Tag: Spotify Playlists

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Spotify Announces Beta Launch of Songwriter Pages

Spotify Songwriter Pages Playlists

Spotify’s latest development is songwriter pages, a new way for fans, collaborators, and industry partners to dive deeper into the creators behind their favorite songs. 

Songwriters are the unsung heroes of music (pun mildly intended). For every successful pop song, there are often two or more songwriters whose names are rarely mentioned at radio or amongst fans. The same can be said about alternative, hip-hop, and rock music as well. There are way more songwriters than recognizable musicians, but again, most never get the attention they rightfully deserve.

Since introducing song credits in 2018, Spotify has experienced a 60% increase in how often labels and distributors credit songwriters on their new releases, which allows artists and fans to dig deeper and recognize songwriters’ work. With the launch of songwriter pages, which is now in beta release, the streaming giant is continuing to evolve how music is discovered, appreciated, and enjoyed by the world.

How to Access Songwriter Pages:

  • Right-click on a track (or, if you’re on mobile, tap the “…” next to the track) 
  • Hit “Song Credits”
  • Select a clickable songwriter’s name
  • Every songwriter page includes a “Written By” playlist spanning that writer’s work. On their page, click or tap “Listen on Spotify” to check them out.

In addition to Songwriter Pages, Spotify is also introducing songwriter-specific playlists. Users will soon be able to stream every track their favorite songwriter has helped create, which should boost discovery for lesser-known artists currently working with big-name talent.

“Spotify is always working to create new and better ways to promote music discovery — for artists, for songs and, increasingly, for songwriters,” said Jules Parker, Head of Publishing & Songwriter Relations, Spotify. “The launch of publicly visible songwriter credits on Spotify in 2018 was merely the first step. Together with the publishing industry, we’ve continued to evolve our data sharing and analytics efforts and are proud to unveil this next iteration. Clicking on the credits in this pilot will take users to dedicated songwriter pages – providing a home for a songwriter’s work – and present listeners with “Written By” playlists, a new series of playlists dedicated to songwriters. We’re excited to see how the world interacts with these new features, and look forward to enabling them for more and more songwriters.”

As part of the launch, Spotify is sharing songwriter pages for Meghan Trainor, Fraser T Smith, Missy Elliott, Teddy Geiger, Ben Billions, and Justin Tranter, among many others. In beta, these pages are enabled by publishers and Spotify in partnership with songwriters. Songwriters reading this can express their interest in having a page via this form. Spotify will reach out with more info soon.  

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7oJOWpzlyOVX2nRevAbriV
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Artists Can Now Share Spotify Canvas Clips To Instagram

Spotify now enables artists to share their moving-album-artwork Canvas clip direct to Instagram stories via the Spotify For Artists app on iOS, ideally deepening fan engagement with the tool.  

Engagement is the name of the game at Spotify. The streaming giant knows you want music at your fingertips, but they rely on constant engagement to build their business. Time spent listening is a key data point for investors, advertisers, and shareholders. The introduction of the Canvas tool in 2019 gave streaming a boost, with internal analytics showing that the brief videos raised track shares up to 200%, not to mention raising total streams and saves, and now the company is furthering their efforts to make the tool useful to artists.

Starting this week, Spotify now allows artists to share their canvas clips through Instagram Stories. Artists can show off their Canvases and invite their Insta followers to click through to Spotify, where they’ll be able to take in the Canvas and its associated song together.

Canvas sharing is currently available to creators in the Canvas beta who are using the Spotify for Artists app on iOS. In your Artist profile, each of your tracks which is accompanied by a Canvas has a “Share” icon next to it; tapping on that will let you share the song, and its Canvas, to your Instagram Stories. Your post will look like a regular Spotify share, with cover art and a link to play the track on Spotify—only now, your Canvas will be the backdrop. (Audio will not play on Instagram.)

Fans seeing the Canvas on Instagram will not be counted in Canvas metrics unless they click through to Spotify.

Spotify has not yet revealed a public release date for Canvas. For now, artists can visit the company’s dedicated Canvas site and sign up for the waiting list.

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How Many Spotify Streams Do You Need To Live Above The Poverty Line?

Spotify streaming royalties often upset artists, but how many plays does a musician need to live above the poverty line? We did the math.

