VLC is a popular free and open source media player that installs on Linux, Mac OS, Windows, Android, and iOS. While VLC can play music, movies, TV, or videos from almost any source, these days the most popular source is the Internet. Most of the time, I prefer to play media for free without having to log into an account, so this article focuses mostly on sites where you can do that. However, I will also cover a few sites where you need a subscription to stream or download content.
Best Sites to Stream Music and Video
While you can play media from a wide variety of sources, the downside is that you can’t play anything from favorite sites like YouTube or Pandora or Spotify or your local radio station. Of course you can still download videos and songs to your hard drive and play them from there. More on that later.
My particular favorite for music is Icecast radio. You can find Icecast radio stations on websites like Xiph.org and Rcast.net. Shoutcast stations are also listed on Rcast.net, as well as Shoutcast. There’s such an incredible variety of radio stations on these sites (many with few or no ads), you’ll never miss Pandora or Spotify. And while YouTube seems to be blocking VLC, you can play videos from sites like Dailymotion, Vimeo, Flickr, and The Internet Archive in all their glory. Sometimes it’s a challenge to get the media to play, but usually it’s just a matter of copying the right URL. If you can’t get the website URL to play, try right clicking on the media and copying the URL or selecting the download link instead.
When I was looking for videos on Flickr, for example, when I clicked the Download this video link at the bottom of the video, and then copied the URL from the address bar in Firefox, I was able to stream the video in VLC.
On the Shoutcast radio directory site, I right-clicked the download link, then right-clicked Any player (.m3u) and then selected Copy link location. I pasted this into VLC, and it played like a charm. The Open Format (.XSPF) worked, too.
How to Stream Online Videos or Music in VLC
Once you have copied the URL, just open VLC, click the Media Menu, and select Open Network Stream, or click CTRL + N.
Click the Network tab. Then simply paste the URL into the field marked Please enter a network URL. In most cases, you do not need to specify a port for the streaming media.
Then click Play, and your content should start streaming in main VLC window. If it doesn’t, simply go back to the website and copy another link to see if that works. Usually it just takes a bit of trial and error to get the right URL to stream the media properly.
Downloading Media Content to Stream Later
There are plenty of apps that will help you to download music, movies, TV, and videos from your favorite websites to stream in VLC. Some of my favorites include YouTube Downloader and Video Download Helper for Firefox and Video Downloader Professional for Google Chrome.
You can download music on Jamendo, Amazon, SoundCloud, Spotify, and ReverbNation, but you will have to log into an account to get your files, and in some cases, you might also have to pay a fee. However, on the Free Music Archive website, you don’t need an account. Simply click on the down arrow link to download a song to your hard drive.
The Internet Archive is another great resource for downloading music, as is Last.fm.
Streaming Downloaded Media from a File in VLC
First , make sure you finish downloading or ripping your media before attempting to stream it. Then to stream your downloaded content in VLC, click the Media menu, and then click Open Network Stream. Then click the File tab, and click Add.
Now click Play, and the media should start playing in the main VLC window.
You can also easily rip your CDs and DVDs to your hard drive to stream in VLC. I ripped my Enigma CD to my hard drive, so that I can listen to it in Linux any time I like. I got the cover art by clicking Tools – Media Information and then right-clicking the traffic cone icon and selecting Download cover art.
I’ve had a great time with VLC, not only in Linux, but also on my Amazon Fire Tablet with the Android version the app, which is available from multiple sources, including the Amazon App Store and Google Play. I often us it to relax and listen to Icecast radio stations.
Conclusion
Streaming media like music and videos is really easy in VLC. And there are so many options, you will never run out of music, movies, TV, or videos to listen to or watch. VLC is extremely versatile and convenient, and it can even save you money.
Living the Linux Lifestyle 