If you’re a fan of monolithic tech companies finding new ways to algorithmise your emotional connection to art, great news – Spotify has launched a new feature called ‘Only You’ which draws on one’s listening habits to create personalised playlists.
According to a press release, the new in-app function is “taking a step in data-led personalisation” with a series of data-generated playlists.
Leading the crop is something called an “audio birth chart”. You get a sun playlist based on the top artist you’ve listened to over the last six months, a moon playlist based on an artist you listen to that best shows your “emotional or vulnerable side”, and a rising playlist based on an artist they’ve recently connected with.
Other playlists include Dream Dinner Party. Users select three artists they’d invite to the “dinner party of their dreams”, and once selected, Spotify creates a personalised mix “for each artist to set the mood”. There’s also Artist Pairs, which shows the “unique audio pairings” you’ve recently been listening to, and Song Year, which shows how users have “musically traveled through different time periods.”
The streaming platform will also be rolling out a new feature called Blend that’s currently in beta. That will allow two friends to merge their musical tastes into one curated playlist, updated daily.
The new features come four months after it was revealed Spotify had been granted a patent that allowed the company to monitor users’ speech in order to collect data. In March, musicians rallied outside several of the company’s offices around the world, demanding fairer payment for artists, among other things.