The streaming wars are raging on. Spotify has more than one hundred million monthly subscribers worldwide, which places the platform far ahead of its peers, but Apple Music and Amazon Music are gaining millions of new users with each passing month. Whether or not the global economy can sustain the numerous streaming platforms won’t be decided for some time, but whether or not artists can survive the streaming economy is a hot topic that needs to be addressed.

Any industry expert will tell you that musicians today have it easy. There are more avenues for exposure than ever, recording music is (or can be) cheap, and an increasing number of artists are finding success outside the traditional label system. It is theoretically possible for anyone with access to a laptop and the ability to convey a melody to become a digital sensation who has fans all over the world without the aid of big label money (though, to be fair, big label money still makes a sizable difference).

Streaming payouts are a relatively new revenue stream for musicians. No one is suggesting artists survive on streaming royalties alone. Still, with physical media sales bottoming out and competition for tour revenue increasing, the money made from streaming can have a significant impact on an artist’s ability to develop, not to mention sustain themselves.

Still, every other week someone goes viral online and builds an entire career of the profits made from streaming royalties. The majority of these overnight sensations are young and without families to support, but they still have the cost of living expenses that need to be met. That got us to thinking: How many streams does it take to survive on streaming revenue alone?

According to the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), the poverty line for single-person households is $11,770. If we ignore how that figure would be hard for anyone to live on in a major city (and most mid-size cities), then we can round up to $12,000 and use streaming revenue calculators to figure out how many Spotify streams someone would need to sustain themselves.

At an average payout of $0.006 per song stream, a musician living in the United States needs 3,000,000 plays annually to have a gross income of $12,000. 

Of course, if the artist has a label deal the record company would get paid before the artist. Depending on the amount owed to the label, the artist may need millions of addition plays to see the same amount of income themselves.

But what about people with families? The ASPE puts the poverty line for a family of four (2 adults, 2 children) at $24,250. Using the same average royalty rate, a musician would need 6,062,500 Spotify streams to earn that amount of gross income.

These numbers get much bigger when the musician is part of a larger group. If a band has four members and all four have families where they were the sole source of income, the group would need to generate 24,250,000 Spotify streams to gross enough so each member’s family would be at or above the poverty line.

Again, no one is saying an artist should survive on streaming royalties alone. Some will be able to make it work, especially if they have a large following and low overhead, but most will need to create as many revenue streams as possible to survive. The key to a long career in music today is through the development of a community around an artist and their work that promotes purchasing merch, physical media, and concert tickets. That has always been true, and likely won’t change anytime soon.

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3 Ways Spotify Should Improve ‘Wrapped’ For Artists

Spotify’s end of year review feature offers a lot of fun insights, but it falls short of giving artists actionable data. We have a solution (or three). 

Spotify released a ‘Wrapped’ feature for artists this week that shares interesting information regarding their performance on the platform. Anyone with access to a Spotify For Artists account can see how much their music was consumed, which days they were most popular, where their fans live, and more through a series of animated slides that — at first glance — appear to offer crucial insights into consumer behavior.

But there’s a problem. While fun data that offers no true value is good for pleasing listeners, artists deserve more. Spotify lives and dies based on whether or not artists choose to promote through their service, so it would benefit the streaming giant to give musicians additional insight into the listening habits of their fans. What they offer now is a good start, but truthfully, the data provided only scratches the surface of what is (in theory) possible. 

Here are three changes that would greatly benefit all musicians and, in turn, help Spotify continue to reign as the preferred platform of people around the globe.

Give musicians more information about their biggest fans.

Spotify For Artists will tell musicians how many users listened to their music more than anyone else in a given year. However, the data stops short of telling us anything about those listeners. Who are they? Where do they come from? Without invading anyone’s privacy, Spotify could share geographic insights to help plan tour routes and targeted digital marketing campaigns. Knowing how many people listened to you more than anyone else is cool, but ultimately useless without any supplementary information.

If Spotify knows when interest peaked, can it tell us why?

Spotify For Artists will tell you the date and hour when your music was most popular. It can also tell you how many times your music was streamed during that hour. What we don’t know, however, is why that surge happened. Was the musician added to an influential playlist? Did all the streams happen for a specific song, such as a newly released single, or was it a bunch of tracks all at once? Was there any rhyme or reason for the surge of interest, or did it merely happen out of the blue? We don’t know any of this information because Spotify stops short of giving artists what they need to craft better marketing campaigns in the future.

