Internet Archive Rescues 450,000 Songs Lost in Myspace Data Disaster
The Internet Archive uploads a collection of 450,000 Myspace songs saved before the platform accidentally deleted millions of tracks. The rescued files include rare early work from famous artists like Donald Glover and Katy Perry.
The Internet Archive unveils the MySpace Music Dragon Hoard, a massive collection of 450,000 MP3s that survived Myspace's recent data loss disaster. An anonymous academic group originally gathered these tracks between 2008 and 2010 for research on music networks. After news breaks that Myspace loses up to 53 million songs during a server migration, this group hands the 1.3-terabyte collection over to archivist Jason Scott to preserve the music.
Although 450,000 songs represent only a small fraction of the deleted material, the archive contains rare and unreleased tracks from artists before they achieve fame. Users already discover early recordings from prominent musicians like Donald Glover, Katy Perry, Nicki Minaj, and Pitbull within the recovered files. The Internet Archive provides a custom search tool on its website so visitors can easily find and play these salvaged tracks.
Myspace remains mostly quiet about the exact cause of the massive data deletion, leading to widespread speculation about whether the loss is truly accidental. Meanwhile, the Internet Archive's recovery effort provides a bittersweet relief for former users who lose their digital memories and early creative works. This rescued collection serves as a vital reminder of the fragility of internet-hosted data and the importance of independent digital preservation.