- Spotify has announced a new playlist creation tool called Prompted Playlists that puts you in control of your algorithm for the first time
- Like Discover Weekly, requested playlists are updated daily or monthly based on the setting you choose
- It’s rolling out now, but only in New Zealand at first – we don’t know when it’s coming to other regions
Spotify has unveiled a new playlist curation tool that could be one of the smartest features to come from the platform – say hello to prompt playlists.
Prompted Playlists take the personalized listening experience one step further, putting you in the driver’s seat and allowing you to control your algorithm. Using your detailed prompts, it lets you describe what you want to hear so you can make the rules. From there, Spotify curates a playlist and keeps it fresh with regular updates – just like Discover Weekly.
In his announcement, co-president Gustav Söderström shared “For the first time, your ideas, your logic and your creativity can actually drive the Spotify algorithm and control how it thinks, adapts and reacts to you.”
The new feature extends the capabilities of the standard AI playlist tool and is being rolled out in beta to Premium members in New Zealand. We currently don’t know when Requested Playlists will expand to other regions, but we’ve reached out to Spotify for more information.
But how exactly does it work?
It survives your prompts, big or small
Similar to the existing AI playlist tool, Prompt Playlist uses your written prompts to generate a unique playlist, but can accommodate longer and more detailed entries. It then uses all of your listening history and ‘world knowledge’ to generate the playlist, rather than just predicting what you might want to hear like Discover Weekly.
For example, you can enter the prompt ‘music from my top artists from the last five years’ and then dive deeper by asking ‘and include deep cuts I haven’t heard yet’. In one of Spotify’s examples, it uses a very detailed prompt to generate a Kpop discovery playlist to span sub-genres and hidden gems that a user might not have listened to – so the possibilities are endless.
You can also edit the prompt at any time if you want to fine-tune the results. Sounds smart doesn’t it? There is more.
Like Discover Weekly, requested playlists are updated
This is where prompt playlists really shine and where they differ from your standard AI playlist feature.
Once you’ve entered your prompt, you have the option to choose how often your prompt playlist is updated. You can choose Daily and your playlist will be updated every day at 06.00, or you can choose Weekly and decide which day your playlist should be updated.
In a way, this lets you create your own Discover Weekly-style playlists where you set the standard.
Your recommendations are put into context
Once you have your fresh prompt playlist, each song will come with descriptions and context to explain the ‘thinking’ behind the recommendations.
This is a first-time move for Spotify, which the company touts will make the playlist feel “alive and crafted specifically for your prompt and your taste.” Ever been confused by your Discover Weekly recommendations? This new tool lets you see exactly why Spotify has suggested certain songs for you.
Want to use prompt playlists when they’re rolled out everywhere? Or will you stick with your Discover Weekly? Let us know in the comments below.
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