It’s no secret that we’re not huge fans of sliders, which is why we don’t typically add them to our themes. There are numerous documented pitfalls, but we’re not here to limit what you can do.

In fact, we try to make our themes as easy to work with as possible, and that includes extending them. We enjoy seeing people customize our work and some of our favorite sites are the ones people have made their own.

We receive regular support requests from customers who want to replace the hero image in Promenade with a slider. Our typical response is that it is possible, but requires customization via a child theme or functionality plugin.

However, we understand not everyone is comfortable jumping into code.

With that in mind, we recently added a couple of custom plugins to our support resources to provide simple integration with existing slider plugins.

Have fun and feel free to drop us a line to let us know if there are any popular plugins you would like to see us support.

Finding and listening to your music is one of the main reasons someone will visit your website. Your music should be easy for people to find, navigate, and enjoy.

Here’s a rundown on some of the best options for streaming music on WordPress sites.

We recently had the opportunity to chat with Virginia-bred and Rhode Island-based singer/songwriter Pat McGee. Pat’s latest album is his 10th effort, and includes tracks with studio legends Russ Kunkel, Leland Sklar, Waddy Wachtel, Danny Kortchmar, and Jeff Pevar.

In addition to the studio details, Pat also discussed how he crowdfunded the album, his yearly self-hosted music festival, what he likes most about his AudioTheme website, and his best advice for musicians trying to make a name for themselves.

Let’s be honest. The music industry is not easy to break into. Forget the odds of becoming a national or worldwide sensation… It can be difficult to make a comfortable living as a musician.

Bookings, promotions, signings, recordings, and funding can sometimes seem to be totally out of your control. Is there a better way? What if you could “hack” the music industry?