By Taylor Nealand
Staff Writer

Moving away to college is a big deal. You’re away from your parents, meeting new people on a daily basis, learning to live on your own; the list goes on. But one thing people forget to think about is how their access to music is going to change.

There’s no chance to sit in the car and listen to the radio Top 40 anymore, at least not as a student in the city. Fortunately it’s easy to find out the newest, greatest music, and it’s just a click away (well, most of it anyway).

Spotify is going to be your best friend. You can listen to it anywhere–on your computer, mobile device, tablet, and even your home entertainment system. The cool thing about Spotify is that you can either choose music that you know you already like or you can let Spotify surprise you. You can connect with your friends through it to see what they’re listening to, and you are also able to request music to your friends and vice versa.

“I like Spotify because I can pick what I listen to and there is such a wide variety to choose from,” said Jane Walsh, a senior at Simmons College.

Another cool thing about Spotify is that you can create playlists and access them everywhere. Don’t have your computer? It doesn’t matter–Spotify is all online. The creators of Spotify took a social route to the music business. They know that music brings people together, and what better way to find new music and share it with your friends?

Everyone knows about iTunes, but not many people use it to their full advantage. iTunes presents a lot of great features like “suggested for you.” Suggested for you is an iTunes folder that compiles info on what you listen to and what you’ve bought, and it suggests new music that you don’t have. It’s a quick way to check out some new music and you don’t have to do any of the work.

Another simple feature to use is the top songs link. Instead of just checking out the top 10 songs on the home page, click the link and see what’s hitting the top 200. It’s always a variety of music, and sometimes the best hits are a little farther down the list. iTunes lets you preview all of their music, so you don’t have to buy anything you don’t already love.

The last feature that makes iTunes one of the best ways to find new music is their totally new radio. Launched when the iOS 7 update came out just a few weeks ago, iTunes Radio lets you listen to a variety of music for free. You can pick one of their already made playlists, search for an artist, album, or song, or let it know what you like and it will find similar artists for you to listen to.

Billboard Top 100 is always a good site to check out because they typically have interviews with artists, and let’s be honest, it’s a legendary corporation that’s been around forever. The list is pretty similar to what you’d find on iTunes, but Billboard tells you if it’s a new entry, if the position has dropped or increased relative to last week, if it’s a hot shot debut, how its airplay and sales compare to others, and more.

Other than the top 100 songs, you can view the top 100 artists. Inside the artists page you’ll find articles, a biography, videos, pictures, an overview of what the artist has done, and more. Sometimes you’ll find a song by an artist that you really like, and Billboard is a good place to find out more about the artist and their other music.

The last way to find new music is completely different from the other options. This takes a bit more time, energy, and sometimes money, but it’s guaranteed to be worth it.

Go out and listen to local bands.

Check out Copperfield’s set for the weekend, walk around Berklee and see if there are any posters for gigs, or look online for local bands. There is so much talent here in Boston. John Mayer, Melissa Etheridge, Steve Tyler, and Quincy Jones are just a few of the talented musicians that went to Berklee College of Music.

Although this may be the most time consuming and difficult of them all, nothing compares to listening to live music. You will get the chance to meet real musicians and mingle with other interested listeners, and it’s a great excuse to get off campus.

It may not dawn on you immediately when you go off to college, but the access to music is different when you’re car-less, stranded, and tight on funds. Try out these (nearly) free ideas and see which ones work best for you, because having new music to jam to is nothing but positive.