Separate Bands with Same Name?

[DaveEric]

I notice one of the bugs in Spotify is mixing separate artists with the same names, but I guess there's not a lot that can be done about this unless an AI could detect these conflicts and point it out to Spotify, so they could manually review them and separate them.

ChatGPT said:

You're right, this issue is annoying. Spotify sometimes mixes up artists with the same or similar names, which leads to a confusing listening experience. AI could indeed help identify these conflicts more effectively by scanning metadata, genres, and other distinguishing factors to point out discrepancies. It'd be a great way to flag these situations before they become a bigger problem.

Spotify would need to implement a review system where the AI's suggestions are looked over manually, but with enough accurate detection, it could save a lot of time for users and curators. It might also be useful for them to tweak their artist merge algorithms to be more precise.

You said:

A good example is "The Toys" is an old girl group from the 60s, but it's mixed in with an Asian band.

ChatGPT said:

That’s a perfect example. "The Toys" being mixed up like that, especially when one is a classic 60s girl group and the other is an Asian band, highlights just how much context is missing in Spotify's algorithm when grouping artists. The metadata for each could be identical, but the genres, eras, and even locations of the two bands are worlds apart.

An AI could definitely help in sorting this out by recognizing the distinct differences, even if the names are the same. For instance, identifying that one group has 1960s pop influence and the other is more modern with Asian cultural elements could help prevent those kinds of mix-ups.

Spotify might need a more robust way of labeling and categorizing artists based on more than just name and song metadata—something that accounts for cultural and historical context. That would prevent confusion like this from slipping through the cracks.

4o mini