Spotify revamps its app with TikTok-style discovery feeds, Smart Shuffle for playlists and more

At Spotify’s Stream On occasion immediately in LA, the corporate launched a major redesign of its app, which capitalizes on its investments in personalization expertise whereas additionally adopting an identical short-form video feed because the one popularized by TikTok. Within the up to date Spotify cellular app, customers and subscribers will acquire entry to a handful of recent options, together with the vertically scrolling “discovery” feeds, a brand new “Smart Shuffle” mode for playlist suggestions, a brand new podcast autoplay characteristic and more.

Some options, like Smart Shuffle, will solely be accessible to subscribers, whereas others — like the brand new TikTok-inspired feeds — will roll out to everybody. Nonetheless, the options’ availability will attain some markets earlier than others and will arrive at totally different intervals.

Picture Credit: ClassyBuzz

Spotify says the modifications are supposed to make its consumer interface really feel more alive and interactive. Nonetheless, the transfer may serve different functions, as nicely. Most notably, it introduces a brand new floor within the app the place the corporate may later introduce advertisements, a lot as Instagram has accomplished with the addition of Reels. Formally, Spotify doesn’t have something to announce on this entrance immediately, however in an electronic mail with ClassyBuzz stated it’s “excited” about how the choices may evolve over time.

One other perk of a revamp is that it might be a approach to deal with some buyer complaints about how its app has turn out to be too cluttered and troublesome to make use of, which limits discovery.

The brand new design builds on the updates shipped in August 2022, which had separated music and podcasts into their very own feeds. Will probably be instantly noticeable upon the primary launch of the up to date app, as the principle web page — the app’s House tab — may have been refreshed with the brand new options.

Fortunately, you gained’t be dropped straight into the brand new TikTok-like expertise with out warning.

As a substitute, at high of the music feed’s display, you’ll nonetheless discover shortcuts to your personalised playlists and mixes. These aren’t new — Spotify has an extended historical past of leveraging personalization expertise to draw and retain customers, beginning with the launch of its flagship Uncover Weekly playlist in 2015. In later years, it expanded its assortment of personalised playlists to cater to customers with all kinds of music tastes and pursuits, along with playlists centered round actions, like commuting or understanding, and more.

Picture Credit: Spotify

After first highlighting these playlists and mixes, the app will show the not too long ago launched AI DJ characteristic, at present accessible solely to Premium subscribers within the U.S. and Canada. The DJ makes use of generative AI and a natural-sounding AI voice to current its music choices and provide background data on the artist, music or album, amongst different issues. (You may learn more concerning the DJ characteristic right here.)

Picture Credit: Spotify

As you scroll down, you’ll have the choice to start out scrolling by means of the music previews. These are introduced as full-screen movies that make the most of the artist’s present Canvas video — the brief, looping video clips that already play when their music is streamed within the app immediately. The format is already profitable, delivering will increase in streams, shares, saves and provides, Spotify claims.

Canvas additionally introduced Spotify with a possibility to experiment with a TikTok-like feed — one thing it’s been testing for a while. (ClassyBuzz has reported on numerous exams of a vertical feed in its app in 2021 and once more in 2022. On the time, Spotify would dismiss these exams as simply one other of its ongoing experiments. More not too long ago, a TikTok-like video feed had been noticed in testing in Spotify’s cellular app, distributed to its TestFlight testers — as seen here on YouTube.)

Picture Credit: Spotify

The design Spotify has now settled on following its earlier exams presents a snippet of the observe’s audio mixed with video. The characteristic permits customers to preview an album, playlist or a single, the corporate says. With playlists and albums, you’ll be able to faucet by means of the preview card as a way to preview as much as 5 tracks. In some instances, customers may also obtain contextual indications as to why they’re being advisable this stuff.

What’s attention-grabbing about this format is that Spotify will let you take heed to your music whereas scrolling the advice feed on mute. If and whenever you discover one thing you want, you’ll be able to faucet on the cardboard to go to the complete album or playlist view, or you’ll be able to cease your individual music and begin listening to the suggestion as a substitute. You can also add suggestions to your Appreciated Songs or another playlists for later listening.

