Happy Friday! Welcome to another issue of the Spotify Newsletter!

There was an abundance of top-shelf news about Spotify this week. Even Spotify stock made a nice jump - after it reached an agreement with Google that lets subscribers sign up for the service directly through the Google Play store.

The music biz was also keen to see the new and updated data from Spotify—and figures from 2021 that the audio giant notes reveals ‘further meaningful progress toward a healthier and more diverse music industry.’

You should take a look at Spotify’s Top 10 takeaways from the report, via their Loud & Clear resource. It’s a helpful, up-close view into the business of Spotify; from the artists and industry professionals, to the royalty system, the players, and the process. 

The results include: 

• Publishers earned $1B+ from Spotify for the second year running;

• Of the artists who generated $10K+ from Spotify, 28%+ self-distribute; and 

• 34% of those artists live in countries outside the top 10 music markets.

Spotify will catch heat from some circles, but that comes with the territory when you’re the lead dog. Woof!

Thanks for reading! Have a great day! 😀

★In the SPOTlight★

⭐️ Spotify Paid Out $7 Billion to the Music Industry — Labels, Publishers and Others — in 2021

That total is more than any other service — with more than 180 million paying subscribers, Spotify is the top paid-subscription music service in the world by far — and sets the record for the highest annual payment from any single retailer in history, including during the height of the CD era, according to the announcement.

⭐️ Google Will Let Spotify Add In-App Billing on Android and Lowers App-Store Fee Cut

Under new agreement, Spotify will pay less than the standard 30% commission to Google

⭐️ Spotify updates Loud & Clear site including 2021 payout stats

The refreshed Loud & Clear website drills down into payouts generated by artists on Spotify. That’s the money paid to their rightsholders (including labels and publishers) for streams of their music, although remember that how much the artists see of that money will depend on the terms of their contracts with those companies.

⭐️ Spotify Reportedly Rebranding Its Clubhouse Clone as 'Spotify Live'

Spotify's live conversation app Greenroom is expected to be rebranded as Spotify Live, with its content made available in the main Spotify music streaming app.

⭐️ Spotify seems to be testing a revitalized Car Mode

It ‘retired’ Car View last year, without a widely available replacement

🗣 Podcast Action 🗣

Spotify Update Suggests One Ingredient To Podcast Engagement Starts With Search Results

Meghan Markle’s First Spotify Podcast Series to Examine Stereotypes About Women

🎧 The Playlist List 🎧

Linkin Park’s ‘Numb’ Has Reached One Billion Spotify Streams

Coldplay x BTS's 'My Universe' surpasses 500 million streams on Spotify

Can You See Who Liked Your Spotify Playlist?

🖌 Design Notes 🖌

Spotify: 10 Features to Make Listening Easier and Better

Meredith Humphrey and Her Team’s Spotify Hack Week Project Imagines a Green Tour Planner for Artists

🔥 Even More Hot News Links 🔥

LaKeith Stanfield Relates Acting to Music Ahead of the Third Season of ‘Atlanta’

Music Venue Trust calls for Spotify to invest in venues

Fave is Spotify’s new EQUAL member 

Ikea’s new Vappeby Bluetooth lamp speaker has Spotify Tap support

A short film about a touchscreen streamer for Spotify, Tidal & Roon

The Best VPN for Spotify: Unblock & Access Spotify Anywhere in 2022

Spotify Pakistan Partnered With ‘Coke Studio’ This Season To Amplify Artists in the Region and Beyond

Benoit Carré’s new AI music album made with Spotify tools

🎵 New Adventures in Spotify 🎵

Smithsonian The Avett Brothers

Morning Noon & Night Ryan Shaw

The Hustler Beachwood Sparks

White Light/White Heat The Velvet Underground

Please Don't Go Stevie Wonder

Bring on the Dancing Horses Echo & the Bunnymen

Illegal Smile John Prine

I Like to Move In the Night Eagles Of Death Metal

Crawl After You M. Ward

😀 Have a Nice Weekend! 😀

Get in touch

If you have a question, idea, request, or simply a desire to chat about Spotify, please email me (Jeff) at hi@spotifynewsletter.com.