Music; at work, at play, in business and even warfare.

When I was a small child some 30 years ago I partook in a revolution that has led to today’s MP3 Players – it was the Sony Walkman. My parents bought me one of these new devices and this let me take my music everywhere playing what was then the cassette tape, and wearing headphones. It was a revolution for me as before I was tethered to my ‘record’ player and now wherever I went, I took music. The only drawback in those days that the batteries didn’t last very long and I had to change them regularly – or is that the same today?

I used to in those days race motocross and was sponsored by Yamaha and I used the music on the way to a race (Dad driving me there) and before the race to motivate me. Kiss, Alice Cooper, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple all did the trick and got me focused for each 45 minute race.

Fast forward to 2003 when I was in Northern Iraq as an Information Technology Warfare Consultant we played music over the Comms to also motivate us. I remember flying in a Chopper with music on loud speakers on the outside as we flew into the ‘hot’ zone – this was Physc-Ops!

Over the years the ‘portable’ music players got smaller, better and batteries lasted longer, and today we have MP3 players which are credit size and batteries last up to several hours. The Apple iPod is the most popular and the word iPod is now a generic term for any MP3 Player.

Traveling and working I have found music keeps me inspired; helps pass the time and keep me motivated. Look around anywhere, now; people walking on the street, running in the park, on the train and even at work and you will see the listening to music. You are probably one of them!

As a lover of music, in 2006 I had an idea to create KryKey Personal Web Radio and over a period of 24 months I designed, financed and built it. There was other online music streaming services on the Internet which they called themselves ‘internet radio’, but I think they are more of what I would call an ‘internet jukebox’. You can make Playlists and then listen to the music and that’s where it stops. KryKey Personal Web Radio is what it says. It is a real web radio system where people can create a web radio station and create content to broadcast. Music, promos, Podcasts, can all be added to each Radio Station Studio and then played. Others can be invited in as DJ’s. This is a real radio station system. After a couple of months in Beta, version 1.0 will morph into version 2.0 in May 2009 with a better interface and new site. If you haven’t created a Personal Web Radio Station on KryKey.com yet, I suggest you do to get that all important Radio Station name before it goes. Web Radio is the future and KryKey will be part of it. (Read this Blog on the future on Internet Radio)

WezG is a new friend that I have met recently and he is a DJ of some note. A couple of weeks ago he created a mix which he called “Taliban House”. This was immediately added to the KryKey Personal Web Radio Station; JNCBEST which is a private company supplying its services to the US Intelligence Agencies and Military. In a world first, in Afghanistan, they connected to their Personal Radio Station via a satellite phone and then plugged that into the Comms unit, and they were playing and listening to the “Taliban House”. This they used to motivate themselves as they flew on missions in Afghanistan. They also played this on loud speakers outside the Chopper. Motivation; and Physc-Ops.

Music has the effect on people in many areas. Workers of all fields have embraced headphones in order to inspire them and to make their days pass more easily. As many of today's jobs take place in front of a computer screen in and in a room full of cubicles, access to a computer means you have every available genre of music available to you in the form of online radio stations. Listening to music at work can be more than just fun, as listening to music boosts the levels of neurotransmitter dopamine, a brain chemical that can help people focus. One of my friends, Shane Stringer is a cartoonist and he has told me on numerous occasions that he finds music to be a great motivator at work, he says "It makes a slow day go faster and often really does help me in the creative process."

Music in business also has an effect on people. Research has shown that music influences behavior and the right music can keep customers in a business longer, leading to an increased chance of a sale or the purchase of additional items. In a Restaurant or café environment, the right music can reinforce a brand image and influence behavior (by motivating staff, speeding up or slowing down customer turn over, or providing an enjoyable atmosphere so that customers come again) - it can even be used to mask distracting noise. In a Store, music can play an important role in enhancing the atmosphere, reinforcing a brand image and ultimately ensuring that customers have a positive retail experience. In the Hotel & Tourism industry, image and service are paramount. Furthermore, when it comes to reinforcing image and creating atmosphere, music is an essential component. Hairdressers, Beauty Salons, Doctor & Dental Surgeries, Nursing Homes can use music for a soothing and relaxing process, and of coursed in a Gym or Health Club it helps motive while the people exercise. That’s why we created a new ‘business music streaming’ service called KryKey Entertainment Service or KES for short. KES provides a wide range of music choice with hundreds of pre-created Playlists, and with new Playlists being added each month. The wide selection of music ranges from Easy Listening, Chill Out, Rock, Power Ballads, House/Dance, Pool Mixes, Lounge, Top 40 from the UK the US and Holland all compiled by international DJ's from the Europe, the UK and the USA. Also if you do listen to music at work, please be responsible and use headphones, keep the volume low so you can hear the phone or co-workers, and don’t sing aloud.

Music is the common denominator of all people on this planet and besides being used for pleasure can be used for motivation, business and even warfare.

Music; enjoy it wherever you are.