Suggestion: Re-Link Missing Songs

[MegaMan]

I'll start out by saying I understand that music comes and goes on streaming platforms, but I like that Spotify still leaves a space for the missing song, whether it's on streaming or local; this is a huge advantage to YouTube where a song will disappear and you won't even have any indication of what's been removed.

The issue I've run into is if a certain song is taken off the platform, Spotify will substitute a similar song in place of the original. I'm very opposed to switching out a song without the user's consent; if a song from a certain album is missing, I'd prefer it be listed as missing instead of substituted with something else entirely. For some examples, I've noticed songs by Hank Williams and Johnny Cash have been unknowingly substituted with re-recordings and overdubs, sometimes made posthumously.

A proposed solution I have is to link a missing file with a local file. To bring in another issue that would be solved by this option is the constant removal of local songs. Often times a local file will show up as missing without changing the name or location of the original file. A simple option to open a directory and locate the file is much preferred to re-importing it each time.

So to sum up my issues: don't automatically substitute for missing media and allow the option to re-link missing media.

[Mario]

Hey @MegaMan,

Thanks for reaching out about this here in the Community.

To clarify, what you're reporting is something that Spotify doesn't have control over as the availability of music on the platform (including whether a song is substituted for a different version of it) is determined by the artists and their music label or distributors. For more details on this, it'd be great to take a look at this support site article. 

If you'd like to suggest the option to make missing media available in any particular ways as an Idea for Spotify, it'd be great for you to follow these steps:

1. Go to the Spotify Community

2. Click on Menu

3. Click on Ideas > Idea submissions

4. Scroll all the way to the bottom and click on Let’s go

As a heads-up, it's good to know that the higher the number of votes an Idea gets, the more likely it is for the Idea to be implemented. If you also wish to learn more about how your feedback will reach Spotify, feel free to take a look at this article.

Hope you'll find this info useful. Have a nice day!