [webOS smartphones, BlackBerry smartphones, iPhone and iPod touch, Android-powered smartphones], in-home devices [a Slacker-enabled TV or Blu-ray player] and on the web through Slacker Radio (www.Slacker.com/TheSource). Listeners have instant access to the station along with artist profiles, album reviews and album cover art. They are able to personalize the station, fine tuning to their own tastes in Hip-Hop music.

"The Source has been the leading international voice for Hip-Hop music, culture and politics for over 21 years," said Jonathan Sasse, Senior Vice President of marketing at Slacker. "We are honored to be working with The Source editors to offer the millions of Slacker listeners a personal radio experience that is representative of the legacy and future of The Source Magazine."

For more information log onto www.TheSource.com  

About TheSource.com

TheSource.com is the website of the leading international voice for Hip-Hop music, culture, politics and sports. It is also the first Hip-Hop brand featured and selected by Apple for its 'Ready for iPad' campaign. The new site also features The Source Digital Radio, a free Hip-Hop station programmed by tastemakers at The Source and powered by Slacker Personal Radio; The Source Archives, the web's largest collection of content [i.e. cover stories, unsigned hype articles, original photos, hard to find first-ever record reviews] from the pages of Hip-Hop's only historical reference tool; The Buyers Guide, the ultimate product destination highlighting the latest in fashion, cars, dvds, lifestyle items and technology; and The Source TV, exclusive video content dedicated to Hip-Hop music culture and lifestyle.

About The New Era of The Source Magazine

The Source is the leading international voice of Hip-Hop music, culture, politics and sports for over 21 years. Along with its new media initiatives and new website [www.thesource.com], the first Hip-Hop site selected by Apple as iPad ready, The Source remains the industry's most recognizable Hip-Hop media brand worldwide. It is responsible for introducing the world to icons and legendary Hip-Hop artists such as Eminem, Notorious B.I.G., DMX, Common, and many others. From inception The Source has always stretched far beyond a mere music magazine. It is a multi-cultural and multi-generational lifestyle brand. The publication is now under a new era, new management and  new ownership led by prominent media and entertainment lawyer L. Londell McMillan and The NorthStar Group.  

SOURCE The Source Magazine