Spotify has done wonders for my music and podcast enjoyment, but it’s been bugging me recently. Like everything in the age of AI obsession, it just feels like it’s doing too much. While I used to love Spotify, here are some of the things that are reducing my enjoyment of the platform.
1 The AI DJ Misses the Mark
Obviously, booting up Spotify’s DJ Mode is completely optional, but I think it’s a good example of the innovation for innovation’s sake we see a lot of in the showboating world of generative AI.
What is the point of the AI DJ? What does it do except add a guy telling you what’s about to play before it’s played? I was sort of intrigued by the idea at first because my wife and I loved listening to D-Nice’s live sessions during the pandemic, but this isn’t DJing. There’s no mixing, no transitioning — as near as I can tell, it only pulls from your Liked Songs so there isn’t even a music discovery element.
When I started it for this article, it kicked off a set with “Smile” by Lily Allen — a song I haven’t listened to in, well, years. Yet this is based on my recent listening? Did anybody ask for this?
2 Smart Shuffle: Great Idea, Terrible Execution
I have trouble focusing with music, so I usually only listen when I’m cooking, walking the dog, or driving. I work from home and often opt for podcasts instead so, grand total, we’re talking maybe five hours a week. My Spotify Wrapped numbers were pretty embarrassing last year. When I listen to music, I want to hear what I want to hear, which is why I’ve created many, many playlists.
Still, I want to discover new music from time to time, so I usually put on Smart Shuffle. Once upon a time, this was a really cool tool not only for music discovery, but for reminding me of music I haven’t heard in a while. Today, it’s decidedly less bold.
When I shuffled today, Spotify added three songs by Cordae and one by Gorillaz in the next dozen or so songs. This continues for the entire playlist. Over the next 100 songs, Smart Shuffle added music from four total artists, mostly by Cordae and Gorillaz. Not only that, but it’s all music that I know, that I’ve liked, but have purposely not added to this playlist.
3 Playlists Have Gotten Wildly Repetitive
Another reason I’m not enjoying Spotify as much as I used to is because of the repetitiveness of generated playlists. Just like the issue with Smart Shuffle, Spotify’s algorithm tends to hyperfocus on specific artists these days. The playlist I was listening to today has music by nearly 100 artists. But for some reason, every time I shuffle it, Spotify creates multiple sections of the same artist’s music, amplifying the redundancy with Smart Shuffle.
In fact, in the first 40 songs of one shuffle, only nine artists were represented.
Now, I can see why somebody might like to hear multiple songs by the same artist on an eclectic playlist. But five songs in a row? What’s the point of shuffling then? If I wanted to listen to Cordae this badly, I’d just go to the Cordae page. It almost makes me want to start fresh with Spotify so it doesn’t assume it knows me so well.
4 Recommended Lists Fall Short
Recommendation engines are so ubiquitous across ads, apps, and streaming services, you might not even think about them anymore. Spotify sure wants you to think about them, though, because they have no shortage of recommendations. But they just keep getting worse and worse.
Take, for instance, the above screenshot. No quarrels with the self-help suggestion; Spotify is not wrong to think I could use some Comfort Affirmations on a Monday morning. The Road Trippin’ collection, however, is absolutely bizarre. It’s a Monday morning in late September — where could I possibly be road trippin’?
Not only that, but Imagine Dragons and AC/DC are among my least favorite musical groups of all-time, which Spotify should sense given the fact I’ve literally never played their music.
Look, I still love Spotify. I love the fact that I can find practically any song I want in seconds and add it to one of my many curated playlists that don’t take up space on my devices (unless I want them to). But the features I used to love have become noticeably corroded and it’s a bummer. Maybe somebody over there will hear my plea: Please fix your algorithm.