Just like the music feed, the podcasts feed additionally has been up to date with a vertical scrolling consumer interface. Besides in its case, customers gained’t be previewing a looping video — except it’s from a video podcast, after all. As a substitute, they’re introduced with audio snippets from podcast episodes as much as 60 seconds lengthy with real-time transcriptions of what’s being stated.

Picture Credit: Spotify

Just like the music feed, customers can scroll by means of the podcast suggestions vertically with the audio muted, in the event that they select. In the event that they see one thing they like, they will unmute and begin listening, choosing up the place the preview left off by tapping “proceed listening.” Additionally they can faucet the Plus (+) button — a button Spotify not too long ago up to date to mix its “Like” coronary heart icon and “Add to” performance into one. With a faucet, customers will now be capable of add the episode to a playlist of saved episodes for later listening, Spotify says.

The corporate additionally notes that its audiobook feed will probably be structured in the identical approach as these new music and podcast feeds. Audiobooks are a more moderen providing and one which had, eventually depend, over 300,000 books accessible.

The discovery feeds gained’t solely be accessible by means of the music and podcast pages, Spotify says. They’ll even be built-in into the app’s Search tab. From right here, customers will be capable of bounce into personalised feeds for issues like genres and moods.

The corporate says the algorithm behind these feeds will rank its ideas based mostly on the person consumer’s style and preferences, not basic reputation.

Outdoors of the brand new feeds, one other change can also be targeted on discovery however is a more minor tweak.

The corporate in 2021 had launched a characteristic known as “Improve” that will make suggestions of songs that might be added to a playlist you had created. Now, Spotify’s Premium subscribers will be capable of automate one of these discovery with out having to manually assessment the ideas. This will probably be accomplished by toggling on a brand new “Smart Shuffle” choice that may add Spotify’s ideas to the queue as your playlist streams. (A sparkle icon will point out which tracks are being advisable). If you happen to like a observe, you’ll be able to faucet the plus button so as to add it to the playlist. And in the event you don’t, you’ll be able to faucet a minus button to take away it.

Picture Credit: Spotify

“Smart Shuffle brings new life into listeners’ playlists by recommending and visualizing further songs that completely join with the playlist,” stated Spotify co-president and CTO Gustav Söderström, throughout the occasion. “It’s already rolling out worldwide. So the following time you’re able to refresh your playlists, you’ll be able to faucet the shuffle icon and we’ll throw the precise new songs into the combo.”

As well as, podcast listeners may also acquire a brand new characteristic that may routinely begin enjoying a advisable episode whenever you end streaming an episode from a special present. Spotify claims such a characteristic has been in excessive demand amongst customers and will enhance discovery of recent reveals. Nonetheless, those that don’t take pleasure in an autoplay expertise will be capable of flip it off in Settings (Settings –> Playback –> toggle Autoplay).

The brand new options, mixed with the not too long ago launched AI DJ, are targeted on addressing one of many bigger complaints from each followers and artists and creators alike: new content material discovery. Because the radio mannequin has died, artists at the moment are more depending on companies like Spotify to characteristic their tracks on editorial playlists or insert their songs onto customers’ Uncover Weekly. In idea, these updates may open a brand new window for discovering followers.

However arguably, this replace might be pretty controversial. There are those that are sick of the TikTok-ification of all their apps, from Netflix to Reddit to Amazon to more direct opponents from Snap, Instagram and YouTube, amongst others.

Spotify, nonetheless, says suggestions are key to its expertise.

“Spotify suggestions drive near half of all customers’ streams. What’s more, every time your music will get performed on a program playlist like Launch Radar, you obtain on common thrice more streams from that listener over the following six months,” famous Gustav Söderström, Spotify co-president and chief product & expertise officer, talking on the occasion.

At launch, Spotify’s redesign will probably be mobile-only, however it is going to arrive on more gadgets sooner or later. It’ll roll out in waves to the corporate’s 500+ million month-to-month energetic customers, which implies chances are you’ll not see it instantly, however ought to quickly.