For Turntable.fm early adopters, sure, Diplo put his flag down first. But the start-up is now verifying artists, as evidenced by the first one—or so he claims—announcing it. And it is?

Talib Kweli! He of the original okayplayer crew who Jay-Z would be (if skills sold)! Quoteth Talib:

And what’s in a verified name? Well, for one thing, as evidenced above, you get your own avatar. Neat. Also, probably an unofficial benefit, but one of the strangest-looking and acting things on the internet right now?

The other most recent Turntable adopters was Birkenstock-rock band Guster, who premiered an entire album on it. Also, someone called Dead Mouse? Rich Hil has yet to approach the music-sharing service, but given the new echelon of fame he achieved today, it’s obviously happening in no time.

Talib has been a constant presence on the service for a while, spinning sets with celeb DJs like No ID that routinely drew a packed crowd (we just got turned away at the lobby, fire code violation).

In other news, people still use Turntable.fm.

fkamer@observer.com | @weareyourfek

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