Let’s talk about money

The first screen in the Spotify For Artists Wrapped feature shows a musician’s most popular songs for the last year, the total number of streams, and the day that song was played the most. Another screen tells artists the total playtime for all their songs throughout the year. This data is once again interesting, but it doesn’t tell us much in terms of usefulness. Knowing how much money a song generated over the course of a year is more beneficial to an artist than knowing their audience spent 1,000 hours listening to that song. The same goes for the catalog as a whole.

Many artists, especially those with label deals, are splitting their royalties between numerous parties. Receiving a grand total for revenue from Spotify can help shed light on whether or not musicians are receiving the money they earned. It can also help them understand the value or promoting their music through Spotify. 

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Jay Z returns to Spotify in celebration of his 50th birthday

Jay Z did more than most to avoid becoming part of the Spotify machine, but on his 50th birthday, HOV has finally given in.

Ask anyone to list the best rappers of all-time, and most will place Jay Z somewhere in the top 5. From “Hard Knock Life” to “Tom Ford” and countless songs in between, few artists have been as prolific or successful as Jay Z in the history of popular music. His catalog is vast, but until very recently (December 4), fans could only access most of his material through Tidal, the premium streaming service Jay – who also owns the platform – helped bring to the masses in 2015 and Apple Music.

Fans will recall Jay Z’s catalog being on Spotify once before. In April 2017, Hov’s music disappeared from the streaming service “at the request of the artist,” according to an official statement. Reasons for the return are not clear at this time, but you don’t need to be a financial analyst to understand the potential for additional income. 

Jay Z’s reasons for starting Tidal were admirable. At the dawn of Spotify, Jay Z recognized that most of the investors behind the supposed ‘future of music consumption’ were people who had no direct involvement in music. The backers for the Spotify and Deezer and other streaming services were only interested in the money that could be made and not in the art they would use to make money. Tidal, which was initially backed by several significant artists, hoped to bring an artist-approved platform to the masses. 

Tidal is still in existence today, but its userbase trails Spotify and Apple Music by a wide margin. Jay Z’s decision to upload his catalog to Spotify in honor of his 50th birthday is more of a smart business move than an act of secession. Jay Z recognizes that “if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em’ is as relevant today as ever, and he understands the money to be made from adding his music to the world’s most popular platform for audio consumption. 

Furthermore, I would wager Jay Z believes his biggest hits is different than the material marked as ‘popular’ by Spotify before uploading his full catalog. Check it out:

Jay Z’s most popular Spotify songs as of 10AM EST on December 4, 2019

But what does this mean for Tidal? In the short term, probably nothing. Tidal’s chances of becoming the preferred method of music consumption by the world at large were always slim, and I don’t foresee Jay’s decision to join Spotify as something that will ultimately hurt the company. Tidal still has exclusive access to high-fidelity streams of Jay’s material, as well as event streaming capabilities that competing platforms have yet to offer.

It’s likely Jay’s decision is tied to an exclusive engagement contract he had with Tidal. His spouse and pop queen, Beyonce, ended a three-year exclusive streaming deal with Tidal for her album Lemonade in April of this year.

Until Jay Z comments on the change, feel free to revisit his essential tracks via the Spotify playlist below:

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Labels can now pay Spotify to promote artists on its platform

Spotify is testing a new ad platform that allows artist teams to promote music directly to fans without turning to third-party applications.

Spotify users are already familiar with ‘Music For You’ notifications. These alerts appear on screen to inform fans and followers of an artist when their favorite musicians have a new release. It is a helpful tool that encourages fans to support the music they love in a crowded marketplace where nobody can remember every release date. And now, for the first time, those notifications are for sale.

A ‘New Music For You’ notification

This week, Spotify began testing a new tool in the United States the allows record labels and artists to purchase ‘Music For You’ notifications for their latest releases. The pop-ups will land within both free and premium accounts using the same algorithm already in place for organic (free) notifications to alert an artist’s most dedicated followers.

Spotify Founder and CEO Daniel Ek hinted at the ads during the company’s Q2 earnings call earlier this year. Speaking to investors, Ek said, “We believe we can find a way to charge record companies to pay to promote their artists directly to their fans on our platform without p**sing off our users too much. If we succeed, labels might then switch some of their digital ad spend away from Google, Facebook, and Instagram, and over to us.” 

