Hello! Welcome to the latest issue of the Spotify Newsletter!

In the wake of last week’s Stream On event there’s still a fierce cadre of users and pundits unhappy with the design changes. A new round of ‘here’s how to easily cancel Spotify’ articles made the rounds, which is typical when Spotify whips up a commotion.

I’ll say this… the bulk of my Spotify usage is via desktop. I use the phone app on walks, etc.., but I’m at a desk throughout the day and mostly not effected by any jazzy, splashy vertical feeds. At least not yet.

We are in the midst of the Spotify app’s biggest revamp ever, so the hope is that the TikTokification of the platform will be a benefit to artists and fans.

Whether or not we’ll see a rollback of some of the design changes is anyone’s guess. The team clearly feels as if this is the way, so might as well make the best of the great, TikTok-y leap forward.

Beyond all the design hoopla… look at all this news!

Are you kidding me?! Perhaps I need to deliver a mid-week edition just to keep up with all the Spotify action.

There is a ridiculous amount of news, and I am just the fella to deliver it all, neatly displayed with bullet points and silly emojis. 😀

It was a great week in Spotify World.

Have a nice Friday and a terrific weekend!!

★In the SPOTlight★

⭐️ Spotify boss thinks streaming is having its radio-to-MTV moment

“In the music industry, when we went from having a radio to MTV, it was a hell of a lot better, and it allowed totally different artists to get a new way of communicating,” said Ek.

⭐️ Spotify’s Head Of Music Jeremy Erlich Talks All The Changes Coming To The Streamer

Many of the new features and updates are focused on music discovery and helping more musicians make good money via Spotify–something the behemoth in the industry has been criticized for since day one. While the company didn’t provide magic solutions to all the issues that are regularly raised or even ones that will appease everyone, several of the most notable changes coming do seem like they’ll be highly valuable to both listeners and artists alike.

⭐️ Spotify approaches $40bn in all-time payouts to the music industry

Spotify says that “nearly 70%” of every dollar it generates from music “is paid back as royalties to rightsholders, who then pay the artists and songwriters, based on the agreed terms”.

⭐️ Spotify's HiFi tier is coming — but not soon

Spotify announced that a lossless tier called Spotify HiFi would be released in 2021. Two years later, an exec says the HiFi tier is definitely coming, but no word yet on when.

⭐️ Celebrating 10 Years of Spotify in Italy and Poland

Ten years ago, Spotify launched in Italy and Poland, and we began our work to engage with local creative talent and the community through Spotify programs, festivals, and events.

🗣 Podcast Action 🗣

• Spotify’s Emma Chamberlain, Bill Simmons Talk Art of the Podcast Interview

🎧 The Playlist List 🎧

• India.Arie Talks Return to Spotify & ‘Acoustic Soul’ Legacy

• Songs Featured in ‘The Last of Us’ Have Enjoyed a Huge Upswing in Streams

• The Ultimate List Of Spotify Playlists And Curators You Can Pitch Music To For Free

• 5 Ways Spotify Playlists Help Your Songs Reach Fans Around the World

• Fans think Frank Ocean has been uploading old music to Spotify under alias

• Shania Twain Records Favorite Songs for Spotify Singles Release

• South Africans have streamed 1.2bn hours of Spotify since 2018

💡 Tips & Tricks 💡

• How to use Spotify's new short video feature Clips

• How to use Spotify Countdown Pages, Pre-saves to promote a new release - Hypebot

• How to stream Spotify music to the HomePod 2

• How to avoid scams and get music on independent Spotify playlists

🖌 Design Notes 🖌

• VP of Technology and Platforms Tyson Singer Shares How Developers Can Solve Complexity With Backstage

• Behind the Scenes of Spotify’s New AI DJ

• Spotify's new vertical discovery feed is more than just a TikTok clone

⚽️ Fútbol ⚽️

• Spotify and FC Barcelona Celebrate ROSALÍA’s ‘MOTOMAMI’ With a Special Shirt and In-App Fan Experience

💰 Spotify Stock 💰

• Spotify’s new activist investor is keeping a close eye on podcast spending

• Spotify crosses 500M users as Wall Street bullish on Ek's 'next generation' pledge

🔥 Extra News 🔥

• Garth Brooks Explains No Spotify, Amazon-Only Streaming

• ‘More meaningful connections’: will Spotify’s updates mean a proper payday for artists?

• Designer Thebe Magugu Reveals the Music That Inspired His ‘Folklorics’ Collection

• Meet the 29-year-old anchoring Spotifys ambitions in Bangladesh

• Groovifi is a free app that promises a better way to create Spotify playlists by letting you decide the mood, BPM, key, rhythm and genre of your songs

• What do Spotify DJ & YouTube's Radio Builder mean for broadcast radio?

• Spotify adds endless scroll videos to its audio streaming app

• Spotify - Loud & Clear: How the Money Flows

• Spotify measured users' skin activity for science

• Spotify Resolves Widespread Bug After More Than a Year

• Brittany Schaffer To Exit Spotify, Appointed Dean Of Belmont University’s Curb College

• WondrLab India’s campaign for Spotify makes women’s voices heard by silencing them

🎵 New Adventures 🎵

We're in This Love Together Al Jarreau

Left Foot Stepdown The Bees

Love And Affection Joan Armatrading

Casino Boogie The Rolling Stones

Taper Jean Girl Kings of Leon

History, Now Mavis Staples

This Thing That I've Found The Autumn Defense

Storm-A-Comin’ Pokey LaFarge

Rotten Peaches Elton John

Crazy Love Poco

📧 Get in touch 📧

If you have a question, idea, request, or simply a desire to chat about Spotify, please email me at jeff.spotifynewsletter@gmail.com.

😀 Have a Nice Weekend! 😀