In simpler terms, Spotify knows labels and musicians pay social media platforms to run ads that inevitably link to an artist’s Spotify page. The streaming giant hopes the opportunity to push engagement through its platform instead of third-part apps will lead the industry to invest more money into Spotify (in hopes of earning more through the platform).

Music Business Worldwide reports that Premium Spotify users will be able to turn off sponsored ‘Music For You’ alerts, but free users will be stuck with them.

Spotify’s introduction of ‘Music For You’ alerts could not have been smoother. Users are already familiar with the notification system, and many rely on the service to help them remember when musicians release new material. Though the company has not shared any data with the public, one can assume the company knows the conversion rates for these messages and is factoring them into the pricing for paid promotion. It’s already a proven marketing tool despite no one paying for access before this moment. 

The situation also brings to mind the metaphor of a snake eating its tail. Music professionals often complain about the low royalty rates Spotify pays out, and now many will give Spotify money out of their pockets in hopes of getting additional revenue. It’s a vicious cycle that opens up a world of ‘pay to play’ possibilities that could hinder independent artists from gaining traction for their music.

Jordyn Reese, Product Manager, US Latin & Urban, ONErpm, said: “As an independent distributor, it’s essential for us to spend our marketing budgets wisely and find creative strategies to develop our artists’ audiences. It’s really exciting to see Spotify is creating tools that are designed from the ground up with music marketing in mind and giving indies more power to reach their fans with new music. This will absolutely be one of the top tools in our growth arsenal.”

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How To Make The Most Of Spotify’s Canvas Tool

There are going to be a lot more looping videos on Spotify in the near future, and that’s good news for everyone.

Spotify is taking further steps to empower artists on its platform. This week, the streaming giant is expanding its Canvas visualization beta program to more of the ‘most active Spotify for Artists’ users. The company claims that adding a ‘high-quality [clip] to a track can increase streams, saves, artist profile visits, and shares.’

Canvas allows artists to create and feature looping visuals in the “Now Playing” area, which Spotify says is the most-viewed location in the Spotify mobile app. The clips last 3-8 seconds and can be updated as often as the artist desires. Here’s a Canvas clip in action for reference:

According to Spotify, “adding a high-quality Canvas to a track has increased streams by up to 120% and saves by up to 114%, in addition to lifts in artist profile visits and shares.”

The company adds, “It’s a way to get noticed and build a vision — and an excellent way to share more of who you are with your listeners, hopefully turning them into fans.”

But what makes a Canvas good, and how can artists on tight budgets compete with stylized visuals major labels can provide? Here are some tips to get you started:

Vertical video is king

Canvas uploads will be viewed by people holding their devices as they use the Spotify app. With this in mind, make sure the clips you upload are formatted for a vertical video presentation. 

Do not use your song title or artist name

That information is already present on the screen. There is something to be said for emphasizing your branding, of course, but Canvas is not the place to make that a priority. Canvas uploads should reflect the aesthetic of your music. Think of it as an extension of the music itself. It’s an expression of who you are as an artist, and you shouldn’t waste the limited space available to you with restating information that is already clearly available on the screen.

Avoid footage with talking, singing, or rapping.

Canvas clips are 3-8 seconds in length. If your clip features mouths moving they will rarely, if ever, sync up with the music. That could distract people, which in turn will make them lose interest in the song. 

Keep rapid cuts and flashing graphics to a minimum.

There are a number of people with sensitivities to strobe lights, as well as people who feel overwhelmed by quick edits. You want your Canvas to be as appealing as possible to as many people as possible, so try to avoid anything that might make people sick or otherwise uncomfortable.

Try telling a (very short) story.

3-8 seconds is not very long, but there are many ways to make something that grabs and holds listeners’ attention in that amount of time. After all, .gifs are equally as short and they’re widely considered currency in internet culture. Take up the challenge of creating content that seamlessly loops, or perhaps string together all the Canvas clips for your album to tell a single story. Think outside the box. Be weird. 

People love a theme.

If storytelling is not your strength, try using canvas to tie your music together with a theme. Pull from your artwork or branding to create visuals that leave a lasting impression on viewers. For example, if you have flowers on your cover art, try using flowers throughout the Canvas loops created for the individual tracks.

Focus on the middle.

What people see at the edge of your Canvas clip will depend on the device they are using to view the loop. With this in mind, keep the most important content of your video centered in the frame. That way, everyone who views the clip is guaranteed to see what you created in full.

Update often.

Canvas loops should not be considered a one and done scenario. Some artists have found success by changing their loops every week, while others rotate visuals on a bi-weekly or monthly basis. Keep listeners on their toes by giving them new content to discover on a regular basis.

Don’t be an idiot.

People of all ages, genders, and ethnicities use Spotify to discover music. Creating Canvas clips containing violence, sex, or anything insensitive will get your content pulled and limit the potential reach of your music. In certain cases, Spotify may even delete your account. 

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Spotify takes aim at Apple: “It’s time to play fair.”

A new video from Spotify criticizes the company’s control over the mobile market with the blistering message, “Apple comes between you and the music you love to listen to.”

The streaming wars are never-ending. A decade after the launch of Spotify, consumers have more choices than ever when it comes to streaming providers. There are dozens of companies competing for billions in potential revenue, and the two biggest names are currently locked in a brawl that seems unlikely to be resolved anytime soon.

This week, Spotify was integrated into Siri, the AI assistant included with all Apple devices. Why it took so long for such an obvious thing to happen confused many, but Spotify laid out the truth in a blistering indictment of Apple and its numerous platforms in a video featuring their signature animations. Check it out:

The video can be summarized in one blistering comment:

“We don’t love it when Apple comes between you and the things you love to listen to.”

Spotify’s video explains how Apple sets itself up to be a “referee and player” in the world of audio streaming. The company sites the 30% subscription fee the app store requires Spotify to pay as proof of this claim, as well as the fact Apple does not allow subscription through any other means. Spotify also accuses Apple of using its position of power to continually move the goalposts of the streaming business in a way that benefits its platform, Apple Music. Additionally, they accuse the company of hiding their deals, including the three months of free premium service given to all new subscribers.

At the time of this post on October 8, Apple has not yet responded to Spotify’s claims.

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Spotify surpasses 230 million monthly users, 108 million subscribers

In a new call with investors, Spotify revealed continued, if slow, growth.

It’s good to be king. Spotify was the first to make a big splash with music streaming, and their early entry into the marketplace helped propel the Swedish company to the top of the food chain. These days, the term Spotify has become synonymous with streaming. “You can find them on Spotify” means, “you can stream their music online.” That’s an excellent place to be, and the latest stats for the music company show the good times are far from over.

Spotify held its Q2 earnings call with investors earlier this week. During the update, the company announced it had passed 232 million monthly active users, up 29% since this time last year. Spotify also boasts 108 million paid subscribers, up 31% year over year. An infographic detailing all the latest developments at the company was also released. Check it out:

The biggest announcements of Spotify’s Q2 earnings report.

Apple Music is Spotify’s closest competitor. At the beginning of July, Apple Music announced it had just surpassed the 60 million subscriber mark, which leaves Spotify with a substantial lead. However, the new data from Spotify reveals a slowing adoption rate for subscribers. The cause for that slowdown is not clear, but market saturation and increased competition are two likely factors contributing to the change.

Spotify has a lot of developments on the horizon that the company hopes will raise the growth rate, including additional podcast content and a device for automobiles that will eliminate the need for terrestrial radio in vehicles. You can learn more about the device, which has been dubbed the ‘car thing,’ in the Music Biz News clip below.

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How to Succeed on Spotify in Two Steps

Streaming has made a significant impact on songwriting. So much so, that the entire music industry is trying to catch up to ‘The Spotify Sound.’

No one knew what Spotify would do to the music business. People were quick to assume the easy of access to the majority of all recorded music would lure people away from physical media, but no one thought to consider the ripple effect that seismic shift in consumer behavior would create.

Physical sales of music were on the decline before Spotify launched, but the now ten-year-old company and its competitors in the streaming market have also created a drop in download sales. A few niche formats found success in the early 2010s, specifically vinyl and cassette tapes, but those trends have also fizzled as streaming continues to gain momentum.

The latest evolution resulting from the age of streaming concerns songwriting. With most streaming platforms counting a play after consumers have listened to the track for thirty-seconds, more emphasis than ever is being placed on the way songs begin. There is also added emphasis on the runtime of tracks, as well as the volume of material being released.

On this episode of Music Biz 101, host James Shotwell explains the phenomenon know as ‘The Spotify Sound’ and offers a two-step solution to writing songs that generate a high volume of streams.

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